Legal firm claims GBP 1.5 million from gambling companies.
News on 12 Dec 2018
News on 12 Dec 2018
According to a report in the Guardian newspaper Tuesday the London legal firm Mackrell Turner Garrett has filed suit seeking GBP 1.5 million in victim compensation settlements against FTSE-listed betting firms’ – William Hill Plc and Paddy Power Betfair Plc (PPB).
The victim compensation claims relate to addicted gamblers wagering with stolen money at William Hill betting shops and PPB’s Betfair betting exchange, the newspaper reports. The filings claim that the betting groups failed in their obligation to prevent money laundering and intervene with visible problem gambling behaviours.
In the William Hill claim, the undisclosed problem gambler is reported to have wagered GBP 650,000 in stolen money at two betting shops, over six months losing GBP 150,000. Makrell seeks GBP 600,000 from William Hill, pointing to alleged transactions, where the gambler on two occasions wagered GBP 50,000 in one day without the betting shops fulfilling ‘source of funds’ requirements.
The filing notes that the UK Gambling Commission is currently investigating the case.
The case against Paddy Power Betfair was also the subject of a Gambling Commission enquiry and relates to activity at the group’s betting exchange subsidiary last October. The Commission concluded that Betfair had failed to intervene when a gambling addict wagered with GBP 900,000 stolen cash from a Birmingham charity, failing on standards of social responsibility.
Mackrell states that it had initially pursued a voluntary settlement with PPB, offering management an agreement deadline which has now passed.
“I am disappointed that the Gambling Commission and Paddy Power Betfair have both failed to engage with my clients, despite offering comments to the media about their commitment to tackling the problem,” James Atton partner at Mackrell told The Guardian.
