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Jackson Jackpot Closes Down

Start date 21st March 2025
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pay to enter sites

Yesterday morning (3rd March) we had a message from a Loquax user letting us know that a pay to enter competition site called Jackson Jackpot had announced it was to close down. The reason for the closure was quite interesting as the owner had "experienced a sort of spiritual awakening" and that they no longer wanted their "energy and efforts to be used to contribute to people gambling". On the face of it these are quite noble attributes and even more so when you discover that they're the decisions behind closing down "a successful multi-million-pound business". Walking away from a successful business might seem an odd decision but running a business can be tough and sometimes it's the only option. Now Jackson Jackpot isn't a brand we've been familiar with. As far as we know they've not run a win a house competition and they've not been flagged by ourselves or others to become a site on our watchlist. But we made a note of the closure and thought it'd make an interesting paragraph in our next Loquax Update. That was until a second Loquax user alerted us to the closure and the fallout being generated.

Who Are Jackson Jackpot?

Jackson Jackpot was launched in 2022 by Eloise & Christopher Jackson. According to Company House they are the directors of Jackpot Jackson Arcade Ltd, C&E Jackson Estates and Jackson Jackpot Ltd. The site describes itself as not "just another competition site" (don't they all) but goes on to explain what makes them "truly special". According to About Us page every "entry contributes to charitable causes". That page continues to explain that "£500 is donated to charity every week day plus there's £7000 worth of online free entry games every week". Their Facebook page is no longer accessible but their original page - that ended up closing in June 2024 - had 12K likes and 20K followers. In comparison to That Prize Guy and Bounty Competitions that's quite low. However there is a private Facebook Group of 120K followers which is impressive. According to the Jackson Jackpot they have paid out over £13million to winners and donated £613,300 to charity. Over on Trustpilot that brand has attracted just over 900 reviews although most of the bad reviews have been in more recent times. It should be noted that they have asked for good reviews and most likely incentivised players to leave them (as do most of these kind of sites).

"A Spiritual Awakening"

In an email to players, Eloise Jackson explained that "I have journeyed through a huge, personal inner shift recently. I've experienced a sort of spiritual awakening and as a result the way I feel about many things has changed, including my job". This awakening led to a "profound realisation that I don't want my energy and efforts to be used to contribute to people gambling. Providing a gambling platform for the masses is not how I want to show up in the world. It does not align with how I want contribute to society. I am no longer passionate about what I do, so it's time to move on and it would be inauthentic of me to continue. For clarity, when I say “gambling,” I refer to the concept itself, we officially operate as a prize competition website". Obviously walking away from a successful business without notice raises eyebrows and Eloise has explained that in the email: "Quitting a job after two years because you’ve lost passion is celebrated. But closing a successful multi-million-pound business for the same reason? It isn't met with the same support. It raises eyebrows and even a few exclamations. I get it but let me be clear: this is a personal choice, no one is forcing us to close, there’s no crisis, no external pressure, no gun to our head. We simply don't want to continue". As part of the closure Jackson Jackpot is supporting players and hoping to make the transition from open to closed as smooth as possible. We guess this means refunding and money owed to players as well.

But Is There More To It?

If you'd never heard of Jackson Jackpot you're probably thinking that seems a bit odd but fair enough. You might thing why aren't they selling the business? There's a lot of wannabe competition site business owners looking to make a success of things and would have possibly purchased it? If the business was on it's last legs then maybe winding down is the right approach but closing it outright seems like a missed opportunity. Mind you it's a lot easier to suddenly find a conscience about gambling and making business decisions when you've reaped the rewards of a successful multi-million-pound competition site. Anyway not everyone is happy with Jackson Jackpot and this is where things take a bit of a turn. A private Facebook Group exists that discusses the site and any issues that players believe have arisen. Now part of that group's rules is that nothing from there is discussed outside the group and it's only fair we honour that. However over on Trustpilot there are 1 Star reviews and they paint a very vivid picture of discord. These reviews suggest various allegations such as South Yorkshire police are investigating, that The Gambling Commission are investigating, that the site implemented tools so that instant wins only paid out at a high percentage of ticket sales, that the owner was bullying members, that Jackson Jackpot were flagging real reviews as fake, that rigging draws and creating fake accounts also occured. There's a lot more as well and coupled with what we've seen in the Facebook Group it paints quite a grim picture. Of course we have to say that this is only one side of the story and heresay but we've seen players upset with a site because they don't win and this is on a level much higher than that. The most disturbing concern however is seeing the money some people have played at this site. It indicates quite clearly that safeguarding and responsible play really needs addressing by all sites involved in the sector.

So What Happens Next?

It'll be interesting to see what happens next regarding the closure of Jackson Jackpot. Will we see some action from The Gambling Commission? Are they investigating? Will they look at how sites are being run? Will they look at the platforms and plugins being used and discover that it's easy to manipulate the numbers? Will they look into how Private Facebook Groups are being used to encourage people to spend money, to play, and ultimately gamble via live games? Will things make them finally wake up and realise that this sector is growing and that their initial head in the sand approach has caught up with them? Will the owners of Jackson Jackpot make huge donations to GamCare and other gambling awareness charities? There's a lot to speculate about but who knows if things will change within the competition sector. Change is needed - as we keep saying - and each week we're seeing more things that need clamping down on. Until The Gambling Commission put on their boots it needs established platforms and other stakeholders to implement regulation or improve transparency so as to weed out the bad guys. But here's the thing. What we've seen from Jackson Jackpot is that players are starting to get savvy about the set-ups, about the plugins, about the processes used, about the fervour encouraging people to play, about responsible play etc. That's good to see and hopefully will help keep sites on their toes as well as help shape the future of the sector.

Update - "No Criminal Activity"

The Doncaster Free Press have followed up on this story and are reporting that a police investigation into Jackson Jackpot shows "no evidence of criminal activity" and that there will be no further action. This messaging is contrary to the belief by some on Facebook that the site is still being looked into by The Gambling Commission. We've reached out to The UKGC to see if they'll confirm if such an investigation is taking place. Beyond that, and until any new information comes to light, this episode simply serves as a reminder to players that competition sites are not regulated. When you spend money with any of the 350+ sites you're assuming trustworthiness and transparency. By the same token those sites have a responsibility to act appropriately so that their draws are fair and transparent. They also need to realise that they need to up their game with respect to responsible play.

Update 2 - Jackson Jackpot Enters Administration

On 24th March 2025 Jackson Jackpot Ltd entered administration. Administration occurs when a company is either in debt or can't pay back money it owes. It also protects the business from legal action by people or organisations who are owed money. The company posted their accounts at the end of 2024 and in that it indicates nearly £1.4million owed under "taxation and social security". Details of the administration are at this time unavailable but it wouldn't be a surprise to find that the company didn't have the funds to pay their HMRC bills.

Block Online Competition Sites

Although competition sites are not under the jurisidiction of The UKGC, many across the gambling sector see them in the same light as bingo, slots and sports betting. The stories we've seen about spending on Jackson Jackpot supports that. As part of this blog we reached out to Betblocker, Gamstop and Gamban. Players can sign up for these services for free to restrict access to gambling sites. The good news is that these sites will also include competition sites. You may need to supply them with the links although we understand that the services already include many sites. We're hoping that Betblocker will be publicising their position on competition sites at some time in the future. We've added links to these services across our win a house and raffle site content.