UK Online Gamblers Spending Over £1,000 to Face New Financial Risk Checks

Online gamblers in Britain who spend large sums are set to face new financial risk assessments under changes announced by the industry regulator. The Gambling Commission said the measures are designed to identify and support high-spending customers who may be experiencing financial difficulties.

Under the plans, the checks will eventually apply to anyone spending more than £1,000 within a 24-hour window, as well as those spending over £3,000 across a rolling 90-day period. Younger customers will face stricter limits, with the threshold set at £750 for under-25s.

How the checks will work

The assessments will draw on data held by credit reference agencies. The commission has stressed that they are not the same as "affordability checks", which Gambling Commission acting chief executive Sarah Gardner described as "deeply unpopular" with gamblers.

According to the regulator, the vast majority of customers will never require an assessment. Those who do would undergo what Gardner called a "frictionless, document-free" process provided by credit reference agencies, with no impact on their credit score.

"This approach will enable support for high-spending customers in financial difficulties, while reducing friction for customers who are not," Gardner said.

A staged rollout

The commission has not set a firm timeline, saying the changes will be introduced in a "very careful, staged way". The first phase will begin this summer and will target over-25s who gamble more than £5,000 in a rolling 24-hour period. Initially, only the largest gambling companies will be affected.

The regulator said this opening stage will apply to fewer than 0.5% of customers. Over time, the threshold will be lowered to the £1,000 mark for over-25s and £750 for under-25s.

The move follows a 2023 white paper on gambling that recommended enhanced checks on customers facing very high losses.

Evidence of financial harm

The commission pointed to data suggesting high-spending gamblers are more likely to be in financial trouble. It said such customers were between two and four times more likely to have a debt management plan, and between two and five times more likely to have had a default in the previous 12 months, compared with the wider population.

The regulator also said it continues to see enforcement failures. It cited a recent case in which a customer deposited £25,000 over 25 days before the operator intervened.

Concerns about problem gambling remain significant. The Gambling Survey for Great Britain found that in 2024, 9.3% of adult gamblers scored eight or more on the Problem Gambling Severity Index, which runs up to 27. A score of eight or higher indicates a person "may have lost control of their behaviour" and experienced negative consequences from gambling.

Industry pushback

The Betting and Gaming Council, which represents gambling firms, said it was "deeply disappointed and frustrated" with the decision to back the assessments, arguing that concerns raised over the past 18 months by operators, the racing sector, parliamentarians and customers remain unaddressed.

Chief executive Grainne Hurst said: "The central issues around reliability, consumer impact and the practical operation of these checks remain unresolved." She argued the commission had not supplied enough "accurate, reliable or consistent" data to justify the checks.

Hurst added that the group supports "evidence-led, proportionate regulation that protects vulnerable people" while allowing the 22.5 million adults who bet each month in Britain to do so safely. However, she warned that unless the commission could prove the checks were accurate and genuinely frictionless, fears remained about pushing customers towards a growing illegal gambling market.

Gambling Minister Baroness Twycross said the assessments must work for "consumers, gambling operators and the wider ecosystem".

The debate over how to balance consumer protection with personal freedom looks set to continue as the phased rollout begins. What do you think — do these checks strike the right balance? Share this article and join the conversation.

Source: BBC Business