Taichi Tech Limited (trading as Fafabet) was recently fined by the Gambling Commission for using unfair terms and conditions within their bonus terms for new casino promotions, reinforcing the importance of fair consumer terms in the gambling sector.
Taichi Tech Limited was fined £170,000 for failing to meet regulatory standards, including amongst other things, the use of a term granting the operator discretion to close accounts or forfeit winnings without clear justification. This was considered by the Commission to be a breach of licence condition 7.1.1 of the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice, which requires licensees to ensure terms are not unfair and are transparent in accordance with the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
Licensees should carefully review their consumer-facing terms and conditions to ensure compliance with consumer protection laws, and in particular by having regard to the Commission's guidance on fair and transparent terms and practices (see here). This guidance makes clear that terms which give licensees undue discretion to decide when and how they are applied will be regarded as unfair. The Commission also emphasises that operators must not impose restrictions on the withdrawal of customer deposit balances (which includes winnings from wagers placed using those deposits), except to comply with any general regulatory obligations. In the case of Taichi Tech Limited, a term granting the operator undue discretion to forfeit winnings and close accounts fell short of the required standards.
When drafting consumer-facing terms about when operators will be entitled to void winnings, cancel wagers, close accounts, and suspend access to the services, operators should specify the circumstances where such actions will be taken, and not include a generic right for operators to do this without reasonable justification.
Reinforcing consumer protection obligations
This regulatory action by the Commission follows two recent court cases on unfair consumer terms in the gambling sector, Durber v PPB Entertainment [2025] EWHC 498 and Parker-Grennan v Camelot [2024] EWCA Civ 185. Both cases concerned players believing they had won a £1 million jackpot which was denied due to a technical error, but while Ms Durber ultimately received the £1 million prize, Ms Parker-Grennan ended up with only £10 despite taking her case to the Court of Appeal. In each case, the court's decision was driven by its interpretation of customer terms and conditions used by the operator. We have previously written on lessons learnt from both of these cases when drafting consumer terms and conditions, which you can read here.
Consumer law reform
It is also worth noting the recent reform in consumer protection law. Under Licence Condition 7.1.1, it also states operators must ensure they do not commit any unfair commercial practices within the meaning of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUT), at any stage of their interactions with consumers. It should be noted that, in April this year, CPUT was revoked and replaced by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA). This enhances the Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) powers, allowing it to enforce some consumer law directly rather than going to court. The unfair commercial practices set out in the DMCCA largely replicate those contained in CPUT; however, the DMCCA does introduce some new unfair commercial practices which have arisen from digital marketplaces, for example, introducing rules on fake reviews and drip pricing. It will also introduce a new regime for subscriptions which is not expected until Spring 2026 (but the new subscription rules will not apply to gambling contracts).
In April 2025, compliance guidance was published by the CMA to help companies comply with the unfair commercial practices rules as stated in the DMCCA: Unfair commercial practices - CMA207. For more information on all the new CMA guidance documents on consumer law please see our article here.
The CMA's approach document was also published in April which sets out its priorities for consumer protection and the Department for Business and Trade published their Strategic Steer for the CMA in May. Their focus includes aggressive sales practices that prey on consumers in vulnerable positions, providing information to consumers that is objectively false, banned practices including the new banned practice relating to fake reviews, fees that are hidden until late in the purchase process, and contract terms that are clearly imbalanced and unfair, including those that impose unfair exit charges on consumers.
Our specialist Betting and Gaming team are on hand to assist with any related queries that you may have.