Key points:
- The High Court ruled that Paddy Power must pay a £1m jackpot to a customer after initially awarding £20,000 due to a display error
- The judge emphasised that players expect on-screen results in online gambling to be accurate and binding
- Paddy Power argued the jackpot was incorrectly displayed due to a game malfunction
The High Court has ruled that Paddy Power must award a £1m ($1.2m) jackpot to a player who was initially informed she had won the sum but later told it was an error.
Corrine Durber, from Gloucestershire, played one of the operator’s online games in October 2020 and received an on-screen message confirming she had won the “Monster Jackpot” worth £1,097,132.71.
However, she was later informed that she had actually won the smaller “Daily Jackpot” of £20,265.14 due to what Paddy Power described as a game display malfunction.
PPB Entertainment Limited, which operates Paddy Power and Betfair, argued that the game’s random number generator had determined the smaller jackpot was the correct outcome, but a display error resulted in the larger prize being shown.
Durber sued the company for breach of contract, maintaining that she was entitled to the full amount.
Mr Justice Ritchie ruled in her favour, granting summary judgment without the need for a full trial. He stated that the principle of “what you see is what you get” applies to online gambling and that customers expect game results displayed on screen to be accurate.
He compared this expectation to a physical casino, where players would anticipate being paid if a roulette ball landed on their chosen number.
Following the ruling, Durber criticised the operator’s handling of the dispute, stating that the legal process had been stressful and that the company should have honoured the payout immediately.
Good to know: A spokesperson for Flutter UKI, Paddy Power’s parent company, acknowledged the ruling and stated that the company is reviewing the judgment
Flutter also highlighted its history of awarding large winnings, including a £5.7m jackpot payout last year.
The case echoes a similar legal dispute in 2021 when a player sued Betfred after being denied a £1.7m jackpot due to a software malfunction. The High Court ruled in favour of the player, ordering the bookmaker to pay the full amount plus interest.
This case also follows other recent developments involving Paddy Power, including its Bigger 180 campaign, which has raised over £1m for Prostate Cancer UK. The campaign donates funds for every 180 scored in the World Darts Championship and is part of the company’s wider responsible gambling initiatives.
