[Sawyer]

Betshops like Coral, B365, Ladbrokes, William Hill, Stan James. (Stan James betshops are still open?)

How much you can bet there as max bet? For NBA, Tennis Grand Slam, Tennis 500 Tournaments and Major Soccer Leagues. Everything is tax free, correct?

Reason why I'm asking is, I'm planning a trip to UK, and these books have a notorious reputation for low-online limits & limiting players quickly. Since you don't have any account number or bookie account ID, you can bet higher at these betshops?

Final Question. Stan James still have betshops? Odds are same as online Stan James site?

Thanks in advance.

[Sawyer]

Bump

[Border Gadgie]

Betshops like Coral, B365, Ladbrokes, William Hill, Stan James. (Stan James betshops are still open?)

How much you can bet there as max bet? For NBA, Tennis Grand Slam, Tennis 500 Tournaments and Major Soccer Leagues. Everything is tax free, correct?

Reason why I'm asking is, I'm planning a trip to UK, and these books have a notorious reputation for low-online limits & limiting players quickly. Since you don't have any account number or bookie account ID, you can bet higher at these betshops?

Final Question. Stan James still have betshops? Odds are same as online Stan James site?

Thanks in advance.

Its difficult to say what the maximum bet is for various sports at different books, but if its for relatively large amounts the shop staff may call the trader and ask for PTL ('permission to lay'), at the odds you have requested. You wont have any problem getting bets taken, just maybe not at the odds you require. Ladbrokes max bets for Superbowl are huge, Stan James shop prices are the same/better than on line. All bets are tax free.

http://www.stanjamesshops.com/locations/

[JayZ]

Just to cover off a few more points. You are correct that there is no direct tax or charge placed on the bets/returns (bookmakers are charged 15% on their profits, but that comes from the vig). There is no UK income tax to pay either, but you would have to look after what might be the case in your juristiction.

365 no longer have any retail shops (although they are at race courses), but there are some other common high street bookies not in your list, such as Betfred and Paddy Power. Stan James is less common, although there are some regional concentrations around its head office in Oxfordshire/Berkshire, the Midlands and the North. There are similar smaller chains around such as Jennings, as well as locals with one or two shops.

They will not be interested in who you are (ID) if you are clearly 18 or over.

Prices in most are not the same as online, but at any particular time they may be better or worse. You will need to be familiar with fractional odds.

[Sawyer]

Fractional odds? Ohh noooo!

I better download a Decimal/Fractional Odds Converter application for my phone, lol. Hopefully, not so hard to calculate -but still a headheache- as I know, 5/7 is 1,714 (Decimal) for example. 5/7= 0,714 1+0,714=1,714.

Thanks for the info

What about stakes/limits? How much you can bet at these shops? Higher then online limits?

[JayZ]

There isn't a simple answer as to limits - as Border Gadgie says above if the particular bet is above the limit they will call the trader as to whether they can take it and at which odds. Limits might be low if they have taken a position on a game and they know that it is an arb against Betfair etc. Large bets would be easiest on soccer; tennis and NBA are fairly minority betting events in the UK. The neighbourhood can come into it.

Don't forget you can go to more than one shop - some high streets might have a dozen within a mile. If you are on an arb though don't be surprised if a different branch has been forewarned about you ...

Some shops have automated machines for telling odds and/or taking bets. Football has pre-printed coupons to fill out like multiple choice tests. For tennis and NBA though you may well have to go to the cashier for the odds and write out a slip the old-fashioned way.

There can be a little familiarity in some shops with decimal odds - but none at all with American odds.

[HeeeHAWWWW]

Fractional odds is almost as daft as the American system :-) Decimal should really be used everywhere.

[CHUBNUT]

Every betting shop works on whats called a notification limit in where the manager has to comfirm the bet before acceptance. This will vary although sports betting (as opposed to Greyhound racing) will be pretty standard, some shops will have higher limits if they have higher turnover. When they phone head office they will be asked if the bettor is a regular ( which will instantly raise the limit) and if not would depend on the Sport.

To give you an example of accepting an american sports bet, Paddy Power offered me 18.46 on a bet the other day while taking 500 no questions asked in the local shop. I havent asked lately but recently the limit was 2000 liability before phoning.

[Sawyer]

Chubnut,

Do they ask anything such as ID number or passport number when taking your wager? I mean, do they track you by any number? (In order to prevent people coming over and over again in different clothes, making disguise)

[rodneytrotter]

You don't need id when placing a bet, unless they think you are under 18.

A few shops keep photos of punters who they keep an look out for from captured images from the
shops CCTV , but these can be either troublemakers, fraudsters or sometimes arbers -although this is a recent development, most likely in big cities. Some individuals do get personally limited at their local shops, but this takes some time after repeated 'offences'.

If you go into a shop, have the maximum allowed on a bet, walk 100 yards up the road and keep doing the same again, you will eventually be stopped with a polite 'you've had enough on today sir' as the shop managers will have contacted each other and spread the news, especially if a shop has had to ring in a bet for authorisation.