Please see below for full list of Account Operating Rules
Other rules can be located under 'general sports rules' and 'individual market rules' tabs at top of this page.
1. Application of these Rules
Sporting Index Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority ('FSA') with FSA registration number 150404. These Rules, together with the Spread Betting Association ('SBA') individual sports rules and general sports conditions ('the SBA Rules'), shall govern all your spread bets entered into with us, whether trading as Sporting Index or "bethilo" or under any other trading name, and to all your betting instructions that we accept on your account. These Rules and the SBA Rules may be changed by us at any time upon our giving you 10 business days notice in accordance with paragraph 26 below, unless it is impracticable in the circumstances for that length of time to be given. References to 'we' and 'us' are references to Sporting Index Limited while 'you' refers to all clients of ours who hold an account with us.
2. You should take good time to read and understand these Rules and the SBA Rules before you commence spread betting with us. The latest versions of these Rules, and the SBA Rules are published on our Websites at sportingindex.com and bethilo.com. You should only commence spread betting with us if you are in full agreement with them as they will govern all your bets and betting instructions on your account. In the event of a conflict between the SBA Rules and these Rules, the provisions of these Rules shall prevail.
3. You are our client and are personally responsible for performing your obligations set out in these Rules irrespective or whether we accept instructions from you or your representative or your agent.
4. Our Markets
Our traditional markets are principally based on actual sports events, political happenings and current affairs. We also offer markets on virtual games (see paragraph 20 below). We do not offer markets based on financial products that are regulated by the rules of any stock exchange or investment exchange.
5. Execution-Only
We act on an execution-only basis. This means that we simply carry out your betting instructions and that we owe you no duty in respect of the suitability of your betting with us or to provide any information related to your actual or intended bets. You rely solely on your own judgement in all aspects of your betting with us: all bets are made at your own risk.
6. Bet Refusal/Size
We reserve the right at our absolute discretion to: (a) refuse to accept any opening bet on any ground whatsoever and/or (b) restrict the size of any opening bet you wish to open with us.
7. Accounts; Volatility and Credit Limits
We operate the following types of account:
7.1 Non-Stop-Loss Account
If you hold a Non-Stop-Loss Account you will not be required to attach a stop loss order to an opening bet. Though some markets have pre-set limits on profit and loss, on many markets the potential for that bet to realise profits or incur losses is therefore unlimited. We operate two types of non-stop- loss account: a deposit and a credit account.
7.2 Stop Loss Account
We offer two types of Stop Loss Account: a deposit account and a credit account. A Stop Loss Account limits your exposure to losses and to profits by automatically attaching a 'stop' level to your bets at the time that they are opened. The effect of this is to place a pre-set limit on the profit and the loss that may arise from any given bet. You should check with us at the time when you open the bet what the limit being applied to the bet is. Please note that possession of a Stop Loss Account does not guarantee that your losses will not exceed any sums of yours that we may hold on deposit. You must also be aware that, whether you hold a deposit or credit type of Stop Loss Account, we may still require you to deposit additional funds with us in the circumstances set out in paragraphs 7.6 and/or paragraph 22 as a condition of maintaining your open bets.
7.3 bethilo Account
This is a specific type of deposit account in which your losses are limited to the deposits held by us at the time of opening your bet/s. Profits are also limited to an equivalent sum. If you hold a bethilo account your bets are accepted on this basis. There may, however, be instances when your account will show a negative cash balance as a result of adjustments made to your account in accordance with the provisions of these Rules. If your account does show a negative cash balance you will be required to pay that balance within 5 days of our informing you that it has arisen. If your account does show a negative cash balance you will be required to pay that balance within 5 days of our informing you that it has arisen.
7.4 Credit Limit
We may offer or agree to grant to you credit up to a stated limit ('credit limit'), which we shall confirm to you in writing. Any account to which a credit limit is attached is a credit account. Your credit limit is not a loan or an agreement to lend money and it in no way limits your losses or potential liability to us. The sole effect of your credit limit is that it may be offset against the volatility requirement applicable to your bets (see paragraph 7.6 below) and against losses on your open bets. Your credit limit cannot be offset against realised losses (i.e. losses that you have incurred on bets that have been closed) which are payable in full regardless of the existence or size of any credit limit that you may have. You may apply for a credit limit, or an increased credit limit, at any time. Your application should be in writing stating the credit limit required. We will decide in our own absolute discretion whether to grant you a credit limit and if so what the credit limit shall be. We may alter your credit limit downwards (or remove it altogether) if we reasonably consider that this is necessary for our protection or your protection.
7.5 Account Type
We may reject your application for an account, or determine which type of account is suitable for you, as we see fit without giving you reasons. We may change the type of account you hold to another type of account at any time upon giving you reasonable prior notice. If your account type is changed, any open bets will remain on your original account until those bets are closed in accordance with these Rules. You will remain liable to pay any losses incurred on those bets.
7.6 Volatility
We shall normally require you to make a cash deposit into your deposit/credit account if your account balance, that is the sum of (cash held plus profit on your open bets, plus, if you are a credit account holder, your credit limit) less (losses on your open bets) is insufficient to cover the volatility requirement (see paragraph 7.6.1 , below) for the bet you wish to place. This deposit is known as a 'Volatility Payment'. A Volatility Payment will normally be due and payable before we agree to open a bet for you, but a further Volatility Payment may also become due and payable in respect of your open bets if: (a) the current value of any of your open bets alters with the result that your account balance is insufficient to cover the total volatility requirement for all of your open bets or (b) the volatility factor in respect of those bets increases while they are open (see paragraph 7.6.2 below). In the event that you are required to make a further cash deposit in these circumstances the provisions of paragraph 22 dealing with margin calls shall apply. Any failure to make a further cash deposit when due and payable will be an Event of Default (see paragraph 13, below) and may give rise to all of your open bets being closed by us.
7.6.1 The volatility requirement for each bet you place will be calculated by multiplying your stake with the volatility factor for the market you wish to trade. We set our volatility factors on a market by market basis. You should therefore ask what the volatility factor for the market you wish trade is before you open a bet.
7.6.2 It may be necessary from time to time to increase without notice the volatility factors for one or more of the markets we offer. Such an increase or increases will apply to all bets opened after it is brought into effect, but will only apply to bets that are already open if it is reasonable and in the following circumstances: (i) where there occurs (or we reasonably anticipate the occurrence of) excessive volatility in an underlying event upon which our markets are based and we consider the increase or increases to be necessary for your protection or our protection; or (ii) where we reasonably determine, having regard to changes in your financial position and/or having regard to the losses being sustained on your open positions, that this is necessary for your protection or our protection.
7.6.3 Changes to volatility factors may result in your having to make an additional cash deposit to cover the increased volatility requirement for a bet or bets you already have open. In the event that you are required to make a further cash deposit in these circumstance the provisions of paragraph 22 dealing with margin calls shall apply. A failure to make payment in the time and manner required will be an Event of Default (see paragraph 13 below) and may result in your open bets being closed.
8. Fraudulent Activity and Impersonation
8.1 Where we have reasonable grounds to believe that there has been fraudulent activity on your account, whether by you personally or by a third party, we shall be entitled but not obliged to suspend your account for the purposes of carrying out an investigation and close any open bets in order to limit the potential for further losses to be incurred on those bets. We shall not release any cash balance on the account until we have completed our investigation, which we shall carry out as quickly as is reasonably practicable.
8.2 Where we have reasonable grounds to believe that an account has been opened by a third party, and not for the named account holder's use, we shall be entitled but not obliged to immediately close that account and all bets open at that time.
9. Contract Notes
If requested by you, we shall send to you on a daily basis by email (or by such other means of communication that may be agreed with you) contract notes detailing your opening and closing bets made on each trading day. We do, however, remind you that these details are available online. We strongly recommend that you keep your own records of your bets and betting instructions including details of the times, dates, stake, market and all other relevant details of your bets. These details may be important if there is a dispute.
10. Statements of Account
You are able to access your statements of account online through our website. A link to our Website will be sent to you via email weekly or fortnightly (depending on the type of account operated) on Wednesdays, to cover all bets up to and including the preceding Tuesday. Although it is our current policy to send all emails on Wednesdays to cover all bets up to and including the preceding Tuesday, we may vary this policy at any time in the future. We shall notify you in advance of any change in policy relating to the dispatch of statements. Paper statements are available on request from our Customer Services department. You should notify us immediately if your statement is inaccurate in any way or you have any queries concerning the contents. If a statement or contract note contains an error or is otherwise inaccurate, that will not affect the validity of the relevant bet or betting instruction that is wrongly recorded.
11. Operation & Settlement of Accounts
If you owe us money you may pay by cheque, direct bank transfer, credit or debit cards (see paragraph 12 below) or any other electronic payment methods that we currently accept. Where a credit card is used for any payment, we shall be entitled to (unless we agree with you otherwise) levy an administrative charge equivalent to 1.5% of the value of the payment. Cheques should be crossed and made payable to Sporting Index Ltd and the number of your account with us should be marked clearly on the front.
11.1 Money Payable
Where the closing of a bet results in a loss to you, the cash sum lost will be debited to the cash balance your account. If a bet of yours is closed with the result that your account has a negative cash balance, you must pay to us within five days of the closing of the bet a sum sufficient to clear that negative balance. Negative cash balances may also arise as a result of other debits to the account (e.g. unpaid cheques or debit/credit card chargebacks). If such balances are not paid within five days we shall be entitled to charge interest on any balance due at the rate of 1 per cent per month, compounded monthly. You should not wait until you receive a statement of account from us before settling any negative cash balance. If you are in any doubt as to whether your account has a negative cash balance you should check your account summary online each time that an open bet of yours is closed. You are reminded that any credit limit that you may have cannot be set off against losses on closed bets. A failure to pay us in within 5 days is an Event of Default (see paragraph 13). In the unlikely event that it becomes necessary to refer an unpaid negative cash balance to our solicitors for collection, we shall be entitled to add £250 to that balance by way of a contribution to our administrative costs and legal costs in seeking to recover that balance.
11.2 Set Off
All accounts held with us are operated, and statements are to be settled, on a net basis, whereby all amounts of any kind payable by you to us are set off against all amounts of any kind payable by us to you. You cannot set off any credit limit against sums payable by you. For the purposes of this paragraph 'accounts held with us' includes: (i) any account to which these Rules apply under paragraph 1; and (ii) any and/or any other account held with any company, business, trading name or other trading entity that is wholly or partly owned by Sporting Index Holdings Limited (whether by ownership of shares or otherwise), whether or not it trades under a name that includes the words 'Sporting Index' or 'bethilo' or 'Bluff2Win'.
12. Debit Cards
You may authorise us to make automatic payments/withdrawals from your debit card. We are under no obligation to accept such an arrangement and may refuse to do so as we see fit. If you have elected to be managed in this way, you must advise us promptly of any change in the details of your debit card including (but not limited to) its number, its issue number, and its expiry date. Under these arrangements, your debit card will be automatically debited or credited (as appropriate) at the same time that your latest statement of account is posted online (see paragraph 10, above). In the case of a credit account, the sum debited or credited will be equivalent to the amount that is required to return your account balance to zero. In the case of a deposit account, the sum debited or credited will be such as will return the balance of the account to its original paid-up deposit. We may terminate the debit card arrangement we have with you at any time upon our giving you prior notice. You will remain liable to pay any losses on your account irrespective of whether or not we receive payment from your card issuer; in particular, you will remain liable to repay any deductions from your cash account, which are attributable to 'chargebacks'. If a chargeback is made to your account this may constitute an Event of Default (see paragraph 13 below) and may result in the closure of your open bets. It is important that you communicate any query/dispute to us in the first instance before requesting a 'chargeback' from your card issuer. This will give us an opportunity to investigate and to resolve the matter.
12.1 Card Charge Scheme
Notes on Cardholder Protection (a) By joining our card charge scheme you give us the authority to debit your card account with the amount owing to us when it becomes due. (b) Should you believe that any sum has been wrongly debited you must first contact us directly to challenge the debit, and not raise it with your card issuer. In the event that, having dealt with us, you are not satisfied that the amount has been debited correctly, you have the right to inform your card issuer of the dispute and your debit card may be re-credited. In that event, we shall require you to make alternative arrangements to agree and settle direct any amount due to us. (c) You may cancel or vary our authority to take payments from your card by notice of cancellation or variation to us at any time. It is not necessary for you to notify your card issuer of such cancellation or variation. Such a move may cause delay in the action to be taken. (d) You are, of course, under no obligation to allow us to debit or credit your card and other means of settlement will continue to be available.
12.2 Information Appearing on Debit/ Credit Card Statements
It is important that you note that any debit or credit entries appearing on your card statements will be identifiable by the words 'SPIN, SE11'. Any queries regarding entries on your card statements should be directed to us in the first instance as opposed to the debit/credit card company involved in order that we may have the opportunity to investigate.
12.3 Bank Transfers
If we arrange with you to pay such money as is due to you into your bank account directly instead of by cheque, you will be responsible for ensuring that we are in possession of your up-to-date bank details (i.e. your full name, account number and sort code). You must inform us of any change in your bank details in writing or by e-mail. We shall not be responsible for any losses that you may incur as a result of your failure to advise us of your up to date bank details. Any payments made by you into our bank account must contain your account reference so that we may identify the payment as having been made by you.
13. Events of Default
The following are Events of Default (where the word 'material' is used in connection with an Event Of Default, it means that the thing described as 'material' would, if it came to our attention, reasonably be considered by us (or, if it does come to our attention, is reasonably considered by us) to be relevant to any decision by us to close your open position/s): (a) Any payment, including the Volatility Payment and Margin, has become due to us from you and remains unpaid on the expiry of the time allowed for payment by these Rules; (b) You make any statement to us that is not true and accurate, or that is misleading in any material way; (c) Any statement previously made by you becomes untrue or inaccurate or misleading in any material way, and you fail to inform us of the true position as quickly as you reasonably can; (d) You break any promise or undertaking to us to do or to refrain from doing anything material; (e) A statutory demand is served on you or bankruptcy petition is presented against you, or (if you are a company) a statutory demand is served on you, or a petition is presented or a resolution is passed for your winding up, or an administrator or receiver or administrative receiver is appointed in respect of you or any of your assets or you enter into a voluntary arrangement with your creditors; (f) You are pursued for payment by any person who in our reasonably held view claims in good faith to be owed money by you; (g) We receive a certified copy of your death certificate; (h) You are treated by any medical practitioner for any mental illness, including depression; (i) Any cheque is dishonoured or other payment instruction given by you is returned unpaid; (j) Your card issuer makes a 'chargeback' on your account that we reasonably consider to be unjustified ; (k) Any event occurs that is described anywhere in these Rules as an Event of Default; (l)You are being investigated by the Financial Services Authority; (m) You behave towards any of our staff in a way that we reasonably consider to be offensive; (n) You are or we have reason to believe that you are located permanently in the United States or in any other jurisdictions where spread betting is prohibited by law; (o) You breach any term of these Rules; (p) We believe on reasonable grounds that an Event of Default may occur before the expiry date of any open bet on your account; (q) An Event of Default has occurred and you do not draw it to our attention; or (r) An Event of Default or any event analogous to any Event of Default described above occurs in any jurisdiction outside England and Wales.
13.1 Consequences of an Event of Default
If an Event of Default occurs, we may but will not be obliged to: (a) At any time without prior notice to you close all or any of your open positions, whether in loss or in profit, at our then prevailing market price, or if there is none, at a price that is fair and reasonable; and/or (b) Exercise our rights of set off; and/or (c) Close any accounts held by you with us trading under any name in your name and refuse to accept any further bets from you or carry on any dealing with you.
13.2 Closure of Bets
We will not be under any obligation to give you any opportunity to remedy an Event of Default before we close your bets. If, however, we do choose to do so, this in itself will not waive the Event of Default or our rights in relation to it.
13.3 We will be entitled to require you to reimburse us for any losses and costs (including legal costs) we properly and reasonably incur as a result of your breach of these Rules.
14. Credit Referencing and Data Protection
In order to verify your identity for the purposes of processing your account application (to include assessing your suitability to be granted a credit limit); for ongoing account management; debt recovery and tracing purposes; and for the prevention of crime and money laundering, we may make searches with credit reference agencies and fraud prevention agencies who will provide us with information for these purposes. We may disclose the personal and financial information you provide to us to the following persons: (i) the FSA (ii) to any other person to whom we have a duty to disclose or to the extent that the law requires or permits us to disclose; and (iii) to any person we reasonably believe to be seeking a reference or credit reference in good faith to include, without limitation, other FSA regulated firms and non-regulated bookmakers. You have the right under the Data Protection Act 1988 to require us to provide the personal data that we hold for you and to ask us to specify the uses to which it is put.
15. Client Details
You must inform us immediately in writing or by e-mail of any changes to your contact details. We will not be held responsible for correspondence sent to you/messages left for you at a previous postal address, e-mail address or telephone number, if the correspondence was sent to/message left at the address or number we have for you on record, and you have not notified us in writing of any changes to that address or number.
16. Complaints and Queries
All complaints and queries regarding statements, contract notes or accounts should either be made in writing or by telephone to the following addresses/contact numbers.
16.1 Non-Stop-Loss and Stop Loss Accounts:
Sporting Index Limited, Gateway House, Milverton Street, London, SE11 4AP
Freephone Tel: 08000 96 96 07
Fax: 08000 96 96 08
Email: enquiries@sportingindex.com
16.2 bethilo Accounts
bethilo, Gateway House, Milverton Street, London, SE11 4AP
Freephone Tel: 08000 72 40 40
Fax: 08000 96 96 08
Email: enquiries@bethilo.com
16.3 Time Limits etc
Any complaint or query should be communicated to us immediately it comes to your attention. Any delay in communication may prejudice our ability to investigate. Any complaint or queries regarding missing bets should be supported by (a) if the bet was placed by telephone or through your mobile phone, a print out of your telephone bill highlighting the date/time of the call when the missing bet was placed or (b) if placed over the internet, a copy of the 'bet confirmation' print out (if available) together with details of the date/time/market/size of the missing bet.
16.4 We may close any open bet on your account at our prevailing closing price if we are in dispute with you over that bet and we reasonably consider that this is necessary in order to minimize the amount in dispute.
16.5. Internal Complaints Procedure and Financial Services Authority Compensation Scheme
A copy of our internal complaints procedures can be found on our Websites. If you are dissatisfied with our final response to your complaint, you may refer your complaint to: The Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London, E14 9SR
Tel: 0845 080 1800
In the unlikely event that we are unable to meet our obligations to you, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme ('FSCS') may be available to you. This depends on your profile and the circumstances of the claim. Further information about compensation scheme arrangements is available on request or from the FSCS.
17. Betting
Bets, or betting instructions, may only be accepted by telephone, mobile phone or online during the trading hours for the market in which you are trading. Before you open a bet, you should therefore ensure that you are familiar with the trading hours for the market that you wish to trade, as restrictions on the times that you may trade in that market may apply. We are under no obligation to accept an offer by you to close a bet through any of our trading platforms outside of those trading hours.
17.1 On opening an account with us, we shall provide you with security details that will enable you to access your account. It is important that you keep these security details confidential and that you store them in a place that cannot be accessed by any other person. If you have reason to believe that any person has had access to your security details you should inform us immediately and we shall place a block on your account. You will be liable for any losses that are incurred on your account through the use of your security details unless those losses arise because of our negligence in accepting instructions on your account.
17.2 We may limit your ability to trade on any one or more of our trading platforms upon giving you prior notice.
17.3 Telephone Betting only
If you hold a Stop Loss, a Non-Stop-Loss account or a telephone betting bethilo account you may ask us for a quote to open or close a bet or otherwise give betting instructions by telephoning us on one of our designated trading lines. You should note that a quote given to you by one of our traders is not in law an offer to contract. By saying that you wish to bet at the price quoted you will be offering to bet at that price and our trader will have the right to decide whether to accept or reject your offer. No bet will come into existence unless and until our trader gives you confirmation to that effect. When you bet by telephone your instructions to open or close a bet must be given to our trader during the same telephone conversation in which the quote was given. We shall be under no obligation to repeat the quote in a subsequent conversation. Please note that we do not levy any additional costs on telephone calls made to our designated trading lines and that standard network charges apply.
17.4 Betting through our Websites or Mobile Phone Trading Application ('Online Betting') only
Opening/closing bets
In order to place a bet through your mobile phone, you will be required to download a software application from our Websites. This software is provided to you solely for use in connection with your account. All intellectual property rights in the software are and will remain our property and you must not transfer or disseminate the software to any other person. To place an 'online bet' you should select your desired market on the screen and input into the appropriate box the stake that you wish to bet and whether you wish to buy or sell. By confirming that information to us, you will be offering to contract on the terms indicated. There will then be a delay while we process your offer. If we accept it, we will send you a message that states 'bet confirmed' and give you a bet reference number. Until we send this message, the bet has not been placed. If we have sent a confirmation to you, the bet to which it relates will appear in our records as having been placed and will be produced by us in the event of a dispute. If you do not receive our confirmation within 2 minutes of sending your offer, or if you dispute the contents of any confirmation that you do receive, you must notify us by telephone immediately.
Bet acceptance
A bet has not been placed unless a bet reference number for it can be seen in the Open Bets section of the screen. You should review your Open Bets screen after every bet to make sure that it reflects the position, as you understand it. Any queries should be notified to us immediately by telephone. Once bets have been placed and their acceptance confirmed they may not be cancelled or changed. All bets can be viewed by referring to the sections of the screen marked Account History. Statements can be viewed online and printed from the screen. Alternatively, (unless you hold a bethilo account for which see paragraph 7.3 above) you may request that contract notes and statements to be sent by post.
Online bet referral
Your request to open or close an online bet may be referred to us if we reasonably consider that this is necessary for your protection or our protection or because the market you wish to trade in is unavailable to trade in at that time. In the event that a bet is referred, the following applies:
'Acceptable':
If your bet is accepted and less than 10 seconds have elapsed since your request, you will be sent a 'bet confirmed' message, which will detail your bet reference number. If more than 10 seconds have elapsed, you will be sent a 're-offer' message inviting you within a further 10 seconds to re-offer your bet at the price quoted, which may be different from the original price quoted to you (see below). Your bet will not be placed unless you receive a 'bet confirmed' message in respect of it.
'Re-Offer':
In the case of a bet in respect of which we send you a 're-offer' message, the stake or price offered back to you may differ from that requested; therefore it is important to check the details carefully. It is for you to decide whether to re-offer or cancel at the re-offered price and/or stake. Again, the bet will not be placed unless we send you a 'bet confirmed' message. Failing to respond to the 're-offer' message inside the allocated 10 seconds will result in your request being automatically declined.
'Declined':
We may decline a bet request referred to us if we reasonably consider that this is necessary for your protection or our protection. Other bet requests will be declined for reasons associated with the underlying event taking place (e.g. a penalty is about to be taken, third umpire decision, etc). In either case, you will receive a standard bet decline message. It may be necessary from time to time to suspend one or more of our online betting platforms in order to carry out repairs and maintenance. We shall endeavour to give you prior notice of any such occurrences, but this may not always be reasonably practicable.
18. Time
All times referred to in any document or communication made by us or our staff relate to London (United Kingdom) time unless we specify otherwise.
19. Other Market Information
19.1 Maximum Win on our 'My Super Bankers'
The maximum win on our My Super Bankers market is £50,000 (fifty thousand pounds) if the bet is placed via any medium other than the telephone. If the bet is placed by telephone the maximum win will be £250,000 (two hundred and fifty thousand pounds). This maximum win applies regardless of your stake and regardless of the closing price of the bet.
20. Games
As well as using your account to bet on real-life events, you can also use it to place spread bets on virtual games ('the Games'). The Games are based on an independently audited 'Random Number Generator'. This randomly generates a sequence of numbers, which correspond to cricket scores, goals scored etc, used in the Games. The scores you bet on are therefore entirely virtual and have no relationship to any sporting or other fixture/event that actually takes place. If, in relation to any bet placed by you, the generation of random numbers is interfered with or otherwise fails by reason of any problem or error, whether technological or human, that bet shall be void and we shall: (a) void that bet in our records as soon as we become aware of the problem or error; (b) inform you as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter; and (c) return any money attaching to that bet to you.
20.1 Maximum Payouts
The maximum payout per individual game to any individual client in a 24-hour period is £50,000 (fifty thousand pounds). The maximum payout in total to any individual client in a 24-hour period, on one or more games, is £100,000 (one hundred thousand pounds). Once the maximum payouts set out above have been reached, we shall void any further bets on your account. You will be entitled to the return of any money deposited with us in relation to those voided bets.
21. Tax
You are responsible for any taxes (UK or foreign) that may arise now or at any time in the future in relation to your spread betting with us. If you are in any doubt as to whether you are liable for tax, you should seek specialist tax advice. We do not under current legislation charge UK Betting Duty to our clients on any spread bet. This burden is met by us and paid direct to HMRC. Changes in the basis of taxation or other factors may cause these policies to be altered.
22. Margin Calls
A margin call is a request by us to you for money to be paid into your account to support your open bets. The following rules apply to margin calls:
22.1 Meaning of 'Margin'
'Margin' is used in these rules to describe a sum of money that we are entitled to demand from you if your account moves into deficit. Whether your account is in deficit, and if so to what extent, is calculated by reference to the following formula: Deposit Accounts (including Stop Loss Accounts operated on a deposit basis): Your account will be in deficit to the extent that the aggregate of the net losses on your open bets (i.e. the result of offsetting the profits against losses) plus the total volatility requirement for all your open bets exceeds cash held. Credit Accounts (including Stop Loss Accounts operated with a credit limit): Your account will be in deficit to the extent that the aggregate of the net losses on your open bets (i.e. the result of offsetting the profits against losses) plus the total volatility requirement for all your open bets exceeds cash held plus your credit limit. We will be entitled to demand margin from you up to the sum of the deficit standing to your account. If we ask you for a lesser sum then this is the sum that will be due from you under that margin call. Credit and/or debit balances on any other accounts that you may hold with us (whether they be deposit or credit accounts, and whether they be held by us trading as Sporting Index or bethilo or by another entity that is wholly or partly owned by Sporting Index Holdings Limited or Sporting Index Limited) are irrelevant for the purposes of calculating the deficit standing to your account. You should note that the fact that we call for a sum in a margin call does not mean that your losses are or will be limited to that sum or that we will not call for further margin subsequently, perhaps on the same day. If as a result of an error on our part we ask you for a sum greater than the sum that we are entitled to demand, we shall nonetheless be deemed to have made a margin call at the time when we made the margin call for the true sum by which your account was in deficit at that time.
22.2 Manner of Calling for Margin
(a) We may make margin calls by (i) telephoning and/or (ii) by emailing and/or (iii) writing to you by post at any address given to us by you. We will not be obliged to use all of these means of communication and the margin call will have been made even if we only use one of them. The margin call will for the purposes of these Rules be deemed to have been received by you in accordance with the following paragraphs, whether or not you in fact (i) received the margin call at the deemed times and/or (ii) received it at all. It is your responsibility to inform us in good time of any significant period that you spend away from the normal account address or contact point that you have given to us. If you are absent from the mailing address held on our database without notifying us of an alternative contact point we will not be responsible for the consequences if any communication fails to reach you in good time or at all. Margin calls by telephone (b) If we speak to you personally, a margin call for a particular sum is received by you on the first occasion that we ask you for that sum. (c) If we are unable to speak to you and a person and/or an automated message taking service offers to take a message for you, we will in order to avoid embarrassment leave a message asking you to contact us. If we do that we will be deemed to have made a margin call for the deficit outstanding on your account at the time when we left the message, and the time of leaving the message will be the time when it will be deemed to have been received by you. If, therefore, you receive a message from us asking us to contact you, you should assume that it is a margin call for the deficit on your account and you should contact us in order to ascertain the deficit and make the payment. (d) If in order to make a margin call we ring the telephone number or numbers given to us by you and are given no opportunity to leave a message, either with an individual or with an automated message-taking service, we will nonetheless be deemed to have made a margin call for the deficit outstanding on your account at the time when we made the first call, or (if only one number is dialled) the call. Margin calls by email (e) These will be deemed to have been received by you one minute after the moment of sending by us. Margin calls by first class post (f) These will be deemed to have been received by you at 9.00am on the next weekday that is not a UK Bank Holiday. This will be the case unless you contact us in advance and advise us of disruption to your postal service, in which case we will use alternative means.
22.3 Obligation to Pay Margin
(a) If we demand margin you must within the time limit set out below pay to us the sum demanded PLUS OR MINUS any sum by which the deficit on your account changes between the time when the margin call is received (or deemed to have been received) by you and the time when it is discharged. If you are unsure of the precise sum that is due from you at the time of payment, you should check your account summary online or telephone us and ask for the updated figure. A margin call is deemed to have been discharged if (a) payment is made in accordance with the requirements in this paragraph or (b) at any time after the call is made your account comes out of deficit, whether because of a payment made by you and/or for any other reason. (b) Margin must be paid within five business days of the date when the margin call is first received (or deemed to have been received) by you. For example, if the margin call is received (or deemed to have been received) on a Monday, the margin must be paid by the following Monday (see paragraph 33 for worked example). The time for payment is unaffected by the susequent receipt, or deemed receipt, of any other margin call for the same sum (by the same or other means). (c) Margin may be paid by cash, debit or credit card, banker's draft, cheque or telegraphic transfer. Please note that if you pay by cheque or banker's draft we will treat receipt of these in our hands as payment of the sums in them subject to clearance. Merely posting them to us will not constitute receipt by us until we have received them.
22.4 Appropriation of Payments
If at any time margin is due from you in respect of any one or more of your open bets and there are also unpaid losses on your account, whether or not the time for payment of these losses has expired, we shall be entitled to apply any money paid by you to these unpaid losses and to require that they be paid in full before any money received from you is applied to the payment of margin. You also acknowledge and agree that we may apply any funds standing to the credit of your account to the payment of margin due on your open bets.
22.5 Closure of Bets
Under FSA Rules The FSA rules provide that we must close out an open bet if you fail to meet a margin call made for that bet for five business days following the date on which the margin call accrues, unless we have received confirmation from a relevant third party that you have given instructions to pay the margin due and we are satisfied that the delay in its receipt is due to circumstances beyond your control or we agree to extend your credit to cover the margin call. Although we may consider extending credit to you within FSA rules (and thereby extending the time for payment of margin beyond the five business days) we have no obligation to you to do so.
23. Telephone Calls
All telephone calls you make to us are recorded for your own protection. These recordings are our property and may be used by us in the case of a dispute.
24. Client Money
Money that we receive from you in relation to your account will be subject to the protections (including segregation) contained in the FSA Client Money Rules, which are published on the FSA website. You will not be entitled to interest on your money deposited with us unless we have otherwise agreed in writing to pay you interest.
25. Force Majeure Events
(a) We may, in our reasonable opinion, determine that an emergency or an exceptional market condition exists (a 'Force Majeure Event'), in which case we will, as soon as reasonably practicable, inform the FSA and you. A Force Majeure Event shall include, but is not limited to, the following: (i) any act, event or occurrence (including, without limitation, any strike, riot or civil commotion, interruption of power supply, electronic, communication equipment or supplier failure) which, in our reasonable opinion, prevents us from offering or continuing to offer one or more of our markets in an orderly manner; (ii) the suspension or closure of any market or the abandonment or failure of any event upon which we base, or to which we in any way relate, our markets, or the imposition of limits or special or unusual terms on the trading in any such market or on any such event, which in our reasonable opinion, prevents us from offering or continuing to offer one or more of our markets in an orderly manner; or (iii) the occurrence of an excessive movement in the level of any of our prices and/or any corresponding market or our anticipation (acting reasonably) of the occurrence of such a movement, which in our reasonable opinion, prevents us from offering or continuing to offer one or more of or markets in an orderly manner. (b) If we determine that a Force Majeure Event has occurred we may within a reasonable time of the Force Majeure Event having taken place take one or more of the following steps: (i) increase the volatility factors on any or all your open bets; (ii) close any or all of your open bets permanently; (ii) suspend or modify the application of any or all of these Rules to the extent that the Force Majeure event makes it impossible or impractical for us to comply with the rule or rules in question. We will give you prior notice where it is possible for us to do so of the steps that we propose to take by reason of the Force Majeure Event; where we give effect to any of the above steps without giving you prior notice, we shall inform you of the action taken as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter.
26. Amendment of these Rules and the SBA Rules
These Rules and the SBA Rules may be amended by us at any time. The amendment will be made by publishing the new version of the Rules and the SBA Rules on our Websites and the new version(s) will apply to all bets placed with us as from ten business days after the date of publication unless it is impracticable in the circumstances for this length of notice to be given. In opening a bet you agree that the version of these Rules and the SBA Rules published on the Websites at the time of opening your bet governs that bet, unless that version has been on the Websites for less than ten business days, in which case the version previously on the Websites will apply. We will inform you of the publication of any new version of these Rules and the SBA Rules and the date they will come into effect by post or email. We will not send a paper copy of the new version to you unless requested. It is therefore your responsibility to ensure that you are aware of the latest version of these Rules and the SBA Rules as published on the Websites before opening any new bet. If you do not have access to the Websites you must make sure before opening a bet that you are happy for that bet to be governed by the latest version of these Rules and the SBA Rules. You should do this by telephoning us and we will endeavour to answer any query you have. We will send you a paper copy of the latest versions if so requested.
27. 'In-Running' Trading
Where a market we offer is stated to be 'In- Running' you will be able to open and close bets in that market whilst the underlying event is in progress, subject to the restrictions set out below. The underlying event may be short term (for example, a football match) or longer term (for example, cricket series runs or football season points totals). You will not be able to open and close bets in a market that is 'In Running' in the following circumstances: (a) the real-time television broadcast of the underlying event and its reception by us is interrupted for any reason beyond our reasonable control; or (b) an event material to the market in question is actually in progress or in our reasonable opinion is about to happen. An event will be considered material to the market in question if it is likely to have an upwards or downwards effect on the price we quote for that market. For example, a penalty is about to be taken in a football match; (c) long term markets: markets relating to the long-term performance of individuals or teams may not be quoted when they or a rival or a related party are actually in play. For example, seasons points, series runs, the FA Cup and Wimbledon indices etc, may be traded between, but not during, games, innings, ties etc respectively. If you are proposing to trade in an 'In-Running' market you should ensure that you are familiar with the restrictions on the times when you will be able to open/close bets or otherwise give us betting instructions in that market before you open your bet.
28. Late Bets
From time to time, because of technical failure or human error, we may erroneously accept a bet on a market that: (a) is not an 'In-Running' market and has already started or (b) is an 'In- Running' market, but is not available to bet on because one of the circumstances set out in paragraph 27 above is present. Together these are known as 'Late Bets'. If we erroneously accept a Late Bet that bet shall be void and we shall: (a) void that bet in our records as soon as we become aware of the error; (b) inform you as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter; and (c) return any money attaching to that bet to you.
29. Pricing Errors
A Pricing Error is defined as a quote by us to you where by reason of an error on our part the price we quote differs from our true market price (i.e the price we would have quoted but for the error) at the time it was quoted. If we accept an offer from you to open or close a bet based upon a Pricing Error that bet shall be void and we shall: (a) void that bet in our records as soon as we become aware of the error; (b) inform you as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter; and (c) return any money attaching to that bet to you.
30. Market Information
As a matter of business practice we endeavour to keep you informed, whether through the internet, telephonically, through text services, newspaper advertisements, promotional materials or otherwise, of the status from time to time of certain sporting events around which we are making markets, and, on occasion, of prior historical statistics relevant to such events or markets. While we offer such information in good faith, we do so without any responsibility and make no claim as to the accuracy or otherwise of any such information. You are warned that any information given to you by us may be inaccurate and you warrant that in making decisions that relate to betting you will rely solely on your own information (obtained from sources other than us) and judgement.
31. Technological Failure and Exclusion of Liability
31.1 We do not in any way exclude or limit: (a) our liability for negligence or the negligence of our agents (b) our liability for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation or wilful default (c) any liability that cannot be excluded or limited under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.
31.2 Subject to paragraph 31.1 above, we will not in any event be responsible or liable for any loss, loss of profit, revenue, business, contract, goodwill or data or any consequential loss or damage arising from the use or unavailability of our telephone and/or online trading platforms and/or our software and/or our Websites. Such loss and damage may result from (including but not limited to) the unavailability whether for technical reasons or otherwise of any one or more of our trading platforms and/or software and/or Websites so that you are unable to communicate or trade with us (including without limitation because, for example, all our telephone lines are busy or through the loss of internet communication); an inaccuracy or mistake in any information given to you or in carrying out your instructions; the avoidance of any bet in accordance with these Rules (including without limitation because, for example, of a Pricing Error or error in the generation of random numbers for use in Games); or as a result of any referral to our online bet referral team under paragraph 17.4 above; or as a result of the unauthorised access to our trading platforms by a third party or the corruption of data sent by you to us or by us to you.
31.3 We shall not be responsible for any delay or failure to carry out our responsibilities under these Rules that is caused by reasons beyond our reasonable control, including for example acts of God, exceptionally severe weather, industrial disputes both here and abroad, failure or shortage of power supplies, acts of terrorism, war, default or failure of a third party (including any network provider or service provider) or their telecommunications systems, or government actions.
31.4 We take reasonable precautions to ensure that data generated and used by us has been swept for viruses, but it is your responsibility to ensure that the transmission, opening or use of such data to you will not adversely affect your systems or data. You should ensure that your computer has up to date virus detection software and that you carry out such virus and other checks, as you consider appropriate. No responsibility is accepted by us for losses that you may suffer as a result of the onward transmission of viruses from us to you.
31.5 Each provision of this paragraph 31 operates separately. If any provision is disallowed or found to be ineffective by any Court or regulatory body the other provisions will continue to apply.
32. Account Numbers
On opening an account or accounts with us, we shall provide you with an account number and/or password and/or a username to access your account or accounts. Please note that all your accounts you hold with us will be accessed using the same account number and/or password and/or username that we give to you. Our accounts are for the use of the designated account holder only and it is your responsibility to keep these details confidential and you should not reveal them to any person. If you have reason to believe that your account details may be in the possession a third party, or if they are lost, you should inform us immediately and we shall place a block on your account and issue you with replacement details. You will be liable for any losses that are incurred on your account through the use of your security details unless those losses arise because of our negligence in accepting instructions on your account.
33. Definitions: 'days' and 'business days'
(a) Where in these Rules reference is made to a time limit expressed as a number of 'days', the days referred to include every day of the calendar year. Where a time limit is expressed as a number of 'business days', Saturdays, Sundays and official Bank Holidays are not to be counted as part of the number. (b) In either case, any time limit will expire at 5.30 p.m. on the last complete day. Thus, for example, if margin, which is payable within five business days, becomes payable at 12 noon on Monday, 1 June, the client has all of Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and until 5.30 p.m. on Monday, 8 June to make the payment.
34. Termination
Closure of an account for any reason shall not affect any rights or obligations of either of us which accrued prior to termination and, in particular, shall not limit or restrict your obligation to indemnify us in relation to any act, event, or omission occurring prior to termination (whether or not we have made any demand or the liability has arisen prior to termination). Amounts outstanding on your account will become due immediately if they have not already become due. Any long-term positions will remain open until they are closed by you, or left to expire naturally. The provisions regarding margin (see paragraph 22) will continue to apply whilst you have open positions. Once the open positions have expired monies are payable immediately by either party.
35. Cancellation
You have the right to cancel this contract up to fourteen days after the contract is constituted (the 'Cancellation Period'). However, if you place a bet and/or deposit funds during such cancellation period you will have, by virtue of having requested that such bet be placed or having deposited funds, expressly requested that the contract be fully completed. Therefore, the right to cancel will fall away at the time the funds are deposited or the first bet is placed during the Cancellation Period or automatically at the end of the Cancellation Period if later.
36. Death of a Client
On receipt of a certified copy of a Death Certificate or other news of a client's death that we in good faith believe to be true, we will within a reasonable time close all open positions on the deceased's account will be closed at our prevailing price, or if none at a price that is fair and reasonable. A cheque will be issued for any credit balance (payable to personal representatives of the deceased ) or demand made on the estate for payment of any debit balance.
37. Use of Personal Data
By opening an account with us, and by betting with us, you will be providing us with personal data within the meaning of the Data Protection Act 1998. You authorise us to process such data in order to fulfil our obligations under these rules and the FSA Rules and in furtherance of our legitimate interests including statistical analysis, marketing of our business and credit control. In relation to credit control, you authorise us to carry out such credit or identity checks as we consider necessary to fulfil this function including obtaining references from your bank and/or your employer. You also authorise us to provide information regarding your account and betting history to: (a) any person we reasonably determine to be seeking a credit reference in good faith (b) any regulator of our business upon request. If you have any questions regarding your privacy or our use of your personal data, or you wish to change or update personal data you have previously provided to us, please contact our Customer Services. You may also request a copy of the personal data we hold about you or a description of that data. Please note that under English law we are entitled to make a small charge for providing this information. We may need to transfer a copy of your details to a company within the Sporting Index Group to allow quick and easy registration but we will ask you to confirm this before we do.
38. General
38.1 No failure or delay in exercising or relaxation by either of us of any provision of these Rules shall operate as a general waiver of the relevant provision and no single or partial exercise of any provision of these Rules shall preclude any other or further exercise of other provisions of these Rules.
38.2 If any provision of these Rules is held by any competent authority to be invalid or unenforceable in whole or in part the validity of the other provisions of these Rules and any remainder of the provision in question shall not be affected thereby. In such circumstances the part deemed invalid or unenforceable shall be amended to the least extent necessary to render the provision enforceable, and in the event that the parties cannot agree on such amendment they shall submit their disagreement to the court for adjudication.
38.3 These Rules and any bet placed under them shall be governed by the laws of England. The courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any disputes in relation thereto.
38.4 Headings in these Rules and in particular in this Agreement shall not affect its interpretation and are for ease of reference only.
38.5 Where these Rules are issued in a language other than in English, the English language version shall take precedence in the event of any conflict.
38.6 We may assign our rights and obligations under these Rules to a third party (in whole or part) subject to obtaining FSA approval. Notice of any such assignment will be given to you. Your rights under these Rules will not be prejudiced by the assignment.
38.7 A person who is not a party to these Rules has no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any provision of these Rules, but this does not affect any right or remedy of a third party which exists or is available apart from that Act.
38.8 These Rules and the SBA Rules are intended to contain all the terms of our agreement with you in relation to your spread betting. If a member of staff has made a statement to you that is not covered by or is at variance with any provision of these Rules or the SBA Rules you should inform Customer Services immediately before you commence trading with us. We warn you that the law favours written terms and it is therefore important that you bring any such statements to our attention before you commence your trading with us.
39. Risk Warning Notice
This notice is provided to you in compliance with requirements laid down by the Financial Services Authority because you are proposing to undertake dealings in contracts for differences in the form of bets with a firm, which is carrying on investment business as a bookmaker. It cannot disclose all of the risks and other significant aspects involved in dealing in contracts for differences in the form of bets. Engaging in this type of transaction can carry a high risk. As these transactions differ markedly from normal bets you should not engage in this form of betting unless you understand the nature of the transaction you are entering into and the true extent of your exposure to the risk of loss. The amount that you may win or lose will vary according to the extent of the fluctuations in the price of the sports based index (`the underlying market') on which the bet is based instead of a predeterminable sum when a normal bet is placed. Always remember that previous betting performance is no indicator of future betting performance. For many members of the public, these transactions are not suitable; you should, therefore, consider carefully whether they are suitable for you in the light of your circumstances and financial resources. In considering whether to engage in this form of betting, you should be aware of the following:
a) The high degree of `gearing' or `leverage' is a particular feature of this type of transaction. This stems from the margining system applicable to such bets, which generally involves a comparatively modest deposit or margin in terms of the overall contract value, so that a relatively small movement in the underlying market can have a disproportionately dramatic effect on your bet. If the underlying market movement is in your favour, you may achieve a good profit, but an equally small adverse market movement can not only quickly result in the loss of your entire deposit, but may also expose you to a large additional loss unless you enter into a limited liability contract with the firm. If you deal on a credit basis and, therefore, not subject to initial margin requirements, the extent of your agreed credit facility does not limit your loss or financial liability and you can be subject to margin calls for an amount in excess of your facility. As a consequence the amount of capital you are prepared to place at risk should be sufficient to cover your credit limit and the possibility of subsequent margin calls which will only be made once your credit limit has been exceeded.
b) You may be called upon to deposit a substantial additional margin, at short notice, to maintain your bet. If you do not provide such additional funds within the time required, your bet may be closed at a loss and you will be liable for the resulting deficit.
c) Such transactions will not be undertaken on a recognised or designated investment exchange and, accordingly, they may expose you to greater risks than exchange transactions. The betting structure and betting rules will be established solely by the bookmaker. For example, if you wish to close the bet earlier than the time at which it would otherwise automatically expire, you will have to close it at your bookmaker's quotation which may reflect the premium or discount of the `underlying market' which when closed can be influenced by the weight of the other clients buying or selling with your bookmaker. You will have to close any bet with the same bookmaker with whom it was originally entered into.
d) Where entering into such transactions, your bookmaker must do so under a two-way customer agreement pursuant to the FSA Conduct of Business rules unless exempted from doing so. You should satisfy yourself that dealing is conducted throughout in strict conformity with that customer agreement and report to the FSA if you have reason to believe it is not.
e) Prior to placing any bets, you should receive from your bookmaker written confirmation of all transaction or other charges for which you will be liable.
f) As a result of Section 412 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, the bets in this case are enforceable and the bookmaking firm may be sued by you (which is advantageous to you if you win) and may sue you (which is disadvantageous to you if you lose).
g) Your bookmaker is prohibited under FSA requirements from providing you with investment advice relating to investments or possible transactions or possible investments or from making investment recommendations of any kind. This prohibition is subject to an exception where advice given amounts to the giving of factual market information, in relation to a transaction about which you have enquired, as to transaction procedures, potential risks involved and how those risks may be minimised.
h) Your bookmaker is required to hold your money in segregated trust accounts in accordance with the regulations of FSA, but this may not afford complete protection.
i) If you deposit collateral as security with your bookmaker, you should ascertain from your bookmaker how your collateral will be dealt with. If you have reason to believe that the bookmaker with which you deal is not acting in accordance with representations that it has made to you, the terms of your customer agreement or the rules of the FSA, you should report it to: The Financial Services Authority Limited, 25 North Colonade, Canary Wharf, London E14 5HS. Telephone: 020 7066 1000.