Betfred Ordered to Pay £900,000 After Gambling Commission Probe

Petfre Limited, the operator behind Betfred.com, has been ordered to pay £900,000 following a Gambling Commission investigation into its social responsibility controls.

The settlement comes after a compliance assessment carried out in 2024 revealed serious failings in how the company monitored and interacted with customers at risk of gambling harm. Regulators said the operator did not act quickly enough when warning signs appeared, and its systems lacked the automation needed to protect vulnerable players.

The Commission noted that between October 2023 and June 2024, Petfre failed to comply with several parts of Social Responsibility Code Provision 3.4.3, which requires licensees to identify, act, and evaluate customer interactions effectively.

Failings in customer interaction and monitoring

The review highlighted multiple breaches of the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice. Regulators found that Petfre did not fully follow the Commission’s guidance on customer interaction, particularly around the use of automated systems to detect harm. Instead, the company relied on manual processes that created delays.

Paragraph 4 of SRCP 3.4.3 requires operators to monitor customer activity from the moment an account is opened. Petfre’s system, however, included a seven‑day delay before accounts flagged for review were checked again.

This meant customers could continue gambling heavily without timely intervention

The Commission pointed to one example where a customer was flagged after exceeding a deposit limit. Staff decided not to act further, and within a day the customer deposited and lost nearly £18,000.

“Diligent implementation of effective policies and procedures are the cornerstones of safer gambling in Britain,” stated John Pierce, Commission Director of Enforcement in the press release announcing the fine.

“The Commission found that Petfre didn’t have sufficiently effective procedures in place, meaning some customers displaying markers of harm were not contacted quickly enough.”

Petfre’s history played a role in large penalty

The Gambling Commission confirmed that Petfre will pay £900,000 in lieu of a financial penalty, with the money directed to the Consolidated Fund.

The settlement also includes covering the Commission’s investigation costs and agreeing to the publication of a statement of facts.

The regulator also confirmed that Petfre’s history of regulatory action and the fact that similar issues had been raised with other companies before played a big role in the £900k fine. Just last year, the company received a £240,000 penalty over online slots breaches and in 2022, it was fined a £2.87m for AML and social responsibility breaches.

However, it did note that Petfre cooperated fully with the investigation and quickly put in place an action plan to address the failings. “While the gaps we identified were unacceptable, the licensee acted swiftly to implement interim mitigating controls to address our immediate concerns. They have since delivered an appropriate action plan and taken significant steps to assure the Commission that their current operating model meets our requirements,” Pierced added.

“We expect all operators to learn from this case and read the public statement to ensure they do not make the same mistakes.”

Betfred Ordered to Pay £900,000 After Gambling Commission Probe

Failings in customer interaction and monitoring

Petfre’s history played a role in large penalty

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