Bet365 in trouble down under

Bet365 has been accused of misleading punters in Australia by the ACCC.

The online bookmaker, Bet365, has been accused of misleading punters in Australia, reports the Sunday Morning Herald.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has launched legal action, claiming that the firm are misleading customers with a promotion which requires them to gamble $1200 before they could recover $200 in what they claimed to be “free bets”.

The ACCC launched their action in Federal Court earlier this week.

Document from Court highlights that from March 2013 and February 2014, Bet365’s opening webpage displayed the headline offer: “$200 free bets for new customers”, and then from February this year: “Up to $200 deposit bonus for new customers”.

These promotions have been labelled “misleading” by the ACCC. They argue that the promotions breached consumer laws as they were subject to conditions that were not prominently displayed.

The conditions that Bet 365 included in the offers was that the punter needed to gamble up to $200 first in order to receive a “free bet” or “deposit bonus” of the same amount. Players also needed to be gamble three times the value of their deposit and bonus within 90 days before they withdrew any of their winnings on the site, and they needed to bet on higher risk transactions.

“As a result, a consumer who made an initial deposit of $200 and received $200 in bets was required to then gamble $1200 before being able to withdraw any money,” an ACCC statement said.

The ACCC is suing Hillside (Australia) New Media Pty Ltd, Hillside (New Media) Limited and Bet365 Group Limited – three local companies that are all linked with Britain’s biggest online gambling company, Bet365 Group.

Bet365 claims to have more than 14 million customers in 200 countries. The local operation in Australia is licensed and regulated by the Northern Territory Government.

ACCC chairman Rod Sims, said: “The online betting industry is a growing business sector. The Australian Consumer Law applies to this sector in the same way that it applies to other industries and sectors.

“The Consumer Law also requires that any conditions, limitations or restrictions should be made clear to the consumer before the purchase rather than after a consumer has been unfairly enticed into a transaction.”

Bet365, which entered the Australian market last year, has since changed the advertising content on its website.

Last week, Two Little Fleas brought you the news that the site is currently struggling in Australia, reporting losses of AUS$40.8 million with their Australia venture.

This latest loss means that the online betting firm have accumulated losses of AUS$77 million since they entered the Australian market just over two years ago. Indeed, in 2013, Bet365 recorded a loss of AUS$36.2 million. The parent company in the UK has continued to prop up the Australian subsidiary, with loans that do not require repayment until the firm begins to turn over a profit.

The Australian branch of the firm has reported growth despite the financial loss. In the twelve months ended March 31 2014, the company grew by 278 per cent to AUS$29.1 million – which is a significant improvement on the AUS$7.7 million of the year before this.