The widow of a man who struggled with a gambling addiction and ultimately took his own life after accumulating £18,000 in debt is set to initiate a legal action against Betfair on Thursday. This case could have significant implications for the gambling sector in the UK.
Luke Ashton, a 40-year-old from Leicester, passed away in April 2021 following a battle with a gambling disorder that led him to engage in numerous betting activities with Betfair, which frequently sent him promotional offers for “free” bets.
The legal representatives for the Ashton family argue that Betfair was negligent in its duty of care, as it did not take any action to address the growing losses that Ashton experienced, thus making the company accountable for his death.
If successful, this case could establish a precedent that betting operators have a responsibility to recognize and respond to customers exhibiting signs of gambling addiction.
In its defense presented to the high court, Betfair, part of the £13 billion global gambling conglomerate Flutter, contended that it did not owe Ashton any duty of care. The company claimed that Ashton had never disclosed his gambling issues and attributed his financial losses to his own negligence and other mental health challenges.
Ashton had previously signed up for temporary exclusions from gambling on three occasions, but he returned to betting each time those exclusions ended, ultimately losing £21,777 over a three-year period.
In March 2021, while on furlough during the pandemic, Ashton’s gambling escalated, resulting in over 1,000 bets and a net loss of £5,500 during that month alone. The claim asserts that the frequency of “free” bets he received also surged in the month leading up to his death.
Lawyers for Betfair maintain that Ashton would have incurred losses with any betting operator, asserting that the company had robust measures for promoting safer gambling practices.
The Ashton family is seeking £846,478 in damages, which includes the profits Betfair generated from Luke as well as the financial support he could have provided to his family if he had survived.
Attorneys from Leigh Day, representing the Ashton family, will argue that Betfair failed to fulfill its duty of care to Ashton.
Previous attempts to hold gambling firms accountable for not preventing substantial losses among customers with gambling issues have not succeeded.
A positive outcome for the Ashtons could lead to a wave of claims against the UK gambling industry, which reported earnings exceeding £12 billion from British consumers in the previous year.
According to a recent study conducted for the Gambling Commission, approximately 1.4 million adults in Britain are grappling with gambling problems, reflecting a new methodology that has resulted in a higher estimation of the prevalence of this issue.
In 2023, a coroner criticized Betfair’s involvement in Ashton’s death, stating that “more efforts to intervene or interact should have been made.”
Ashton had voluntarily opted for a six-month self-exclusion from betting in 2017 and later chose to stop receiving promotional communications from Betfair Exchange, the company’s peer-to-peer betting service. However, this exclusion did not apply to promotions on other sections of the Betfair website and app, where he participated in several “free bet” or cashback offers between 2018 and 2021.
The inquest in 2023 revealed that Ashton had left notes for his wife and children prior to his passing, mentioning gambling and acknowledging his struggles with “demons.”
A spokesperson for Flutter expressed condolences to Mrs. Ashton and her family regarding this tragic situation but stated that they could not comment further due to the ongoing legal proceedings.
For those in need of support, Samaritans can be reached in the UK and Ireland at freephone 116 123 or via email at jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the United States, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available at 988, and individuals can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. Australians can contact Lifeline at 13 11 14 for crisis support. Additional international helplines can be found at befrienders.org.
