Every word on Licensed Betting Sites is editorially independent. No operator can pay for a higher rating, a softer review, or a more prominent listing. This policy explains how that works in practice.
Who decides what we publish
Editorial sign-off rests with our Editor, Andrew Whitlam. Tipster columns are written and signed by the named author and read by the Editor before publication. News articles, racing previews and operator reviews go through the same review. Our authors are listed publicly with their specialties and what they cover; see the About Us page for the full editorial team.
How we pick stories
News desk priorities: ACMA enforcement actions, operator licence changes, ownership changes (M&A, IPO, equity raises), regulatory reform (federal and state), and product launches that materially change what punters can do. We do not run press-release rewrites. We do not cover operator marketing campaigns as news.
Tipping: every tip article must trace back to a verified dossier of the matchup. Player names, scores, ladder positions, head-to-head records and odds quotes are checked against named primary sources before publication. If a fact is not on record, the article must say so plainly ("head to head record not available", "line not yet posted") rather than paper over the gap.
Reviews: we open a real account, fund it with our own money, place real bets, request real withdrawals, and contact real customer support. The full per-operator Test Log is published on the review page.
How corrections work
If we publish a factual error, we fix it. The correction goes live as soon as we have it confirmed, and the article gets a dated note explaining what changed and why. We maintain a public Corrections Log showing every correction since April 2026, in chronological order. Most affiliate sites do not do this. We do, because building reader trust matters more than looking infallible.
How operator complaints are handled
Operators occasionally email asking us to remove or soften coverage. The process: complaints go to [email protected]. We respond within five business days. Where the complaint identifies a factual error, we correct and apologise. Where it does not, we keep the coverage. We do not remove negative reviews, ACMA action records, or critical news in exchange for affiliate revenue. The complaint and our response is logged internally and the operator is given a right of reply on the review page if they request one.
What disqualifies an operator from coverage
An operator is automatically excluded from our award categories and the Top Sites sidebar if any of the following apply:
- No valid Australian state or territory licence registered with ACMA
- BetStop integration not enforced at account-opening (we test this with a registered tester)
- Withdrawal blocked or delayed beyond seven business days without a clear regulatory reason
- Recent ACMA infringement notice in the most recent quarterly enforcement round
- Accepting bets from accounts the operator has previously closed or self-excluded
- Predatory account-restriction practices (winning customers limited or closed without explanation)
Operators that hit any of these triggers move to our Not Recommended list and the disqualifying issue is published in the operator's Compliance Log on its review page.
Disclosed commercial relationships
Licensed Betting Sites earns affiliate revenue from a subset of the operators we cover when readers click through and sign up. The commercial relationship does not influence the rating or placement of any operator. Full details are in our Affiliate Disclosure. Some operators we list pay no affiliate fee at all (they are listed because they are licensed and meet our criteria, not because they pay).
Promotion and advertising restrictions
Australian wagering law prohibits inducement-style promotional content ("free bets", "deposit matches", "welcome bonuses"). We do not write or render that language anywhere on the site. Referral codes (which are identifiers, not promotional inducements) are permitted and we describe them factually.
External standards we follow
- Australian Press Council Statement of General Principles (accuracy, fairness, integrity, and right of reply)
- Interactive Gambling Act 2001 and ACMA codes of practice
- Australian Privacy Principles under the Privacy Act 1988
- Spam Act 2003 (we send no marketing emails or SMS)
Right of reply
Any individual or operator named in our coverage can request a right of reply. Email [email protected] with the article URL and the response. We will publish the response or a fair summary alongside the original coverage, where the response is factually substantiated.
Last updated
This editorial policy was last revised on 28 April 2026 to formalise the disqualification triggers, the corrections log, and the right of reply process.