To the original poster: this is a lesson to all of us. The lesson?
Yes indeed: Never, never do all your spread-betting business with just one company. Spread it around several providers. And mix things up. They *do* notice their *consistent* winners, and when the house consistently loses over enough (whatever period they choose is too long) time then things may well start to change. Every so often it's better not to stand out, and it's better if you retain greater control over any 'changes' than them...