Online Casino Self Exclusion Petition

Petition for a global online gambling self exclusion system (closed).

If you are a problem gambler or have a friend or relative who is a problem gambler then you know how damaging gambling addiction can be. But do you know how difficult it is to ban yourself from all online gambling establishments? It is next to impossible and it shouldn’t be.

Edit: 16/01/2016: We have purchased the domain name player-protection.com which we will be moving this petition to. We understand that such a petition coming from a website which features online casino reviews might send out the wrong signal so in order to try and get maximum exposure for this petition and any future campaigns, we have to have a dedicated clean website for the purpose. If you have signed the petition on the Yes No Casino page then fear not, we will combine all signatures together from the two locations once the petition is ready to be lobbied.

How do you currently exclude yourself?

You have to visit each and every online casino, bookmaker, bingo room, poker room, etc etc. There are thousands of them and for each one you have to fill out a whole questionnaire, often via a pdf document you have to print out, fill in and send off. Often you have to fill in your credit card details, send a copy of your passport, utility bill, etc etc. You could spend weeks doing this full time and not scratch the surface.
Even if an addict self excludes from all their current active gambling establishments, they are only ever 1 google search away from simply registering to a new site.

What about GamBlock and programs like that?

There are software programs that can be installed on a pc, laptop, tablet and/or phone which block all gambling websites. We feel these are a waste of time and find it ridiculous that they charge a fee of over $100 per year for the privilege. What will a real gambling addict do when the temptation strikes? Uninstall the software, use a different device, visit an internet cafe, etc.

So is there any real comprehensive help available?

  • There are gambling addiction centers all over the world, in almost every city.
  • There is the Kahnawake regulatory body in Canada who have the right idea where you can self exclude through their website from all gambling sites under their jurisdiction (visit their player exclusion page here).
  • Aside from that there is also one lone Irish guy on a crusade himself. He has set up a website where you can fill in a web form and his software will send out a self exclusion request to over 119 online gambling chains on your behalf (visit his self exclusion service here). See here for our review of this system.
  • GambleAware has kindly provided us with the briefing note from the UK Gambling Commission who are set to release exactly the kind of system we are after in 2017. This does not cover the global problem but is exactly the sort of system we want to see in place for every market. (click here for the official pdf). This proposal is excellent and will definitely help further our cause.
  • In Belgium they have probably the best system currently in existence where they have a national database for both the online as well as offline gambling establishments. A player may self exclude from all of these online and offline casinos but also a partner or parent may exclude a problem gambler on their behalf, while courts and debt holding companies can request exclusion of a debtor. The system goes as far as automatically banning influential public sector workers, judges, police, diplomats, etc. Absolutely top notch system and one that many countries can take advice from. Their neighbours in The Netherlands for example have been messing around for years and really don’t seem to know where to go with their regulations. A simple look over the shoulder at their little cousins could give them a brilliant base.

NO EXCUSES!

The governments and the online gambling regulatory bodies need to get together and make it easier for people with gambling addictions to be able to self exclude themselves from ALL online gambling establishments in just one place and with just one electronic form.
There is no reason whatsoever why every single licensing regulator should not have a self exclusion form on their website which can be filled in and sent off to every single online gambling chain under their jurisdiction.
They have the infrastructure already in place, they know who is licensed and have various contact addresses for each and every one of them.
If each and every one of them puts a system in place it would cost them a pittance to set up one central global website with the self exclusion form on it which would be transmitted to each licensing body individually and where from there they each forward the form to the self exclusion department at each gambling chain.
Simple. No excuses why this cannot and should not be put into place.

SIGN THE PETITION NOW!

We will be sending the results of this petition to all the licensing bodies, the major gambling addiction help centers and the governments. Please sign this petition and please share it via whichever social media you can. Together we can do some good!

We will not collect any email addresses and your full name and email will not be displayed on this website.

Updates!

14/01/2016: We have been in contact with GambleAware who are supporting our campaign. We will be bringing you fresh news tomorrow.

14/01/2016: We have received a lot of positive feedback and support about this petition from managers at a number of top online casinos. A number of who’m have already signed the petition themselves.

15/01/2016: Added the UKGC briefing note.

15/01/2016: We have offered our help to the www.onlinegamblingaddiction.net self exclusion program as mentioned above. And I have personally just tested the system out for myself with my own details. I will be reporting back here next week with the results so I can inform you how well it works. I should note that the email template provided could be expanded upon but hopefully its simplicity will prove effective.

16/01/2016: We have purchased the domain name player-protection.com which we will be moving this petition to. We understand that such a petition coming from a website which features online casino reviews might send out the wrong signal so in order to try and get maximum exposure for this petition and any future campaigns, we have to have a dedicated clean website for the purpose. If you have signed the petition on the Slots Guide page then fear not, we will combine all signatures together from the two locations once the petition is ready to be lobbied.

18/01/2016: We have tested out the self exclusion system mentioned above and you can find our review of it here.

18/01/2016: Added information about the Belgian player protection system.

19/01/2016: player-protection.com goes live!

08/06/2017: Final update: We have closed our petition and sent it to a number of gambling regulatory bodies. Thank you everyone who took the time out to sign the petition, we really appreciate your help and support.