With online casinos being so easy to access from abroad, no wonder that gambling addiction is increasing year after year. Many of those suffering from it understand the problem but are powerless to resist and need some external help to stay away from gambling. That is where Gamstop and similar self-exclusion programs come to play.
What is Gamstop?
Gamstop (not to be confused with Game Stop — an American video game and gaming electronic and merchandise retailer) is a British self-exclusion program launched in 2018. Operated by a non-profit The National Online Self Exclusion Scheme Ltd, it allows any resident to exclude himself or herself from any gambling activity, be it betting sites, instant win national lottery or online casino, operating under the United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC) license.
How Gamstop works?
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You register at Gamstop, providing data like name, email and address;
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Choose the duration you wish to be excluded from gambling: 6 month, 1 year or 5 years;
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Sites like virgin bingo, sky poker, bet600, dr bet, betbull and others are required to synchronise with Gamstop database and restrict access for those players, whose credentials match those found in it.
Gamstop pros
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Temptation reduction. It is much easier to fight addiction when there is no easy way to impulsively satisfy it;
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Bankruptcy avoidance. Self-exclusion via Gamstop helps to avoid situations when an addictive person spends several monthly incomes for gambling. Especially true for highrollers and those already in debt;
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Exclusion from gambling-related email marketing. Online casinos, betting, lottery, keno and other gambling sites can’t advertise themselves to those in the Gamstop Database via this channel anymore.
Gamstop Cons
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No automatic return of funds already deposited. If you have those, then after self-exclusion via Gamstop you will have to negotiate this manually with each online casino, bookie or other gambling venue;
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No way to cancel self-exclusion until the chosen period expires. So think again if you wish to take that 5-year exclusion period;
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Works only with UK casinos, remember this when travelling abroad;
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The need to remember about your Gamstop account and update your addresses — physical and email, as well as phone numbers in case something changes.
