Although most welcome offers might sound good at face value, there are some things which punters should consider before claiming a bunch of them.
In the final step, we also have the opportunity to enter a promo code (see image below) and this is needed for Betfred's offer, more specifically the code 'BETFRED50'. Depending on the welcome offer and betting site, the process could vary slightly but it is mostly the same on all betting sites. Verify Your Account on the Site When we registered for an account on the Betfred app, the bookie was able to confirm our details automatically and thus verified the account. However, in some cases, additional documentation will be needed before any welcome offer can be claimed. Verifying the account is something we highly recommend to avoid problems down the line.
When we registered for an account on the Betfred app, the bookie was able to confirm our details automatically and thus verified the account. Make a Qualifying Deposit After the account has been created, the new step is to make a qualifying deposit. Betfred accepts several payment methods but for the welcome offer, the deposit must be made with a debit card. Furthermore, even though the minimum deposit amount is £5, the qualifying deposit must be at least £10. These requirements also apply to more or less all welcome offers in the UK, so they are not specific to Betfred. We have listed three pros and three cons of free bets below, which should help you make an informed decision about whether they are for you or not. Easy to Claim: Since the competition is so fierce among bookmakers when it comes to free bets and welcome offers, most of them are rather easy to claim these days.
After the account has been created, the new step is to make a qualifying deposit. Place the Qualifying Bet to Unlock the Free Bets To unlock the free bets on any betting site, unless we are talking about a no deposit free bet, you will need to place a qualifying bet. In Betfred's case, we need to place a bet of 10+ on any sportsbook market at a minimum odds of evens (2.00). To unlock the free bets on any betting site, unless we are talking about a no deposit free bet, you will need to place a qualifying bet. Double Check Terms and Use the Free Bets Once the qualifying bet has been settled (usually), the free bets will be credited to your account. If you consider that the minimum odds requirement is not always that high for the qualifying bet, you could actually make a profit with that as well.
While some bookies may just have a minimum odds requirement for the free bets, some bookmakers will require you to place them on certain markets. The bet betting sites uk sports latter is the case at Betfred. Indeed, the bookie restricts the free bets in the following way: 3 x £10 in Sports Free Bets and 2 x £10 in Acca Free Bets. Most free bets also tend to expire 7 days after being credited, so make sure to spend them before they are gone (although it will do you no good to rush). Once the qualifying bet has been settled (usually), the free bets will be credited to your account. No Wagering Requirement (usually): Most of the sports welcome offers will not have any wagering requirements for the potential winnings, unlike a lot of the casino bonuses around.
If you were to deposit £100 on your first deposit, you would get £100 in free bets or bonus funds. However, you may need to wager the deposit amount up to 10x (£1000) to unlock the funds for withdrawal. A matched bonus (also called a deposit bonus) is triggered on your first deposit to a new betting site. Money Back Free Bets We are not huge fans of money-back free bets but, having said that, they are not bet betting odds comparison uk uncommon in the UK. Essentially, These offers require losses to be made - usually on the first day or the first bet - for any free bets to be credited.
So if your first-day losses amounted to £40, then you would get a £40 free bet. Of course, the downside to this is that you would have to make a loss in order to claim any free bets. Furthermore, most betting sites in the UK tend to cap this type of welcome offer, meaning you would only get a refund up until a certain amount. Unibet is an example, offering a money-back bonus of up to £40 for first-bet losses. We are not huge fans of money-back free bets but, having said that, they are not uncommon in the UK. If a bookmaker does have wagering requirements for the sports offer, which can sometimes be the case among new betting sites, then that is a huge red flag.
Some punters even tend to jump from site to site, claiming welcome offer after welcome offer. It is worth noting that while free bets are most common in welcome offers, they can also be awarded to existing customers through certain promotions. Loyalty rewards schemes and bet refunds are two examples but generally, when speaking of free bets, it will be about the many welcome offers available in the UK. When browsing the welcome offers in the UK, you will find that these vary in how they work. The main differences can usually be found in how to claim the free bets and below, we have outlined the most common welcome offer types among UK bookmakers.
Deposit Free Bets This is without a doubt the most common type of free bet out there. As the name suggests, punters need to make a deposit on the betting site to claim the free bets. This is usually £10 in the UK, such as a bet £10 get £30 deal, but some offers can be lower as well as higher. Furthermore, just making a deposit will often not be enough to claim the free bets, with most sites demanding a deposit as well as a qualifying bet. The latter usually has a minimum odds (and sometimes even a specific market to bet on) but generally speaking, these free bets are rather easy to claim. Low Risk: Those who are new to sports betting will probably find that welcome offers are very beneficial, as you can learn more about the practice without actually spending your own money. The deposit is needed, of course, but sometimes you can get as much as £50 to bet on after a £10 deposit. Payment Method Restrictions: Most bookmakers in the UK restrict their qualifying bet deposits to certain payment methods, and experienced punters will know that e-wallets such as PayPal are rarely eligible. Claiming several welcome offers, at least, is not for you if you want to use an e-wallet.
Market Restrictions: With some welcome offers, you will have less freedom with your betting selections as bookies can restrict individual parts of the offer to certain markets. For example, you might need to bet £10 on a football acca, and some markets might not be eligible even for more generic free bets (such as each-way bets in horse racing).
This is without a doubt the most common type of free bet out there. No deposit free bets are completely free bets that some bookmakers offer for a limited time. In that sense, the no deposit betting offers are exactly as they sound, a bonus without needing to deposit any money. No deposit betting offers usually come in three different varieties. Free bets with no deposit, free spins with no deposit, or a set amount of money to use for free on different sections of the website.
Matched Deposit Free Bets A matched bonus (also called a deposit bonus) is triggered on your first deposit to a new betting site. A matched bonus means that the bookmaker will match your first deposit amount up to a certain percentage. Matched deposit bonuses are great for players who intend to deposit a large amount of money. But, we recommend looking at the wagering requirement before committing to these offers, as they can be difficult, and usually need to be completed within 30 days of signing up. For example, a 100% match of your first deposit up to £100. Deposit Required: While they are called free bets, punters will have to make a deposit and place a qualifying bet to unlock these.
There are a few no deposit offers around, but these are rare and there is no guarantee that they will be available on the day. Various factors play a big part when deciding if a welcome offer bonus is worthwhile, such as: Payment restrictions: One of the most important things to know about welcome offers is that not all banking options will qualify a new customer to get the promotion.
| Bookmaker | Match Percentage | Max. Bonus | Min. Deposit | Wagering Req. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fun88 | 150% | £150 | £10 | 15x |
| 10Bet | 50% | £50 | £15 | 6x |
| Sporting Index | 100% | £100 | £50 | 3x |
It is often the case that betting sites do not permit new users to qualify for bonuses if they use an e-wallet to make their initial deposit.
Those who want to use Skrill, Neteller, PayPal or another type of e-wallet to sign up may therefore not get a site's bonus.
Given just how many welcome offers are out there, it can be a very frustrating process to find the best ones. After personally reviewing over 40 bookmakers for BettingLounge.co.uk, it has become clear to me that while some bookmakers actually have good welcome offers, others will do everything to make them sound like that. If I were to give your four key factors on what makes a good welcome offer, I would suggest you look at the amount of the free bets, how much you need to deposit for the qualifying bet, if the free bets have any wagering requirements and if the free bets are restricted to certain markets. Of course, there could be some more factors such as payment method restrictions and minimum odds, but these are less important in my opinion. Anyone who is interested in claiming welcome offers will not be able to use e-wallets anyway, as almost all bookies restrict these offers to debit card deposits.
Furthermore, the minimum odds (if any) tend to be quite generous. If you are unfamiliar with the process of claiming a welcome offer in bet betting sites uk that accept paypal the UK, you can follow our step-by-step guide below: Create an Account on the Betting Site Depending on the welcome offer and betting site, the process could vary slightly but it is mostly the same on all betting sites. For this guide, we have decided to use Betfred and its welcome offer. First off, we need to create an account on the site. Once the registration process has been started, we need to provide the information requested by Betfred, such as full name, home address and telephone number.
