'Luke was suffering from a gambling disorder and unfortunately this was an illness he did not understand or recognise. 'Our lives have been changed forever, and there are no tools in this universe that can fix the damage caused, but no matter how much pain and harm we are feeling, it cannot be as excruciating as what Luke was feeling before his death because ultimately for him, he felt that the only way to make it stop was by losing his place on earth with the people he truly loved. He was a real rock to us all, but in reality, he masked his own pain, to protect us from what he was going through. 'As a husband and a father, Luke was nothing short of supportive and proud.

'He wanted nothing more than the simple things in life, to be a father and a husband. At work, he was a highly respected colleague who had many admirers. Paying tribute to her husband, Mrs Ashton continued: 'Luke was a bright, happy and bubbly person, who easily made friends. 'For us, it doesn't change the fact that Luke is not with us but we are pleased that the coroner agrees that measures should be put in place to prevent other families going through what we have.'īetfair 'could have done more' to help gambling addict who took his own life 'It is clear to me that Betfair's categorisation of Luke as 'low risk' was not fit for purpose and that their assessment of risk does not have the safety of their customers in mind. In a statement, she said: 'My hope is that all gambling companies will take note of today's strong conclusion and will urgently adjust their practices to provide proper interactions or intervention so a larger number of people to prevent further harms and deaths caused by gambling.

Mrs Ashton said the coroner's conclusion vindicates what she has argued all along, 'that gambling is destructive, destroys families and causes suicide'. She also urged betting companies to change their practices. Speaking to the media outside Leicester Town Hall, Annie Ashton, wife of Luke Ashton, said coroner Ivan Cartwright’s conclusion that a gambling disorder did contribute to her husband’s death 'confirms what I have always believed'. The widow of a 'devoted and happy' father who took his own life after suffering with a gambling addiction has paid tribute to her husband at the end of an inquest into his death.

How does gambling destroys families