The UK Gambling Commission has ordered Petfre (Gibraltar) Limited, which runs Betfred’s online business, to make a £900,000 payment in lieu of a financial penalty after finding social responsibility failings.
The commission’s public register says the section 116 licence review followed a compliance assessment carried out between May and June 2024 on Petfre’s remote operating licence. It records the outcome on 30 June 2026 as a public statement, commission costs and the £900,000 payment.
The regulator said Petfre failed to comply with licence conditions and codes of practice, including Social Responsibility Code Provision 3.4.3, which requires remote operators to identify customers at risk of gambling harm and intervene appropriately.
In reporting on the case, the commission found that Petfre lacked adequate processes to identify indicators of harm and did not have immediate measures in place to reduce potential harm. Casino.com said the operator relied heavily on manual processes rather than automated monitoring.
One case highlighted in the reporting showed how the failures worked in practice. A flagged account was not reviewed for seven days, and the same customer then went on to lose £17,900 in the following 24 hours without further intervention.
John Pierce, the commission’s director of enforcement, said Petfre did not have sufficiently effective procedures in place, meaning some customers showing markers of harm were not contacted quickly enough.
Pierce added that the company acted swiftly once the gaps were identified, introducing interim mitigating controls and later delivering an action plan. The public register says Petfre identified the breach itself, reported it proactively, took immediate remedial action and cooperated throughout the investigation.
The settlement also includes Petfre covering the commission’s investigation costs. Casino.com reported that the company had already been fined £825,000 last year for similar failings in its retail betting shops.
