Ladbrokes has reported a three per cent decline in gains from over-the-counter betting at its UK shops after more people picked the winner of this year's Grand National, forcing Britain's biggest bookmaker to pay out.

The company said that during the four months to April 30 gross wins - the cash left behind at its 2,135 UK shops after customers have been paid their winnings - fell because of tough comparisons with last year when punters failed to guess the winner of Grand National, Numbersixvalverde.

By contrast, this year's bets were more evenly spread, resulting in more people backing the winner, Silver Birch.

Ladbrokes also said that UK over-the-counter takings had been impacted by the roll-out of its new betting machines, which began in November and was completed in March. Shares in Ladbrokes fell from 3p to 422.5p.

Ladbrokes replaced its existing 6,700 betting machines, which were installed in 2001. The new machines include updated technology, which succeded in luring customers away from making traditional bets at bookies' shops.

A 12 per cent increase in machine betting helped offset declines in over-the-counter punts, resulting in an overall 1 per cent rise in UK retail gross win. On individual machines, average gross wins rose from £534 to £613.

Across the entire group, gross wins increased by 2 per cent after being hit by a sharp decline in gains from Ladbrokes Telephone High Rollers — a service run for high net worth individuals.

Last year, wealthy punters placed more bets compared with the first four months of this financial period, sending gross wins down by 47 per cent. Group profits fell by 10 per cent including High Rollers. Excluding the impact from High Rollers, group gross win increased by 5 per cent.

While Ladbrokes said that it expects full year results to be in line with expectations, there are still a number of uncertainties that could affect figures. In September this year, new legislation comes into force that will allow betting shops to open during the evening in winter. Under the Gambling Act, betting shops have only been allowed to open in the evening during the summer.

Elsewhere, Ladbrokes reported strong growth from its Irish and Belgium retail operations, up 23 per cent, while online gambling gross wins increased by 11 per cent. However, poker custom fell compared to sportsbook, casino and games.

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