Three major British gambling bodies have come together to create a new safer design for land-based gaming operators in Great Britain. The new code, which has been formed by The Bingo Association, Bacta, and the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) will include a ban on the celebration of “losses disguised as wins”.
Back in January 2020, the Gambling Commission started up a selection of industry working groups to focus on issues such as marketing, game design, and VIP schemes. This new code will focus on land-based operations and will work in a way that reflects the updated online game rules.
One of the new rules for land-based operations is that machines are no longer allowed to “celebrate” any wins that total less than a player’s original stake in any way. The chief executive of Bacta, John White, said “It is a significant achievement for the whole industry to reach agreement on such a broad topic, “Nevertheless, the challenge had to be met and we now have a code that again demonstrates the industry’s commitment to socially responsible recreational gaming. “It adds to a long list of industry initiatives that have played their part in reducing problem gambling rates to the historically low level of 0.2% of the population.”
The executive director of BGC, Wes Himes, also noted that the industry is aiming to look towards more measures that reduce harm on an evidence-based approach.
“We welcome this code as another example of the industry driving higher standards to address the issues of risk and we will continue to introduce further measures based on evidence in our fight to prevent harm.”