Lottery Agents Threaten To Sue Over Quick Picks

The Age

Tuesday November 25, 2008

DAN OAKES

LOTTERY agents could take legal action against Tattersall's after the company announced yesterday that 7-11 stores would soon be licensed to sell lottery tickets.

The lottery giant has struck a franchise agreement with 7-11 that will allow 165 convenience stores across Victoria to begin selling Quick Pick tickets by February.

However, Lotteries Agents Association Victoria chief executive Peter Judkins accused Tattersall's of cannibalising the existing outlets.

Mr Judkins said he believed the 7-11 stores would pay less in franchise fees than his members, and would not be obliged to provide the same level of point-of-sale security.

"I can tell you that some of these 7-11 people have been put into training for Tattersall's and they have not undergone the sort of security checks that the normal person applying for the licence has had to undergo," Mr Judkins said.

"But I think the bigger concern to us is the security of the 7-11 point of sale system. We don't think it's adequate for the sale of a product that can be worth $30 million."

Mr Judkins accused Tattersall's of disloyalty and said his members might resort to legal action against the company.

"We believe that there's a common law obligation on someone who sells you a licence not to do something that devalues a licence," he said. "We think Tattersall's has breached that in this case."

But Tattersall's Lotteries chief executive Bill Thorburn said the company expected sales at 7-11 stores to complement existing outlets.

"It's not in the interests of Tattersall's to cannibalise its own sales," he said.

© 2008 The Age

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