Sunday Mail article criticizes Ladbrokes customer profiling plan

UK operator Ladbrokes was criticized in a recent Daily Record for engaging in customer profiling practices that the paper says takes advantage of gambling addicts and keeps sharp players off the field entirely. Ladbrokes officials deny the allegations and suggest that the Scottish newspaper based its story on outdated and inaccurate information.
At the heart of the allegations made by the Daily Record are a set of documents that Ladbrokes allegedly used to profile customers based on their ability to win. In this scenario, sharp bettors are given a rating that prevents them from laying the wagers they want. Problem gamblers, conversely, are courted with premiums, such as tickets to Wimbledon, that are meant to keep them playing even when they’re losing.
If true, the allegations could spell big trouble for Ladbrokes with a UK Gambling Commission that’s been quite keen on enforcing both the spirit and the letter of gaming laws in their jurisdiction.
News of Ladbrokes’ alleged profiling practices was music to the ears of gambling critics like Brian Chappell, who runs the group Justice for Punters. “This leaked document is one example of how gambling corporations profile customers from the moment they open an account. It shows how customers are ruthlessly rated,” he said.
Ladbrokes officials strongly denied the allegations, saying that the paper was using out-of-date and inaccurate information in their story saying, “The document you have been given is five years old and was a business spec for a third party that Ladbrokes was in conversation with at the time. It does not have any relevance to our current trading platform… A minority of customers experience restrictions on certain bets for risk management purposes. Stake factoring is a standard risk management approach used by the majority of betting operators.”
So far, there’s been no regulatory or legal action taken as a result of the Daily Mail article.