GAMSTOP in the UK: An Introductory Guide

Right, so I am going to tell you about GAMSTOP and why it is simultaneously the best and worst gambling policy the UK has ever created.

It starts like this. A guy I knew, brilliant guy, totally functional until about 2016 when he started online gambling. Within three years, he had lost seventy thousand pounds. His wife found out. He went to the doctor. The doctor said: you need help.

The problem was that he could sign up at 300 different casinos. Every time he quit one, he could go to another. There was no central database saying: this person is a self-excluded problem gambler, do not let them play.

So in 2018, the UK Gambling Commission created GAMSTOP. It is a self-exclusion program. You register yourself. You choose your exclusion period: six months, one year, or five years.

Once you are registered, every licensed UK casino is required by law to check the GAMSTOP database. If you are in the database, they have to block your account. If you try to sign up, they have to refuse you.

In theory, this is perfect. You can stop yourself from gambling with one action.

In practice, it is complicated.

How It Works

You go to the GAMSTOP website. You fill out a form. You verify your identity. You choose your exclusion period. You are now in the database.

Every licensed UK casino has to check GAMSTOP before opening an account. The casino's signup system connects to the GAMSTOP API and asks: is this person in the database? If yes, the account creation fails.

If you are already registered at a casino, GAMSTOP sends a notification and the casino is required to close your account and return any remaining funds.

The Limitation

Here is the part that haunts this system: GAMSTOP only covers licensed UK casinos.

There are also unlicensed casinos. They are illegal in the UK but they operate anyway. They target UK players. An unlicensed casino does not check GAMSTOP because they are not required to and they do not care about regulations.

A person on GAMSTOP can still access an unlicensed casino. They can still gamble. They just have no protection from being scammed (because the casino is unregulated) and no recourse if the casino does not pay out.

So GAMSTOP creates a false sense of security. A person who is serious about stopping gambling can use GAMSTOP and eliminate licensed options. But they can still find unlicensed options.

My friend (the one who lost seventy thousand) tried GAMSTOP for six months. But he found an unlicensed crypto casino. He lost another fifty thousand before his wife found out again.

The Exclusion Length

The exclusion periods are six months, one year, or five years. After the exclusion period ends, the person is removed from the database.

Then they can sign up again.

This is intentional policy. The theory is that people can change and eventually be reintegrated into gambling. The reality is that many people come back and lose again.

There is also a permanent self-exclusion option, but it is not advertised clearly. Most people do not know it exists.

The Effectiveness

GAMSTOP works perfectly if the person using it is:

1. Aware that unlicensed casinos exist
2. Committed to avoiding unlicensed casinos
3. Not vulnerable to manipulation by unlicensed casinos (which are aggressive in targeting GAMSTOP users)

Most people on GAMSTOP meet criteria 1 but not 2 and 3.

The casinos (both licensed and unlicensed) also engage in targeted marketing to GAMSTOP users. They know who is trying to quit. They know these people are vulnerable. They offer them bonuses and incentives.

The Reality

GAMSTOP is necessary and insufficient. It removes a major pathway to gambling for people trying to quit. But it does not remove all pathways.

A person serious about quitting should use GAMSTOP and also block their credit cards, tell family members, and avoid gambling entirely.

A person using GAMSTOP and thinking it solves their problem is mistaken. It is one tool, not the solution.