Bet365 has been fined SEK79m over its failure to comply with Sweden’s regulations on responsible gambling

Bet365’s operator Hillside has been ordered by Swedish regulator Spelinspektionen to pay SEK79.0m in fines for failing to comply with responsible gambling regulations.

The penalty includes SEK65.0m for Hillside Sports and SEK14.0m for Hillside Gaming, with both operations also receiving a warning from the regulator.

According to Spelinspektionen, Bet365 failed to take adequate measures to prevent excessive gambling and did not assist players in reducing their gambling when necessary.

Bet365 received criticism from the regulator for not safeguarding consumers against problematic gambling

Spelinspektionen has highlighted additional shortcomings in Hillside Sports and Hillside Gaming’s customer protection measures. The operator allowed customers to play without setting deposit limits, and failed to proactively intervene in problematic cases, according to the regulator.

Spelinspektionen also criticized the companies’ slow reaction in taking measures to prevent continued risky gambling. Furthermore, the original action plans lacked descriptions of measures to be taken for young players aged 18-24 and those who had previously been suspended.

“In general, it has taken too long before the two companies took measures to prevent continued risky gambling,”.

“We also noted that the original action plans lacked a description of what measures should be taken in the event of excessive gambling for young players (18-24 years) and for those who had previously been suspended.”

Swedish consumer protection lapses at Bet365

Spelinspektionen, in their investigation spanning from 17 October 2021 to 17 December 2021, cited specific instances of non-compliance and highlighted multiple customer cases for both brands.

One Hillside Sports customer, who had set limits of SEK1.0m daily or weekly and SEK5.0m monthly, deposited funds on 53 of the 62 audited days and incurred losses of SEK261,593.

Another customer, who had registered just two days prior to the audit period, lost SEK386,400 after raising their deposit limits.

During the same two-month period, Spelinspektionen identified additional cases involving Hillside Gaming.

One player, who had not set any deposit limits, lost SEK259,372 and placed a total of 240 bets, playing daily for four weeks during the audit.

Another player, with a weekly limit of SEK20,000, a monthly limit of SEK100,000, and a weekly deposit limit of SEK250,000, made 61 deposits and lost SEK73,730 in total.

Moreover, another Hillside Gaming customer with no deposit limits made 105 deposits during the audit period, with only one withdrawal, resulting in a loss of SEK104,512.

These penalties followed Spelinspektionen’s recent fine of SEK4.0m on Betfair, which is owned by Flutter Entertainment, for offering bets on football competitions that are not permitted by Swedish law, such as the U21 Allsvenskan league. Swedish legislation allows betting only on the top four levels of league football in the country.