BETTER CHANGE


debate I could not win with someone who is not prepared to listen; however I am prepared to speak about the good work that is done in our industry and I would encourage others to do the same. There is some good news!


At Better Change we were proud to host our first player panel at an event last month, this gave the industry the opportunity to hear valuable insight from healthy players as to what they enjoy about the gambling products they use and how they stay safe. It was a great success and we hope to run many more in the future. We also gathered a number of industry professionals from fifteen different operators to film some safer gambling training which will be free for the UK market. It was a great couple of days but it also showed how the industry can come together and work collaboratively as opposed to competitively when it comes to protecting players. We expect the training produced in collaboration with US training experts RG24seven to launch in June so watch out for any updates.


“So the government has no intention of stopping gambling addiction this idea is so wrong and damaging.”


“Stupid idea, will cause so much harm. People in a pub after a few beers not realising what they are losing till next day.” But wait a minute…


Nothing was said about the planning of this and the measures put in place to make it safer. I attended a UK trade body conference over a year ago where this was being discussed, the advance of cashless


payments after the pandemic meant that less people were carrying cash and therefore takings on slot machines were down. There was an argument that not being allowed to enable cashless payment was a prejudice against the gambling machine industry but this would not have been enough there had to be solutions in place to make it safer for players. Here are some of the measures that will be introduced with cashless payments: - There will be limit of £20 that a consumer is able to deposit in one go.


There will also be mandatory limits set and the option for players to set voluntary ones.


Breaches of these limits will alert staff (this already happens in bookmakers and casinos but is new to pubs where players could easily deposit large amounts unnoticed)


You can track a players spend much easier if they use a cashless system. You will not be able to simply “tap” your debit card you will need to use a cashless system with verification such as Apple pay. This reduces the risk of fraud.


I don’t for one minute expect to change the minds of those who object strongly to the introduction of cashless payments, they have their position and I respect that. But isn’t it better to present the facts so that people can come to their own conclusions? I once heard someone from our industry say in a conference that “if you are explaining you are failing,” There is a lot of truth in this! I would not get drawn into a


22 JUNE 2024


So, what has the gambling industry ever done for us? Well apart from creating thousands of jobs, developing innovative safer gambling solutions, working collaboratively to protect players, upholding the integrity of sport, investing in grass roots sports, donating huge amounts to charity and of course entertaining millions of people around the world… nothing I suppose!


Rob Mabbett


Rob joined Better Change from the charity Gordon Moody where he spent 5 years running their international gambling helpline “Gambling Therapy” as well as helping to raise their profi le and ensure suffi cient treatment spaces were available in their residential treatment centres to meet demand. With over 12 years industry experience, including being a previous winner of the Racing Post and SiS Betting Shop Manager of the Year award, Rob brings a unique insight into the


prevention and treatment of


gambling harm and is keen to focus his efforts further upstream as we aim to


prevent against gambling harm at Better


Change through Positive Play.


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