- Betfred has been ordered to payout the £1.7 million jackpot winnings owed to Andrew Green of Lincolnshire.
- Green was initially denied his winnings due to claimed defect in software by Betfred.
- Judge Justice Foster ruled in favor of Green.
LINCOLNSHIRE, U.K. – Andrew Green, a 56-year-old Lincolnshire gambler has recently been awarded £1.7 million by the High Court after winning a lawsuit against Betfred.
The lawsuit stems from Green winning a blackjack jackpot game on his mobile device in 2018. While Green was initially congratulated for his victory, Betfred later told Green his win was caused by a defect in the software and they would not payout his jackpot wins.
This led to the three-year lawsuit between Green and the online casino, which finally resulted in a big win for the plaintiff.
Betfred Loses Big
Initially, Betfred attempted to payout a £60,000 goodwill gesture to Green, but the plaintiff refused, leading to the three-year legal dispute.
According to Betfred's terms and conditions, they are able to void a win if it is caused by a software malfunction. The courts, however, didn’t view it that way for this particular case.
“It is not dealing with the failure to pay out winnings at all,” wrote Justice Foster, High Court Judge on her ruling of the case. “Nor is it dealing with a fault or glitch or programming mistake that is undetectable to either party … I am of the clear view that these clauses in the terms and conditions are inadequate to exempt Betfred from the obligation to pay out on an ostensibly winning bet or series of bets.”
While Betfred’s lawyers initially wanted the case to go to court, Judge Foster’s ruling ended the proceedings altogether, award in favor of Green. Following this, Betfred opted not to appeal the ruling and is expected to pay Green his winnings.
Green is elated about the victory, finally able to end the three-year legal battle and move on with his life.
“The last three years have felt like hell on earth,” said Green following the ruling. “I think Betfred have treated me abysmally, but it's not about Betfred today - I'm just ecstatic to have eventually won my case. 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 - for me, my family and my legal team. The champagne can finally come off ice and be savoured."
The online gambling operation deciding to not peruse any further legal action could be them also being ready to move on from the case altogether. Lawyers representing Betfred apologized for the delay when announcing they would not contest the ruling.