Section:GDN 1N PaGe:17 Edition Date:190812 Edition:01 Zone: Sent at 11/8/2019 18:26 cYanmaGentaYellowb
Monday 12 Aug ust 2019 The Guardian •
National^17
Julia Kollewe
Customer complaints about British
betting companies have increased by
almost 5,000% over the past fi ve years,
as problem gamblers allege bookies
entice them to bet even after they have
pleaded to be left off mailing lists.
The fi gures, obtained by the BBC’s
Panorama from the regulator, the
Gambling Commission , show there
were a record 8,266 complaints in
2018, compared with just 169 in 2013.
Neil McArthur , chief executive of
the Gambling Commission, said: “We
are pushing the industry to know its
customers, and part of this is actually,
possibly, a good sign because it’s sug-
gesting that consumers are demanding
more of the gambling operators. And
I would encourage them to continue
to do that.”
One problem gambler who lost
£125,000 with the online casinos
LeoVegas and Casumo accused them
of ignoring obvious signs of her addic-
tion, instead off ering her bonuses
to encourage her to keep betting.
The formerly successful accountant,
PA MediaA second teenager has died two days
after a group of relatives got into dif-
fi culty in the sea off Essex.
Haider Shamas, 18 , from Luton ,
died in hospital on Saturday follow-
ing the incident at Clacton-on-Sea on
Thursday afternoon, Essex police said.
He was among three relatives who
were pulled from the water close to
the town’s pier after getting into dif-
fi culty at about 1.40pm.
His 14 -year-old sister, Malika, also
died in the incident.
A 15 -year-old girl, also a relative , is
expected to make a full recovery.
Five people were treated at the
scene – the three teenagers and two
others who did not require hospital
treatment.
Witnesses described how lifeguards
had been attempting CPR before par-
amedics arrived, and some people
called for more signs warning of the
dangers of swimming.
The incident came a year after a
15-year-old boy, Ben Quartermaine,
drowned near the pier.who is now receiving treatment for her
addiction , once lost £54,000 in one
night of gambling.
“They have algorithms where if
you’re spending a lot they make you
a VIP, or send you a bonus email and
they use that to their advantage,” she
said. “They could also use it to prevent
problem gambling, which is what the
commission say they should be doing.”
In another case, the commission
is investigating claims that LeoVegas
accepted £20,000 from a problem
gambler who had stolen the money
from his mother, and then bombarded
him with emails encouraging him to
keep betting.
Last month, the regulator imposed
a £5.9m penalty on Ladbrokes Coral- one of the largest ever – over “sys-
temic failings” at the company to
protect problem gamblers who lost
large amounts of money.
The UK’s top fi ve gambling fi rms
have off ered to increase the volun-
tary levy they pay to fund addiction
treatment sixfold, to raise £60m a year
to help problem gamblers.
However, critics say that is not
enough to tackle problem gambling
eff ectively, and have labelled it a bribe
Gamblers’ complaints about
UK betting fi rms rise 5,000%
Second teenager
pulled from sea
off Essex dies
▲ Ladbrokes Coral was fi ned £5.9m
for not protecting problem gamblers
PHOTOGRAPH: JOE CASTRO/AAPto ward off tougher regulation of the
sector. There have been calls from
some politicians, charities and cam-
paign groups for a mandatory tax.
The former sports minister Mims
Davies came under fi re earlier this year
for saying that a mandatory levy was
not required.
The industry has grown rapidly
since the government relaxed restric-
tions on betting and advertising in
2007. Gamblers are now losing almost
twice as much to betting companies
as they were a decade ago. Last year,
punters’ losses hit a record £14.5bn.The Panorama report, Addicted to
Gambling, is on BBC One tonight8,
Complaints made about gambling
companies by customers in 2018,
compared with 169 six years ago£14.5bn
Amount lost to betting companies
by UK punters in 2018, according
to the Gambling CommissionРЕЛИЗ ПОДГОТОВИЛА ГРУППА "What's News" VK.COM/WSNWS