William Hill warned over Brexit free bet promo
Online ad ruled "misleading" by ASA for not disclosing significant wagering conditions
William Hill has been reprimanded by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over an online advertisement it ran on the day of the EU Referendum which promoted a “misleading” free bet offer.
The promotion in question appeared on 23 June on the William Hill site and stated: “BET £10 GET £20 FREE CREDITED AS 2 X £10 BETS PROMO CODE: F20 EU REFERENDUM BETTING NEW CUSTOMERS ONLY *Wagering and Terms Apply.”
The promotion was subject to a complaint after it did not disclose the bet needed to be placed on a selection with odds greater than 1.5 in the main body of the ad.
Hills argued the small print at the bottom of the page displayed the terms and conditions for the offer, adding they could not display all conditions in the main body due to “limited amount of space”.
However, the ASA ruled the significant term was “likely to affect a customers’ understanding of the offer” and should have been included in the main body of the ad.
The watchdog said the ad must not appear in its current form and warned Hills to ensure future promotions made it clear if free bet offers were subject to qualifying bets being made on a selected range of odds.