If there's one thing that everyone in the world of gambling can agree on, it's that responsible gambling is important. Nobody wants to see a problem gambler get into debt by betting more than they can afford to lose.
The UK Gambling Commission has shown itself to be serious about protecting problem gamblers since its inception. After issuing several high-profile gamblers operators with multimillion-pound fines for not properly protecting vulnerable players, the UKGC is about to go a step further and ban all gambling on credit cards in the United Kingdom.
Under-18s to be banned from playing lottery in gambling crackdown Government launches gambling review to consider if ‘extra protections' for children and young people needed Blue National Lottery. The ban is the latest challenge posed to the UK's gambling industry as legislators and the UKGC look to curb the rise of gambling addiction in the country. A number of industry observers have expressed support for the ban, though many warn that it is not enough to curb gambling-related harms effectively.
In this post, I'll explain when the new regulations kick in, what they mean for you as a player, how you can deposit instead, and what some people in the gambling industry think about this credit card ban.
What You Need to Know About the Ban
The UKGC officially announced these measures in January, but the new rules take effect starting April 14th. When they do, gambling operators across the country will no longer be allowed to accept deposits made by credit cards. Debit cards will remain unaffected.
After studying the matter, the UKGC found that of Britain's 24 million gamblers, 10.5 million of whom gamble online, around 800,000 regularly use credit cards to gamble. It also stated that 22% of people who use credit cards to gamble online are classed as problem gamblers.
The announcement comes after too many stories of problem gamblers racking up huge amounts of debt on their credit cards.
Neil McArthur, the chief of the UKGC, said that he was aware that this move will inconvenience some players, but that it was justified in the interests of harm reduction. Protecting vulnerable people is one of the UKGC's stated aims, so this fits in with that.
Not Everybody Is Enthusiastic
However, not everyone agrees that the move will have that much of an impact. Kamran Hedjri, who is on the board of the financial services firm PXP Financial, called the ban 'overrated' since most players use other payment methods.
Mr. Hedjri said that his company conducted research at ICE London and gained insight into the payment habits of several generations of British gamblers. While 59% of Generation X gamblers use credit cards, the numbers are significantly lower in both the Millennial and Generation Z gamblers.
This indicates that credit cards are no longer the most popular way to pay for online gambling activities. However, it's worth noting that the UKGC's aim is to protect problem gamblers, a significant percentage of whom do use credit cards to gamble online.
Despite his reservations, Mr. Hedjri did say that he thought this was a 'good idea' and that he and his form supported it.
UKGC Continues Tough Line Against Operators
The UKGC has never taken a light-touch approach when operators have violated their license terms. Over the years, they have dished out several large fines to some of the biggest brands in betting.
- In 2017, they fined 888 Holdings £7.8 million for failing to protect players who had self-excluded, among other misdeeds.
- William Hill felt the UKGC's wrath in 2018 when it had to pay £6.2 million for failing to meet its social responsibility obligations. Mr. Green, which is also a William Hill brand, got hit with a £3 million fine this year for failing to protect problem gamblers.
- The UKGC hit Caesars Entertainment UK with a £13 million fine recently as part of its wider crackdown on problem gambling.
Plenty of critics point out that these fines are minuscule for massive gambling operators. Still, they're large enough to sting, and the bad press that typically follows is something most UK gambling operators will want to avoid.
What the Ban Means for You as a Player
It means that you won't be able to borrow money from credit card companies to gamble online. However, there are still plenty of other ways to make deposits and withdrawals at your favourite online casinos and betting sites. Let's cover some of these now.
Debit Cards
Debit cards won't be banned. You can still whip out a plastic card from your wallet and bet, but you'll have to have the money already in your account.
Betting with debit cards has advantages and disadvantages. I'd like to point a few of those out to help you decide if this is the right casino payment method for you.
Advantages:
- Fast deposits that arrive instantly
- Ease of use; enter your card number and off you go
- Almost everyone has a debit card or can get one
Mr. Hedjri said that his company conducted research at ICE London and gained insight into the payment habits of several generations of British gamblers. While 59% of Generation X gamblers use credit cards, the numbers are significantly lower in both the Millennial and Generation Z gamblers.
This indicates that credit cards are no longer the most popular way to pay for online gambling activities. However, it's worth noting that the UKGC's aim is to protect problem gamblers, a significant percentage of whom do use credit cards to gamble online.
Despite his reservations, Mr. Hedjri did say that he thought this was a 'good idea' and that he and his form supported it.
UKGC Continues Tough Line Against Operators
The UKGC has never taken a light-touch approach when operators have violated their license terms. Over the years, they have dished out several large fines to some of the biggest brands in betting.
- In 2017, they fined 888 Holdings £7.8 million for failing to protect players who had self-excluded, among other misdeeds.
- William Hill felt the UKGC's wrath in 2018 when it had to pay £6.2 million for failing to meet its social responsibility obligations. Mr. Green, which is also a William Hill brand, got hit with a £3 million fine this year for failing to protect problem gamblers.
- The UKGC hit Caesars Entertainment UK with a £13 million fine recently as part of its wider crackdown on problem gambling.
Plenty of critics point out that these fines are minuscule for massive gambling operators. Still, they're large enough to sting, and the bad press that typically follows is something most UK gambling operators will want to avoid.
What the Ban Means for You as a Player
It means that you won't be able to borrow money from credit card companies to gamble online. However, there are still plenty of other ways to make deposits and withdrawals at your favourite online casinos and betting sites. Let's cover some of these now.
Debit Cards
Debit cards won't be banned. You can still whip out a plastic card from your wallet and bet, but you'll have to have the money already in your account.
Betting with debit cards has advantages and disadvantages. I'd like to point a few of those out to help you decide if this is the right casino payment method for you.
Advantages:
- Fast deposits that arrive instantly
- Ease of use; enter your card number and off you go
- Almost everyone has a debit card or can get one
Disadvantages:
- Danger of storing card data online
- Gambling transactions appear on your bank statements
- Withdrawals can take between three to five business days
PayPal
PayPal is a digital wallet (e-wallet) that you can load funds to before spending online. You can log into your PayPal account, view your balance, and send and receive money instantly.
Like every other payment method, gambling with PayPal has its pros and cons. These could equally apply to other e-wallets like Neteller and Skrill.
Advantages:
- Instant deposits and withdrawals
- Reduces the risk of fraud and card theft
- Free and has zero subscription fees
Disadvantages:
- Not every gambling site accepts PayPal
- You will have to create another online account
- Some people have experienced account freezes and closures
Paysafecard
Paysafecard is a voucher-based payment system. It's the closest thing to using cash on the internet as you can get. When you use Paysafecard, you buy a voucher from a shop and enter the PIN online. The money is then transferred to your gambling account.
Advantages:
- No need to store payment details online
- Almost zero risk of fraud or theft
- Paysafecard is widely available and accepted
Win river casino slots. Disadvantages:
- Your money is gone if you lose your voucher
- Can't be used for withdrawals since it's a voucher
- Maximum voucher value of £175 won't suit high rollers
Mobile Payments
You can play at UK gambling sites and charge it to your mobile phone. Mobile payment processors like BOKU enable you to charge goods and services to your mobile phone bill.
The UKGC is likely to clamp down on this in the future since it's a way for many problem gamblers to borrow money they don't have, but it's still available as a UK casino payment method for now.
Advantages:
Gambling Banned Uk Books
- Almost no risk of fraud since you don't store payment details online
- Wide accessibility; almost everyone has a mobile phone
- You can gamble before payday and settle the bill later
Disadvantages:
- Easy to spend money you can't afford to lose
- You can't withdraw by BOKU or most other mobile payment methods
- Maximum deposit value is £10 per transaction/£30 per day
Fast Bank Transfers
Bank transfers have traditionally been slow and cumbersome, and for that reason, most casino players have given them a miss. However, there's a new breed of fast bank transfer payment methods like Trustly that make depositing and withdrawing at UK gambling sites a breeze.
Advantages:
- Little risk of fraud since Trustly acts as the middleman
- You can play at no registration casinos using Trustly
- Fast deposits and withdrawals are typically instant
Disadvantages:
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- Not every UK bank has partnered with Trustly
There aren't many other disadvantages. Trustly and other similar fast bank transfer payment methods are one of your best options.
Summary
As of this month, gambling with credit cards in the UK will be a thing of the past. I, for one, welcome this step. First, most credit card companies charge ridiculous interest rates that can make it difficult for gamblers to repay debts, and second, most of them also fee-gouge when it comes to gambling transactions.
This should protect vulnerable players and hurt greedy credit card companies. That's a double win as far as I'm concerned. Choose one of these other casino payment methods instead. Trust me, you'll be much better off!
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.What is self-exclusion?
Self-exclusion means asking a gambling provider to exclude you from gambling with them for a length of time, usually between six and twelve months but this can be for up to five years for online gambling. All gambling providers in Britain must provide consumers with this option, allowing any customer who has followed the procedure to request self-exclusion to be refused service and prevented from gambling during this time period.
Please then consider also calling the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 who can offer you free, confidential advice and counselling as our experience is that self-exclusion can be helpful but will be more effective if you also give us a call.
How the schemes work:
- You will be excluded for a minimum six month period (12 months for betting shops)
- You will have to supply proof of identity including a photo
- You will be removed from all marketing databases and you will not be contacted during the period of your self-exclusion
- You cannot leave the scheme before the exclusion period has expired
- If you leave the scheme once the self-exclusion period has expired you will not be automatically added to any marketing databases.
Sports Betting Law Uk
By joining self-exclusion schemes you are agreeing that:
- the information you provide to join a scheme will only be shared with operators within the specific scheme
- you will stay away from the venues from which you have self-excluded.
Pearl bay slot machine machines. It is up to you to keep to your self-exclusion agreement but the company and the staff will do all they reasonably can to help you. If you visit a venue from which you have self-excluded you will be asked to leave and the other venues in the scheme will be informed.
How to self-exclude
You can self-exclude from either each separate company you might gamble with, or from multiple companies at the same time.
To self-exclude from a particular venue, ask the staff there for details. Online, look for the 'Responsible Gambling' or 'Safer Gambling' section of the website, or the help section.
To self-exclude from more than one venue or website at the same time, use the 'multi-operator' schemes listed below for each of the types of gambling you want help avoiding.
Online gambling
If you would like to self-exclude from online gambling you can visit GAMSTOP which now enables UK and NI residents to exclude themselves from all gambling sites licensed to operate in Great Britain for free, for a period of 6 months, 1 year or 5 years.
All online gambling websites must provide a facility for you to self-exclude from that company. This can usually be found in the 'Responsible Gambling' or 'Safer Gambling' section of their website, or through your personal account page. Call the customer services number on the website, or email them if you need help with this.
Arcades and Adult Gaming Centres
You can nominate from a single arcade or select a number of arcades you wish to self-exclude from. Just ask any member of staff for help in doing so. This cannot be done online but for further details, click here.
Betting shops / Bookmakers
Gambling Laws Uk Raffle
You can nominate the betting shops you wish to self-exclude from. These are usually identified by you as those that are close to your home, your work or other activities. To self-exclude from more than one bookmaker in your area, call the self-exclusion helpline on 0800 294 2060. For further details, click here.
Gambling Law Ukraine
Bingo venues
To self-exclude from licensed bingo premises across Great Britain, the quickest way to register is at your local bingo club. You can request the contact details for your local licensed bingo premises from The Bingo Association by clicking here.
Casinos
SENSE allows people to voluntarily enroll in a scheme to exclude themselves nationally from all land-based casinos in the UK. For further information, click here.
