Maximum stake on fixed odds gambling machines cut to £2. The decision on FOBT was welcomed by campaigners but the betting industry warned it would result in 21,000 job cuts. The Association of British Bookmakers (ABB) has welcomed the UK government’s decision not to lower the maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs). The Government gave its decision on Thursday in response to an appeal made by 93 councils, under the terms of the 2007 Sustainable Communities Act (SCA), who wanted to see a £2 ($3.13) cap on the B2 machines, which generated estimated.
Risks and limitations of the fecal occult blood test include: The test isn't always accurate. Your fecal occult blood test could show a negative test result when cancer is present (false-negative result) if your cancer or polyps don't bleed. Page 2 Hello all I am surprised at the lack of information on the internet on what will actually happen once April 1st comes. All I am seeing are. Investigation finds operators circumnavigating FOBT rules. By Victoria Hughes, 2 April 2019. An investigation by the Guardian just two days after the introduction of new £2 limit on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBT) has accused bookmakers of bypassing the new rules.
This week new rules around minimumbets on fixed odds betting terminals (FOBT) will officially come into place.
Under the new rules, the maximum bet on FOBTs will be reduced from £100 to £2. It is hoped that the new measure will help to safeguard players from overspending and subsequent gambling-related problems.
In this post, we will ask whether this new ruling could lead to similar measures taken towards online casino bonuses.
UK Government Measures
Initially the government planned to implement the FOBTs changes by October of this year.
However, this was met with large criticism from backbenchers, who were flummoxed that the changes would take so long to implement.
New Fobt Limits Definition
This led to the resignation of Sports Minister Tracey Crouch (pictured), who believed that the changes should be implemented in April, rather than the proposed October date.
This is what Crouch had to say about the proposed delay:
“I couldn’t justify the delay to people like that… I couldn’t take the responsibility of potentially not meeting people in the future because they’d taken their lives over these machines.”
More Work to Be Done
In spite of the newly imposed rulings, the UK government recognises that more still needs to be done to help safeguard players.
The new The UK Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Jeremy Wright recently said that the government are looking at what actions are necessary to tackle problem gambling online and “whether gambling on credit should be limited”.
Also, some experts are warning that the new FBOT terminalrulings may not have the intended effect.
Experts worry that problem gamblers may just change the way theyplay and continue to gamble, making the envisioned benefits of the FBOT max betlimit virtually null.
Indeed, many believe that whilst the new FBOTs rulings are apositive step, more needs to be done to tackle the issue of problem gambling inall forms, rather than through specific rulings.
Mike Chatra who works with problem gamblers said:
“In 25 years of working with Gamblers Anonymous I am not aware of one single example of an individual who has managed to stop gambling on one product and have no problems with others.”
Will Bonuses Be Affected?
The move towards stricter regulationin the UK gambling market is inexorable and it appears that steps will be madein many different directions to help curb the problem of gambling-related harm.
The United Kingdom Gambling Commission(UKGC) have been considering implementing different measures towards stricterregulation for some time now and whatever happens, we can safely predict thatmore regulation is inevitable.
The big question for us here at Casinosnodepositbonusis whether measures similar to the new FOBT ruling may be applied to casinobonuses.
At this point, it is difficult to say. At the time of writing there hasn’t been any talk of imposing a widespread limit on how much players can wager at online casinos, so it seems reasonable to conclude that no limits will be imposed on bonus wagering.
New Fobt Limits Vs
Also, with bonuses, there is usually amaximum amount which you can win from them.
Consequently, there is no benefit todepositing significantly more money in the hope of winning more from the bonusin the first place.
Also, in terms of deposit bonuses, there is almost always a limit to the amount the online casino matches, making overspending towards these bonuses highly unlikely.
One possible change is that online casinos may start to match deposits to lower values, but we think this is unlikely.
Big Bonuses and Big Deposits
However, with that being said, it wouldn’t be too surprising if bonuses that require big deposits for big rewards become far less numerous.
Also, action could be taken against bonuseswhich don’t have maximum wins imposed on them.
These kinds of bonuses are preciselythe kind of thing which many warn lead to gambling problems.
Latest in United Kingdom Gambling Commission Rulings
The new rulings on FOBTs are part of the UKGC's efforts to bolster the protection measures for players and to help make gambling safer.
The UKGC has welcomed the changes but have also emphasised the need for operators to not let their standards slip and to ensure that they work to ensure their customer’s safety.
Commission chief executive, Neil McArthur said:
“Together with government and the industry, we must continue our ongoing work to make the whole industry safer – this includes continuing to make progress with making other products safer, as customers may move to gamble in other ways following the stake cut – including online, mobile and on the high street,”.
The UKGC has already announced that new identity and age check rules for online players will come into effect from May.
These new rulings will require all new customers at an online casino to complete a verification including name, age and address verification before they can gamble with their own money or with bonuses.
The UKGC is also looking at the possibility of introducing gambling blocking software, banning credit card payments from online gambling and the body is also looking at how operators can communicate more effectively with those who could be suffering from gambling-related harm.
The Times they Are A-Changin’
There is a lot changing in the industry right nowand it’s simply impossible to predict exactly what will happen.
But in our opinion, the amount you can wagertowards bonuses is unlikely to change for the majority of online casino bonusesgoing forward.
While the numbers seem far too good to be convincing, CEBR noted that there were a lot of factors considered before they came up with the data. CEBR took into account about £210 million that can be offset by the £2 maximum stake since it would eliminate fiscal costs of problem gambling that emanate from FOBT abuse.
If the new maximum stake helps lessen problem gamblers, it would also indirectly contribute to the lessening of the cost that is directed to help problem gamblers alleviate their impacts on welfare services, housing, work and criminality. They also noted that there could be an overall benefit to the economy, with as much as £45 million net increase in gross value added (GVA).
In a statement, Oliver Hogan, director and chief economist of CEBR, said
New Fobt Limits Test
The policy would not be nearly as detrimental to the LBOs. There could even be a net boost to the economy and to employment if there is attrition from gambling and if the fall in demand for B2 leads to higher demand for more labour-intensive forms of gambling
The report was not well-received by all parties who have interests and stakes on the maximum bid action. The Association of British Bookmakers said that the report was flawed, and was funded by people who had no reliable access to data from the gaming industry and stood to gain from the implementation of the £2 maximum stake.
According to a spokesperson of the association, the Treasury believes that in a worst case scenario, an £8.5 billion blow could be dealt to the UK’s economy, once the new maximum stakes are implemented. The spokesperson also cited an independent accounting firm that predicted over 21,000 jobs could be lost and 4,500 UK betting shops could close which would result in a £1.1 billion decline in Treasury income.
Read the full article here.