(STL.News) They are doing everything they can to protect citizens, especially in these turbulent times. The main focus of the UKGC is to help and protect problematic gamblers. This is why they decided to implement a new set of measures in order to prevent the spread of gambling addiction in 2020.

A big number of players from the UK were surely disappointed by this measure which came in effect on April 14th. It meant that UK players would not be able to make deposits at online casinos by using Credit Cards. This was a hard blow to the gambling community since Credit Cards are a simple and convenient way to deposit and play at the casinos. But players need to understand why this was done and look at the bigger picture.

There are over 24 million gamblers in the UK and half of those enjoy gambling at online casinos. From that number a total of 800,000 use Credit Cards for making deposits and withdrawals. But around 22% of them are deemed as problematic gamblers, accumulating tens of thousands of pounds of gambling debts. This number is projected to grow in the future, considering the world crisis at the moment. This is why the UKGC and Gamstop decided to take additional measures in order to protect these players.

A much welcome novelty from the UKGC is the ban on reverse withdrawals. This is a common practice used by rogue and less honest casinos to stall withdrawals as long as possible. The end goal is for the player to reverse his withdrawal and play the winnings down to 0. Some casinos already had a lock withdrawal option in place. Once used there was no way for the player to reverse and play his winnings. But now all operators under the UKGC license are obliged to block reversing withdrawals. Here is the full list of measures taken in this sector:

The UKGC didnt stop there. They went ahead and proposed new measures to be implemented across online casinos to further protect their players. This is done to create a safe gambling environment, even for players displaying signs of problematic gambling. These measures include:

The mandatory loss limit is nothing new, except for the fact that its now mandatory and has to comply with the projected funds the player can afford to lose at the casino. These limits already exist across most online casinos and players can easily use them in order to limit how much they can deposit at the casino over a given period.

The minimum spin speed is something new. It proposes that all slots will have a minimum 2.5 seconds spin speed. Furthermore, the UKGC proposes that all slots be stripped from the quick spin, turbo play and other similar functions. This is to prevent problematic players from losing big amounts of money on the games for a very short time. If you want to play slots at the casinos now you will just have to play at a regular speed.

The last of the proposed new measures is to implement changes to the VIP schemes at online casinos. First off, players under 25 years of age will not be allowed to take part at any VIP scheme. Furthermore, before enrolling in a casino VIP program all players will need to go through mandatory checks related to spending, safer gambling and due diligence in order to prove that they are eligible for a VIP status. All loyalty programs will be audited for every decision making and progress up the VIP ladder. This is done to create a safer environment for VIP players.

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The UKGC has always been the leader in legislature concerning online gambling - STL.News