The UK’s prize competition industry is growing fast and is now worth an estimated £1.3 billion per year, with more than 7 million people entering draws and hundreds of promoters running competitions nationwide.
But with that growth has come confusion and inconsistency. To tackle that, a team of prize draw operators and leaders, in the world of lotteries, have announced a Voluntary Code of Practice for online prize draws and competitions (PDCs),
The Big Study
In August 2023, the The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) commissioned London Economics to conduct a market-wide study. The goal was to:
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Understand how large and how active the PDC industry has become.
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Assess whether players were being misled or harmed.
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Examine how effectively existing rules were protecting consumers.
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Explore whether new interventions (like regulation or a voluntary code) might be needed.
After nearly two years of data collection, surveys, and consultations with operators, players, regulators, and consumer bodies, the findings were compiled and published in June 2025.
What is the Voluntary Code of Good Practice for Prize Draws?
The findings of this study have led to The Department for Culture, Media and Sport releasing the report in June 2025 because of growing concern, from both the public and regulators, about the rapid rise of online prize draws and competitions since around 2020.
According to the DCMS, the goal of a voluntary code of practice is simple:
“To strengthen player protections, increase transparency and improve accountability across the prize draw competition sector”
In other words, it’s a set of agreed standards designed to make online prize draws and competitions fairer, safer, and more transparent, without the need for new gambling legislation (at least for now).
The Code will apply to all Online Raffle/Prize Draw/Competition (PDC) operators that rely on the “skill” and “free entry” exemption under the Gambling Act 2005.
Why is this happening?
Its fair to say that online raffles in the UK currently sit in a grey area of the Gambling Act 2005. If a raffle/prize competition business includes a genuine skill element or offers a free entry route within the entry process, it’s not classed as gambling and therefore doesn’t need a Gambling Commission licence. This is because by adding a skill based question, the winner is decided by skill and not pure chance.
This flexibility within the rules have helped the prize competition industry grow, but its also created inconsistent standards between operators, confusion among entrants about what’s legal and what isn’t, and reputational risks for legitimate businesses
The Voluntary Code is intended to fix this by creating a clear, uniform framework that good operators can follow and promote proudly
When is the deadline to sign up?
Those seeking to subscribe to the code should do so by the 20th May 2026. Once signed up they will also be expected to:-
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Help other operators understand and adopt the Code
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Encourage non-signatories to join
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Any operator joining later must be fully compliant immediately
What is in the Voluntary Code?
We’ve broken the whole code down into easy to read sections below. Please ensure that you also read the full official code of practice document.
Section 1 - Player Protection
1.1 Age Restrictions for Players
Only those 18+ should be able to enter - Operators must check age responsibly - Paid ads must not target under 18 year olds.
1.2 Complaints Handling
Operators must have: A clear complaints process A fair dispute resolution process if needed
1.3 Credit Card Restrictions
No more than £250/month per player can be paid using credit card. No credit card payments allowed for instant win draws.
1.4 Monthly Spend Limits
Operators must set a maximum monthly spend limit OR let players set their own limit from £0 upwards. Ensure no further entries are possible until a limit is set.
1.5 Account Suspension & Closure
Operators must allow players to temporarily suspend their account (minimum 6 months) Permanently close their account Not be marketed to during suspension Where technology allows: offer a short “pause” (e.g., 1 week)
1.6 Monitoring Player Behaviour
Only those 18+ should be able to enter - Operators must check age responsibly - Paid ads must not target under 18 year olds.
1.7 At-risk Player Interventions
Only those 18+ should be able to enter - Operators must check age responsibly - Paid ads must not target under 18 year olds.
1.8 Support & Signposting
Only those 18+ should be able to enter - Operators must check age responsibly - Paid ads must not target under 18 year olds.
1.9 Reasonable Draw Duration
Only those 18+ should be able to enter - Operators must check age responsibly - Paid ads must not target under 18 year olds.
1.10 Instant Wins
Operators must: ensure free entry routes are equal and clear and not let instant wins dominate their business.
Section 2: Transparency
2.1 Clear Rules
Every draw must include a simple explanation of how it works and what the rules are and a statement that prizes are awarded by chance.
2.2 Fair & Transparent Draws
Draws must be conducted by an independent person OR under independent supervision OR by a verified random computer system (e.g., certified RNG like Rafflers OR by a certified physical machine.
2.3 Likelihood Of Winning
Where possible, operators should show maximum ticket numbers, previous draw statistics and any other data that helps players understand their chances of winning.
2.4 Free Entry Must Be Genuine
Operators must promote the free entry route clearly and prominently allow enough time for free entries to be submitted and received. Always ensure free entry is as convenient as paid entry and also equally accessible.
2.5 Prizes Must Be Awarded as Promised
Operators must NOT change the draw date, reduce prize value due to low ticket sales or cancel draws because of low sales.
2.6 Charitable Contributions
If promoting charitable donations, operators must clearly explain how contributions work and consider registering with the Fundraising Regulator. Operators should also publish amounts donated and frequency and meet fundraising regulator rules.
Section 3: Accountability
3.1 Monitoring Compliance
Operators must review their processes regularly and fix issues quickly.
3.2 Third-Party Oversight
Operators must ensure Affiliates Marketing partners and draw-management partners also comply with the Code.
3.3 Sector Collaboration
Operators should share good practice across the prize draw industry.
3.4 Public Transparency
Operators should publicly display their compliance with this code, their player protection measures and their transparency and accountability processes.
3.5 Working with DCMS
Operators should help DCMS ensure the Code remains effective.
Rafflers Commitment to the Code
At Rafflers, we fully support the Voluntary Code of Practice and the higher standards it brings to the prize draw industry.
We believe that players deserve transparency, draws should be fair and auditable and free entry routes must be genuine. Furthermore, operators must take responsibility for player protection.