WH pay out on misprice market

Bluetonic

so they aren't always ****

Tuesday June 30 2009

A CHAIN of betting shops was left feeling a little blue yesterday after a "mistake" left it facing a five-figure payout over the Dublin GAA side's thoroughly convincing weekend victory.

William Hill, which has 2,300 shops in Britain and Ireland, offered punters odds of 10/1 on Dublin to beat Westmeath by 13 points or more in Sunday's Leinster Senior Football Championship clash.

The boys in blue duly obliged the punters by claiming victory by a resounding 27 points, with Dublin finishing 4-26 to Westmeath's 0-11.

Yesterday, William Hill admitted the generous odds were down to "human error".

One eagle-eyed Dublin GAA supporter had placed several bets after spotting an advertisement from William Hill both in a newspaper and on screens in their betting shops with "quite generous" pricing.

Winnings

The punter, who is awaiting a payout of €10,000 in total, visited William Hill's shop in Drumcondra on Sunday morning before the Croke Park match.

He said they had contacted their British office before taking his bet of €200.

"I had a couple of bets on it. I took a chance they (Dublin) might cut loose after the last day," the GAA fan said.

However, when he went to collect his winnings yesterday he was left empty-handed.

The bets were not paid out immediately in the shops as they had to be checked after it emerged an error had been made.

Tony Kenny, a spokesman for William Hill, said: "It was human error. We made a mistake but we are paying out on all the bets that were put on. These things happen from time to time.

He added: "Most people who took the price knew they were onto a bit of a good thing.

"It probably should have been half the price it was."

Mr Kenny estimated conservatively that they would be paying out €15,000 over the error in shops, but no figure was available on the internet betting.

He pointed out that there wasn't a massive market for the bets on winning margins, with some made in Dublin and a few small bets in Kildare and in Arklow.

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/bookie-is-singing-the-blues-after-836415000-own-goal-1797275.html

Collie D

Happy to see that. Hills would have to be my least favourite bookies. Dingy shops and whenever I search net and find they are doing the best price on my selection, the shop price is often considerably lower

okidoki987

What a joke.
They only paid out because it was a small amount.
If it was €150k, they wouldn't have paid and stated their rules "error in price" etc etc.
Their prices are brutal, the shops could do with a makeover.
They suspended a mate of mines account as he had 2 winning bets in a row (total €150, a horse and a GAA bet).
They later unsuspended it but now all he can get on is a Fiver!:eek:
and that's even on a football match.