A 66-year-old British man who became addicted to sports betting because of a drug whose side effects he was unaware of has forced his GP to pay him compensation, his lawyers announced on Friday.
Philip Stevens, originally from the south of England, was awarded 70,000 pounds, or 84,000 euros, in compensation after an amicable settlement, the same source said in a statement.
The facts date back to 2017, when the sixty-year-old went to his doctor because of tremors in his left leg. The latter then diagnosed him with restless legs syndrome.
Little known to the general public, this condition causes tingling and a need to move the legs, particularly at night, making life miserable for those who suffer from it.
His GP had prescribed him Ropinirole, a drug used in particular against Parkinson's disease, without mentioning its potential side effects, Mr Stevens assured.
Among them, an impulse control disorder that can lead to irrepressible behaviors in terms of gambling or shopping.
According to the law firm representing him, Mr Stevens "spent thousands of pounds on online gambling sites during the four years he took Ropinirole".
Usually "cautious" in his sports betting, "his gambling had become compulsive," maintains his counsel, for whom "he bet on everything he could and no longer cared at all about winning. He did not feel in control of his actions."
Alongside his sports betting, Mr Stevens began making "compulsive" purchases of clothing and fishing equipment.
It was only in 2021, after a visit to a neurologist, that he stopped taking the medication. A new nightmare began. Compulsive shopping was followed by hallucinations, paranoia and depression, brought on by withdrawal.
"I am no longer the same person I was before Ropinirole," said the person concerned, quoted in the press release from the law firm representing him, which specifies that the financial agreement was reached without the general practitioner acknowledging his responsibility in the affair.
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