Online since 1998 Ladbrokes have catapulted their operation to join the other top shops in the industry such as Bet365 .

It seems that Ladbrokes have thought of everything from a customer prospective!

The website is loaded with information and useful hints and tips. Navigation is smooth and easy, but there maybe some lag during heavy traffic periods.

The signup process is very efficient. Once you have registered an account you can personalize it and select your maximum or minimum deposit limit. You can also choose what promotions you want to be notified about and Ladbrokes will send it via the method of your choice i.e. email, mobile (sms), postal or telephone. It certainly beats getting hoards of emails that most of us delete and miss out on those offers that really appeal to us.

Customer support is available 24/7. They advertise live online help, but really it is an e-message facility and responses are quaranteed within 12 hours of receipt, this time frame is of course too long in the age of e-commerce but from my own experience the service is very efficient and responses have been received within as little as 10 minutes.

They also provide a toll free support number for residents in the United Kingdom and Ireland. If you are dialing from outside of those countries you will be required to pay for the call.

Thankfully however, there is a complete and comprehensive Help and FAQ section that should answer most of your questions.

The betting options available are: Horses, greyhounds, football, Sports - which includes everything from NFL to Gaelic football and hurling. Specials - relate to TV and political wagers. Or there is Financials - where you can wager on the financial markets and the rise and fall of stock prices.

You can place wagers via the website, telephone, digital TV, WAP enabled cell phone or in any of their 2250 land based betting shops located throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and Belgium.

A message from Ladbrokes to all US residents:

We can confirm that due to the complexities of the legal issues surrounding betting in the United States, we are unable to accept Account's from people who register with the USA as their country of residence. However we are seeking further advice on this issue and will inform clients accordingly should this situation change.

Other downsides relate to:

• Promotions and bonus awards are not frequently offered to existing players.
• At times their odds are not that great but they do allow high limit bets.

Ladbrokes first floated on the London Stock Exchange way back in 1967 and developed quite an impressive career path over the years. Essentially they have gained considerable expertise and are now universally respected as one of the leading bookmakers that guarantee a secure and professional environment.