'Only bet what you can afford to lose', warns Gamble Aware Week
Association of British Bookmakers
As part of this year’s Gamble Aware Week, across high streets and town centres, betting shops drove home the message to punters that they should only ever bet what they can afford to lose.
As part of this year’s Gamble Aware Week, across high streets and town centres, betting shops drove home the message to punters that they should only ever bet what they can afford.
Betting shop windows were taken over by posters promoting responsible gambling messages, along with leaflets distributed inside, to alert customers to bet responsibly including settling limits and taking regular breaks.
In Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester free drop-in sessions offering counselling and advice for anyone who may be getting into difficulty were held, in conjunction with the gambling charities GamCare, Beacon Counselling Trust, the RCA Trust and Addiction Recovery Agency.
Shop staff also attended refresher training courses on spotting and helping potential problem gamblers.
New mandatory alerts for gaming machine players were also launched, doubling the number of people that will receive warnings on the time and money they have spent on machines. Alerts will now appear on screen after someone has spent £150 or played for 20 minutes, previously alerts were given after £250 spent or 30 minutes played.
As well as lots of activity inside shops, the week was also backed by many Parliamentarians, who signed Early Day Motion 328 Gamble Aware Week and attended a reception held in the Palace of Westminster, hosted by Dame Rosie Winterton MP and Bob Neill MP.
Malcolm George, Chief Executive of the Association of British Bookmakers, said:
“As ever, staff in our betting shops have done a great job in promoting responsible gambling and encouraging customers to only bet what they can afford to lose.
The message really hit home, with shop windows across the country displaying the posters prominently.
It is great to see the industry working together to highlight these important issues and helping to ensure our eight million customers bet safely and responsibly.”
