United Kingdom
implements a total ban on using credit cards for gambling across all platforms
other than physical National Lottery tickets
Originally announced in January by the GC and the
governments Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the ban means
UK consumers will no longer be able to use credit cards for any form of
gambling.
The ban applies to all online and offline gambling products,
with the exception of non-remote lotteries, including products such as physical
National Lottery tickets and scratchcards purchased in-person at retail
outlets.
The long overdue ban also covers credit card gambling through
e-wallets such as PayPal, Skrill, while the Commission reminded operators that
they can only accept customer payments via e-wallets only if they prevent
credit card use for gambling. Of course this can not cover prepaid cards that
were funded by credit cards.
The Commission insisted that credit card
betting in land-based casinos and gaming halls was already banned but failed to
detail how access through onsite cash machines that charge fees for credit card
use would be prevented.
This credit card ban will further protect
consumers from financial harm and from today, nobody in Great Britain can use a
credit card to gamble, Gambling Commission chief executive Neil McArthur
said. It is a ban which ultimately reduces the risks of harm to consumers
from gambling with money they do not have.
The ban also comes at
a vital time as we are seeing an increase in the use of some online products,
such as online slots and virtual sports, and our online search analysis shows
an increase in UK consumer interest in gambling products since the lockdown
began.
This is another milestone and we will continue to looking
for ways to make gambling safer.
The decision to implement the
ban comes after the Commissions review of online gambling and the
governments Review of Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures,
while a public consultation on the issue ran from August to November
2019.
Just two weeks ago the Gambling Commission's deadline past for all
online operators to be part of the self-exclusion scheme known as Gamstop
whereby customers simply had to select exclusion and had to be prevented from
gambling across all the operator's products.
Soon after the
implimentation date of this move, 31st March, the decision to suspend the
licences of Dynamic, trading as Prophet, and Sportito was taken for failure to
comply.
Neil McArthur, Gambling Commission Chief Executive, said:
We have made it clear to operators that we are ready and willing to use
our powers to protect consumers, as this action demonstrates.
One
of the suspensions has now been lifted as the operator is now compliant. Our
investigations into both operators continue.
The suspension of
Dynamics licence will remain in place until the Commission is satisfied
that the operator has fully integrated the GAMSTOP scheme and is fully
compliant with their licence conditions. |