Good Morning,
So I have an old Betfair account that I have not used in a while, due to then having an increased workload in my day job. Now things have quietened down at work, I wish to to deposit a large (ish) amount to have a decent bank to trade with, however I am informed that they will request certain financial documents for affordability, source of funds etc. I am not prepared to provide this personal information, so I shall close my account. I am going to use a family members account, which already has a large enough bank for me to trade in running racing at weekends / big festivals. He does not use this account hardly at all and will use other exchanges if needs be, as his betting is not dependent on Betfair in play liquidity. My question is, do I use a VPN or VPS to dial in to his account please, which is the best option to use to ensure that there are no added delays with the Betfair live video feed? Thank you ever so much for your kind assistance in this matter.
Affordability Checks etc
- jamesedwards
- Posts: 3994
- Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2018 6:16 pm
Definitely don't close your Betfair account. Once you close an account you may find it impossible to ever reopen it again, ever.Simoba wrote: ↑Sat Nov 02, 2024 10:21 amGood Morning,
So I have an old Betfair account that I have not used in a while, due to then having an increased workload in my day job. Now things have quietened down at work, I wish to to deposit a large (ish) amount to have a decent bank to trade with, however I am informed that they will request certain financial documents for affordability, source of funds etc. I am not prepared to provide this personal information, so I shall close my account. I am going to use a family members account, which already has a large enough bank for me to trade in running racing at weekends / big festivals. He does not use this account hardly at all and will use other exchanges if needs be, as his betting is not dependent on Betfair in play liquidity. My question is, do I use a VPN or VPS to dial in to his account please, which is the best option to use to ensure that there are no added delays with the Betfair live video feed? Thank you ever so much for your kind assistance in this matter.
Dont close your account, using other peoples account should be a last resort I would think.
Why not deposit a smaller amount and trade up from it. If you have a profitable strategy it shouldn't take too long hopefully.
I'm not sure what the deposit limit is to trigger affordability checks but I think I remember depositing £500 earlier this year and it didnt cause any issue.
Check the limits first though.
Why not deposit a smaller amount and trade up from it. If you have a profitable strategy it shouldn't take too long hopefully.
I'm not sure what the deposit limit is to trigger affordability checks but I think I remember depositing £500 earlier this year and it didnt cause any issue.
Check the limits first though.
Do you pay premium charge? If their algorithms detect a similar trading pattern as with your old account, they may suspend or link your two accounts.Simoba wrote: ↑Sat Nov 02, 2024 10:21 amGood Morning,
So I have an old Betfair account that I have not used in a while, due to then having an increased workload in my day job. Now things have quietened down at work, I wish to to deposit a large (ish) amount to have a decent bank to trade with, however I am informed that they will request certain financial documents for affordability, source of funds etc. I am not prepared to provide this personal information, so I shall close my account. I am going to use a family members account, which already has a large enough bank for me to trade in running racing at weekends / big festivals. He does not use this account hardly at all and will use other exchanges if needs be, as his betting is not dependent on Betfair in play liquidity. My question is, do I use a VPN or VPS to dial in to his account please, which is the best option to use to ensure that there are no added delays with the Betfair live video feed? Thank you ever so much for your kind assistance in this matter.
Does anybody know the amount that may be deposited to Betfair in order to not have to go through the affordability check things?
I think they work on a rolling monthly period. I think this may have been discussed on the forum previously but can't find the thread!
Thanks all!
I think they work on a rolling monthly period. I think this may have been discussed on the forum previously but can't find the thread!
Thanks all!
- jamesedwards
- Posts: 3994
- Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2018 6:16 pm
I've not updated my understanding for quite a while now, but I believe the legal threshold for soft credit check was reduced earlier this year to £150 a month. At this point the bookmaker is legally required to investigate your credit file to look for signs of financial distress. Any further possible checks depends on what they find.Safeway wrote: ↑Fri Jun 27, 2025 6:28 amDoes anybody know the amount that may be deposited to Betfair in order to not have to go through the affordability check things?
I think they work on a rolling monthly period. I think this may have been discussed on the forum previously but can't find the thread!
Thanks all!
Presumably Betfair also have their own deposit and/or activity based thresholds but I don't know what these are. You probably already have some limits set either by you or Betfair. You can check yours at https://playerprotection.betfair.com/
Thanks James. £150 isn't a big number but there's nothing on the credit file to concern them if they should check. I'll do what I do and take it as it comes.jamesedwards wrote: ↑Fri Jun 27, 2025 11:46 amI've not updated my understanding for quite a while now, but I believe the legal threshold for soft credit check was reduced earlier this year to £150 a month. At this point the bookmaker is legally required to investigate your credit file to look for signs of financial distress. Any further possible checks depends on what they find.Safeway wrote: ↑Fri Jun 27, 2025 6:28 amDoes anybody know the amount that may be deposited to Betfair in order to not have to go through the affordability check things?
I think they work on a rolling monthly period. I think this may have been discussed on the forum previously but can't find the thread!
Thanks all!
Presumably Betfair also have their own deposit and/or activity based thresholds but I don't know what these are. You probably already have some limits set either by you or Betfair. You can check yours at https://playerprotection.betfair.com/
Thanks again

I have a Hills account that I occasionally use for goals accumulators on a Saturday. I thought I'd go and check what was there and had £8. I couldn't withdraw it because my card expired in May, so I registered a new one and deposited £5
Hills now want me to verify my details and send information which shows I can afford the £5
The affordability checks are utterly ludicrous.
I've closed my account purely out of principle
Hills now want me to verify my details and send information which shows I can afford the £5



The affordability checks are utterly ludicrous.
I've closed my account purely out of principle
-
- Posts: 1618
- Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2015 9:38 am
You would think they should have checked you could have afforded the £5 before taking your money )
Wasn't there a story a while back (before the KYC checks got really mad), where a bookie refused to pay out a big win on grounds they couldn't verify customer identity to their satisfaction despite the customer sending in bucket loads of documentation.
When it went to court the judge ruled in favour of the customer as the bookie had continued to accept his deposits so must have known who he was )
Yes. The affordability checks have given them a license to act like gangsters and refuse to pay out large amounts. I was somewhat stunned to have to show I can afford a £5 deposit though. This nonsense really is a concern for the future of the industry
- jamesedwards
- Posts: 3994
- Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2018 6:16 pm
I don't think they will have been concerned about the £5. They probably wanted to do an affordability check in order to confirm your identity and set what they see as appropriate limit on your account.
The information that Hills have asked me for is bordering on scamming.
Who do we know what individuals has access to this info at Hills Head Office?
How do we know they are honest or not selling our information to a third party?
This places all of us at great risk of having our identities stolen or being the victims of fraud......just so we can show we can afford to have a £10 bet ffs!
This is going to kill the industry
Who do we know what individuals has access to this info at Hills Head Office?
How do we know they are honest or not selling our information to a third party?
This places all of us at great risk of having our identities stolen or being the victims of fraud......just so we can show we can afford to have a £10 bet ffs!
This is going to kill the industry
- ShaunWhite
- Posts: 10409
- Joined: Sat Sep 03, 2016 3:42 am
As for stolen id, it's the same with everyone from your bank to your doctor selling your info to health companies; the penalties make them take it very seriously.
It not just the GC regs it's them following the trend of 'Surveillance Capitalism' and you're not alone in worrying about it, it's that balance between trust, risk and value and it's everywhere. Aka.....
A commonly used phrase in tech and data ethics. It describes the trade-off where users surrender personal data in return for access to services or convenience.
Not formalised, but used in cybersecurity and design contexts to describe the implicit calculation people make between convenience and risk.
Inspired by “social contract”, but applied to digital life—refers to the implicit agreement between user and service provider, often around data handling.
Used in digital ethics: even when people consent to data use, they often don’t understand the full risks—yet still proceed because of the perceived benefit.
i was one of those that accepted a GIFT of a 123&me kit back in the lockdown era. never felt good about it and only recently exercised my right to delete all data AND the stored DNA. I read that they'd gone bankrupt and didn't fancy the outcomes of that data being part of the sale!ShaunWhite wrote: ↑Mon Jun 30, 2025 4:29 pm
"Privacy Bargain"
A commonly used phrase in tech and data ethics. It describes the trade-off where users surrender personal data in return for access to services or convenience.