Combined liability is a great thing for us as matched bettors, it means you can place multiple bets on the same market at the exchange, and you only need the largest amount of liability in your account to cover these bets. 

Firstly, let's cover what liability is. Understanding liability can be a little confusing at first but you are in effect taking the role of a normal bookmaker when placing Lay bets. By placing a Lay bet we are taking a Back bet from someone else.

• A Back bet can either lose your stake or win your stake x (odds - 1).
• A Lay bet can either win your stake or lose your stake x (odds - 1).

The formula below shows you how to calculate your liability (although this will be shown on the Betting Exchange when placing your Lay bet).

For example, if you were to place a Lay bet using £10 stake with decimal odds 6.5 your liability would be:

You would require at least this amount in available funds in your Exchange account to place the Lay bet. In the example above, I would need £55 in my account to cover the liability for this Lay bet

It is important to note though that when matched betting this amount is never at risk (provided you have followed the guides). If your Lay bet does lose and you have to pay out this liability, your corresponding Back bet will win a similar amount at the bookmaker. This can be a little confusing at first!

This guide explains what liability is in more detail with a video and real example. 

Now, let's move on to what combined liability is.

Combined liability comes into action when you have multiple lay bets placed on different selections within the same event. It's important to note that the bets must also be on the same exchange website.

Often it's impossible for all of these outcomes to occur which means the amount of liability is reduced. For example, if you are betting on England v Germany and you have lay bets against England and Germany, it's not possible for both teams to win. As a result of this, your liability will be much lower.  

Please note that this only applies to bets on the same market. A lay bet against England and a lay bet against the Correct Score will not share liability as they are bets placed in different markets. 

This video guide goes into more detail about combined liability.

If you have any further questions, please Get In Touch and we'll be more than happy to help.