In the field of online betting, it is quite common for players to cancel bets and get their original money back. This often leaves many people feeling confused about how the bookmaker handles this situation. However, practice shows that this is not the fault of the bookmaker. This depends on each specific situation, it could be a match where the player placed a bet that does not take place, known as a “Cancelled Bet” or “Invalid Bet”. To better understand this, let’s bestsoccertips refer to the content below that will explain in detail “What is a void bet?” and why void bets can occur.
What is a void bet?
Most of the bets you place online will follow standard procedures and go through smoothly without any issues; however, sometimes something unusual may occur, leaving you puzzled about how your bet will be resolved or why it’s being settled in a certain way. Bets can become void for various reasons, and we’ll consider some of these reasons and how they might affect any bets you’ve placed, especially accumulators or multiples.
However, first let’s explain simply what a void bet is. A void bet is essentially a bet that is cancelled, voided, and nullified as if it had never been placed in the first instance, and although you don’t win anything, you also don’t lose anything, with your stake being fully refunded into your account.
An exception to this could be when the initial bet was placed using bonus funds or a free bet. Technically, you may lose the free bet stake if it becomes void, although do contact the betting company, and they may be able to restore your bonus funds or free bet. Similarly, a void bet will not count towards qualifying for a free bet or as part of a wager to receive a bonus with such terms.
Pros and cons of void bets
Void betting, also known as hedging, is a financial strategy used by participants to mitigate risk from the price fluctuations of assets, markets, or other specific situations. Below are some advantages and disadvantages of void betting:
Advantages
- Risk reduction: The void betting strategy helps minimize risk by protecting oneself from unforeseen fluctuations in prices or market conditions.
- Protecting interests: Participants can use void betting to safeguard their interests in case of undesirable occurrences, such as project failure or unforeseen changes in prices.
- Enhanced predictability: Implementing the void betting strategy requires careful analysis and prediction of market conditions, thereby increasing opportunities for participants to better understand their financial situation.
Disadvantages
- Cost: Void betting typically involves costs such as transaction fees or insurance premiums, which can increase overall transaction costs and affect profits.
- Limited benefits: In some cases, void betting may limit the maximum benefit that participants can achieve from a favorable situation.
- Complexity: The void betting strategy requires knowledge and skills in financial analysis and can be complex for those without deep expertise in the financial market.
- Opportunity risk: In some cases, void betting may lead to missing out on significant opportunities when a favorable situation occurs and void betting is not necessary.
What happens when a bet is void in a parlay
If one of your selections in accumulation or multiple bets is void, then that void option will be disqualified from the bet. For example, if you have a quadruple accumulator with an empty leg, it becomes a triple. Similarly, a triple bet will turn into a double bet and a double bet will be treated as a single bet. However, when it comes to accumulators placed on special advanced odds markets or coupons like “trebles upwards”, the situation can be more complicated.
Bets placed on lucky 15, lucky 31, and lucky 63 follow the same principle as cumulative bets. If a hand in one of these bets is void, the void hand will be ignored. Bets are recalculated as if the void option never existed.
Reasons for void bet status
In essence, there are two main reasons why bets may be void: reasons where you’ve done nothing wrong and reasons that lead the bookmaker to suspect you may have done something wrong.
Let’s start by considering the former category, which is much more palatable than the latter. Here are some ‘good’ reasons why bets may be void:
1. Non-runners
People often think of non-runners in horse racing, mostly because it’s a sport where horses don’t participate in an event for one reason or another. However, a similar rationale can be applied to explain cases where football bets are voided. Essentially, this means the person or animal you’ve bet on didn’t participate in the event they were supposed to.
For instance, a bet placed on the first goal scorer will be void if the player you bet on remains on the bench and doesn’t enter the field until after the first goal of the match is scored. Similarly, a bet on a racing dog to win a race in which that dog doesn’t participate at all will also be void. A bet on a golfer to win a tournament in which they didn’t start for some reason, such as injury, would also be void, and so forth.
2. Postponement or abandonment
You might place bets on football teams to win a match, horses to win a race, or tennis players to win a tournament, but if the event is postponed or cancelled entirely, there’s a possibility your bet will be void. Bad weather is a major reason for sports events to be postponed, with most bookmakers having regulations that if it’s not rescheduled to take place within a certain timeframe, all bets on it will be cancelled.
The same holds true for an event that’s ongoing but hasn’t reached its conclusion. There are various reasons why a match might start but not finish, such as crowd disturbances or floodlights failure. What might complicate matters slightly is if you’ve placed a bet on something like the first goal scorer, and this bet has been settled before the mentioned match is cancelled, meaning that bet will be paid out, but others won’t.
3. Rule changes
There are many reasons why bookmakers might decide to void a bet that might seem somewhat unfair to the bettor. An example of this is rule changes that the bookmaker deems significantly alter the terms of the original bet. For instance, a cricket match might be played with less time than originally anticipated, or a tennis match might be moved from clay court to grass for some reason.
All bookmakers provide explanations of the changes that might occur to an event that would lead them to void a bet, so make sure you read their terms and conditions if this is something that concerns you. Usually, it’s a completely fair and reasonable reason, even if you don’t think so. Whether you believe it or not, bookmakers strive to be fair when considering whether to void a bet for any reason.
4. Errors occurred
Bookmakers making mistakes isn’t uncommon. There’s plenty in their small print about what happens in the event of errors occurring, but the key point is they’ll void your bet and refund your stake. For instance, this could be the market not switching to ‘in-play’ betting on a match after it’s begun or clearly erroneous odds being provided for a particular outcome.
This is what’s referred to as an observable error, which is when a bookmaker offers odds on something that can clearly be seen as a mistake. If you’re looking at a market in a football match, and the home team has odds of 3/2 to win with every other bookmaker except one offering odds of 32/1, that’s an observable error, and you’d have your bet voided if you tried to place one before the bookmaker in question recognized their mistake.
What is a void bet in accumulation?
Accumulation bets are very popular because they give punters the chance to win decent amounts with a relatively small initial bet. However, things can get a little tricky when one of the pins of your accumulator is disabled. In essence, you don’t need to worry about this problem because online bookies will do it all for you automatically, but it’s still good to know how it works.
In its simplest form, the accumulator with an empty market will become slightly smaller Accas. In other words, a ten-fold accumulator with an empty leg becomes a set of nine, a set of four becomes a triple, a duo becomes a straight single set, and so on. The same is true if you choose to bet Luck, with the lucky 31 turning into a lucky 15 and your share of the bet placed on Single bets, New doubles, etc. are void in Lucky bets that have just been returned to your account.
Things will be more complicated if you have made an offer such as Acca Insurance when betting, in which your bet amount will be refunded in case only one foot of the accumulator is a loser. These usually require you to make a minimum number of selections, such as four, so if one of your Acca branches is disabled then it becomes Treble and is no longer valid for the insurance offer. Sadly, it’s just something that you have to suck on and grab. All you can do is find out why that leg is vacant and remember it in the future.
Conclude
The above is all information regarding What is a void bet. In case the result is not the same as your prediction, you will feel excited for not losing money. However, for those involved in online betting, bet cancellation is usually not expected. You and online bookmakers share similar feelings. For a safe and smooth betting experience, join the bookmaker presented by bestsoccertips that promises you to be satisfied with your investment and wishes you luck and flourishing.
See also: What are the betting odds? Why do odds change in betting
