The UK Gambling Commission has released data from March to December 2020 that confirms the boom in online gambling that most commentators expected to result from the UK’s Covid 19 lockdowns.
Lockdowns through that period saw off-line gambling businesses closed as “non-essential retail” for periods. In December, a new, full lockdown saw all gambling business premises closed.
This led many to predict a rise in online gambling, and eth UK GC’s figures now confirm that.
The country’s only gambling regulator, which issues licences without which the UK online casinos cannot legally operate, the GC collects data from all gambling operators.
They found that:
The traditionally busy Christmas period was busier than usual. There was a 6% increase in active accounts from the previous month and a 12% increase in bets across the whole sector. Gross gambling yield (this is best understood as the profit from bets) was up by 30%.
The revenue from slots was up to £200m, a 13% increase.
There were nearly 12 billion bets made with UK licensed operators.
Longer slots sessions were also up. There was an 11% increase in the number of slots sessions lasting longer than an hour. That was a total of 2.5 million sessions. Despite this, the average length of slot sessions fell to 21.5 minutes, and 8% of all sessions were over an hour.
The GC is asking operators to be mindful of player safety during the pandemic.
Almost everyone is spending more time at home, with internet access their main link to the outside world. Stress is a known factor in triggering problem gambling behaviour and the pandemic has caused plenty of stress, including worries about future job security and income.
Gambling businesses were given stronger guidance on player safety in May, and they are being asked to continue to:
- Check data that shows players playing more games or spending more money and time on sites.
- React quickly to triggers that show potentially dangerous behaviours.
- Reining in marketing that might exploit the vulnerabilities of players during the lockdown.
- Be cautious with new customers and with affordability checks.
The GC says it will continue to monitor the situation and the effectiveness of the new guidelines they have given to operators.
They have also said they will continue to make changes to rules and regulations. Recently, the GC has released rules that restricted functions on slots that speeded up play or that weren’t clear enough that players were losing money.
There is also a major review of gambling legislation underway that is due to report this year. UK gambling legislation was liberalised in 2005. Since then there has been a massive explosion in gambling. The arrival of always-on high-speed broadband added to the accessibility of a huge number of new online gambling sites. There has been high –profile political and public concern about the safety of gamblers in recent years.
For its part, the gambling industry has stressed its willingness to work with reasonable new restrictions, while arguing that making rules too tight will drive players into the black market, away from any protections.
