The KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Pietermaritzburg has ordered over 100 individuals to repay millions in winnings they gained from a flawed online betting game operated by Hollywood Sportsbook KwaZulu-Natal.
The case, which also involved nine major South African banks, came from a glitch in the Betgames Instant Lucky 7 game, which allowed players to bet without paying yet still collect winnings.
According to the court, the game is similar to a lottery, and it ran for just over a week, from December 22 to December 31 2023.
During this time, players exploited a system error that failed to deduct bet amounts from their accounts. They gambled for free, with no financial risk, and still won large sums.
Unearned windfall
Judge Robin George Mossop, delivering the verdict, said the respondents won over R13 million, with individual winnings ranging from R3,000 to R443,700.
“The wagers placed through the faulty game were not valid. The respondents gambled without paying, and thus, they are not entitled to keep the winnings,” said Mossop.
He explained that a valid bet requires payment and risk, both of which were absent due to the game’s flaw.
The judge further confirmed a prior court order from January 2024, requiring the respondents to return their winnings to Hollywood Sportsbook.
The court also froze the bank accounts of the involved individuals, held at banks like Capitec, FNB, Nedbank, and others, to prevent withdrawals of the disputed winnings.
However, Judge Mossop expressed concern about the broad freeze.
“It was not clear how much money was in each account, and freezing all transactions may have unfairly restricted access to other funds.”
Mossop criticised the initial order for potentially harming the respondents, many of whom faced financial difficulties when their debit orders failed due to the account freezes.
The respondents argued they did nothing wrong, stating they bet with their own funds and won fairly.
However, Judge Mossop rejected this defence.
“The issue is not whether they had enough money in their accounts, but that they gambled for free due to the system’s failure.”
He found no evidence of fraud or a conspiracy among the players, as Hollywood Sportsbook had claimed, but upheld the company’s right to recover the winnings based on its betting terms, which state that invalid bets must be refunded.
