Racing punters in the UK are plenty and it's thus crucial for horse racing bookies to have good offers and promotions.

Frequently Asked Questions: Your Guide to UK Free Bets

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. 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.

£50 in Free Bets Offers

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 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. For customers who are looking for a new racing home, perhaps only temporarily during a big event, there are quite a few good free bet offers that can be claimed and we have listed some of them below.

Term	Typical Requirement	Example from T&Cs	What to Watch For
Qualifying Bet	First real money bet, min odds.	"Min deposit £10. Min odds 1/2 (1.50)."	Odds too low may not qualify.
Free Bet Validity	Time limit to use the free bet.	"Free Bet expires after 7 days."	Short expiry can lead to forfeit.
Stake Not Returned	Free bet stake excluded from winnings.	"Stake not returned with free bet winnings."	Reduces effective value of the offer.
Wagering Requirements	Number of times to bet winnings.	"3x wagering on bonus winnings."	High turnover can erode profit.
Payment Method Exclusions	Certain e-wallets not eligible.	"Skrill/Neteller deposits excluded."	Deposit with debit card to be safe.

Steven is an experienced iGaming content writer who has been working in the industry since 2018. He is passionate about sports betting and enjoys writing about all aspects of the industry, including bookmaker reviews, betting tips and strategies, and news and analysis.

Double odds on your first bet as a new customer (max stake £10)
Each-way extra: Pay for a win bet, get an each-way bet added for free
Free Super 6 prediction game by Sky Bet for a chance to win £250,000
Bet £10 on virtual sports, get a £5 free bet for real sports
Welcome bundle: Spread across sportsbook, casino, and poker
Deposit via specific e-wallets for an additional 10% bonus

Welcome bonuses are an excellent way for UK punters to gain an edge on leading UK sports betting sites, and usually come in the form of free bets.

Promotion Name	Site	Mechanism	Weekly/Max Benefit
Bet Club	Sky Bet	Place 5x £10+ bets weekly, get a £5 free bet.	£5 free bet per week
4/1 Offer	Paddy Power	Get money back as cash if your horse loses at 4/1 odds.	Up to £10 per race
Double Delight & Hat-trick Heaven	Bet365	Enhanced odds paid in full if a player scores 2 or 3 goals.	No stated max
2 Goals Up Early Payout	William Hill	Payout early if your team leads by 2 goals.	Applies to pre-match bets
Price Boost	Various	Enhanced odds on selected markets.	Varies by boost

A free bet sign-up offer rewards new customers with free bets when they sign up and place their first qualifying bet at a new bookmaker.

What About No Deposit 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. Although most welcome offers might sound good at face value, there are some things which punters should consider before claiming a bunch of them. 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.

NEW Pub Casino Sports — Bet £10 get £10

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. 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 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. 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. All the bookmakers listed here are trustworthy, reputable, and hold full licenses from the UK Gambling Commission.

What to do if your bet loses

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). Deposit Required: While they are called free bets, punters will have to make a deposit and place a qualifying bet to unlock these.

Betting Exchange

There bet acca minimum insurance requirements 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. 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. Wagering requirements: As well as the minimum odds, wagering requirements could be in play for a welcome offer. New customers can sign up using bonus code GG365, bet £10 and get £30 in Free Bets. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit.

Responsible gambling reminder

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. 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).

Quick Bet

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. 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 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. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply.

What to Look For When Choosing a Betting Site

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. 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.

Step 4: Make your qualifying deposit

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. This code is for marketing and tracking purposes only.

This Week's Best Free Bet Offer - Betfred

What this means is that potential winnings have to be wagered a certain number of times before they can be withdrawn. Until the wagering requirements have been completed, the bonus money will be locked in a separate section. Time limits: Bookmakers typically put a time limit on how long the promotion runs for too. It is often the case that after signing up for an account and placing the qualifying wager to get a bonus, punters will have just one week - seven days - with which to complete the wagering requirements that have to be met. The Betway Free Bet Club is a great promotion for existing customers at Betway, enabling them to claim two free bets worth £5 each every week.

How do we evaluate online betting sites?

To qualify, customers need to wager at least £25 in bets on trebles or more at odds of at least 2/1. This makes it a rather attainable promotion, especially for punters who - for example - like to place acca bets on the Premier League. There are many betting sites that excel when it comes to betting on football, so punters can be forgiven for thinking that finding the best free bets is difficult. Therefore, using our expertise in the game, we have listed our favourite free bet offers for football punters below. Most of these bookies are also considered among the best for football betting. Register and enter promo code ALLABOARD10 via My Bonuses within 7 days.

Welcome offer: Bet £5, get £20 in free bets + 20 free spins
Guaranteed profit boosts on selected tennis outright markets
Weekly reload bonus: 50% matched free bet up to £25 every Monday
Money back if a football match finishes 0-0
In-play bet offer: Get a £5 free bet when you place a £10+ in-play bet
Cash-out available on thousands of sports markets
Special offer for new casino players: 100 bonus spins on first deposit

Place a first qualifying £10 bet at EVS (2.0) or greater using cash balance. After settlement, receive: £5 Sports Free Bet – min odds EVS (2.0) +£5 Acca Free Bet 4+ legs, min odds 2/5 (1.4) per leg. Enter code CASHBACK in ‘My Bonuses’ after registering. Get 50% of first-day sports betting losses back as a free bet up to £25.

Sign-up offer: £20 in free bets when you place a £5 bet at odds of 1.8 or higher
Partial cash out available on accumulator bets
RequestABet specials with unique combined markets
Weekly money back as a free bet on the ITV racing 2nd placed horse
VIP programme for high-volume players with personalised bonuses
Enhanced multiples on football goalscorer markets
Free bet for your birthday based on your previous year's activity

Requires three £10+ bets on separate events at evens (2.0) or bigger.