Petfre (Gibraltar) Limited, operator of betfred.com and oddsking.com, has been handed a penalty of £240,000 ($322,283 or €277,037) for breaches found in some of its online slot games. The UK Gambling Commission identified failures relating to key consumer protection standards.
Regulatory Findings
Petfre operated slot games that did not meet the Remote Technical Standards (RTS), including failure to clearly display the customer’s net position and use of celebratory effects when returns were less than or equal to the total stakes. The Commission expressed concerns that these effects may mislead players about their actual losses, affecting their ability to make informed choices.
Company response
Petfre took immediate action by decommissioning all affected games following the regulatory findings. This penalty follows a previous £2.87 million fine in 2022 for failures related to social responsibility and anti-money laundering controls.
John Pierce, Commission Director of Enforcement, said:
Features that impair a consumer’s ability to make informed decisions are not appropriate and pose a clear risk.
While we acknowledge the operator acted swiftly to remove the affected games, this enforcement action should serve as a clear signal to the wider industry to review and strengthen their compliance practices — and to ensure that gameplay is fair and consumers are not exposed to unnecessary risk.”
