GambleAware Publishes Insightful Patterns of Play Findings

GambleAware is a British organisation that works to keep punters in the United Kingdom safe from the vices of gambling. It is a strong protagonist for responsible gaming in the country and works in tandem with the Gambling Commission to keep the marketplace in check.

The organisation has just released the findings of its latest research on the ‘Patterns of Play’ of the British public. This was conducted by the National Centre of Social Research (NatCen) in collaboration with Professors David Forrest and Ian McHale of the University of Liverpool.

The goal of the study is summed up best in the official press statement released by NatCen.

“The research, which looked at the use of active ‘gaming’ and betting accounts between July 2018 and June 2019, was commissioned by GambleAware to improve understanding of the online gambling market. It is the first time a dataset containing this level of detail on online gambling transactions has been collated for research purposes.”

The invaluable study monitored nearly 140,000 active online gambling accounts in the UK for the period stipulated above and has managed to provide some valuable insight into things like:

• How much the public spends on gambling per annum
• Which types of gambling are most popular
• Which social demographic gambles most and is more vulnerable to problem gaming
• Which age groups are most at risk of problem gambling
• Which responsible gambling tools are more commonly used by players
• How the industry can improve its reach to players

Commenting on the research conducted, Dr Sokratis Dinos from NatCen said:

“This research was able to analyse and assess an unprecedented source of information on how people in Great Britain gamble and opens up numerous opportunities to further understand people’s gambling habits. These interim findings are just the first stage and future research will provide a greater opportunity to understand the risk factors associated with gambling behaviour.”

This research is a valuable source of knowledge that the Gambling Commission, operators, and responsible gambling companies can leverage to strategically plan a course of action to make the online gambling industry a safer place in the future.

 Interesting Facts Revealed

The study reveals that only a small minority of players are at risk online. Most active accounts are infrequently used and constitute for spends of up to only £200 per session with losses of less than £500 for a full year.

A small 1.9% of gambling accounts showed substantial losses of £5,000 or more over the course of the year with a high spending rate to boot. It is an eye-opener to learn that only 5% of the accounts within this high-rolling category contribute towards 70% of the online industry’s gross gambling yield (GGY), illustrating the drastic nature of problem gambling in the UK.

The stats also revealed that men are the biggest gamblers in the country, preferring betting over gaming. Men dominate spending in both categories and produce 94% of the GGY for betting and 74% of the GGY for gaming. Men are more prone to gambling addiction and represent 95% of the players in the high spending demographic.

In short, the stats show that men over the age of 40 years from low-income households are most vulnerable to gambling-related issues. They need more concentrated focus from betting operators when it comes to healthy social responsibility interventions.

 Responsible Gambling Focus Needs Sharpening

To make a difference on the responsible gaming front, operators and regulators need to strategise correctly and follow through with adequate interventions for those positively identified with vulnerabilities.

The current research shows that 4% of the gambling population are contacted by casinos and sportsbooks for social responsibility reasons and 21.5% of players use deposit limits to curb their spending. Only a third of players that experienced big losses (exceeding £2,000) received contact from the respective platforms. This showcases a real need for regulations to tighten in this regard and for casinos to become more responsible and caring.

GambleAware has made it clear that this study is only the first step in protracted research into gambling in the country. With any hope, we will see radical interventions roll out as experts bring new information to light.