Most trouble with competition sites comes from the same few things. Each red flag below is tied to something regulators or lawyers have said.
Seven red flags
- The free route is hidden. “See terms for free entry” with no link was found not prominent enough in two ASA rulings (KS Competitions 2020, Elite Competitions 2020).
- The date can move. The ASA says unsold tickets are not an unavoidable circumstance.
- The prize can shrink. A fallback of 70% of ticket sales was “not a reasonable equivalent” to the advertised prize.
- The prize never arrives. In 2025 the ASA upheld a complaint where a £3,000 holiday voucher draw was not awarded because ticket sales would not cover its cost.
- No way to check the winner. “Picked live” with no proof of the entry list or the random number.
- Skill questions anyone can answer. Lawyers say superficial or token questions are unlikely to be enough.
- The operator is hard to find. No company name, no address, no reply to complaints. The ASA found a breach for unreasonable delay where Elite Competitions’ operator gave no substantive response.
Read each ruling: three ASA rulings and Amazing Giveaways (2025). The Gambling Commission also acts against unlawful lotteries: law firm Irwin Mitchell reports it issued 161 cease and desist orders to Facebook in 2023, and that 356 illegal lottery sites were taken down from social media in 2025 (Irwin Mitchell: prize competitions and prize draws).
If it goes wrong
Keep your order confirmation and screenshots of the terms and the page as you saw them. Complaints about advertising go to the ASA; a promotion that looks like an unlicensed lottery can be reported to the Gambling Commission. Switching sites? Win £50 in our free draw, a new one every 72 hours. 18+, Great Britain only.
How Hoardsy runs its competitions
- Closing dates are never extended for slow sales.
- There’s no minimum number of sales: every end-draw prize and top instant prize is awarded, sold out or not.
- Every competition page shows its prizes and your chance per ticket before you enter.
- Every competition can be entered free by post, with the same chances as a paid ticket. See free postal entry.
Keep reading
- All Hoardsy guides
- What the ASA has ruled on UK competition sites
- Instant win vs end draw
- How a provably fair draw works
Last checked 12 October 2026.
Hoardsy
See the competitions
Choose a draw or an instant game. Every prize and its chance is on the page before you enter.
18+, Great Britain only. Free postal entry on every competition.
