The UK Gambling Commission has halted a North Yorkshire couple’s plan to raffle off their £500,000 house on the grounds that it amounts to an illegal lottery.
Retirees Robert and Avril Smith intended to unload the property on January 4 to one of the lucky contestants who paid £10 each to participate in a random drawing.
According to news reports, they had researched the legalities ahead of time, including informing the commission.
Then, just days left before the winner was due to be announced, the commission told the Smiths the competition was a “lottery” and not a “legal prize competition”.
Under British law only certain charities and the National Lottery can run draws based on chance. And in the case of the Smiths there wasn’t a sufficient barrier to entry, such as a “skill” element, to ensure the result was based on more than pure chance alone.
The disappointed couple has offered to refund everyone’s £10.
House raffles have been growing in popularity across the island. In 2017, businesswoman Donna Pirie gave people the chance to win her £1.7 million mansion by taking part in a competition. After paying £25 to enter, participants had to complete a crossword. All correct entries were then selected from a random draw. Last year, entrepreneur Benno Spencer created Raffle House, a company set up to manage such giveaways. For a skill element he includes a simple question with each draw to avoid running afoul of the law.
