SIMON NOTT: ‘Credit Betting’

There was a time when credit betting was very common, the only way to legally back horses before betting shops became legal – though a facility hardly offered to the average working man. Fast forward to when I first started betting, you could get telephone credit accounts with the big firms if you had a full-time job. I had one with a couple of firms including a local one. The hard part was getting references, which was usually required. Another way in was to open a deposit account, after a while you’d be able to apply for credit and usually got it, especially if you were as bad at betting as me. The credit you were offered was rather low, certainly less than a week’s wages in my case.

My credit accounts used to be handy when I was in the Army, based in Germany – it was the only way to get a bet on, over the phone. There was also a bit of kudos having a credit account, giving your name and account number then being trusted to have a bet ‘with a ring’ made you feel very professional. The rarity of a cheque attached to your statement made it all the more special when you did get one. Of course, most of the time you had to send them a cheque instead. Your balance had to be paid by the end of the accounting period, if your account was up to its limit you’d not be able to bet until you’d paid up. You could beg for higher credit if you were in too deep but unlikely to get it, at least with one of the big firms.

I had an account with two big firms. The trouble with telephone accounts, it was very easy to call and ask for £50 or £100 win doubles two short-priced favourites when you only earned a pony a day. Especially easy on a Saturday lunchtime from a pub phone, three or four pints in. I got into trouble with both my accounts. I maxed them both. I paid them off over a period of a month or so, then had both closed for not complying with the terms of my credit, not paying in full at the end of the accounting period. That was a very good thing, the other advantage was that you’d have a job to ask for credit elsewhere as you’d have a ‘Timeform squiggle’ against your name. After holding accounts for four years or so, all betting for me thereafter was within my means and coincided with working on-course for bookmakers.

My credit betting was small fry but a good education. Well out of my league were the high-rollers that were facilitated by big layers to have lumps on. I’m pretty sure that credit can give punters just a little too much rope but they happily took it and did a few quid more than they would have done had they had to pull up the readies. On the bookmaker’s part they had to be sure that the punter was good for the credit that they were given. Up until the mid-2000’s gambling debts weren’t recoverable by law. That ensured that bookmakers were keen that a punter didn’t get in too deep. Simply because punters getting into debt and passing the point of no return would almost certainly result in the bookmaker being knocked, or an agreement to pay a fraction of the debt rather than the family jewels sold, the house knocked out and a family ruined.

Since on-line betting became the norm, credit accounts with major firms would become something of a rarity. With the risk of being knocked eliminated, it was on-line debit and credit cards that understandably became the favoured mode of taking bets in the Internet age. Besides, why would you need credit with your money so easy to access?

It’s recently been proposed that betting funded by credit cards could be banned. In days when bookmakers are actively promoting responsible gambling and are demonstrating a duty of care to their punters that seemed a very good idea to my mind. The only question being why it was allowed in the first place? Not everyone agreed though. One commentator suggested that customers who use credit cards to bet do so responsibly and would be inconvenienced by a ban on their use.

I humbly suggest that no punter who uses a credit card to bet is doing so ‘responsibly’. The most obvious reason being that using a credit card to bet is classed as a ‘cash advance’ so charged interest from the day the bet is struck which is irresponsible to their wealth, regardless of how wealthy they are. It’s a fair guess, that the majority of people who use a credit card to do so are betting with money they don’t have, why else would they use one? The potential danger of betting remotely using a credit card to people of a certain disposition are so obvious they don’t need spelling out.

Any bookmaker that doesn’t think the paragraph above is accurate, and in the event of a credit card betting ban don’t want their customers to be inconvenienced while promoting responsible gambling, here are some options:

Suggest the punter uses a debit card instead or offer the punter a BACS transfer facility to deposit funds with which to bet. If neither of those options are attractive to your responsible punter,open a credit account for them. The bonuses for the punter, they don’t incur any interest, better than using a credit card. The second is that they don’t have to pull up the readies with which to bet, just as good as a credit card.

The bonus for the bookmaker is that their customer is not inconvenienced and can bet up to whatever responsible level they afforded them credit and considered them good for, just like a credit card, except you as a bookmaker don’t get your cash up front.

The only drawback might be that they won’t be able to pay, but that won’t happen as they are already confirmed as responsible backers, betting within their means, thus given them suitable credit, so that won’t be an issue.

Everyone’s a winner!

Simon Nott

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Simon Nott is author of:
Skint Mob! Tales from the Betting Ring

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