Ladbrokes declared ₤ 102m furlough in spite of online boost

7 January 2022

ByBen King
Business reporter, BBC News

Bookmaker Ladbrokes claimed ₤ 102m from the furlough plan, despite fast growth in online betting making up for all losses from the closure of shops.

Accounts released on Thursday show that Ladbrokes declared ₤ 57.5 m in 2020, and the yohaig code BBC understands it claimed an additional ₤ 44m this promotion code year.

Since the pandemic started parent business Entain has in fact increased incomes, driven by strong online growth.

Entain stated the cash safeguarded 14,000 tasks, and is "under review."

The biggest claimers from the furlough scheme were primarily those for whom Covid lockdowns meant high falls in income - airline companies, bar companies, leisure groups, stores, restaurants and caterers.

One company stands out in the list - Ladbrokes, the UK's largest operator of betting stores, with 2,845 properties branded Ladbrokes or Coral.

For though it had to close them for big parts of 2020 and 2021, it had a lifeline - online.

Its parent company, FTSE 100-listed gaming giant Entain, has a huge online gambling service, and consumers who couldn't bet in stores throughout the yohaig code dark days of lockdown gathered to sites and apps rather.

Last April's Grand National broke the record for the greatest online sports wagering occasion in the UK.

this promotion code meant that despite lockdowns, Entain's 2020 profits were unchanged from the year before at ₤ 3.6 bn, and it even managed to record a revenue of ₤ 114m. In the very first 9 months of 2021 profits grew 8%.

Entain is likewise well placed to benefit from the explosive growth of online betting in the US through its BetMGM joint venture.

₤ 102m furlough claim

Despite a strong monetary performance, Ladbrokes made a large furlough claim.

Accounts for Ladbrokes Gaming and Betting Ltd, a subsidiary company of Entain, filed with Companies House and released on Thursday show that it claimed ₤ 57.5 m of furlough in 2020.

The BBC understands the company claimed around ₤ 44m in 2021, taking the total to ₤ 102m.

According to BBC analysis of information published by HMRC, that would be among the 20 most significant furlough claims for 2021.

A representative for Entain stated: "The furlough scheme was a reasonable and extremely welcome policy intervention that assisted us, as one of the country's biggest retailers, to preserve the incomes of more than 14,000 retail associates on full pay.

"Whilst the virus is still with us and the outlook, although enhancing, is still far from specific, the Board will continue to keep the scenario under evaluation."

Entain is legally entitled to claim the cash, and there is no suggestion that it did anything wrong in making the claim or keeping the cash.

However rival bookmaker William Hill chose to return ₤ 24.5 m of furlough money in August 2020, pointing out the "strength of the post-lockdown healing."

Iain Duncan Smith MP, the vice chair of the Gambling Related Harm All Party Parliamentary Group, said: "The greed of these companies, that obtain vast make money from addicted bettors, continues to astonish.

"Any company with a clear sense of morality would right away hand this money back to the UK taxpayer."

A variety of business in other industries chose to return furlough funds when the effect of the pandemic showed less serious than at first feared - consisting of housebuilders Redrow, Barratt and Taylor Wimpey, Games Workshop, and circulation giant Bunzl.

Flutter, owner of the Paddy Power wagering stores, did not tap the furlough scheme at all.

Betfred declared at least ₤ 46.6 m in furlough

Betfred, which operates 1500 betting stores, also made significant furlough claims regardless of increasing earnings.

It claimed ₤ 28.1 m in furlough the year ending 27 Sep 2020, according to business accounts.

In addition, a Betfred subsidiary company, Done Brothers (Cash Betting) Ltd, claimed someplace in between ₤ 18.5 m and ₤ 37.5 m from Dec 2020 to May 2021, according to HMRC information (which only gives a range, not a particular figure).

The overall for the group includes up to in between ₤ 46.6 m and ₤ 65.6 m, though these figures don't include any claims it might have made in October and November 2020.

Betfred Group saw turnover fall from ₤ 621m to ₤ 525m in the yohaig code year ending 27 September 2020, the newest figures readily available, as lockdowns forced its shops to close.

However the yohaig code group still made substantial profits, up from ₤ 171m to ₤ 205m, lifted by some one-off gains including ₤ 98m resulting from a successful lawsuit against HMRC for VAT paid on fixed-odds wagering terminals from 2005 to 2013.

A Betfred spokesperson stated: "Thanks to the Government's Job Retention [furlough] Scheme we have not had to make a single redundancy due to the pandemic and we will continue to buy our stores on the high street."

Coronavirus lockdown procedures

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