Betfred Branded ‘Unfair’ Over £1.7m Win Refusal!

Three Years of Absolute Hell!

Online bingo and casino games open up a world of endless possibilities with every spin of the reels or dab of the ticket, and it’s the thought of landing a huge win that draws many of us in. When you win whether it be big or small, you put your whole trust in the operator to pay out accordingly, but one man from Lincolnshire was refused his winnings and not just a couple of hundred quid or a few thousand pounds – but £1.7m!

I remember reading about Andrew Green’s ordeal back in 2018 when it first hit the headlines after vowing to drag the operator through the courts, so here we are, 39-months on with news on how the court proceedings concluded and with all cases, there is a winner and there is a loser. Will it be two loses for Mr Green? Or victory at last?

For those of you who don’t know the full story, back in 2018, the 54-year-old was playing the popular horse-themed title, Frankie Dettori's Magic Seven Blackjack over at Betfred, when a message popped up on his screen congratulating him on becoming a millionaire. After the shock had subsided, he hurried to the cashier and requested a withdrawal of his winnings - £1,722,923.54.

Light at The End of The Tunnel

For five whole days after his win, he was congratulated by the operator on his new life-changing sum, but things took a sinister turn. Betfred told the new millionaire that he wouldn’t receive a penny of his winnings due to a “defect” in the game. He was then offered £60K as compensation. Could you image that? Feeling as though he had been “robbed,” Mr Green starting court proceedings against the popular online bingo and casino betting operator and now they have ruled in his favour!

He said the past three years had felt “like hell on earth” and on hearing the ruling he felt "numb, very numb.” He continued: “I did nothing wrong; I played a game, I was congratulated for five days on being a millionaire, and then it was snatched away from me. I think Betfred has treated me abysmally, but it's not about Betfred today - I'm just ecstatic to have eventually won my case. But this isn't just a win for me, it's a win for everybody - that they can't treat people like this.”

Betfred’s lawyers made a huge case for not paying and stated to the courts that they were not liable for the pay out due to this “defect,” explaining that it made it more likely to pay out unintended large cash winnings. However, their reasoning for confiscating this man’s winnings was “just not apt to cover the circumstances of this case at all,” according to Mrs Justice Foster.

If you win you win – how they thought they could just stop the jackpot is beyond belief! Speaking after the ruling, Mr Green had some encouraging words for other online players: “People who use these platforms hopefully will realise with my story there is justice out there. Don't be bullied by these people and in the end, justice will be theirs.”

Source: “Man Wins High Court Battle Over Betfred’s Refusal to Pay Out £1.7m Jackpot”. Sky News. April 8, 2021.