Ladbrokes claimed ₤ 102m furlough regardless of online increase

7 January 2022

ByBen King
Business reporter, BBC News

Bookmaker Ladbrokes declared ₤ 102m from the furlough plan, in spite of fast growth in online betting making up for all losses from the closure of stores.

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

Since the pandemic began moms and dad business Entain has really increased profits, driven by strong online development.

Entain stated the cash secured 14,000 jobs, and is "under evaluation."

The greatest claimers from the furlough scheme were primarily those for whom Covid lockdowns suggested high falls in revenue - airline companies, bar companies, leisure groups, stores, dining establishments and catering services.

One business stands apart in the list - Ladbrokes, the UK's biggest operator of wagering shops, with 2,845 premises branded Ladbrokes or Coral.

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

Its parent business, FTSE 100-listed video gaming giant Entain, has a huge online betting business, and clients who couldn't bet in shops during the dark days of lockdown flocked to sites and apps rather.

Last April's Grand National climaxed for the most significant online sports wagering event in the UK.

This meant that in spite of lockdowns, Entain's 2020 profits were unchanged from the year before at ₤ 3.6 bn, and it even handled to tape-record a revenue of ₤ 114m. In the first nine months of 2021 earnings grew 8%.

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

₤ 102m furlough claim

Despite a strong monetary efficiency, Ladbrokes made a big furlough claim.

Accounts for Ladbrokes Gaming and Betting Ltd, a subsidiary business of Entain, submitted with Companies House and published on Thursday reveal that it declared ₤ 57.5 m of furlough in 2020.

The BBC comprehends the business claimed around ₤ 44m in 2021, taking the overall to ₤ 102m.

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

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

"Whilst the infection is still with us and the outlook, although improving, is still far from certain, the Board will continue to keep the circumstance under evaluation."

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

However competing bookmaker William Hill chose to return ₤ 24.5 m of furlough money in August 2020, mentioning the "strength of the yohaig code post-lockdown recovery."

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

"Any business with a clear sense of morality would right away hand this promotion code cash back to the UK taxpayer."

A variety of companies in other markets opted to return furlough funds when the impact of the pandemic showed less severe than at first feared - consisting of housebuilders Redrow, Barratt and Taylor Wimpey, Games Workshop, and circulation huge Bunzl.

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

Betfred claimed at least ₤ 46.6 m in furlough

Betfred, which operates 1500 betting stores, also made considerable furlough claims despite increasing earnings.

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

In addition, a Betfred subsidiary business, Done Brothers (Cash Betting) Ltd, declared someplace in between ₤ 18.5 m and ₤ 37.5 m from Dec 2020 to May 2021, according to HMRC information (which only provides a variety, not a specific figure).

The overall for the group amounts to between ₤ 46.6 m and ₤ 65.6 m, though these figures do not consist of any claims it might have made in October and November 2020.

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

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

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

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