UK Gambling Commission announces new Casino player safety regulations

New regulations have been implemented by the UK Gambling Commission designed to provide more player safety around the activity of online casino games.

The UK Gambling Commission does not have a global mandate to enforce its regulations in other licensing territories but no doubt it will impact on those Casinos that are specifically licensed in the UK.

The regulations due for a October 31 start date will include (among others) the limiting of spin speeds, and banning the practice of reverse withdrawals, where players reuse the funds previously queued up to withdraw. This is a practice well known to seasoned players knowing that some Casinos intentionally drag out the process for this purpose. There are more regulations, read the Commission’s full article link below.

The Gambling Commission provided this statement on its position: “There is evidence to show that reverse withdrawal functions present a risk to players because of the temptation to continue gambling. In addition, the slot features being removed or more closely controlled have been associated with increased intensity of play, loss of player control or binge play.”

The new regulations have been endorsed by Sports, Tourism and Heritage Minister Nigel Huddleston, who believes it will “help curb the intensity of online gambling, while introducing greater protections that will reduce the risk of gambling-related harm”.

This follows on from the Gambling Commission’s earlier ban on the use of credit cards to fund accounts and place bets, designed to prevent the increase in problem gambling.

Neil McArthur, the Gambling Commission’s CEO previously stated that: “Credit card gambling can lead to significant financial harm. The ban that we have announced should minimise the risks of harm to consumers from gambling with money they do not have. We also know that there are examples of consumers who have accumulated tens of thousands of pounds of debt through gambling because of credit card availability.”

Mr McArthur also goes on to say: “There is also evidence that the fees charged by credit cards can exacerbate the situation because the consumer can try to chase losses to a greater extent.”

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If there is any further news on the UK Gambling Commission’s roll out of these forthcoming regulations, we will provide an update.

To read a complete analysis of the proposed regulations, go to the UK Gambling Commission’s page on this topic:
Click here.

To read the summary of Consultation Reponses:
Click here.