Sportsbet Sued by Aussie Gamblers For ‘Illegal’ In-Play Betting
Sportsbet, the main Australian brand of Flutter Entertainment, is dealing with a class-action lawsuit from bettors who incurred losses while utilizing its "Fast Code" service.
The complaint, submitted on December 24 to the Supreme Court of Victoria, contends that all "live bets" – also referred to as in-play bets – made via Fast Code from December 24, 2018 to December 24, 2024 were unlawful, and that plaintiffs should be refunded millions of dollars in losses.
"Betting on a sporting event after the event commences is prohibited in Australia. There is an exception to this if the bet is made wholly by telephone,” said Elizabeth O’Shea, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs, in a statement.
“We believe that Sportsbet’s use of the Fast Code service is not just an attempt to circumvent important laws aiming to prevent gambling harm, it is also illegal because key information about the bet is communicated by punters otherwise than by a voice call.”
Dialing It In
Australia’s Interactive Gambling Act (IGA), established 24 years ago, bans wagering on events that have already started unless bets are made through the telephone.
Online operators like SportsBet tried various technical workaround methods that they thought would bypass this problem.
The initial offering was William Hill’s “Click to Call” feature. This enabled bettors to rapidly create an online in-play bet, producing an alphanumeric code. This could subsequently be “fine-tuned” to an automated system to facilitate in-play wagering. SportsBet’s Fast Code is fundamentally the same system.
A 2016 modification to the IGA sought to address the loophole by stating that the in-play ban applied to online gambling providers.
The attempt to heighten the friction between the gambler and the wagering process was eventually overlooked by certain sportsbooks that maintained their offerings were lawful under the IGA.
On The Line
In December 2023, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) determined after a year-long investigation that the operators had violated the IGA.
The ACMA emphasized that a customer must provide details about the bet selection, bet type, and bet amount, along with a confirmation of the bet, entirely through a phone call.
Nonetheless, the ACMA chose not to pursue measures against the operators, such as Sportsbet, as they had “implemented actions to guarantee their use of Fast/Quick Codes adheres to applicable interactive gambling regulations.”
The ACMA stated that codes would henceforth be created only before the start of a sports event.
Nonetheless, the legal action claims that “Sportsbet assured the plaintiff and group participants that the Fast Code service was lawful,” while “participating in misleading or deceptive actions in violation of the Australian Consumer Law.”
