UK Credit Card Ban Has Minor Impact on High-Risk Gamblers
A National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) report has revealed the UK’s ban on credit card gambling has had little to no impact on high-risk gamblers. It’s unlikely to fuel a change in the legislation, but it’s good to know that the world at large has an eye on gambling restrictions and their efficacy.
The UK banned the use of credit cards to deposit gambling funds back in 2020. The ban was designed to limit access to borrowed funds – inevitably problem gamblers turn to credit cards when they run out of money, so the theory was sound, and the ban seemed logical.
According to the research, while overall credit card use for gambling has dropped, it really hasn’t made a major difference to high-risk gamblers. They have just discovered alternative payment methods. So, problem gamblers are simply finding ways around the ban, namely e-wallets.
Credit Card Ban Not Enough?
The study suggested that additional measures are necessary to tackle problem gambling, including individual affordability checks and restrictions. This has been a regular point of discussion in recent times and the UK Gambling Commission has promised to revisit the Gambling Act of 2005 to strengthen player protections and to provide effective legislation for the modern world of online casinos and betting sites.
The UK Gambling Act of 2005 was a landmark piece of legislation that helped build one of the strongest online casino environments in the world. While other nations looked to restrict online gambling, the UK welcomes the industry and built laws that allowed it to flourish.
In 2005 the government declared that every gambling site had to carry links to resources like GamCare, GambleAware, and GamStop, giving players easy access to support services for gambling-related issues. Tools like reality checks, deposit limits and self-exclusion followed.
The UK Gambling Act of 2005 forced casinos and betting sites to carry links to Responsible Gambling. It was a landmark piece of legislation that helped build one of the strongest online casino environments in the world.
A World of Easy Credit
In recent times, though, the legislation has come under the spotlight as online gambling has taken hold and many players have taken out credit to feed their habit. Nowadays it’s possible for players to apply for credit online, put the money in an e-wallet and charge their playing account in less than an hour. Critics say that this the industry’s problem, and there are signs the UK government agrees.
While it is not enforceable by law, the government has already begun a pilot scheme of ‘light touch’ affordability checks and is strongly encouraging online casinos to assess players that lose more than £500 in a 30-day period.
These are basic checks to see if a player is at risk of financial difficulties and involves checking their publicly available financial data. The government argues that higher losses should trigger more stringent checks, including a credit reference if the player loses £1000 in 24 hours or more than £2000 in a month.
Are Credit Checks a Good Idea?
Now this could be a major hurdle for the industry as many people simply don’t want an online casino making credit checks to decide if they can play or not. But, of course, hardened gamblers could easily split their play between multiple casinos to avoid the triggers for more advanced checks into their finances.
So, while the industry has played ball with the regulators and many have gone above and beyond when it comes to implementing Responsible Gambling measures, it remains to be seen whether these added rules will actually solve problems. The credit card ban doesn’t seem to have achieved much, and we have our doubts about the proposed credit checks too.
