Free entry routes
Free needs to be real.
Putting a postal address somewhere in the terms does not automatically create a good free entry route.
A genuine free route needs to be accessible, visible and treated properly by the prize allocation system.
Different route in. Same pool at the end.
What is a free entry route?
Part of the legal structure. Not a customer service feature.
A free draw can include a paid entry route and a free alternative. Current Gambling Commission guidance says participants must genuinely be able to choose the free option.
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Cost
Normal rate means normal rate.
Where post is used, Gambling Commission guidance identifies first or second class post as appropriate normal rate methods. Premium methods such as special delivery are not treated the same way. Other routes must avoid charges beyond the normal cost of using that method.
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Convenience
Free cannot mean deliberately painful.
The free route must not be less convenient than the paid route. If a free route has been designed mainly to stop people using it, that is a warning sign worth getting advice on.
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Prominence
Customers need to be able to see the choice.
The free route must be promoted and displayed at the same level as the paid route, and the choice must be visible to people considering participation.
A route nobody can find is not much of a route.
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Same prize pool
Winner selection cannot treat free as second class.
The prize allocation system should not distinguish between the paid and free routes.
The route changes. The chance does not.
The Beaver workflow
Paid and free, into one eligible pool.
Live Beaver's architecture puts accepted free entries into the same pool as paid entries, and the draw commitment covers that final eligible population.
- Eligible pool
- Draw
- Winner
Status
Exactly what is live.
| Capability | Status | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| Free entry route | Live | Online and postal routes supported. |
| Same competition pool as paid entries | Live | No second draw, no separate treatment. |
| Configurable free route closing time | Live | Close the route a set number of hours before the draw. |
| Postal free entrant can win without an account | Live | The draw can select them and the operator can contact them. |
| Postal operator inbox | Built | For recording qualifying postal entries into the system. |
Live proven on the deployed platform. Built in the product with passing tests, not yet proven with live customers. Roadmap planned, not a working feature.
Online free entry
The product also supports an online free entry form alongside postal entry. Any public presentation of that route still needs to reflect the legal model the operator has chosen. Software availability by itself does not determine whether a promotion structure is legally valid.
Closing the route
Beaver can close the free route a defined number of hours before the draw. The operator still needs to make sure its configured process satisfies the requirements applying to its promotion.
Software can enforce the configured timing. It cannot decide the correct timing for you.
No account does not mean no chance
A postal entrant may not have a Beaver customer account. The draw engine can still select that person as a winner and allow the operator to contact them. The free route is not poured into a database to satisfy a checkbox. It participates in the winner process.
Verification
Because free and paid entries share the eligible pool, Beaver's draw commitment can include the final eligible population used for winner selection. See how Beaver draws work.
What Beaver does not decide
The operator stays responsible for the promotion.
Beaver does not decide whether:
- your free route is legally sufficient
- your advertising gives it enough prominence
- your method is sufficiently convenient
- your legal terms are complete
- the promotion as a whole avoids classification as a lottery
Beaver handles the entry. The operator remains responsible for the promotion.
Primary sources
Where this page gets its facts
- Gambling Commission: Free draws and prize competitions(opens in a new tab)The conditions for a free route alongside a paid route.
- Gambling Act 2005, Schedule 2(opens in a new tab)What counts as payment to enter a lottery, including the free entry route.
Checked 19 September 2026. Guidance changes; always read the current version at source.
Same draw
However the valid entry arrived.
