Never Join another terrible Tipping Service again...

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Undoubtedly there are some bad, even criminal, tipsters out there.

We’ve all been stung by some chancer promising the earth and delivering nothing. Worse even, delivering nothing in exchange for a hefty fee.

I’ve been there, more than once if I’m honest.

They are out there and need to be avoided at all costs.

But I really don’t understand why the vast majority of good tipsters get tarred with the same brush.

Ever employed a plumber who did a shoddy job? I've done that as well.

Do you jump to the conclusion that all plumbers are useless and possibly fraudulent?

No.

Of course not.

So why do that with tipsters?

It just doesn’t follow.

After more than 10 years in the industry, I can say with some certainty that the majority of tipsters are genuine, hardworking professionals. People who work very hard to turn a profit for their customers.

But still, the shady reputation remains.

So how do you ensure you are getting one of the good guys?

By using my checklist below!

Here are the questions you need to ask yourself (or them) to have the absolute best chance of subscribing to an honest, profitable tipster.

1.Is there a detailed history of all bets available?

If you can't see a record of every bet the service has ever advised, preferably in a spreadsheet, steer well clear.

2. Have the bets been proofed to a reputable betting monitor?

If they haven't been proofed to an organisation you trust, you should probably ask what proof they have that those bets were actually advised!

3.Have the profits been reasonably consistent and made over a decent period of time?

This doesn’t mean they make money every month or every quarter – that’s unlikely to be the case for anybody if they are being honest.

However, they need to have been profitable over a reasonable number of bets in any reasonable window of time you look at in the results. I personally would rarely consider any service that doesn't have a history of a significant number of bets - a significant enough number to show that they are consistently beating SP by a wide enough margin to turn a profit.

4. Do you trust the person introducing you to the tipster?

This can be a bit of a shortcut. If you have been introduced to the service by a trustworthy source, you won't have to apply these checklist criteria quite so rigorously.

5. Are the results simply too good to be true?

If you are prepared to give some levity on proof/period of results, you can apply the sniff test to the results. Are they claiming a 50% strike rate but mostly backing long shots? Probably not to be trusted. Are the results being skewed by one big priced winner? Again, probably better to wait until there is a larger set of results. If you are concerned the results are just a fluke, do an archie test.

6. Is the tipster profitable at level stakes?

Do the tips make a profit at level stakes? If not, is it a case of them fiddling with the staking strategy to try and make a silk purse out of a sows ear? Any decent service will make a profit at level stakes. If not, don't bother.

7. What's the customer service like?

Send the tipster an email with a simple question. If they take a week to get back to you before you are a customer, imagine how helpful they will be once they've got your money!

8. Are there genuine looking testimonials available?

This is only really relevant with a well established service. If they've been around for a while and they are any good, they will have plenty of emails available in which real customers have said nice things about them. Make sure you can see some of those.

9. How does the marketing feel? Do they seem genuine?

What is you gut feeling about the way they are selling it? Does it feel truthful? Always trust your gut on these things - it will notice things you don't even realise consciously. If it doesn't 'feel' right, don't do it. Another opportunity will be along before you know it.

10. Is there a money back guarantee?

Most important of all, can you get your money back if you are not happy? If you can, just test drive it for the money back period and see what you think. No need to bet any of the selections if you don't feel comfortable.

The money back guarantee should be for a reasonable period - long enough for you to make a genuine, informed assessment of the merits of the service.

Ask those questions and if you are happy with the answers, you can't go far wrong.