October
SeptemberMinimum fuss
Pittsburgh Phil (5/9) wonders what has happened to the atmosphere in our betting rings.
Perhaps the rails bookies are all just depressed about the fact that their licences oblige them to take a minimum bet from any punter while their courageous corporate cousins remain free (outside NSW) to bar anyone who wins too often.
Apparently courts have ruled that a wager is a contract between the odds maker and the odds taker, and that no one can be forced to enter a contract.
I would have thought, however, that a list of prices is an advertisement of those prices, and that it should be illegal to discriminate among customers when it comes to offering those prices.
If they are available to one, they should be available to all.
I’m amazed that the one jurisdiction sticking up for the punter in this matter is NSW. Then again, I suspect the motive of the authorities there is less to aid the punter than to aid their pals at Tabcorp by wounding the opposition.
If authorities in other states persist in their refusal to demand all wagering operators take a reasonable bet from any punter, it is surely time for punters to lobby the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to investigate.
While they’re at it, the ACCC could look into rebates for large punters and other dubious practices.
Kew (Vic)