What Is The UKGC Doing About UK Players Turning To Non Gamstop Casinos?

Online gambling has been on the rise in the UK over the last few years. Some years have seen slower growth than others. But in general, it is reaching new heights year on year.

The UK government recognised this trend several years ago. And in 2007, they introduced the UK Gambling Commission. This was done to tighten up the rules and add pressure to gambling operators to vet their customers more closely. They also set about adding extra ways to help those who are gambling too much and not in a responsible manner.

UKGC licences

They made it so that all gambling brands offering services to UK players would have to request a licence. The Gambling Commission issues licences in line with the tight rules and regs. It is no easy task for a brand to get hold of one of these licences. And they can cost a great deal of money every year that they operate within the UK’s borders.

Some gambling brands decided to leave the UK market. And instead, have obtained licences in other areas. UK players aren’t the only people searching for casino action after all.

There are some casinos with an offshore licence in place that have also continued to allow UK players to frequent their sites. And while this goes against the UKGC’s rules, there is very little that they can do to stop it. Brands that are registered in other parts of the world are outside of the UK’s jurisdiction. And this makes the Commission powerless to act against these gambling sites not on Gamstop.

Some gambling bodies such as the MGA work closely with the United Kingdom Gambling Commission. They work together to stop UK players from accessing non stop casinos 2023 that only has an MGA licence.

This means that many European casinos will always redirect a UK player away from the casino site. Players receive a default message telling them that they are not allowed to play there. But there are many other licensing zones in the world. And some of them are less stringent about the location rules.

Casinos not on Gamstop

You only have to Take a look at this list of online casinos not on Gamstop, and it’s obvious that UK players have many options outside their country.

The lack of legal control that the UKGC holds outside of the UK borders has made it hard for them to implement any far-reaching rules. They cannot stop overseas companies from accepting UK players.

So no direct measures are in place other than to try and manually block a casino not on Gamstop that knowingly allows UK players. But there are ways around this thanks to some simple tech that’s readily available to everyone. As a result, it is simple for players to avoid these basic tactics. For example, they can change their IP address and access these casinos not on Gamstop and their action all the same.

Instead of chasing every brand, the commission has chosen to focus on other areas. And these are to help lower the risk to gamblers that don’t enjoy their hobby responsibly. After all, this is the reason why the UK created Gamstop in the first place. And so the priority should be to keep players safe.

Player safety

Many charities and non-profit bodies like Gamcare have been created to help those who enjoy a flutter a little too much. This mainly includes help and assistance in the form of advice and counselling. And this is not just the players. But it’s also for their families and anyone else affected by somebody’s gambling behaviour.

The commission continues to work hard to do all it can to lower the risk to players who are likely to overspend while playing online. But when it comes to businesses that are located in other parts of the world, it is very hard for them to have any real say in their business activity.

The only effective way to stop offshore sites from allowing UK customers would be to make the Gamstop system international and all-inclusive. But laws are not easy to enforce on a global scale. And in reality, this would be an impossible task to undertake. So the Commission can only continue with its current plan for now and hope for better options in the future.