Terms and conditions

1. Who operates WinHive

WinHive is operated by Joseph Ryan, a sole trader trading as WinHive. Our geographic business address is WinHive
Suite 201F
60 Frederick Street
Birmingham
B1 3HS. Contact: hello@winhive.co.uk.

WinHive runs chance-based prize draws with a paid online entry route and a free postal entry route. The draws are structured to qualify as free draws under the Gambling Act 2005 in Great Britain. WinHive is not a licensed gambling operator and the Gambling Commission does not approve or endorse individual free-draw operators.

2. Eligibility

Unless a competition states a narrower area, entrants must be aged 18 or over and ordinarily resident in England, Scotland or Wales. Northern Ireland and all other jurisdictions are excluded. Entrants must provide accurate details and be legally able to participate. We may ask for reasonable evidence of age, identity, address and eligibility before accepting activity or fulfilling a prize.

WinHive employees, contractors directly involved in administering a draw, an independent draw or audit provider working on that promotion, and their immediate households may not enter that promotion.

3. Competition-specific conditions

Each competition page states the prize, opening and closing time, maximum ticket supply, maximum entries per person, paid entry price, free postal route, draw timing, cash alternative where offered and any other significant condition. Those details form part of these terms. WinHive stores a snapshot and SHA-256 hash of the significant conditions when a competition is activated.

We will not materially change a live competition in a way that disadvantages existing entrants. We will not cancel, reduce the prize or extend a draw merely because paid-entry sales are lower than expected. Any necessary change caused by exceptional circumstances will be limited to what is reasonably required, explained clearly and handled fairly.

4. Paid entry and Hive Credit

Customers can buy Hive Credit in pounds sterling and use it to purchase paid entries on WinHive. Hive Credit is closed-loop account credit: it is not a bank account, cannot be transferred to another person and cannot be withdrawn or exchanged for cash except where a refund is required by law or these terms.

Cash prizes and advertised cash alternatives are not Hive Credit. They are paid separately to the verified winner using a method arranged by WinHive. We may apply reasonable payment, account and balance limits and may decline, reverse or refund a payment where required by our payment provider, fraud controls or law.

A Hive Credit top-up is complete only after WinHive verifies the successful Cashflows payment through its server-side payment process. A browser success screen by itself does not create credit.

Debit cards only. WinHive does not accept credit card payments for Hive Credit top-ups. This restriction is based on the funding type reported/enforced by the payment provider, not the card brand: an eligible Visa Debit or Mastercard Debit card may be accepted, while a credit card is not. WinHive may also refuse a payment method where its funding type cannot be accepted safely under our player-protection rules.

Each completed Hive Credit movement receives a unique WinHive transaction ID. Payment-provider references, entry orders and ticket numbers are linked for reconciliation, fraud prevention, refunds, complaints and account records. Customers can view their Hive Credit history in their account.

5. Free postal entry

Postal entry address:

No purchase is necessary. The free route is shown on every relevant competition page and explained in the Postal entry guide. WinHive charges no entry fee for this route; entrants pay only the normal cost of ordinary First or Second Class post. Recorded, tracked and special-delivery services are not required.

A valid postal entry receives a normal ticket number, counts towards the same per-person limit and joins the same prize-allocation pool as a paid entry. The winner-selection system does not distinguish between the paid and postal routes.

Postal entries must arrive by the deadline stated for the competition. Proof of posting is not proof of receipt. WinHive is not responsible for post that is delayed, lost, damaged, underpaid or sent to the wrong address.

6. Entry limits, one-account rule and invalid entries

All routes count towards the same per-person entry limit. Each person may operate only one WinHive customer account. You must not create or control additional accounts using another email address, alias, name or device to obtain extra free-draw entries, Daily Hive Cells, promotional or affiliate credit, referral rewards, extra entry allowances or any other account-limited benefit.

Different eligible people in the same household may each hold their own genuine account. A shared household, device or internet connection is not by itself treated as proof of abuse. WinHive may use proportionate fraud-prevention checks across account, device, connection, contact, address and activity information and may temporarily place an account on review where several signals indicate possible duplicate control. Existing entries or prizes are not automatically cancelled merely because an automated review flag is raised; a human administrator reviews the evidence before any disqualification decision.

Automated, bulk, duplicated, incomplete, illegible, fraudulent, late or otherwise non-compliant entries may be rejected. Multiple accounts controlled by one person, false identities, payment abuse, attempts to manipulate ticket allocation or interference with the website may lead to entries being voided and an account being restricted or closed after review.

Where an entry is invalidated, WinHive records the reason. A paid entry will be refunded where required by law or where WinHive is responsible for being unable to provide the entry, but not where the entrant has breached these terms.

7. Main draw process

Before entries are issued, WinHive creates a secret 256-bit cryptographic seed and stores its SHA-256 commitment. After the competition closes and timely postal entries have been processed, the system fixes the ordered manifest of all valid ticket numbers and records its SHA-256 pool hash.

The committed seed and fixed pool are then used in WinHive's recorded SHA-256 selection process to choose one ticket. The published draw record can include the revealed seed, commitment, pool hash, selection digest, nonce, eligible-entry count and winning ticket so the recorded calculation can be checked. See Fairness & draw process.

7A. HiveProof LIVE draw presentation

Where a main draw is presented through HiveProof LIVE, the music, bees, moving ticket numbers, countdown and reveal sequence are a presentation of the recorded draw process rather than a separate random-selection mechanism. For integrity, WinHive selects and securely fixes the winning entry using the recorded main-draw process before the public LIVE countdown begins. The on-screen animation cannot alter that result.

The winning ticket remains hidden from public viewers during the countdown and drawing sequence and is revealed when the LIVE drawing soundtrack concludes. Technical draw evidence is retained in WinHive's draw and audit records rather than being displayed throughout the entertainment screen.

After the ticket is revealed, the LIVE celebration room remains open for approximately two minutes. Winner and non-winner result emails are deliberately held until that LIVE room has concluded, so entrants watching the broadcast are not told the outcome by email before the on-screen experience is finished. A technical interruption may affect the presentation or require the room to close, but it does not change the recorded winning entry.

8. Instant-win promotions

If WinHive offers an instant-win promotion, its additional prize list, allocation method and claim conditions form part of the relevant competition. Winning ticket positions are generated and committed before tickets are issued and the same numerical positions apply to paid and valid postal entries.

Instant prizes are pre-allocated across the full maximum ticket range. A prize is won only if its allocated ticket number is actually issued, so a winning position that is never reached before closing may remain unclaimed. Online entrants are shown the result immediately after their entries are confirmed; postal entries are checked when processed and any winner is contacted without avoidable delay. WinHive charges no fee to claim an instant-win prize.

Where an instant prize advertises a Hive Credit alternative, the winner may make a final choice between the original prize and the stated amount of non-withdrawable Hive Credit. Physical-prize winners must provide a delivery address when accepting the original prize. Once a choice is confirmed online it cannot be changed except at WinHive’s discretion where a genuine error is identified.

Before launch, WinHive obtained an independent technical review of the allocation mechanism and sample evidence. Each completed live instant-win promotion also retains its real audit export for separate independent post-promotion verification. See Independent instant-win fairness review.

8A. Free Daily Hive Cell

Where enabled, the Daily Hive Cell is a separate free promotional feature for eligible WinHive account holders. One Cell may be opened per account per UK calendar day and no purchase, top-up or paid competition entry is required. Paid activity does not provide extra Daily Hive Cells or improve a Daily Hive outcome.

Each valid Cell reveals one randomly selected collectible bee with a published Hive value. Bees may be kept in My Hive or traded for promotional, non-withdrawable Hive Credit under the published Daily Hive rules. Current bee odds, values, the daily reset time and any Honey Pot saving bonus are published on the Daily Hive Cell rules page before they apply.

WinHive may pause the Daily Hive for maintenance, security, suspected abuse or operational reasons. Validly recorded bees remain attached to the customer's account and collection history.

9. Winners and prizes

Potential winners are contacted using their account or entry details and must respond within the claim period shown for the competition, normally 14 days. We may verify identity, age, residence, entry validity and relevant payment status. A person is not finally confirmed as the winner until those checks are complete.

The advertised prize will be supplied. Where a specific cash alternative was advertised before entry, the verified winner may choose the original prize or that stated cash amount. The choice is final once confirmed. We will not substitute a lower-value prize. A reasonably equivalent or higher-value substitute may be necessary only where the original genuinely becomes unavailable for reasons outside our reasonable control.

Prizes are non-transferable unless WinHive agrees otherwise. The winner is responsible for personal tax consequences, permissions, insurance and ongoing costs not expressly included. Subject to applicable law and reasonable objections, WinHive may publish a winner's first name, surname initial, county, winning ticket number and prize.

10. Refunds, reversals and disputes

Competition entries are normally allocated immediately and cannot simply be cancelled because an entrant changes their mind. This does not remove statutory rights where they apply. Duplicate charges, technical failures and payments taken for entries WinHive cannot provide will be investigated and corrected.

A chargeback or payment reversal may cause the corresponding Hive Credit, linked entries and prize fulfilment to be suspended while the matter is investigated. WinHive may remove credit funded by a reversed payment and may invalidate linked entries before the relevant draw if the underlying payment has not been restored. A good-faith complaint does not by itself invalidate a legitimate win.

If an account contains Hive Credit, open entries or an unfulfilled prize, account closure may require support review first. Closing an account does not erase records that WinHive must retain for tax, fraud prevention, payment disputes, complaints or promotion administration.

11. Invite & Earn referrals

Where the Invite & Earn programme is enabled, each customer may receive a personal referral link. A referral is attributed only when a brand-new customer follows that link and creates their WinHive account during that referral session. Existing accounts cannot be retrospectively referred.

A referral becomes successful only after the referred customer completes their first verified real-money Hive Credit top-up of at least the qualifying amount shown on the Invite & Earn page. Cashflows Integration/test payments, reversed payments, self-referrals, duplicate accounts, false identities and abusive or manipulated referrals do not qualify.

Under the launch offer, the referrer receives £3 Hive Credit for each of their first five successful referrals and £1 Hive Credit for each successful referral after that. The newly referred customer receives £1 Hive Credit after their qualifying first top-up. Referral rewards are non-withdrawable Hive Credit and have no cash alternative.

WinHive may change, pause or end the referral programme for future referrals. Rewards already validly earned will remain on the account unless the underlying payment is reversed or the referral is found to breach these terms.

12. Promotional signup codes

WinHive may issue promotional codes for launch campaigns, flyers, partnerships or other marketing. Unless the specific offer says otherwise, a promotional code is available only to a brand-new customer while creating their account. It cannot be added to an existing account later, transferred to another customer or exchanged for cash.

The reward and any campaign limit, start date, expiry date or other significant condition are attached to that code. Only one signup promotional code may be used per customer. Duplicate accounts, false details, automated registrations or other attempts to obtain the same offer more than once may be rejected and the promotional Hive Credit removed where appropriate.

Promotional Hive Credit is closed-loop WinHive credit and is non-withdrawable. For the LOCALBUZZ flyer offer, an eligible new customer receives £2 Hive Credit when the code is accepted during signup. No purchase is required to receive that signup reward.

13. Responsible participation

Customers can set a monthly paid-entry limit, including £0, pause their account and request closure. WinHive may intervene where activity suggests harm or loss of control. See Responsible participation.

WinHive operates player-protection and transparency measures with reference to the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport Voluntary Code of Good Practice for Prize Draw Operators. This statement does not claim DCMS signatory status unless WinHive is shown as a signatory on the official GOV.UK list.

14. Website availability and liability

We take reasonable care to keep WinHive secure and accurate but cannot promise uninterrupted access. Maintenance, external payment services, internet failures and events outside our reasonable control may affect availability. Nothing in these terms excludes liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, including liability for fraud, death or personal injury caused by negligence, or statutory consumer rights.

15. Complaints and law

Our complaints process is published at Complaints. These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, while consumers retain any mandatory rights that apply to them in Scotland or elsewhere under applicable consumer law.