Some of the largest gambling operators in the UK have faced accusations of failing the trust of problem gamblers after an undercover investigation of KentOnline showed some significant flaws in a self-exclusion scheme that should be designed to protect gambling addicts.
A reported of the online media presented himself as a gambling addict and banned himself from all brick-and-mortar betting outlets in Canterbury, Herne Bay and Whitstable in order to check on the actual effectiveness of the Multi-Operator Self-Exclusion Scheme (MOSES). Unfortunately, the results have shown that only a few weeks after he registered in the scheme and had his photograph circulating across the multi-operator network, he was still able to place bets in all 15 high-street bookmakers in the district.
The shocking results come only a few months after a recent study has found that it is 15 times more likely for people who are categorised as problem gamblers to commit suicide. As revealed by KentOnline, a probe into the findings of the online media was launched by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).
As previously reported by Casino Guardian, the MOSES scheme was first launched in 2016 as a means to provide gambling addicts with the chance to self-exclude themselves from land-based betting shops in order to stay away from gambling.
The scheme includes multiple gambling operators, so each business gets a photograph of the person who is added to an exclusion list, and the staff members of high-street bookmakers are supposed to monitor customers and prevent the ones who have signed up in the scheme from entering operators’ premises.
Regulatory Investigation in MOSES Is Needed, Anti-Gambling Campaigners Say
Now, KentOnline has revealed that only six weeks after the undercover reported registered with the MOSES scheme, he was actually been able to place a £5 wager on the final of the Champions League in betting shops of William Hill, Befred, Coral and Paddy Power. Furthermore, the online media explained that nine of the fifteen bookmakers required to see the 24-year-old man’s ID to verify his age, but they failed to check whether his details had been added to their exclusion list database.
Back in 2017, research into MOSES was commissioned by the local gambling charity GambleAware. According to the research’s findings, 7 in 10 gamblers had not tried to access a betting outlet they were banned from since registering into the scheme. Then, in December the gambling charity initiated an independent evaluation of MOSES, the findings of which are expected to be officially revealed later in 2019.
Now, Marc Etches, the Chief Executive Officer of GambleAware, shared that the results of the online media’s undercover investigation were troubling, as self-exclusion is often the last chance for gambling addicts to stop gambling.
The shocking findings of the undercover investigation held by KentOnline have made anti-gambling campaigners call for the UKGC to review into the findings as soon as possible. The results have shown there are some fundamental flaws in the scheme, which should be repaired so that the scheme is actually working the way it is supposed to be working.
- Author
Olivia Cole
