iGaming operator William Hill has warned that the UK’s plans to charge 15 per cent on UK-facing igaming operators as from 2014 could drive players into unregulated markets.

The company, which is registered in Gibraltar, last week warned that it was considering legal action against the point-of-consumption tax which would be levied on all bets from UK customers placed through offshore companies.

Earlier this year it commissioned a report from Deloitte which concluded that the tax proposals, which are aimed at levelling the playing field between domestic operators and companies located offshore, could backfire as gamblers could avoid the tax by moving to the lightly-regulated “grey market” ­– places like Curacao, Panama and the British Virgin Islands.

The tax would affect a number of companies registered in Malta, many of whom moved here following the 2005 Gambling Act which imposed a 15 per cent tax on all UK-based companies on all online activities.

Pokerfuse correspondent Nick Jones wrote last week that the UK had created a whitelist of offshore jurisdictions where operators could continue to serve and advertise to UK customers to avoid the new levy.

“Practically all UK operators took advantage of the whitelist and set up operations in the likes of Alderney, Malta and the Isle of Man,” he said.

The new tax would require operators to pay tax on UK bets regardless of their location.

Gaming expert Pierre Mangion of PkF said the problem would be enforcing the tax, which could be done only through stringent measures, which were unfeasible.

“Without enforcement, the tax would be ineffective and would merely drive punters away from operators in well-regulated jurisdictions without actually achieving its aim,” he said.

William Hill CEO Ralph Topping told Times of Malta Business that the tax would have serious ramifications. “It is of major concern to us how the Government will police the introduction of POCT. There is clear evidence that at a tax rate of 15 per cent there could be up to 40 per cent leakage from the GB-regulated market, especially if the market is subject to weak enforcement. It now falls to the Treasury to avoid setting tax rates at so high a level that customers are driven to unregulated sites.’’