UKGC Imposes £490,000 Fine on PPB

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has imposed a fine of £490,000 on PPB Counterparty Services Limited, trading as Paddy Power and Betfair, for sending promotional push notifications to devices linked to customers who had self-excluded.

On 21 November 2021, the operator’s app distributed an offer of enhanced odds for bets on an English Premier League football match to devices either linked to accounts that were GAMSTOP registered or devices linked to accounts that were self-excluded with the Licensee.

This action breached Commission rules requiring gambling businesses to take all reasonable steps to prevent any marketing material being sent to a self-excluded customer, and to take steps to remove the name and details of a self-excluded individual from any marketing databases within two days of receiving the completed self-exclusion notification.

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Kay Roberts, Gambling Commission Executive Director of Operations, said: “Although there is no evidence the marketing was intentional, nor that all the people with apps saw the notification or that self-excluded customers were allowed to gamble, we take such breaches seriously.

“We would advise all operators to learn from the operator’s failures and ensure their systems are robust enough to always prevent self-excluded customers from being sent promotional material.”