Investigation accuses Ladbrokes of "effectively rigging the game"

[The Buzz]

An investigation by the Sunday Mail has uncovered leaked documents from Ladbrokes that outline how it carried out “client risk” assessments before profiling accounts with a “stake factor band”.

The system encouraged unsuccessful gamblers to stake more while making it "almost impossible for effective punters to have a bet."

From the article:

Punters who are considered “VIP” or “HVC” – presumed to mean High Value Customer – appear to have been encouraged to place up to five times their intended stake.

This can be done through offering promotional free bets, special odds and even complimentary tickets for sporting events.

There have also been claims of customers being offered cash-back incentives after heavy losses in order to keep them betting.

Meanwhile, those at the other end of the spectrum were limited to as little as one pence for every pound they want to stake.

The internal documents – which the firm claims are now outdated – state: “Client Risk is responsible for assessing customers and allocating an appropriate Stake Factor, where SF is an indication of customer value.” It goes on to describe how the Stake Factor determines the percentage of a system-generated standard bet a customer is allowed to place.

Read more here: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/s...nters-14836719

[Cash Bonus]

I wouldn’t be surprised. Ladbrokes and other casino operators will undoubtedly make things work to their own advantage at every chance they can get.

[Mattbar]

They have been doing similar things in retail for donkeys years, doesn't surprise me one bit that a company who's sole interest is profit would use the same tactics.

[PROFRBcom]

They have been doing similar things in retail for donkeys years, doesn't surprise me one bit that a company who's sole interest is profit would use the same tactics.

That is the problem with corporations is it not? They are legal entities who have as a main purpose, GREED.

Now do not get me wrong, I own a corporation, and I, like damn near every human on the planet, is greedy and wants to amass more resources than necessary to insure long-term survival, comfort, and the ability to childishly indulge in every whim imaginable.

While these things have some merit from one side of the equation, from the other they pose a threat to social order.

I am not advocating for socialism, communism, the destruction of capitalism, etc, but it is definitely worth noting that people inside of CORPORATIONS are encouraged to stoke the fires of greed and avarice, while taking exploitative behavior of fellow men and women to the extreme.

Sometimes I feel guilty about working in the "gambling" industry, even though we do advocate players play a game that can actually be beaten if they work at it hard enough.

[Mail2Media Ltd]

It's been going on in every high street bookies since time immemorial. They encourage punters to stake more with pork pies at my local bookies!

[Sherlock]

Ladbrokes are complete sh1t. But they do not do anything else than any other bookie. Even bet365 do this (they used to be called bet3.65 where 3.65 was max bet for sharper players). Bovada/Bodog/SIA even give different odds to differnet players. It is even normal to show doors to players the bookies do not like.

[fullbenefit]

I guess that's where you draw the line and don't allow things like that to happen.

[ocreditor]

Just another ordinary day at Ladbrokes

[Pilot]

I would not be very surprised. But this doesn't only happen at Ladbrokes neither. Players that lose a lot get bonuses, players that win get their limits set to 1 Euro maximum bet. This is how it works.

[Karri]

The VIP staff of every online casino is pretty much just setup to make people with gambling problems to play more.

[ddm]

Ladbrokes are complete sh1t. But they do not do anything else than any other bookie. Even bet365 do this (they used to be called bet3.65 where 3.65 was max bet for sharper players). Bovada/Bodog/SIA even give different odds to differnet players. It is even normal to show doors to players the bookies do not like.

I guess this is why smart punters bet on exchanges, not fixed odds bookies.

[Sherlock]

It is the opposite. Smart bettors try to sneak in as casual bettors to the regular bookies. There is not much money to be made on sharp bookies and exchanges. But since the risk management of the casual bookies improved that much lately (so they can slash maxbets to nothing to dangerous bettors and raise them to stupid whales), there are no smart bettors anymore.