Paddy Power Betfair is to pay £2 million after a Commission investigation revealed social responsibility failures relating to customer interaction.

Four remote operators, trading under the names Paddy Power and Betfair, will pay the money as part of a settlement with the Commission: PPB Entertainment Limited, PPB Counterparty Services Limited, Betfair Casino Limited, TSE Malta LP.

Social responsibility failures included one customer displayed concerning behaviour in terms of intense spikes in activity without interaction, with their longest session throughout a 17-day period being 7 hours and 46 minutes during which they placed over 300 bets amounting to £20,000.

Their gambling behaviour was only identified as an indicator of harm after hitting a loss trigger at which time the account was manually reviewed.

Systems the licensees had in place were not sensitive enough to identify indicators of harm with one customer depositing £12,000 during a 15-day period before being identified for review and another depositing £25,000 in 25 days before being interacted with.

This is the second time Paddy Power Betfair has faced regulatory action – in 2023 the operator was fined £490,000 for marketing to vulnerable consumers.

The Commission is encouraging all gambling operators take account of the failings identified in this investigation to ensure industry learning.

John Pierce, Commission Director of Enforcement, said: “This £2 million settlement reflects the seriousness of the failings identified and the importance of meeting social responsibility and customer interaction standards.

“Our compliance assessment in 2024 uncovered examples where interactions fell far short of what is required. These failings should never have occurred. While the licensees co-operated fully with the investigation, accepted the failings early, and implemented an action plan quickly, this immediate response is the minimum we expect from operators when serious shortcomings are identified.

“Operators must ensure systems to identify and address harm work effectively and at the right time. Over-reliance on automation and failure to intervene when clear harm indicators are present exposes consumers to unnecessary risk. Where we find failings, we will act decisively to protect players.”