UK gaming hall operator fined over gambling self-exclusion failings
The operator must also undergo a third-party audit to review its policies, procedures and controls and the training and competency of its staff.
UK.- A licensed gaming hall operator has been ordered to pay a £150,000 fine for failing to comply with a self-exclusion requirement designed to reduce gambling harm. The Gambling Commission says Holland Park Leisure Limited will also undergo a third-party audit to review its policies, procedures and controls and the training and competency of its staff.
The operator runs three Adult Gaming Centres in Leicester. According to the Gambling Commission, the operator failed to participate in the UK’s mandatory gambling self-exclusion scheme despite being made aware of its obligation. The regulator eventually suspended the operator’s licence in October 2025.
The regulator noted that all consumer-facing land-based gambling businesses must participate in the multi-operator self-exclusion scheme as a consumer-protection measure allowing people who feel they are struggling with their gambling to self-exclude from one or more premises in their area.
John Pierce, Director of Enforcement and Intelligence, said: “Self-exclusion schemes provide a crucial service for people who feel they are suffering gambling harm. It is important that all operators fully integrate with the scheme and maintain effective safeguards for self-excluded customers.
“Every operator must ensure that they are fully participating in a recognised multi-operator self-exclusion scheme, that they have effective procedures to identify and prevent self-excluded customers from gambling in any of their premises, and that their staff are trained to manage self-exclusion and direct individuals to relevant support services.
“These are not optional requirements. They are fundamental licence conditions designed to protect consumers from harm, and operators that fail to meet them can expect regulatory action.”
Meanwhile, the Gambling Commission has published new details from last year’s pilot of financial risk assessments for online gambling in Britain. The regulator suggests that operator shortcomings in identity verification processes undermined the scheme, highlighting recurring problems such as initials being used instead of full names, nicknames replacing legal forenames, and commercial addresses submitted in place of residential ones.
