UK self-exclusion scheme named GAMSTOP as roll-out nears
The online multi-operator scheme will enable customers to block themselves from all Gambling Commission licensees
The UK’s long-awaited nationwide online self-exclusion scheme (NOSES) will be entitled GAMSTOP, the Remote Gambling Association (RGA) confirmed this morning.
GAMSTOP, which is expected to be implemented this coming December, will enable consumers to block themselves from all online gambling operators licensed by Great Britain’s Gambling Commission via a single request for the first time.
The multi-operator scheme, which previously had a working title of ‘CHOOSE’ (Central Hub for Online Operator Self Exclusion), is the culmination of three years’ industry consultation and work led by the RGA.
Fiona Palmer, director of social responsibility at the RGA, said: “With the branding now established and process design well advanced, the focus in the coming months will be on technology integration and industry communication.
“We are therefore confident that we will deliver self-exclusion on the truly national scale needed to assist consumers who need this kind of help to manage their gambling.”
The framework for the national self-exclusion scheme was first established by the Gambling (Advertising and Licensing) Act 2014 which subjects all British licensees to the regulator’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP).
The LCCP’s social responsibility rules requires all operators to ensure they protect those deemed vulnerable to gambling and to offer the option for customers to self-exclude from online gambling for a minimum period of six months.
“The ability for consumers to exclude themselves from all online gambling with a single request will be a powerful tool for those that need it,” Paul Hope, programme director at the Gambling Commission, said.
“We welcome the work the RGA is doing to develop GAMSTOP and look forward to it becoming available,” he added.