How are the UK and Gamstop preventing compulsive gambling?

The UK is seen as one of the countries which have many gamblers. Compulsive gambling is among the many problems that the country is trying to deal with each and every day. Various measures are being put in place, the major one being Gamstop which is an online self-exclusion scheme formed by the online sector. It allows the consumers to be able to self-exclude themselves from the online operator through just one request instead of contacting every operator personally. This measure is seen to have helped even though gambling still continues.

Banning of credit cards

About 24 million gamblers who use credit cards to gamble will no longer do so after the government bans that as a way of preventing compulsive gambling. It was seen that almost 800,000 residents make use of their credits cards in gambling and the majority are those who are addicted to gambling for they want to bring back their losses. The government plans to tighten its rules through capping highest stakes on various terminals. It will bring very tight checks of age and identity in online gambling plus an expansion of support for the addicts.

The harm in gambling

The UK expects the operators to do all that they can so that the harms related to gambling can be reduced. And it is because of that, that the industry is expected to come up with products which are safe, be aware of their customers, have a knowledge of what they afford to use in gambling, and aware of when they experience any harm then come in. It is very important that anyone who is experiencing any harm can have access to support or even treatment that they do require.

Advice to gamblers in UK

In the UK, people are given various advice on what they should do when they discover that they cannot stop gambling. When one feels that they really cannot control any activity related to gambling, then they are usually advised to look back and seek any support or help they require. This is because, the sooner you take a step of seeking help, then the sooner you will have your life back to normal. There are various support and help groups, such as Gamcare or Gamblers Anonymous, and they provide good services that are confidential.

Problems with non Gamstop casinos when preventing gambling

It was discovered that searches relating to Gamstop were now referring the users towards lists of those casinos which are offshore that do not relate to self-exclusion. Such adverts do lure those users who are vulnerable to place more bets while they seek help. The trade body in the UK, Betting and Gaming Council, contacted Google and other search engines to have their gambling blacklists updated so that these problems will not be seen in future. A parliamentary group in the UK did plan questioning those online adverts that hinder the efforts of preventing gambling. A tip is to look at PokerPlayerNewspaper.com’s list of non Gamstop casinos and manually self-exclude yourself from these casinos. The offshore casinos have their own self-exclusion scheme’s and must respect your wish.

Gambling

The minister of culture in the UK, Helen Whately, explains that they have made it clear to all the businesses which are related to gambling like the operators, banks, and even social media platforms, that they have to be responsible socially and even use that power which technology and data has in helping the consumers in managing their spending and preventing them from any kind of harm. Additionally, she has received encouragements from various high street banks in the UK who are now starting to come up with measures to prevent customers from spending on gambling.

Measures to prevent gambling

The Gambling Commission in the UK has found that there still exists some form of cheating where those who have self-excluded can continue placing bets online. Gambling is a big problem. It not only affects adults but also young people who become addicted to it in the name of getting quick money. This can sometimes even lead to committing suicide, dropping out of school, and stealing. To prevent these, children have to be taught from a younger stage the negative effects of gambling so they would not end up as addicts.

Thus, we can see that the UK is really trying its best in preventing gambling through the various measures that it has put in place. From the service offered by Gamstop to the various leaders chipping in one way or the other to help fight this addiction, and even to consulting various platforms like Google who are seen to be advertising other means of gambling. With all these efforts, we do hope that compulsive gambling in the UK will soon come to an end and more people will keep seeking help and support.