Picking An Online Betting Site

Betting is big business in the UK. According to Statista, there were over £2 billion worth of bets placed in the UK in 2020. If you like to bet, then chances are you’ve got an account with an online bookmaker. This way you can always place your bets whilst on the go. But, with over 100 online bookies to choose from in the UK, knowing where to place your bets can be a struggle.

In this post, we look at the factors that you should consider when picking which online betting site to use.

Do They Have A UK License?

Using a reputable and reliable bookmaker is very important. You want to be confident that your funds are protected and that your bets will always be honoured. A great place to start is ensuring that you pick an online betting site that is regulated by the Gambling Commission.

The Gambling Commission makes sure that gambling operators behave fairly and follow the strict gambling regulations. All of the main bookmakers in the UK will be regulated by the Gambling Commission, but if you find yourself looking at obscure bookies online, it’s worth checking to make sure that they are too.

If a bookmaker is regulated by the Gambling Commission, you can normally find details of this at the bottom of their website, including a link to their license information. If not, you can search the license database on the Gambling Commission website.

Free Bet Offers

When joining a new online betting site, you will often be offered a free bet as a reward for registering and placing your first bet.

"A free bet is offered to punters by online bookmakers either as a reward for signing up or ongoing loyalty. Such offers can be used in order to try and win real cash earnings, however this is often made more difficult by the introduction of terms and conditions and potentially even wagering requirements. A free bet a tokenised bet rather than their own funds."

(Source: safebettingsites)

There is no shortage of free bet offers available. In fact, there are over £1000 worth of free bet offers available in the UK. Taking advantage of these free bet offers can be a great way to boost your chances of winning. But, it's important to always make sure you understand the terms and conditions of each offer that you do.

Choice Of Sports And Markets

When picking an online betting site, it’s a good idea to consider the variety of games and markets that they have available. All betting sites should have the main sports and leagues. Things like European top flight football etc. But if you like to bet on more obscure sports, or leagues, such as U19s football, you may find that your options are a bit more limited. So, before picking a betting site, it’s worth having a look around on their website or app to check that they cover the events that you are interested in.

The same goes for the types of markets that you like to bet on. For instance, when betting on football, you’ll always find the main markets like match winner, both teams to score and over/under 2.5 goals. But not all betting sites will offer markets like cards, corners and match specials. Some sites will also let you build your own bets, by choosing multiple selections from a single match to build a same-game multi.

Payout Times

Withdrawal times from bookies can vary significantly. Some bookies can leave you waiting 3-7 days for your withdrawal to hit your account. Nobody wants to be left waiting that long. Thankfully, many bookies are starting to offer Fast Payouts, where withdrawals can be in your account within a matter of hours. Sometimes even within a matter of minutes.

The cashier section of a betting site will usually tell you their expected withdrawal times. But, if you’d like to check this before signing up to a bookie, you can ask their customer service team directly on live chat or by email. Just make sure that you have already completed the bookmaker’s verification process otherwise this can cause any pending withdrawals to be delayed.

Customer Support

When betting online, sometimes you might need customer support. Perhaps you’ve experienced a technical issue, want to check the status of a bet, or need to chase up a missing free bet. So good customer service is important. All online bookies should offer customer support via email, but it can sometimes take a long time to hear anything back.

When picking an online betting site, you might want to check what other contact methods a bookmaker provides. For instance, do they offer a live chat or telephone number? This way you can be confident that you can quickly contact their customer support if you ever need anything.

Casino, Virtuals And Bingo

Are you only interested in sports betting? Or do you sometimes like to bet on virtual sports or play things like casino games, poker or bingo? Many online bookmakers don’t just offer sports betting, but also offer a wide variety of other games. If this is something that interests you, then it's worth browsing a bookmakers website to check out the variety of games that they offer. This way you can be confident that you’re signing up to a site that offers all the games that you like!

Also read about hedge betting

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