Interactive Subscriptions

Launch of Subscriptions Stage C: Financial penalty

Background 

On 10 September 2004 Camelot launched its subscription service on the interactive platform, this enabled the management of all subscriptions interactively, and meant that players were able to subscribe to the National Lottery using the Internet.                        

Conditions

Conditions 21(1) and 29(2) of the Section 5 Licence.

Description   

There were some significant incidents arising from the launch and initial implementation of the new service.  Corrective action taken by Camelot led to further problems.

This resulted in:

some instances where direct debit charges were made incorrectly;some instances where sums were incorrectly credited to players’ accounts;some duplicate wagers being entered on to the gaming system and;%some subscribers not being entered into draws.%h4. Regulatory Action

After a full investigation of the facts, the Commission  concluded that Camelot failed to meet the requirement to operate an adequate system of internal control in the implementation and initial operation of the on-line subscriptions system, for which a penalty of £75,000 has been imposed. It also concluded that Camelot had failed to meet the requirements of Condition 29, to inform the Commission immediately of certain incidents and in some cases to provide written reports of incidents.  The Commission has imposed a penalty of £15,000 for this failure. Camelot has paid both penalties in full.

Outcome   

Although some players did not receive the service they were entitled to expect, the Commission is confident that all affected players have been identified and compensated accordingly and that funds for good causes were not adversely affected.   While the Commission is satisfied that the matters it has investigated have now been resolved, it will continue to monitor the subscriptions service.