barking..I cannot see how Betfair could possibly win a court case.Every punter on here can tell a tale of when they made such a mistake. No refunds and certainly no void race.How many emails have Betfair sent out to customers explaining exactly that ?

The people who baacked at 28/1 thinking it was easy money, and even those who backed a mile out at a ridiculous price, haven't a hope.

Those who had other involvements in the race, and who have been indirectly affected by the technical glitch I have some sympathy for. For example, you back Mourad before the race with the intention of laying at smaller odds after a mile. That person has had lay bet voided and back bet as a loser.

Also those who's systems went into meltdown trying to take advantage of the 28/1 that never was by trading here and trading elsewhere for sure profit -I feel sorry for those.

However those who backed at 28/1 and are protesting that they should get money - these people must be desperate if they are going to court. Ironically, it's this type of punter who's shouting loudest.

Homefortea - I'm 'at' what 'again', exactly..??

makeyourownrules Joined: 28 Dec 11
Replies: 12 29 Dec 11 01:58   

I can assure you categorically this incident has been determined illegally


No you can't.  HTH.

Can you check out premium charge legality at the same time..  Under european Law you cannot deal with customers like this

homefortea - I don't see how anyone has "suffered"; some may have intended to bet Voler in running expecting a price of c 3.0, those have missed a win but not suffered a loss. Zaynar's bets were placed when the race was all but over tho...

I just got 1.7 for ishiamiracle to place, will bf void my bet since the 2nd fav was left in the stalls and 1.7 was therefore too good to be true

millhouse,
I'm surprised at you. I would have thought you would be more on the side of the punter. We make mistakes and Betfair pocket the cash. I once transposed a price/stake and was told it was tough luck, it's up to me to check things properly.

Winners trade at 1000 on here what would you have said if the horse had taken the wrong course or a layer had noticed a weight had dropped off. I backed it but due to the nature of this place wondered if I was going to lose my money to someone who knew something I didn't. If it had done something wrong or fallen/slipped up I wouldn't have expected my money back.

The whole point is that Betfair have used the excuse of exceeded exposure which is clearly wrong compared to their terms and conditions whch say those bets will stand. It doesn't say "as long as the punter is good for the cash" which to me means they expect to stand the difference. I don't think anyone expects the punter to pay the full amount but there are precedents on rugby, cricket and football where Betfair have allegedly stood the payouts on accounts that had negative balances. OK so this is a big one but that's why firms are supposed to test their stuff. As to the integrity term I take that to mean punter to punter not Betfair's integrity which seems to be lacking because it's their fault the bet was processed.

Surely Betfair have some sort of indemnity insurance for their software? Who are they protecting? The punter, themselves or their insurance company?

not sure how relevant this is but i trade commodity futures on an exchange. several times a year there are 'clear errors' on illiquid positions or on the open/close... to my own cost i know these can run into six figures on any given occasion... the situation with this exchange is clear... ur problem. u put the trade in and u have to pay. if people use automated programs to trade and these screw up - they deserve to lose imo. if betfair has a hidden system of allowing customers unlimited funds i think its wrong as not a level playing field (and certain ly not public info which it prob shud be). if its betfairs own in house acct that has screwed up - again they shud take the losses like we are all expected to when we make a mistake (press lay rather than back etc).... i actually hope those affected go to court and win (as a principal)

Taking a large corporation to court (like BF) could well run into hundreds of £1000's in they contest. You're paying for the best legal advise and representation around. This doesn't come cheap. If the OP has a few million knocking around spare then it is possible to proceed.

If you lose you may well up up paying the other sides costs as well.

This isn't like taking your local cowboy builder to court in the small claims court because he built you a wonky wall.

I feel sorry for the genuine punters who got mixed up in all this, but there are many who have tried to capitalise on a very obvious glitch and it's backfired.

In my opinion, there are two types of punter with an involvement in this market.

1) Those who snapped up the 28/1 even though it was clear those odds were not reflective of the horse's chance. Morally, I cannot understand how these people think they have any claim to any money. They have had their stake returned to them and are no worse off than they were pre-race. I acknowledge that they may have had funds tied up for 2-3 hours, and on that score I would have some sympathy.

2) The other type of punter is the one who has lost out on the race despite no devious tactic on their part. For example someone's bot sees 10/1 on **** and continues to lay that price while all the while backs the 28/1 here. This person - having placed a trust in Betfair's service - has suffered. Some could be looking at thousands of pounds worth of losses. This person has a case against Betfair.

I have not heard much from anybody in category 2 on the forum, and ironically I think it's they who Betfair have most to worry about. Anyone in category 1 should do the honourable thing and accept that they aren't owed anything.

**** equals a rival exchange.Did not know that we are back in Soviet Russia..

As I said in a previous post to me it is a principal matter now. I don't need the money betfair have given no plausible excuse and for those that are involved we should know the truth.

Soyouthink..How very Black and White.If only life was so simple...

@ SoYouThink

Everyday I see prices on Betfair that are not reflective of a horse's chances (my in-running bets were placed near the off and some throughout the race). Sometimes they win sometimes they don't. Each bet I place is in good faith and in particular that the available lay (be it £2 or £21 million) is correct and available. If you can no longer trust that what you are seeing on the screen as being correct then Betfair shouldn't be in the business.

Zaynar, who do you think should stand the £23 million that opportunists like yourself want to profit from this genuine mistake - Betfair (and its many innocent shareholders), or the punter who placed the bet in error?

Obviously either would almost certainly never recover from having to pay you, but if you really think that's OK and you're happy to live with that, then go for your life in the Court Case, imo...

The Mover,

Have you ever seen somebody risk 600m on a horse at 28/1 with a real odds of about 2/1.

If you are as experienced as you say are, then surely alarm bells will have started to ring with you, and you'd have realised that something wasn't right.

I aaccept some chanced their arm and took the 28/1 - if I'm honest I'd have used my short-term judgement and done the same - but with some facts now (i.e. software went wrong somewhere along the way), I'd realise quickly I wasn't entitled to a penny and be glad just to have my stake back.

Keep me on this forum.Just checked the results and have backed Air Force One (12/1) Suprise Vendor (25/1) and The Bosses Nephew (12/1).Perhaps I have found the secret.Watch "On The Buses",ditch ATR and most definitely do not play in running because if the bots don't get you the man in control of the void button will !!

millhouse knows all zaynar.

i love the quote here.....Betfair (and its many innocent shareholders),

millhouse seems to forget the huge discrepancies in the ts and cs and the fact that these mistakes do happen everyday albeit for vastly smaller sums.

If this were a conventional bookmaker millhouse would be asking for the immediate setup of his fabled punters council and demanding action. All underpinned by the sharp practice coming out of the Hammersmith PR dept.

you have truly excelled yourself here old boy, the 'lets just forget about this and sweep it under the carpet' casts you in a wonderful morally muddled light.

You are correct SoYouThink. My initial instinct was that something had gone wrong with the horse. As you will recall the race was in small pics on ATR. I saw the horse was still running but I didn't know, for example, if the weights had fallen off or if the horse was ok. As the race went on and it was clear that the horse was travelling ok it became more likely that an error had been made or that perhaps the weights had come off the horse. There was no suspend and the market was still up...the favourite was still being backed at low odds on which still "suggested" it was the most likely winner.