Bookies fear £1m white Christmas payout in UK
Snow is forecast to fall across parts of the UK tomorrow, as bookmakers brace themselves to pay out up to £1m (€1.41m) to punters who backed a White Christmas.
The Met Office has issued severe weather warnings for Scotland and experts predict snow for most northern and western parts of the UK over the festive season.
The forecast means bookies are now bracing themselves for the possibility of record payouts if the weathermen’s predictions come true.
William Hill has closed its book on the likelihood of snowfall on Christmas Day, after taking almost £250,000 (€375,000).
The closing odds were 1-5 for snow in Aberdeen or Glasgow, 2-5 in Manchester, 8-13 in Birmingham, 6-4 in Cardiff and 9-4 in London.
Graham Sharpe, of William Hill, said: “Bah, humbug – that’s what we say. The Scottish bets are likely to be the worst payouts for us.
“I don’t think we’ve seen widespread snowfall since before the millennium so we mustn’t be too Scrooge-like.”
Mr Sharpe said his firm’s total payout could be close to £500,000 (€750,000) if the weather fails to go the bookies’ way.
Simon Clare, spokesman at Coral, was rueful about the prospects of snow, which if it fell across all of the UK would be a “record-breaker”: “I think there’s been more money gambled on a White Christmas in the last two weeks than we have ever seen before because there have been such consistent forecasts that snow could appear – and the bets have snowballed thereafter!
“There have only been two official White Christmases in over 25 years so for years punters have had their fingers burned betting on a White Christmas, particularly as most bookies require snow to set on the London Weather Centre.
“I think it could cost the industry about £1 million. Most of the bets would be concentrated on London because the odds are most attractive. (if it did not snow in London) that would certainly reduce the losses to £250,000 – the big pay out is if it snowed in London.”
PA WeatherCentre said snow showers were expected overnight, particularly in North Wales and north west Scotland, with many people waking up to a white Christmas.
As much as 10-20cm (4-8in) is forecast to fall on the higher ground in Scotland, with North Wales “bearing the brunt” of the snow.
On the lower ground in the north west of England, Wales and Scotland, between 5cm (2in) and 10cm (4in) is expected.
The best chance for snow in the South will occur tomorrow afternoon as the snow showers sweep the country, with just a 30% chance for London.
On the roads today, the weather caused most problems for motorists heading home for the holidays, with snow around Glasgow affecting major routes, and causing some B roads to close.
But Rebecca Bell, a spokeswoman at the RAC, added many people had set off on their journeys yesterday: “We might be looking at problems on some major routes in the north of England if it does start to settle.
“Apart from that, the only significant delays we are experiencing in England on the motorway networks are delays due to rain and other conditions.
“There are no major accidents or hold-ups but we are experiencing slowish traffic, no different from a normal evening rush hour, so it is not too bad.
“We are not really seeing any significant major delays, but I suppose we are really on standby if the snowy weather comes southwards.”
