Lotto glitches for the UK lotto

Camelot fined £90,000 over online lottery problems

Launch glitches led to incorrect charging and failed or duplicate entries

UK national lottery company Camelot has been fined £90,000
following problems with the launch of its online system
in 2004.

Camelot's online subscription service,
introduced in September and October 2004,
allowed lottery players to pay online with
a debit card or set up a direct debit to be
automatically entered for the Lotto or
Thunderball draws for a set period of time.

But problems with the initial launch resulted
in incorrect charging and crediting of some players
accounts and disruption to draw entries,
including failed and duplicate entries.

The "teething problems" with the software,
as Camelot referred to them, were resolved by the
company within a couple of months of the launch of
the online service.

An investigation by the National Lottery Commission (NLC),
however, found Camelot failed to operate an adequate
system of internal control in the implementation and
initial operation of the subscriptions system and failed
to report the problems to the NLC immediately.

The NLC fined Camelot £90,000 for breaches of its
licence obligations but said it is confident that
all affected players have been identified and
compensated accordingly and that funds for good
causes were not adversely affected.

Annette Lovell, deputy CEO of the NLC,
said in a statement: "We are satisfied that the
issues which arose in September and October 2004
have now been dealt with but we will continue to
monitor the operation of the subscriptions service."

Camelot said in a statement: "The issue affected
a small number of players, and prompt action was
taken to ensure that players suffered no financial
loss. This is a historical issue which occurred
in 2004 - and Camelot has since gone on to develop
the most successful interactive lottery in the world."

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