“My cousin died after placing 600 bets in a row”

The family of a man who says he took his own life after placing more than 600 bets in an hour have told the BBC his inquest was a “battle” from start to finish as they struggled to persuade the coroner to consider gambling as a factor in his death.

In the early hours of July 24, 2020, Lee Adams, 36, placed hundreds of bets on an online slot site shortly after receiving his monthly salary, according to his family. Within hours, the south Londoner took his own life.

More than five years later, in November 2025, a medical examiner concluded that a gambling disorder contributed to his death.

Adams’ cousin Natalie Ashbolt said the family had to train lawyers to get the coroner to consider the impact of his gambling and is calling for better support for families affected by gambling-related deaths.

Ashbolt, whose family also had the support of a campaign group called Gambling with Lives, said she was shocked by how difficult the process had been and worried other bereaved families would fight to get a similar result at the inquest.

The family’s solicitors, Leigh Day, believe Adams’ inquest at Southwark Coroner’s Court was only the third time the role of gambling has been considered in depth at an inquest – despite almost 500 gambling-related suicides occurring in England a year, according to a report by the Office for Health Improvement and Inequalities.

Natalie lived with Lee in Streatham for most of her adult life after her mother’s death.

“He enjoyed his own company, but he also enjoyed time with family and friends as well as work colleagues,” she told BBC London. “I’m always busy. But generally fun-loving and ready to laugh. I haven’t taken things too seriously in life.”

She added: “I’ve always known he played a bit of slots or put in £10 here online over the years but it wasn’t a noticeable problem until after he had the big win.”

In March 2020, Adams won just £100,000 and from this point his gambling behavior “continued to escalate”, his cousin said.

“Thousands and thousands of people came back to the sites. We obviously said the normal things: ‘Stop while you’re ahead, don’t put anything back. Be cautious.’

“As the weeks went by, he loaded up again and felt really bad about it.”

The coroner also ruled that in the months leading up to his death – which happened during the Covid lockdown – Adams was suffering from a long-term depressive illness and had become increasingly addicted and involved in gambling.

The coroner found Adams was contacted in late March by the operator about his deposits and said he was fine. He continued to play and was not identified as being at increased risk.

The coroner, who gave a narrative verdict, said there were missed opportunities by the gambling operator at the time, although they did not contribute to Adams’ death.

“We weren’t worried about leaving Lee alone. We didn’t know how bad things were or how bad things could get in that situation,” Ashbolt said.

When she learned of her cousin’s death, she was “numb… in total shock,” she told BBC London.

“Tip of the Iceberg”

The family could not properly grieve until the inquest was completed, she said.

“We were surprised by how difficult the investigation process was,” Ashbolt told the BBC.

“We have to admit it was an achievement to have disordered gambling listed as a contributing factor – as a family we knew all along,” she said, adding that she felt the operator “wasn’t held accountable”.

Ashbolt said that “it was really an impetus for the coroner to consider this [gambling]”, but hiring lawyers helped.

She believes the system is “failing” and “not set up to take gambling into account”.

“Unless you have private funding and the support and ability to have a coroner, you really accept that they’re going to look at gambling … to get to the point that we did, it’s not going to happen for all the families that they should.”

Leigh Day’s lawyers told BBC London that this is only the third inquest they are aware of since 2022 where the coroner has acknowledged gambling contributed to someone taking their own life.

Dan Webster of the law firm believes these deaths are the “tip of the iceberg”.

The nature of a gambling disorder is that it is “sometimes hidden from loved ones”, making it difficult for bereaved families, but he said when they raised concerns with the coroner, there was a “resistance to investigating those concerns”.

Webster said that before they began supporting the family, they were told that the coroner “had all the evidence he needed and intended to proceed with the investigation without further ado.”

According to Webster, the inquest was originally listed to take place in March 2022, but the coroner postponed the hearing at the last minute. The investigation was then subject to repeated delays.

He added: “I think it is very important that coroners become more aware of the link between gambling and gambling disorder and suicide.”

Leigh Day Solicitors are also representing the family of Gareth Evans, 40, from Croydon, who was found dead in his flat in November 2021.

A coroner is investigating the potential contribution of gambling to Evans’ death. The investigation is not over yet.

In January 2025, the National Institute for Health Care and Excellence published guidelines on the treatment and identification of gambling, recommending that GPs ask about a patient’s gambling during routine check-ups, just as they would about alcohol and smoking.

“It means that not only should the coroner investigate, but there is an evidence base … if it exists in the medical records,” said Charles Ritchie, founder of Gambling with Lives, which raises awareness about problem gambling.

It was set up by Ritchie and his wife Liz after their son Jack took his own life in 2017 while struggling with gambling addiction.

In 2022, the coroner ruled that the 24-year-old teacher from Sheffield had been failed by “grossly inadequate” warnings and treatment.

“Jack’s was the first substantial gambling inquiry there ever was. It was a very long process,” Ritchie said. “It shouldn’t be a battle and yet it is at this point.”

He told BBC London that coroners “are often unaware that the national suicide prevention strategy recognizes gambling as a risk factor for suicide, or know that they have the ability to include evidence of gambling that preceded suicide within the scope of the investigation”.

“Families usually do not have the legal knowledge to explain why or how gambling should be included unless they have specialist legal representation.”

Ritchie added: “We want to make sure that every death is investigated … for justice, for the individual.

“We believe these people have been abused throughout their lives by gambling and gambling operators. As a society, we must also learn from their deaths.”

Ritchie said that in supporting around 150 grieving families, the biggest challenge was “convincing the coroner that gambling should be considered”.

He said there were cases where families were “very sure” that gambling was the “number one cause of death”, adding: “And the coroner still hasn’t been prepared to look at it.”

How does the inquiry system work?

• By law, the purpose of an inquest is limited to establishing who died, when, where and how they died, where the death occurred under certain circumstances – for example, sudden or suspicious.

• Findings and determinations made during an investigation are final and part of the official record

• Where coroners believe the change could mitigate the risk of further deaths, they are required to issue a prevention of future deaths report.

• The BBC understands the chief coroner’s office has shared a briefing with all coroners, provided by the gambling regulator, which outlines what it is and what it does.

• The 2023 Suicide Prevention Strategy for England identifies gambling as a key risk factor. It states that “new and better quality evidence has emerged pointing to links between suicide and risk factors such as harmful gambling and domestic abuse”.

Currently, gambling licensees must notify the Gambling Commission – the industry regulator – if they become aware that a person who gambled with them has taken their own life.

A spokesman for the regulator said: “When we become aware that a person has taken their own life and that gambling may have been a factor, we consider whether this indicates evidence of regulatory failings by a gambling company. If it has not followed our rules, we will take regulatory action against it.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “While we understand the desire to get better information about the links between gambling and suicide, simply asking coroners to record motivation would not provide a reliable picture as they are often working with limited or incomplete information.”

The Court and Tribunals Court was contacted by BBC London but declined to comment. Southwark Coroner’s Court has also been contacted for comment.

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