Fruit Machine Chat

Are you aware that bookmaker's staff can see every detail of every bet you place on FOBTs?

I changed up some coins today in a Ladbrokes. Stuck £50 in one of their FOB terminals. Put £1 in black, lost, put £1 on red, won.


I did that as I'd read about someone else doing it on here. Unfortunately I was left with yolk on my face when I was asked why I'd put in £50 to the FOBT and only staked £2 and then cashed out! The guy then went on to moan that he only had £5 notes and that he'd have to empty the machine now.

They reluctantly gave me the £50 in £5 notes. It did leave me wondering i) Why they had a float with no £10/£20 notes and ii) why they would get so arsey about having to empty £50 coins from a machine which would be useful change.

Still I had a tight agenda and didn't want to argue, so feigned ignorance and sheepishly left.

I could have mentioned that I've earned Ladbrokes several grand on poker rake playing 1/2 NL Hold 'em ring games and that they shouldn't begrudge me changing up £50 albeit in a rather bizarre manner. Also I could have mentioned that manners cost nothing and I prefer not to have The Spanish Inquisition for such a trivial matter. Like I say, on a tight agenda and I guess you can't blame them for just thinking I was a 'non customer' just after notes.

I much prefer the service in William Hill betting shops. Much better.

WILLIAM HILL SERVICE MUCH BETTER - DO YOU HEAR THAT?!? I SAID WILLIAM HILL SERVICE MUCH BETTER, NO MORE EXCESSIVE OUTDRAWS ON POKER TABLES PLEASE NOW I'VE SAID THAT. THANK YOU.

It's all barcoded as well, so no changing £50 to £500 with a black biro! Unless the cashier looks really dopey.

The staff are briefed on money laundering, honestly. Try putiing £100 in notes into a FOBT, staking £2 and then collect. The manager has to authorise the payouts, especilally in C orals. Have done the same before when on a Saturday morning the banks are shut putting £200 coins into the roulette machine. The problem is so many are rejected and they make such a noisy racket.

harry2

I work for Ladbrokes and I also play fruit machines.
However i can see why people would get annoyed with you for putting so much change into a machine with no real intention of playing it.
You just wanted change so why not just ask for it? Why even bother staking £2, do you think that makes it okay?
Do you not grasp the concept that everything in the mc's is counted, so by you putting all that change in and taking whatever was left of there notes would be a pain especially if there were bets to pay out.
Id of given you 50p's back.

It's my money, if I want to stake £2, 20p, half a crown, £50 then surely that's my business? I staked £1 on red because I wanted to get a £2 return if a red number was selected. I staked £1 on black because I wanted to get a £2 return if a black number was selected.
Usually shops and pubs are only too happy to change up £1 coins. I'm eternally sorry to Ladbrokes for the extreme distress and confusion I must have caused, it wasn't intentional, I actually thought my change could be useful. Also I didn't realise the float for paying out bets was so puny. £50 a serious inroad into the float then? Good God.
Is it really such a trial to count £50 from a machine? Isn't it what you're paid for? I've seen the money those things take. £50 is a drop in the Ocean. More than likely there were as many £20 notes as pound coins in that machine.
I wanted a couple of spins on roulette, I wanted to count out my £1 coins whilst sitting down into the FOBT, I wanted to hear the sound of my coins clunking into the cashbox, I wanted a nice little receipt that said £50 on it.
You miss my point. My actions were a little bizarre, but at the end of the day, how was I supposed to know that changing £50 would be such a problem? Yes I could have asked the cashier directly but I didn't for the reasons stated above. If I'd staked £50 and then cashed out £50, would I have got such surly service?

OK, I was a nuisance, but really it's not my problem if they don't keep a proper float on the premises is it? It's a multi-billion pound company, can they not keep a few £20 notes behind the counter? By all means point out my bizarre behaviour but save the bad attitude, it's just petty and unprofessional.

I've paid several thousand pounds in poker rake to Ladbrokes. It may not be much to them, but service with a smile would be nice, even if I'm not betting much on that day.

I doubt you'd have given me one hundred 50p pieces, too much of an effort counting that lot out, too much like hard work. It wasn't even busy, there were two people on the other FOBTs and one person looking at the racing post. You have to count the coins in the machine anyway, is fifty extra that big a deal? It's not like I make a habit of changing coins this way, I just thought I'd try something different. I didn't realise it was such a trial, I won't do it again.

Next they'll be telling me in Shipleys to stop playing a machine as it's backing and they'll have to count the coins. Actually that's not a joke, from the company that told me I couldn't leave wins on the win line, that could actually happen.


Anyway, I love a good argument (on line - as I can't get hit!) so BRING IT ON!!!! BOOOOOOM!! BASH!!! BOOOOSSSCH!!!! BLOOP!!!!!

Streakypoos wrote: The guy then went on to moan that he only had £5 notes and that he'd have to empty the machine now.

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it is quite rediculous that a multi million pound company doesnt have enough cash in the shop to pay you out with, its like arcades that say " sorry we've no notes lest", its load of rubbish , why have a company that involves you having to pay money out if you dont have the cash to do so

ive always done this in my local laddys when ive wanted to change some coins up and no ones said anything to me before. maybe your ladbrokes is poorer than mine

Joe, believe it or not you are there to provide a service to the customers. Service with a smile, not a scowl would be nice. The world's biggest bookmakers, but try betting a thousand pound on a horse or getting one of those fictional "early" prices and you will now what a con it is. A thousand at 16/1 please.

After a call to head office and twenty minutes waiting.

"OOOOHHH You can have £25 at 14/1 at the rest at SP"

Win too much and your business is turned away.

I had to come back three days running when I won £3k because of your poor security procedures and even then one of the notes was a forgery.

Saying that, the local manager is fantastic.

bigv038 wrote:ive always done this in my local laddys when ive wanted to change some coins up and no ones said anything to me before. maybe your ladbrokes is poorer than mine

Lots of players do this that is why it is annoying.
And as for how much money they had at that particular moment can you not grasp that the punters had a good day and cleared them out?
Or that hey did have money left but also had bets unpaid and to be collected for real customers?
Also generally bookies have more than enough change by the very nature of most gamblers they will bet there last bit of change in theyre pocket.

joe3_3 wrote:

bigv038 wrote:ive always done this in my local laddys when ive wanted to change some coins up and no ones said anything to me before. maybe your ladbrokes is poorer than mine

Lots of players do this that is why it is annoying.
And as for how much money they had at that particular moment can you not grasp that the punters had a good day and cleared them out?
Or that hey did have money left but also had bets unpaid and to be collected for real customers?
Also generally bookies have more than enough change by the very nature of most gamblers they will bet there last bit of change in theyre pocket.

you should change your name to mr ladbrokes christ you work there not own the place what does it matter to you?

Yeah maybe i'll do that.

Bloody fool, i know these bookies are willing to take ur money when u loose and are reluctant to pay out, like when i won 3000 on roulette in bill hill the twats wrote me a cheque its a fuckiing joke. i wanted cash.

Whos a fool? Me because i think its annoying when people put £101/£201 coins in the roulettes do a £1 spin then press collect?

people can put in any amount they want and then collect any amout they want, thats what the machines are there for. if someone wants to put in 101 pound coins then only decide to play a 1 pound spin then they can, the staff are there to give them the money regardless if it annoys them or not, thats what you get paid for and if it annoys you that much then get another job, simple

It's a syndrome of today's society. When I went to school some years ago, I learn't how discipline and authority worked. If you didn't conform you received the cane or detention. By the time you went on to a job you knew the way the system would work. Nowadays with wishy washy liberalists running schools youngsters think they can do what they like and get away with it. When they get a job they receive a rude awakening. If someone tells them to do something then they don't seem to grasp the fact that the request is not open to question, just do as you are bloody well told. Some people don't even have the common sense to know when their actions are unacceptable. Customer service in retail outlets is a prime example. In some places the words "please" and "thank you" seem to have disappeared. A GCSE in how to behave should be compulsory.

from the old git

Are you all stupid or not reading what I wrote properly if someone came in and asked me if they could change £100 pound coins into notes then id happily do it, (happens quite alot) but when people just put them in the mc's solely for the purpose of getting change its annoying. Also because they think theyve got one up on you for doing it.
Like this thread has shown they think the people behind the counter dont know how much coins theyve put in or how much theyve staked.

Why not just ask to change it up? :

This thread is just pointless with all peoples bad experiances in bookmakers seemed to be aimed at me in the fashion thats how i treat people?
Doesnt make any sense at all.
I could go on looking into the other comments made but I wont really cant be bothered so say what you like.