Home › How to Bet › Rule 4 Deductions
By The Guv'nor · Last updated October 2026
Rule 4 deductions are what a bookmaker takes off your winnings when a horse is withdrawn after you've taken a price. The rate depends on the withdrawn horse's odds: 5p in the pound for a 10/1 to 14/1 shot, up to 90p for one at 1/9 or shorter, and 90p is the cap. Starting price bets are normally untouched.
What is Rule 4 in horse racing?
Rule 4 is short for Rule 4(C) of the Tattersalls Committee Rules on Betting, which on-course bookies in Britain settle on unless they display otherwise; off-course firms such as Coral and Ladbrokes print the same scale in their own rules. It kicks in when you've taken a price on the day and a horse is then officially withdrawn or declared "not to have started".
So how does Rule 4 work? Say you take 5/1 and a 3/1 shot is pulled out. Your horse has one less rival, so the fair price is now shorter than 5/1. Rule 4 claws that back by knocking a set amount off every pound of winnings on the horses left in, win and place.
- It comes off winnings, not your stake. 25p on a winning £10 bet at 5/1 takes 25% of the £50 winnings, not of the £60 return.
- It only applies if you took a price. Starting price (SP) bets escape, unless there's no time to form a new market.
- The withdrawn horse's price sets the rate: its price at the official withdrawal under the Tattersalls wording, or when you struck your bet under bookmaker rules such as Coral's.
- Your own non-runner isn't a Rule 4. Your stake comes back, unless it was an ante-post bet.
The Rule 4 deductions table
Here's the full scale, copied band by band from Tattersalls Rule 4(C) (last revised 17 May 2010). If you bet in euro, check your Irish bookie's small print. I've added decimals and the chance each price implies.
| Withdrawn horse's price | Decimal | Deduction per £1 of winnings | Implied chance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1/9 or shorter | 1.11 or shorter | 90p | 90% or more |
| 2/11 to 2/17 | 1.18 to 1.12 | 85p | 84.6% to 89.5% |
| 1/4 to 1/5 | 1.25 to 1.20 | 80p | 80.0% to 83.3% |
| 3/10 to 2/7 | 1.30 to 1.29 | 75p | 76.9% to 77.8% |
| 2/5 to 1/3 | 1.40 to 1.33 | 70p | 71.4% to 75.0% |
| 8/15 to 4/9 | 1.53 to 1.44 | 65p | 65.2% to 69.2% |
| 8/13 to 4/7 | 1.62 to 1.57 | 60p | 61.9% to 63.6% |
| 4/5 to 4/6 | 1.80 to 1.67 | 55p | 55.6% to 60.0% |
| 20/21 to 5/6 | 1.95 to 1.83 | 50p | 51.2% to 54.5% |
| Evens to 6/5 | 2.00 to 2.20 | 45p | 50.0% to 45.5% |
| 5/4 to 6/4 | 2.25 to 2.50 | 40p | 44.4% to 40.0% |
| 8/5 to 7/4 | 2.60 to 2.75 | 35p | 38.5% to 36.4% |
| 9/5 to 9/4 | 2.80 to 3.25 | 30p | 35.7% to 30.8% |
| 12/5 to 3/1 | 3.40 to 4.00 | 25p | 29.4% to 25.0% |
| 16/5 to 4/1 | 4.20 to 5.00 | 20p | 23.8% to 20.0% |
| 9/2 to 11/2 | 5.50 to 6.50 | 15p | 18.2% to 15.4% |
| 6/1 to 9/1 | 7.00 to 10.00 | 10p | 14.3% to 10.0% |
| 10/1 to 14/1 | 11.00 to 15.00 | 5p | 9.1% to 6.7% |
| Over 14/1 | Over 15.00 | No deduction | Under 6.7% |
Two more lines matter. With two or more withdrawals the deductions are added together (Coral's rules spell that out), but the total can't exceed 90p in the pound. And if a second horse comes out of a reformed market, the total is worked out on the prices in the original market.
The quick way to remember it
As a stats geek, this is the bit I like. The deduction is roughly the withdrawn horse's implied chance, rounded down to the nearest 5p: a 3/1 shot is 25%, so 25p; 6/4 is 40%, so 40p.
It isn't exact at the band edges, mind. Evens is a 50% chance but the scale says 45p, 4/6 is 60% but gets 55p, and 9/5 (35.7%) gets 30p. Going the other way, 2/11 (84.6%) gets 85p. Use it as a sense check and the table for the real number.
Rule 4 deductions calculator
Pop in your stake, your price and each withdrawn horse's price, and it works out the deduction (capped at 90p) and your return.
| Your bet | Non-runner(s) | Deduction | Return after Rule 4 | Return without Rule 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £10 win at 5/1, wins | One at 3/1 | 25p | £47.50 | £60.00 |
| £10 win at 2/1, wins | One at 1/3 | 70p | £16.00 | £30.00 |
| £10 each-way at 8/1 (1/4 odds), wins | One at 5/1 | 15p | £105.00 | £120.00 |
| £10 win at 10/1, wins | Two, at 4/6 and 4/5 | 90p (55p + 55p, capped) | £20.00 | £110.00 |
| £10 win at 6/1, wins | One at 16/1 | None | £70.00 | £70.00 |
A price that falls between two bands (say decimal 5.8, between 4/1 and 9/2) goes in the smaller-deduction band, and a rounded decimal such as 1.62 for 8/13 is read as the fraction it stands for. Your bookie's settlement is the final word.
Worked examples: singles, each-way and multiples
A win single
£10 win at 5/1, then a 3/1 shot is withdrawn: 25p in the pound. Your £50 winnings become £37.50, so £47.50 back with your stake. In effect you were paid 3.75/1.
An each-way bet
Rule 4 hits both halves. £10 each-way at 8/1, 1/4 the odds a place, and a 5/1 non-runner (15p). If it wins, the win part pays 6.8/1 (£78) and the place part 1.7/1 (£27): £105 back for £20 staked instead of £120. If it only places, you get £27 instead of £30. For the place terms themselves, see each-way betting explained.
Doubles, trebles and Lucky 15s
In a multiple, each leg is settled after its own Rule 4 and the return rolls on. £10 double at 3/1 and 2/1, with 20p off the first leg: leg one returns £10 x (1 + 3 x 0.8) = £34, which goes on at 2/1 for £102, not £120.
If one of your own picks is a non-runner, a double becomes a single and a treble a double. For full-cover bets, the Lucky 15 calculator handles Rule 4 on each leg. (If it's the selections you're after, that's my lucky 15 tips page.)
How often Rule 4 bites: three months of results counted
Look, everyone explains Rule 4; nobody says how often it happens. So I went through every UK and Irish race with a weighed-in result from 1 July to 30 September 2026 on Sporting Life's results pages and counted.
| What was on the result | UK | Ireland | All |
|---|---|---|---|
| Races (N) | 2,718 | 814 | 3,532 |
| At least one non-runner | 1,213 (44.6%) | 573 (70.4%) | 1,786 (50.6%) |
| A runner marked "withdrawn" | 109 (4.0%) | 24 (2.9%) | 133 (3.8%) |
| A Rule 4 notice | 53 (1.9%) | 9 (1.1%) | 62 (1.8%) |
| Deduction | Races | "All bets" | "Board prices only" |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5p | 15 | 9 | 6 |
| 10p | 14 | 5 | 9 |
| 15p | 13 | 3 | 10 |
| 20p | 8 | 4 | 4 |
| 25p | 7 | 4 | 3 |
| 30p | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 35p | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 65p | 1 | 1 | 0 |
So a printed Rule 4 turned up in about one race in 57, and the middle one was 15p. Only 12 of the 62 were 25p or more. The big one was a past race at Lingfield on 25 August 2026 (the 15:30, a novice stakes, seven ran): Dialstone, 8/15 in the betting forecast, was withdrawn and the notice read "Rule 4 applies to all bets - deduction 65p in the pound". All bets means SP bets too. With hindsight, £10 on the winner, Floating Market, at its 9/1 SP would have been settled at 9/1 less 65p: £41.50 back, not £100. Crazy right?
The catch: half of all races had a non-runner, and every printed notice came with a horse marked withdrawn, so these are the late ones. A morning non-runner can still cost you a Rule 4 on an early price struck before the announcement (Coral's rules say as much), but those are settled bet by bet with no notice on the result. Read 62 as a floor. It's also three summer months, so treat the splits as rough.
Rule 4 with BOG, SP and ante-post bets
Starting price
SP bets are normally safe: the market re-forms and the SP reflects the smaller field. The exception is a withdrawal so late there's no time for a new market, when the same scale hits SP bets too. More on how the SP is struck in starting price explained.
Early prices and board prices
Tattersalls defines early prices as day-of-race prices offered more than 90 minutes before the off, and any price taken on the day is covered by Rule 4, early or board. Bookies' own rules can go further: Coral treats a price taken any time after final declarations (often the day before) as an early price, liable to Rule 4, with your stake back if your own horse doesn't run.
Best Odds Guaranteed
With BOG you're paid at SP if it's bigger than the price you took. With a Rule 4 in play, Coral's rules say they "pay at the bigger odds after the Rule 4 deduction has been made". Wording varies, so check your bookie's BOG terms.
Ante-post bets
Rule 4(C) covers prices taken on the day (or after final declarations at bookies such as Coral and Ladbrokes), so a true ante-post bet escapes it. The flip side: if your horse doesn't run, the stake is usually lost. The ante-post betting guide covers when non-runner no bet changes that.
Other settlement rules: dead heats, first past the post and disqualifications
Dead heat rules
Under Tattersalls Rule 10, a bet on a horse that dead-heats loses half the stake, with full odds paid on the other half (a third of the stake for a triple dead heat). £10 win at 5/1 in a dead heat for first returns £5 x 6 = £30. If there's also been a Rule 4, it comes off the winnings from the reduced stake: with 20p, that's £5 + (£25 x 0.8) = £25.
First past the post and the weighed-in result
Tattersalls settles on the result at the "weighed-in" announcement, after any stewards' enquiry; a disqualification after the weigh-in doesn't affect bets. Some bookies also pay on the first past the post result: Coral's "double result" pays on both, though not on ante-post bets, forecasts, tricasts or the Grand National, among others.
Walkovers, voids and re-runs
If withdrawals leave one runner, it's a walkover and all bets are void. In a re-run, horses that don't take part count as withdrawn and Rule 4 applies.
How to limit Rule 4 damage
- Check the non-runners before you bet. A horse already out when you strike your bet can't cost you a Rule 4 later.
- Watch the short-priced ones. A 20/1 non-runner costs nothing; a 4/6 favourite coming out costs 55p in the pound. If one looks doubtful, ask whether taking a price now is worth it.
- Think in prices after deductions. 5/1 less 25p is 3.75/1. If the SP beats that, the early price did you no favours.
How I treat Rule 4
Look, I'm essentially a statistics and maths geek, so a price to me is a probability with a number on it. When a rival comes out, my horse's chance goes up, so the price I took gets trimmed. That's Rule 4 doing its job, not the bookies robbing me.
I bet on every horse I tip, so a Rule 4 comes out of my pocket as well as yours. What I care about is profit month to month, not one result, and a winner at a reduced price is still a winner. The damage comes from how you react: chasing, or going big on the next one because you feel short-changed. Keep to your points, skip anything you're unsure about, and trust the process.
- The Guv'nor
Rule 4 questions
Does Rule 4 apply to SP bets?
Normally no, as the SP market re-forms without the non-runner, unless it's too late for a new market.
What's the maximum Rule 4 deduction?
90p in the pound, whether that's one non-runner at 1/9 or shorter or several deductions added together.
Why is it called Rule 4?
Because it's Rule 4, part (C), of the Tattersalls Committee Rules on Betting, which date back to 1886.
More in this guide
- How to bet on horse racing: the beginner's guide
- Starting price, early prices and BOG
- Each-way betting explained, with a calculator
- Ante-post betting and non-runner no bet
- Horse racing odds explained, with a full odds chart
- Horse racing betting strategy
I run Bolts Up Daily. I was a Quantitative Researcher at a Tier 1 Investment Bank (essentially a statistics and maths geek), and I now use those skills to analyse UK and Irish racing, profitably enough that most of your favourite bookies won't take a bet from me. Every horse I tip, I'm betting on myself, and every bet comes with a stake in points. I own racehorses too. Look, I can't guarantee every tip is going to win (anyone that can is a fraudster), but I care about profit, not strike rate.
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