Gambling Commission report finds higher risk with certain gaming formats
The British regulator says it’s unclear why betting on non-sporting events presents more risk.
UK.- The British Gambling Commission continues to turn out data from the first edition of the new Gambling Survey for Great Britain. Its latest report focuses on types of gambling and concludes that some have a higher risk than others irrespective of player’s activity, age, sex or background
The report aims to cast more light on the relationship between gambling activities and customers’ scores on the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI).
The survey presented participants with a list of 18 types of gambling activities available on the regulated British market. Initial figures showed that the highest average proportion of high-risk players with a PGSI score of eight or more took part in betting on “non-sports events”.
Unable to explain why, the regulator suspected that this was not the whole picture because it didn’t consider other factors like frequency of gambling, age and background.
To dig deeper, it applied two more research models to consider whether problematic gambling remained associated with specific verticals when taking into account general gambling involvement, age, sex, education level, employment, household income quintile, area deprivation, marital status and ethnicity.
Applying these models, the average ratio of players with a PGSI of eight or above was reduced, but the Gambling Commission still found more evidence of more problematic gambling in specific verticals. Specifically, online slots and non-sports betting were still found to be significantly associated with PGSI scores of eight or more, even discounting the influence of gambling frequency.
Online instant wins, sports betting and both online and land-based casino games were also associated with higher PGSI scores, while buying National Lottery tickets was found to have a significantly lower association, although it should also be noted that many more people buy lottery tickets. Other types of gambling activities less associated with higher PGSI scores were football pools, in-person bingo and sports betting and National Lottery online instant-win games.
Unclear why non-sports betting presents more risk
The Gambling Commission concluded: “Many of the gambling activities most closely associated with a PGSI score of 8 or more represent those which are faster, continuous gambling formats (casino, slots, online instant wins). However, the results also highlighted betting on non-sports events and betting on sports/races in person as being significantly associated with a PGSI score of eight or more. It is less clear what is driving these associations.”
The regulator is likely to now evaluate whether the gambling formats most associated with risk should be subjected to more regulatory attention.
Earlier in the week, the Gambling Commission announced a new regulation requiring mandatory deposit limits for new players. From October 31, operators will need to prompt customers to set a deposit limit of their choice before they make their first deposit with the licensee. Some licensees already do this, but the measure now becomes compulsory, and operators must ensure that players can easily review and modify their limit after they set it.
Another change will require licensees to remind users to review their account and transaction information every six months. The regulator said the aim is to help players evaluate whether they want to change their deposit limits and to manage their gambling more effectively.
