A gambling firm has been fined £6 million for ‘welfare failings’, despite having been awarded the highest customer safety rating by an industry-funded charity.
Gamesys Operations Limited, which runs 12 betting websites, obtained GamCare’s Advanced Level 3 safety certificate which is awarded to firms that “go beyond the social responsibility provisions of their gambling licence” and have “no significant weaknesses”.
But the Gambling Commission discovered that between November 2021 and July 2022, Gamesys’ deposit limits allowed one gambler to lose £17,482 over just one month after opening their account.
‘Deaths’
In another instance, Gamesys only contacted a gambler when they nearly lost £10,000 and that “‘responsible gambling interaction’ involved the recommendation of new games and promotions”.
Liz Ritchie, Co-Founder of Gambling with Lives, said: “We know of three families who have lost people they will mourn for the rest of their lives because of the failings of this one company, and this is no doubt the tip of an iceberg.”
“The deaths aren’t stopping, the suffering isn’t stopping, but the gambling companies get to continue operating. Fines are not working – when will the Gambling Commission take real action and remove licences when failures lead to deaths?”
Following the revelations, GamCare is reviewing its certification scheme.
Counselling
The number of people seeking help for problem gambling rose by over 10,000 last year.
More than 52,000 people called the National Gambling Helpline in 2023 asking for support or counselling, up from around 42,000 in 2022.
Some advisors for the helpline said they had noticed more people contacting them because they were concerned about someone else’s gambling, and that this was particularly noticeable during the Christmas period.
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