How Are UK Online Casinos Regulated?

There are various forms of gambling that are regulated in the UK by the Gambling Commission. The six forms of gambling include:

• Online and land-based casinos
• Online, bookmaker and event betting
• Arcades
• Online and land-based bingo halls
• Lotteries including tombolas. Sweepstakes and raffles
• Slot machines

In 2005, the Gambling Act was passed and the UK Gambling Commission was created. This is a board designed to regulate all commercial gambling in this country including the lottery and it presides over both online casinos and land-based casinos. There are three main roles of the UK Gambling Commission including:

1. Ensuring children and those with gambling problems are protected
2. Ensuring that gambling games are fair
3. Ensuring that gambling is not being used in association with any criminality

Each of these areas helps to keep players safe when gambling online at casinos and gives you peace of mind when playing at a UK Gambling Commission licensed casino that it is safe. Updates to the UK Gambling Commission came in 2019 to make legislation around online casinos even stricter. This included having all online casinos verify the age of their players before they are allowed to deposit or bet on their site. The minimum legal age to gamble in the UK is 18 but there are some exceptions including scratch cards and the lottery, both of which have a legal minimum age of 16.

Online casinos must apply to the UK Gambling Commission to receive their license. This is a thorough process in which a range of documents must be provided including documents proving ownership, identity, finances and competence. The UKGC has the authority to decline any application for a license if its conditions are not met.

At regulated online casinos in the UK, there must be responsible gambling tools in place to protect players. This is another reason why you should always opt to play at a UKGC casino such as JeffBet.com as you may not get the same tools at your fingertips at casinos licensed by other jurisdictions. Some of the responsible gambling tools available at casinos regulated in the UK include:

• Deposit limits – players have limits placed on the amount they can deposit daily, weekly or monthly
• Loss limits – players can enforce a loss limit to ensure they do not lose more than they are willing to
• Time outs – this allows players to take a break from their gambling and restrict the bets they can place at an online casino for a specific time period
• Reality checks – players can set reality checks that alert you via pop-up as to how much you are spending
• Self-exclusion – if players feel they have a gambling problem, the self-exclusion tool allows players to exclude themselves from all online gambling activities

Each of these tools is enforced at online casinos and will help to ensure problematic gambling is stopped and kept under control.