Punter beats bookie in £1.7m court battle
A PUNTER has won his legal fight against a betting firm over its refusal to pay a £1.7million jackpot he won online.
Andrew Green said he felt as though he had been “robbed” when Betfred told him it would not hand over his 2018 win because of a software glitch.
He brought legal action against the firm at the High Court and, yesterday, a judge ruled in his favour.
Mr Green, 54, of Washingborough, Lincs, said he was delighted to have won his case – which means he will finally receive his payout, plus interest.
He added: “I think Betfred have treated me abysmally.
“Along with my family, I have been through some very low times and become very down.
“My physical health has also suffered badly, and I sometimes wished I’d never won this money, because it was just making my life a misery.
“But today, I feel like the world has been lifted off my shoulders and I feel so incredibly happy and relieved.”
At a hearing in October, Mr Green’s lawyers asked Mrs Justice Foster to either rule in his favour or strike out Betfred’s defence to his claim.
The bookmaker had argued that the software glitch, which stopped the game from resetting properly while Mr Green was playing, made it more likely to pay out higher sums in winnings than intended.
The bookmaker also argued it was covered under the terms and conditions of the game.
However, Mrs Justice Foster ruled that the wording of the clauses relied upon was “inadequate”, and “not transparent or fair and Betfred were not entitled to rely upon them”. Mr Green played the game, called Frankie Dettori’s Magic Seven Blackjack, on an online platform hosted by Betfred.
Having won £1,722,923.54, he tried to withdraw it, but his withdrawal was declined.
His solicitor Peter Coyle said: “Our justice system has delivered exactly the right result. It will give hope to others who may be thinking the big, rich guys always win.”