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A new study argues that the design choices of UK online gambling sites and apps are putting consumers at higher risk of gambling harm as opposed to supporting consumers.
The study was undertaken by Behavioural Insights Team’s (BIT) Gambling Policy & Research Unit (GPRU), a consultancy that works with governments to tackle policy problems.
Key findings from the report include it taking longer to close an account than to open one, gambling management tools exhibiting “frictions” and several sites having a minimum balance needed to withdraw money.
Esther Hadman, senior Advisor at BIT, said the best way to address these findings is for policymakers and industry to act on them.
“Operators should implement best practice when it comes to consumer protection, and we look forward to more collaboration on testing what works,” Hadman told VIXIO GamblingCompliance.
When it comes to the much anticipated Gambling Act review white paper, the BIT hopes the design of safer websites and tools is made a priority.
“We hope that operators will be required and empowered to play a larger role in experimentation and evidence building, testing how they can design their platforms to minimise risks of gambling harm and support their customers,” Hadman said.
Additionally, the research found customers often receive no feedback about their habits from operators and platforms often use defaults such as quick stake and deposit amounts “that are not in the customer’s best interests”.
The findings were taken from a behavioural risk audit of ten major UK gambling brands conducted in three stages between December 2021 and June 2022.
The operators audited were: 888; Betfair; Betfred; Betway; Coral; Ladbrokes; Paddy Power; Sky Bet; Tombola; and William Hill/William Hill Vegas.
Professor Sally Gainsbury, the director of the University of Sydney Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic and a member of the GPRU Steering Group, said the research is “incredibly important”.
“It provides an objective and practical guide for regulators and consumers to compare how gambling operators are designing sites to nudge customers towards, or away, from safe and sustainable gambling. The framework and recommendations presented can be used to improve practices and identify operators using unscrupulous tactics.”
“Over the coming months”, the BIT said it will hold workshops to discuss its findings and develop recommendations with key stakeholders, such as those with lived experience of gambling harm, industry participants and policymakers.
Building on insights from this audit and upcoming workshops, the BIT is also developing a report of policy recommendations for the gambling industry, set to be released this autumn.
Dr David Halpern, CEO of BIT and chair of the GPRU Steering Group, said: “Whether by design or market evolution, the overall message is loud and clear: gambling sites make it very easy to sign up, to bet, and to keep betting — but strikingly harder for users to find the tools to set reasonable limits, get their money out, or to simply leave.”
Halpern believes it is possible to design gambling sites and tools to enable users to limit harm, but in the current landscape “that doesn’t seem to be the priority”.
BIT has released several studies on the gambling industry in recent years and the GRPU was set up in 2021 and funded through the regulatory settlements approved by the Gambling Commission. Its stated goal is to reduce gambling harm.
In July 2021, a BIT study warned there is an acute lack of evidence on the impacts of existing safer gambling tools drawn from real customer experiences.
More recently, in August 2021, a BIT study found that the pandemic had accelerated the growth of virtual game-play and that men were six times more likely to gamble online versus pre-pandemic.
BIT recommended improving the effectiveness of existing safer gambling tools to tackle the increased appeal of online gambling following the pandemic.