Formatted Free Bets
Formatted free bets apply when certain conditions have to be met in stages. The free bet is not awarded immediately on opening an account or making a deposit. Once a new account is opened the free bet is awarded over a period of time in which a number of things have to take place in order for the free bet to apply. There is sometimes a time limit during which these actions take place.
How a formatted free bet works
There are a number of stages in which a formatted free bet is awarded:
- The first stage is to open a new account and make a deposit.
- A bet must then be placed before the first element of the free bet applies.
- This process is repeated until the total amount of the free bet has been awarded.
At each stage of the process the free bet bonus is the same as the stake. The different stages may come in the form of a stake or a bet. This means the free bet can be awarded in two distinct ways, namely from the level of the stake or the timing of the bet.
As with all free bets any return will exclude the total stake. As the stake was free, winning bets are settled at the relevant odds with the stake deducted to determine the return. There can be time limits on when the bets can be placed to encourage customers to increase their stake unit or bet more frequently.
Event specific formatted free bets
Once the initial deposit has been placed in a new account and the first free bet placed there can be restrictions on the sports and markets on which formatted bets can be placed. It may be that the subsequent bets can only be placed on specific Premier League matches over several weekends.
Some formatted free bets can be used on just one match or event. This means that the customer is compelled to place a selection of bets on a specific event in order to take advantage of the offer. Once that event has finished and there is no more betting on it, the free bets cannot be carried forward to another match.
Examples of a Formatted Free Bet
One of the most prominent examples of a formatted free bet is advertised daily by leading Irish bookmaker Boylesports.
The offer is £25 in free bets for new customers. The customer is entitled to up to £25 though the amount received is dependent on the average stake deposited. The process is as follows:
- The first deposit of up to £10 is rewarded with an initial £5 free bet.
- After that first free bet is placed the company will credit free bets equivalent to 50% if the next three qualifying bets.
- This process is repeated for every three qualifying bets for another four times, making a total of up to £25 in free bets on offer.
Conditions of a Formatted Free Bet
In order to bet with the bonus a customer must play through the amount of the deposit on sports and markets. The customer must then repeat this process a specific number of times before a withdrawal can be made. Some formatted free bets require betting of three times the deposit but there are some examples whereby the customer must bet 20 times the amount of the initial deposit.
These free bets are generally offered for betting on sports. The bonus must be used for sports and not for bingo, casino or poker betting. Quite often a time limit is placed on when the process is completed. For example, if the stake rollover requirement has not been met within a certain number of days of the first qualifying deposit the bonus balance will be forfeited.
Another condition is that the first bet must be placed within a certain number of days since the initial deposit was made. In some cases a code must be entered to begin the process. Any transactions made before the code has been entered will not count towards the qualifying criteria.