Luke Ashton inquest: Betfair stated bettor was 'low threat' before he passed away

A betting company has actually told an inquest a guy who died after developing substantial gaming financial obligations was a "low danger" customer.

Luke Ashton, from Leicester, passed away in April 2021 after developing gambling debts of ₤ 18,000.

His spouse Annie informed the hearing he killed himself after falling back into dependency when he was provided a free bet by Betfair.

The company said his betting patterns had not been uncommon before he passed away.

The inquest, at Leicester City Center, was told the variety of online bets Mr Ashton positioned surged in the month before his death and he increased the amounts he staked.

However Richard Clarke, the managing director of consumer relations for Flutter UKI - Betfair's parent business - stated the company's algorithm found nothing in his betting patterns that would activate human intervention that might have limited his gambling.

Lawyers for Mr Ashton's household had said the business must have identified his "unpredictable" wagering and stepped in as he chased his losses before his death.

Mr Ashton had actually chosen to "self-exclude" himself on events in 2013, 2014 and 2016, as being high danger.

However, Mr Clarke stated Mr Ashton had actually not satisfied the threshold for a human review of his account.

He said the company counted on a computer system design that evaluated 277 elements of its consumers' wagering daily to select problem bettors who would then be telephoned by its player protection group.

He informed the hearing: "The challenge in Luke's case was attempting to see him from the crowd of customers who are are extremely smart."

Mr Clarke stated Mr Ashton practically exclusively utilized the Betfair Exchange product, where customers can wager versus each other, and, even on his most active days, there were thousands of clients betting greater quantities more frequently than he was.

He included the ₤ 2,500 transferred on 5 March was not unusual for Betfair Exchange users.

He said the system therefore had not identified Mr Ashton for intervention.

'Tragic outcome'

Jesse Nicholls, representing the Ashton household, checked out from a report prepared for the coroner by independent expert and economist Prof David Forrest.

Mr Nicholls said: "His conclusion was Betfair must have determined Luke as at danger of gambling harm and taken more and stronger actions to make him safe particularly because period of early 2021."

He asked Mr Clarke if he felt the company must have done more.

The inquest continues.

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