By The Guardian
Published on June 14, 2024
Online gamblers who lose £500 or more a month are to face extra checks from August, the regulator has confirmed, as part of a large package of measures aimed at protecting the most vulnerable customers.
The extra checks come in from 30 August, and the threshold for qualifying will fall to £150 of online betting losses a month from 28 February next year, the Gambling Commission said.
On 17 January, features of online casinos and poker platforms that give players the illusion of control, including “turbo” and “slam stops”, will also be banned, alongside autoplay and sounds and visuals that celebrate returns less than or equal to the stake. A voluntary ban for some features has existed since 2021.
The latest checks have been introduced after the government published a white paper on gambling reform last year, which included proposals for a mandatory levy to fund addiction treatment, education and research, as well as the affordability checks and new online slot machine limits.