In The Net Bets

@InTheNetBets Anonymous whistleblow - for those who have restrictions, you know if you can bet or not because the website either lets you or tells you you’re not eligible. Skybet REMOVED this function so that those who were ineligible would place bets not knowing they wouldn’t get their 1/3

Affordability & 'Locked Accounts' Thread @skybet @GamRegGB I've been speaking today with one very frustrated bettor - Phil Smith @philbetting about the issues he and others are having in regards 'locked' @skybet accounts and their absolute failure to deal with affordability checks in anything approaching a timely manner and communicate with those impacted. Phil is a serious punter we have known at SBC for a few years. He bets antepost and has made a living from his betting for several years. 5 weeks ago his own long-held Skybet account was locked as they needed to verify his deposits and requested to see documentation from him to prove he could pass affordability checks. A plethora of documents to prove this were sent 5 weeks ago including lifetime Betfair figures (+250k), other exchange/bookmaker statements alongside bank accounts. Phil can patently afford to bet at the levels he has done so at Skybet. During this time Phil has been unable to log into his Skybet account so can't access his funds and circa the £12k in bets he actively has with them. Each week Phil has called to ask for an update on the status of his account, yet the department who oversees it do not speak to customers on the phone, nor do they reply to emails. There is no communication and no accountability. 5 weeks have passed and the feedback from the 'safer gambling team' who are the only ones willing to speak on the phone to Phil is that there is a 'backlog' of locked and suspended accounts and he is one of a large number of bettors impacted. Assuming they are all in the same boat as Phil - all of these bettors will be unable to login to their accounts and withdraw their funds and no doubt for some this will be a huge financial concern. This is not exactly something that espouses a responsible gambling approach from Skybet if people can't access their own money and have no timeline as to when they can. Phil might be unique in his position as a bigger bettor and someone who can financially handle not having access to his account, but it is surely unreasonable to expect him and others to wait 5 weeks (and possibly longer) for any resolution to such matters. This all raises serious questions for @skybet and in turn the regulator about the systems they have in place to run 'affordability checks' and how many people are impacted and unable to access their funds without any communication for several weeks, if not months. It is our view that it is simply unacceptable to lock accounts for extended periods of time and fail to process documents, communicate with customers and provide even a basic level of customer service. It smacks of bookmakers behaving with impunity and with no regards for their customers as well a regulator unable to enforce basic standards. Affordability checks have been here for a while now and not having staff or resources in place to process documents is simply not acceptable. A cynic might suggest that firms are doing this to hold onto funds as long as possible in the hope some customers simply give up on accessing it ever again. If you have had a similar issue with accounts held in your own name with Skybet or any other bookmakers, please do share your experience. It's time this issue was highlighted properly.

@SkyBet are lucky I don’t have a bigger platform to share this, because the way they treat their customers is the worst of any bookmaker by a country mile. I feel the need to share this in order to try and prevent others from giving any more money to these thieving bastards.