Lincolnshire man wins High Court case worth £1.7million against Betfred
Video report by ITV News Correspondent Rebecca Barry
A Lincolnshire man has won a High Court fight against a betting firm over its refusal to pay a £1.7 million jackpot he won in an online casino.
Andrew Green, 54, said he was devastated and felt as though he had been “robbed” when Betfred told him it would not pay out following his win in 2018 because of a “defect” in the game.
He brought legal action against the firm at the High Court in London and, on Wednesday, a judge ruled in his favour.
Following his victory after a three-year battle with the firm over the jackpot, Mr Green said he was delighted to have won his case – which means he will finally receive his payout, plus interest.
He said: "The last three years have felt like hell on earth. I think Betfred have treated me abysmally, but it’s not about Betfred today – I’m just ecstatic to have eventually won my case.
"Along with my family, I have been through some very low times and become very down.
"My physical health has also suffered badly, and I sometimes wished I’d never won this money, because it was just making my life a misery.
"But today, I feel like the world has been lifted off my shoulders and I feel so incredibly happy and relieved – for me, my family and my legal team.
"The champagne can finally come off ice and be savoured."
At a hearing in October, Mr Green’s lawyers asked Mrs Justice Foster to either rule in his favour or strike out Betfred’s defence to his claim.
Lawyers for Betfred, which is contesting the case, argued the dispute should be resolved at a full trial.
But Mrs Justice Foster ruled in Mr Green’s favour, finding that one of the terms and conditions set out by Betfred in the game, which was relied on by the firm in its defence to the claim, was “just not apt to cover the circumstances of this case at all”.