Gambling Premises Licence
Betting Premises
The Gambling Act 2005 defines betting as 'making or accepting a bet on the outcome of a race, competition or other event or process; the likelihood of anything occurring or not occurring; or whether anything is or is not true'.
General betting licensees are able to offer facilities for betting as premises-based bookmakers (off-course) and on tracks (on-course), as well as by remote means (for example by telephone or over the internet). Each type of operation requires a different licence type and it is possible that operators will require more than one licence. All licence holders must comply with the requirements of the Gambling Act 2005 and the LCCP.
Pool betting incorporates racecourse pool operators and football and other sports pool operators and many of the 'fantasy football' type competitions. It can be conducted in person, for example the Tote which accepts pool bets on tracks and in high street betting shops, or remotely, for example an internet betting site run by one of the football pools operators.
Betting intermediaries provide a service designed to facilitate the making or acceptance of bets between others. Remote betting intermediaries, often called betting exchanges, generally operate through the internet. An example of a non-remote betting intermediary is a tic-tac, who normally works within a betting ring on a horse or greyhound racing track.
Spread betting is not covered by the Gambling Act 2005, or regulated by the Gambling Commission. Regulation of spread betting is undertaken by the Financial Services Authority.
