FanDuel Debuts Bet Protect+, Injury Protection That Puts Bettors in Control
Injuries are one of the biggest frustrations for sports bettors. They can end a bet before it really has a chance to play out.
This has been a persistent pain point across the industry, and sportsbooks have taken various approaches to address it.
In response, FanDuel spoke with customers, researched different ways to meet their needs, and ultimately developed a distinct strategy for injury bet protection.
“The challenge is that even with the most well-planned bet, the most comprehensive research, the best hunch—it can all get squashed by an unexpected injury,” said Jon Sadow, Sportsbook Product Vice President at FanDuel. “We want to allow our customers to regain that loss of control.”
This insight led FanDuel to create Bet Protect+, designed to give customers greater control over how they protect themselves—and their bets—when player injuries occur.
Introducing Bet Protect+
Bet Protect+ is an optional feature within FanDuel Sportsbook that provides industry-first full-game injury protection on player prop bets for a nominal premium of 3% of your bet.
Customers can choose to toggle this protection for eligible bet slips within the app. When a user opts in, they are charged a small fee, totaling just 3% of their wager (that’s $0.30 of a $10 bet).
If a player they’ve bet on then leaves the game due to an injury at any point:
- Straight bet: The wager will be refunded in cash (not Bonus Bets).
- Parlay: The injured leg will be removed, and the payout is recalculated.
Bet Protect+ is fully optional. The cost is displayed clearly in the bet slip before placement, and users decide on a bet-by-bet basis whether to apply it.
“When we discussed the in-app design, we wanted it to be seamless and familiar," said Sadow. “Transparency was key. Customers can see the option, the fee, and decide instantly if they want to enable it for a given bet.”
Bet Protect+ is available as of April 18th for NBA pre-live and live player prop bets, with plans to roll it out for other sports in the near future.
What Makes Bet Protect+ Different
The concept of injury bet protection is not new. Sportsbooks have tried to address this with promotional “safety nets” offering refunds, in the form of either Bonus Bets or cash, when a player gets hurt in the first quarter or first half.
But these refunds are issued at the sportsbook's discretion rather than the customer's...and partial coverage doesn't actually solve the underlying problem.
Half of all NBA injuries so far this season have occurred in the second half of games, with the third quarter seeing the most injuries, according to data collected by the FanDuel team.
Injuries aren't bound to the first half of a game, so bet protection shouldn’t be either.
“We wanted a solution that made sure customers had peace of mind and the control to manage injury risk—no matter the moment in the game,” said Sadow.
That's where Bet Protect+ takes a different approach. The protection covers the full game because it’s designed to match the real-world nature of injuries.
The Opt-In Approach
FanDuel won’t make a profit off Bet Protect+...but that’s not the point.
By making protection optional for a small percentage of stake, FanDuel can maintain competitive pricing and promotions across the platform for all customers.
“Many competitors fund their offers by reducing generosity elsewhere—fewer tokens, less boosts, worse odds,” said Sadow. “FanDuel believed there was a way to offer full-game protection while still being the most rewarding sportsbook.”
Bet Protect+ tackles a common frustration, but it also points to FanDuel’s commitment to giving bettors more control over their bets. Because it’s optional, users can decide when protection is worth the incremental cost.
“We want customers to know they’re not stuck when an injury happens in the third quarter,” said Sadow. “Because previously, they had no say. With Bet Protect+, they do.”
Giving Customers More Control
Before launching Bet Protect+, FanDuel ran the concept by customers.
The majority said they would add Bet Protect+ in real scenarios. More than half would opt into paid full-game protection, even choosing it over free partial coverage.
This was especially distinct among more experienced bettors, who tend to consider wagers in terms of expected value and edge cases rather than just upfront cost.
“What we found was customers appreciate having agency and ownership in their betting process,” said Sadow. “They want to choose what they bet on, how much, and what outcomes they think will happen. Bet Protect+ is an extension of that.”
Because ultimately, it's not just about injury protection. Bet Protect+ is another way customers can shape their own sportsbook experience.
Bet Protect+ is not currently available in MA, CT, NC, TN, PA, and NJ. Customers in those states will still have access to free first-quarter injury coverage and will receive bonus bets if an injury occurs.
