Where applicable you must include a copy of the betting slip. If this is not possible you must include the following: date and time of bet, slip number and total stake.
In the box below please provide a comprehensive written account of your dispute. All submissions must be in English.
Please upload any supporting materials such as scans of betting slips, screenshots or any other relevant
information. Please note documents alternatively can be sent by post
if preferred, please include clearly your name, contact details and date of submission of the form.
Please read the Terms & Conditions in the box below and confirm that you accept them.
The Independent Betting Adjudication Service (IBAS) acts as an impartial adjudicator on disputes that arise between gambling operators who are registered with IBAS and their customers. IBAS does not charge customers for its services.
IBAS adjudicates on disputes with reference to the operator's own terms and conditions of trading, to ensure that they have abided with those terms.
IBAS will also consider the standards operators are set by Gambling Commission regulations and Court rulings, and will not be tied to determining a ruling according to an operator's term of trade where the Commission or the Court has found this to be contrary to the law. IBAS will also consider the standards operators have set themselves through customer charters and suchlike, where these exist.
IBAS will adjudicate on disputes only after they have been through the operator's own dispute procedures, and not more than six months after the dispute arose. If a customer or operator is unsure whether IBAS will consider their dispute, they should contact IBAS direct.
IBAS rulings are binding on the parties to the bet, which means the gambling operator and their customer. This does not affect any statutory legal rights that may apply.
Remit
1. IBAS will only adjudicate on disputes where:
(a) the operator holds an operating licence from the Gambling Commission and the dispute concerns a wager that is subject to the laws of England;
(b) the operator is registered, or becomes registered with IBAS prior to the adjudication of the dispute;
(c) the dispute is not before the courts, unless referred to IBAS by the court;
(d) it considers appropriate to use its discretion to relax the restrictions at (a) above, for example where an operator licensed to provide gambling services in a foreign jurisdiction has made arrangements with IBAS to adjudicate its disputes.
Registration of operators
2. IBAS will only consider disputes relating to operators who are registered with IBAS. However, operators will be allowed to register with IBAS after the commencement of a dispute, but registration must be complete before IBAS will commence its adjudication procedure. Registration completed during a dispute process will be subject to a Registration Fee to be determined by IBAS.
3. Operators apply for registration by full completion of IBAS's ‘Gambling Operator's Registration Form' and submission of the form together with a copy of the operator's current trading rules to IBAS. Alteration to trading rules must be notified to IBAS as soon as reasonably practical. Registration is maintained by compliance with these terms and conditions and payment of the IBAS Membership charge. IBAS may, in its absolute discretion, refuse to register an operator.
4. Once IBAS has accepted an operator's registration, IBAS will send the operator its information sheets and dispute handling literature which the operator should display in all licensed premises. IBAS will also grant the operator the right to use the IBAS logo, and the operator should display this on, or near, point of sale material and computer- provided services.
Referral of disputes to IBAS
5. Operators must include within their terms of trading that they are registered with IBAS and the circumstances in which unresolved disputes will be referred to IBAS. Operators must notify customers of their right to refer disputes to IBAS, in an impartial and informative way.
6. Operators must review all disputes brought to their attention by their customers prior to referral to IBAS. As soon as it becomes apparent to an operator that they are unable to resolve the dispute to the satisfaction of all parties, they should without delay refer the dispute to IBAS.
7. Customers may refer a dispute to IBAS at any time following the conclusion of the operator's review of the dispute, so long as this is within six months of the date when the dispute arose, although IBAS will, on an exceptional basis, accept referrals outside this period where it considers it just to do so. In referring a dispute to IBAS customers accept that these terms and conditions will govern the handling of the dispute and any ruling issued by IBAS will be binding on the parties to the dispute.
The adjudication process
8. When a dispute is referred to IBAS, IBAS will request the customer to make a written submission setting out all of their reasons for believing that they are entitled to the sum under dispute. The submission should include the full circumstances of the dispute and, where relevant, reference to a particular rule of the operator. The customer should also send any other evidence held including submissions from any witnesses, and an indication of any evidence relevant to the dispute that the operator might hold.
9. When a dispute is referred to IBAS, a senior member of the operator's staff must make a full written submission to IBAS of the circumstances of the dispute and this should be completed in an open and fair manner and include their contact details as the primary point of contact for IBAS.
10. The submission should include any staff comments or actions and where possible provide supporting evidence of all factual assertions, including all relevant data stored on computer systems. Operators should refer to the relevant part of their rules and say how they apply in the circumstances of the dispute. Operators should say if they do not have a rule covering the circumstances of the dispute, or if the customer could not have been aware of the rule in question for whatever reason. Where disputed wagers have involved communication systems and/or technology, the operator must submit a report into their systems that addresses the issue giving rise to the dispute.
11. IBAS reserves the right not to look into a dispute if the operator or customer has in IBAS's view made a deliberate attempt to mislead, or omitted to mention material facts, or does not comply with other requirements set out within these terms and conditions. IBAS further reserves the right not to look into a dispute if it considers it to be spurious or frivolous.
12. Following receipt of submissions, IBAS may question either party and require the production of further evidence relating to the dispute. This may include, but is not limited to, evidence of the circumstances in which the operator's terms of trading, odds, and rules of specific games or wagers were made available or drawn to the customer's attention.
13. Once a dispute has been accepted by IBAS for review it will be submitted to the IBAS Panel for adjudication.
14. IBAS expects operators to make payment of any undisputed part of a wager to a customer with whom they are in dispute, at the earliest opportunity. IBAS will not commence adjudication until any undisputed part of a wager has been settled.
15. Customers may request IBAS to cease adjudication of their dispute at any time. IBAS will then ask the customer to sign a letter confirming their request to end the adjudication process.
16. Operators will maintain all relevant records and data relating to all customer disputes until after the dispute is settled, or IBAS has issued its ruling with which the operator has complied.
Customer – operator communication
17. IBAS requests that operators and customers in a dispute referred to IBAS refrain from contacting each other and discussing the dispute as this may cause unnecessary hindrance to the adjudication process. If the operator wishes to make an offer to the customer to settle the dispute after the IBAS adjudication process has commenced, it should do so as follows:
(a) the operator submits the proposed settlement to IBAS;
(b) IBAS will suspend adjudication;
(c) IBAS will communicate the offer to the customer requesting acceptance or rejection within 21 days;
(d) IBAS will notify the operator of the customer's decision.
If the customer rejects the offer, IBAS will resume the adjudication process without allowing the fact of the offer to influence its decision. If the offer is accepted, this will be treated as in full and final settlement of the dispute and IBAS will conclude the adjudication process.
18. IBAS expects operators to deal professionally with customers and act in good faith in handling disputes before and after any referral to IBAS. Operators will not directly or indirectly intimidate or use duress in their dealings with customers, IBAS staff, or IBAS Panel Members.
Confidentiality
19. Operators and customers are required to keep the details of the dispute and IBAS's ruling confidential and refrain from making any public comment during or after the dispute process. IBAS reserves the right not to adjudicate on any future dispute brought by a party that has previously broken confidentiality. The requirement for confidentiality will not apply insofar as either party is obliged to provide information in the course of legal proceedings.
20. As part of the adjudication process IBAS must notify operators of the name of the complainant. In addition, IBAS may disclose facts about the nature of any dispute and its ruling on its website or annual report, and to other operators, but will not disclose the identity of the parties to the dispute.
21. IBAS will at all times store all data and documents securely and maintain their confidence save in instances where it is obliged to disclose any material to its legal advisors or any relevant regulatory body, or as required by law, and subject to the use of anonymised disputes as described at paragraph 20.
22. IBAS may provide any information that it holds to the Gambling Commission, at the request and subject to its agreement with the Commission, where it considers this to be of relevance to the pursuit of the licensing objectives as set out within s. 1 of the Gambling Act 2005. Where there is an agreement between IBAS and an operator or its representative body, IBAS will submit copies of its rulings on behalf of the operator to the Commission in fulfilment of the Commission's requirement on operators. Should an operator wish to send these reports to the Commission themselves, they should notify IBAS.
IBAS rulings
23. At the conclusion of IBAS's adjudication process, the IBAS Panel will issue a ruling in writing which IBAS will notify simultaneously to the customer and operator, through the primary point of contact.
24. The IBAS ruling will be binding on all parties to the dispute and will conclude IBAS's handling of the dispute and its obligation under these terms and conditions to the customer and operator. IBAS will not then enter into correspondence in relation to a dispute with either party unless IBAS in its discretion considers it appropriate.
25. The IBAS Chief Executive will investigate any complaint received from a customer or operator against IBAS concerning the way it has handled a dispute or the conduct of any member of IBAS's staff or Panel.
26. IBAS, the individual Panel Members and employees will have no liability to either operator or customer in relation to the ruling or the adjudication process for any loss howsoever caused save in instances where it has committed a conscious and deliberate wrong doing.
De-registration of operators
27. IBAS may de-register an operator where IBAS decides that there has been a material breach of these terms and conditions, in particular failure of an operator to comply with an IBAS ruling. Additionally, IBAS reserves the right to de-register an operator if in IBAS's view the operator or the operator's staff has verbally abused, intimidated or applied duress to customers, or IBAS's staff, or Panel Members.
28. In cases of de-registration, the operator must remove the IBAS logo from all materials, documentation, computer-provided services, or TV broadcasts (including via SIS) and any mobile platforms. The operator must also remove from public display any IBAS-provided material, and must not claim that IBAS acts as its independent party in the adjudication of disputes. IBAS will notify the Gambling Commission of the de-registration of an operator and the reasons for the de-registration.
29. If an operator decides to discontinue IBAS registration it must notify IBAS in writing.
Declaration
30. In receiving registration with IBAS, operators accept that these terms and conditions are binding conditions of registration and are to be construed pursuant to English law.
31. Operators and customers will be responsible for all their own costs in relation to any disputes referred to IBAS.
32. IBAS may make changes to these terms and conditions and will notify operators 28 days in advance of implementing changes.
Definitions
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Customer |
Any person who places a wager with an operator. |
IBAS |
The Independent Betting Adjudication Service. |
Operator |
Any provider of gambling services that holds an operating licence from the Gambling Commission, or is based in a foreign jurisdiction and whose registration is accepted by IBAS. |
IBAS Panel |
The independent expert adjudicators to whom IBAS refers disputes to prepare a ruling that will determine the outcome of the dispute. |
Dispute |
A disagreement between a customer and an operator as to the return anticipated by a customer from a wager, or a credit promised and which has not been resolved by the operator to the customer's satisfaction.
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