Prize Competition Council Kitemark: How to Tell if a Competition Site Is Legit

The UK prize competition industry is about to get something it has never had: a kitemark. The Prize Competition Council (PCC), the sector's trade body, plans to audit its members against the Government's Voluntary Code and give the ones that pass a consumer-facing mark to display. Its new executive director, Tom Banks, has said the rollout is potentially six to eight weeks away.

If you have ever wondered whether a competition site is legit, this is the most useful change to arrive this year. Here is what the PCC is, what the kitemark will and will not tell you, and how to check a site in the meantime.

What Is the Prize Competition Council?

The PCC launched on 1 July 2026 as the first trade association dedicated to UK prize competitions. It has an independent chair, George McGregor, and a nine-member board elected for two years, with seats for large operators such as Winvia Entertainment (the owner of BOTB), Jumbo Interactive UK and Pristine Competitions, alongside smaller sites including Two Fat Ladies Competitions and The Giveaway Guys.

It has grown quickly. iGaming Business reported in mid-October that the PCC has roughly 70 members, which Banks estimates represent 90–95% of the market. Members named in that report include Elite Competitions, Winvia, That Prize Guy, The Giveaway Guys, McKinney Competitions, Raffolux and Daymade.

What the Kitemark Will Mean

According to Banks, as reported by the Compliance+More newsletter, the plan has three parts:

• The Government's Voluntary Code of Good Practice becomes the minimum standard for PCC members.
• The PCC adds standards of its own, which in some cases will go beyond the Government's framework.
• Members are audited on compliance, and those that pass carry a kitemark that tells you they are a member and a Code signatory.

That last part is the one that matters. At the moment, signing the Voluntary Code costs an operator nothing and nobody checks. An audited mark is a different thing.

What the Code Actually Promises You

We covered the Code in detail in the Prize Draw Code of Practice, three months on. The commitments that matter most to entrants are:

• Entry restricted to over-18s, with reasonable age checks.
• Spending limits and account suspension tools.
• Credit card spending capped at £250 a month, and no credit cards at all for instant wins.
• A clear, prominent free entry route before you pay.
• No cutting prizes, pushing back closing dates or cancelling draws because ticket sales are weak.
• Draws run in a fair, auditable way, with a proper complaints process.

The Gap Nobody Mentions

The PCC's members may cover 90% or more of the money spent, but they are a small share of the sites. Rokker, an industry research firm, counted 195 operators signed up to the Code at the end of July and estimated there are more than 1,000 live or soon-to-launch operators in the UK. That is fewer than one in five.

Both things are true because the market is concentrated. A few dozen big brands take most of the money, and a long tail of small sites takes the rest. We see the same in our own data: we currently track 111 operators running 2,463 live draws, and a handful of groups account for a large share of them. We look at who owns the biggest brands in who owns your competition site?

So the kitemark will be a strong signal on the big sites and will say nothing at all about most of the small ones. A small site without one is not automatically dodgy. It just has not been checked.

What the Kitemark Will Not Do

• It is not a licence. Prize draws with free entry routes sit outside the Gambling Act, and the Code says plainly that it does not create a gambling licence. Banks has said whether licensing might eventually be needed is unclear.
• It does not tell you your odds. A fully compliant operator can still run a draw with poor value or an uncapped pool.
• It does not compensate you. There is no ombudsman or compensation scheme behind it.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport keeps oversight of the Code and has said it may step in further if the industry does not deliver. The kitemark is, in effect, the sector's attempt to show it can regulate itself before someone else does it for them.

How to Check a Competition Site Is Legit Today

Until the kitemark arrives, these five checks catch most problems:

1. Look for a company name and number in the footer or terms, and check it on Companies House.
2. Check whether it has signed the Voluntary Code or says it is a PCC member.
3. Find the free entry route. If it is hidden or missing, walk away.
4. Read what happens if the comp does not sell out. Extended draws and reduced cash alternatives are the most common bad surprise.
5. Check the ticket cap. A capped pool means you can work out your odds. No cap means you cannot.

For the last one, our odds calculator turns a ticket count into a real chance in seconds, and the operator directory shows every operator we track with its live draws and typical value. Our guide to whether competition sites are legit goes through the warning signs in more depth.