A position that no punter wants to really be in, but it is something that happens to selected people who bet online. If you do that, and you either win more than you lose, beat the prices available often, or take good advantage of various promotions, then you may find that eventually, your account will be limited by the bookmaker, or worse still, closed down all together.
This is something that bookmakers use to protect themselves, and there are various reasons for it. Whether you agree with them or not is one of the big talking points around betting, but the fact is, bookmakers are able to do this to protect their business, so there is little that punters can do to escape it.
Why Do Bookmakers Limit Accounts?
The reason that bookmakers give for limiting accounts is to protect themselves and ensure the playing field for gambling remains level for all. Whether it’s having an advantage to help you win or betting in a way that you shouldn’t, a bookmaker can prevent you from betting with them at any point.
Limiting your account is far more common than actually closing it, but you will often find that the limits make the account pretty much worthless, given the heavy restrictions they have.
The viewpoint of the bookmakers, again you don’t have to agree, is that by limiting various accounts, they are able to keep offering promotions and small margins, which result in good odds, to the other customers they have. If they didn’t have the ability to do this, they would have to dramatically lower the quality of their service, which would be bad for all.
Reasons for Your Betting Account being Limited
There are many reasons for your betting account being limited, but here are the most common ones that you will come across, which cover a variety of different issues.
Winning Too Much
Let’s start with the big one, winning too much. We all gamble to win and hope to get more back than we put in, but the fact is that most punters are loving ones over time. However, a select few people are good enough to win over the long term, but this could result in an account being restricted.
Key here is this fact, there is nothing legally in place to force a bookmaker to accept your bet, if they wish, they can simply turn you away, and when they restrict your account, that is essentially what they are doing.
Now, to put at ease those who do win a little here and there, you will often have to be winning a large amount of money before this is triggered unless the winning comes alongside point two that we are going to talk about.
Sadly, there is little you can do if you are a winning punter other than trying things such as spreading out your funds across multiple accounts to try and avoid triggering one company.
Beating Available Prices
If you do this regularly and win, even if that’s a little, then you will also find yourself being restricted by bookmakers. The reason why this will raise the alarm bells is simply that you are showcasing the fact that you have more information than the bookmakers.
It could be that you can read a market exceptionally well, you may be tipped off about a selection, and get a bet on before others do, so you take the best price, but whatever it is, bookmakers don’t like it.
This is serious alone, so even if you don’t win, but you are constantly beating the price, you could find yourself limited.
Matched Betting and Arbing
We’ve put these two together in the same section because they are very similar in terms of what you are trying to do and why the bookmakers don’t like it.
Firstly, their differences. Matched betting is something you can do using free bets to spread your money across different selections, putting yourself in a position where you will win regardless.
Arbing is slightly different, here, you are taking advantage of discrepancies between bookmakers and the price they offer, with the same outcome as matched betting, you are putting yourself in a position where you are guaranteed to profit.
While you may actually lose with your bookmaker when doing either of these because you use multiple companies, they will always look at the overall picture. If they know you are either matched betting or arbing, then you will have your account limited because the bookmaker knows that you are going to gain profit when you bet with them, either from them or somewhere else.
Exploiting Free Bets and Bonuses
Bookmakers will give out free bets and bonuses to their new customers and give them to existing customers from time to time. If you take advantage of these in a way to guarantee yourself profit, then you could find your account limited.
This is aimed at people who use every possible promotion or free bet available to them, and they use them in a way that aids your chances of making a profit. If you do this on a regular basis, even if it’s not for huge amounts of money, then you will find yourself with a limited account.
Letting Someone Else Use Your Account
When you sign up with a betting company, you sign up for an account that is only for you to use. This is one of the rules you agree to in the terms and conditions, and if you break that, you will have your account restricted.
The reason why bookmakers do this is because they want to know everyone who is using their site, where the bets are coming from and the patterns of each person. Let’s say, for example, a person has had their account closed, but you let them bet on your account, the bookmaker isn’t going to like that, because the person is getting around the reason they’ve been restricted and will therefore limit you.
Masking Where You Bet From
This could be just because you want to hold where you are, or it could be because you are abroad and need a VPN for access. However you do this, and the reasons why, if you are betting and masking where you are from by using a VPN, then your bookmaker may close or limit your account.
This is against their terms and conditions, bookmakers need to be able to verify where you are betting from to ensure you are in a country they accept bets from. Even if you use a VPN for security reasons, your bookmaker may suspect something and restrict you.
How to Tell If Your Account Has Been Limited?
The first instance here should be communication from your bookmaker, usually via email, to the account you have registered with them. You should receive an email from your bookmaker explaining that your account has been restricted and giving the reason why.
The bookmaker does not have to go into any detail about things, all they need to do is notify you of their decision and then put that into place.
For further checks around this, you are bet looking at your betting account. Try and place a bet that you normally would, and when you try to put it on, you will more than likely see a message saying that you are unable to place a bet of that amount. Instead, you will be given a maximum amount allowed, which is likely to be very small, and this is a sign of a restriction and how much you are restricted.
There should always be some kind of communication, so as long as you see that, it won’t come as a surprise to you when you log in to try and place your next bets.
Do Bookmakers Share Information?
The answer to this is that they do not share information about customers openly, but that is not to say this doesn’t happen behind the scenes. Officially, bookmakers will always deny they do this. Still, some punters have reported being restricted by one bookmaker, and then also getting the same of others, either on existing accounts or on those they try to open up and use.
There is one crucial point to note here, and that revolves around the ownership of bookmakers. Many companies are now under the same ownership umbrella as others, and to protect their other businesses, they will share databases and various information they have. So, if a bookmaker has restricted you, then any others under the same ownership, will know about you, whether you have an account with them or not.
You may also find yourself on the end of the same staff, but with different bookmakers. Staff who work in trading rooms, and making decisions to close an account, may move around in the industry, and when they do, they take their old knowledge with them, so you may find yourself part of that if you are memorable to them.
Can Limited Account Be Reversed?
The likely answer here is no, for the majority of the reasons given above. When bookmakers put this in place, they are highly unlikely to reverse their decision for you. However, if you have been restricted for something you believe is wrong, and you have proof to show that, then you may be able to appeal the decision with success.
There has been limited success with this, and you will need clear proof they are wrong, have that, and you have a chance, but without it, you are stuck with limited accounts forever.
