A story doing the rounds on BBC News 24 today concerns a gambler who is suing William Hill for £2 million for um… letting him gamble.
"I’m sorry, what?"
Now, I’ve only been in to William Hill once (go Obama!), but I’m fairly confident that their sole business is betting. This case has arisen because Graham Calvert, said unhappy punter, asked William Hill not to let him gamble any more and they agreed. He is now suing them because he claims they failed in their duty of care to him and caused losses of just under £2.1 million.
Aside from the rights and wrongs of the case, it stands out as a worrying indication of the decline of personal responsibility. This man’s problem is no-one else’s but his own, and if William Hill or any other betting shop wishes to make money out of a perfectly legal activity they are entitled to do so. Graham Calvert and other problem gamblers should take responsibility for their own actions, not expect others to be their nanny. Graham Calvert should have put his wallet away, wiped the rabid, greedy foam from his mouth and got on with pursuing other activities.
But still, I wonder what the odds are on him winning the case… ?
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3 responses so far ↓
1 Will // Feb 15, 2008 at 12:06 pm
I was stuck yesterday behind a pensioner at the till in WH Smiths while she held up the queue for ages buying goodness knows how many lottery tickets and scratchcards.
Which, of course, she has every right to do.
2 amphibious // Feb 17, 2008 at 11:02 am
I’m curious to know how someone so howl-at-the-moon stupid had 2M quidlets in the first place. Worked a lot of O/T perhaps?
3 Gambling, Israel / Palestine and Pledging Allegiance // Mar 12, 2008 at 3:51 pm
[...] gambler who sued William Hill for letting him gamble has lost his case in the High Court. Briggs J found that William Hill did not owe Mr Calvert, a [...]
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