The online world is growing. Many businesses operate and sell their goods and services through the Internet. One of the biggest industries to have benefitted from this tech growth is iGaming.
However, like in any other human-made world, crime is always a threat. Hence it has to be regulated. That’s where the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) and other such authorities come in.
So, what’s the role of the UKGC when it comes to safest casinos? The body of this piece contains more information regarding this authority. It answers more questions regarding what it is, its role, and how it works.
What is the UK Gambling Commission?
The UK Gambling Commission is a gambling regulatory body. It was formed through the implementation of the gambling act of 2005. Its main focus is on land-based and online casinos and other gambling organisations.
It comprises the board of commissioners, the executive team, committees and advisory groups that implement the Commission’s role.
What is its role?
The role of the UKGC is to regulate individuals and organisations that are involved in the gambling business. These include online casinos, bookies, brick-and-mortar casinos and the National Lottery. Its central region of operation is Britain.
The aim is to keep the gambling streets clean of criminal intentions. It also ensures transparency, order and fairness. As if that isn’t enough, it protects the vulnerable from the potential harm of playing games with money.
How does the UK Gambling Commission fulfil its role?
So, how does the UKGC implement its responsibilities? Below are some of the different aspects handled by this gambling authority and how it works towards fulfilling them:
Licensing and regulating
The UKGC has the power to issue licences to gambling operators. It must do regular checks to ensure that the gambling laws are followed.
If these conditions set for an operator to follow aren’t followed, then the UKGC has the power to revoke the licence. Sometimes, it poses large sums of fines towards operators that don’t follow these laws.
Hence it’s the responsibility of gambling operators to prove that they’re fully committed to operating according to the regulatory gambling laws.
These include ensuring that they’ll put their players’ protection and security first. Plus, have a sizable financial backup to keep them running even during financial difficulties.
Fairness in games
Another role of the UKGC is to ensure games are fair. It has to check that operators, especially online casinos, use random number generators (RNGs) for their games. To do this, independent third-party agencies ensure that the RNGs are used in slots, roulette, online blackjack, poker and other games.
Besides ensuring games are truly random and unbiased, the UKGC requires that gambling operators be transparent. They have to display and state each game’s rules and its odds. Players must be made aware of the risk they’re taking when playing a game.
Securing and protecting players
The primary role of the UKGC is to ensure everything that happens in a casino doesn’t compromise the safety and security of consumers. On top of that, gambling operators shouldn’t promote problem gambling.
As a result, it has policies set to ensure no underage gambling occurs. This includes the know your customer (KYC) policy. Each licensed casino must ensure that a player proves they’re of the accepted gambling age.
Operators must also feature tools that ensure sound management of player gambling behaviour. These include:
- Setting deposit and loss limits
- Self-exclusion
- Reality checks
- Ensuring that players can restrict themselves from all gambling institutions when taking a break
Preventing crime
The UKGC mainly acts to prevent crime through the anti-money laundering (AML) policy. This ensures that casinos, bookies and other gambling platforms aren’t used for crime operations.
It’s the operators’ responsibility to know their customers, keep an eye on their gambling activities and ensure that nothing fishy occurs in their establishments. When unusual businesses arise, they must investigate and report to the UKGC.
A casino that doesn’t ensure the AML policy is implemented can face huge fines or have its licence revoked.
Eliminating problem gambling
The UKGC suppresses problem gambling by ensuring that there are measures in place to ensure each player gambles for fun. These measures track how frequently consumers visit casinos, bet on games and how much they spend regularly.
When potential problem gamblers are found, they’re offered help to prevent their gambling issues from spiralling out of control. The UKGC partners with various organisations that help treat, support and provide other resources that help fight gambling addiction.
Succeeding in this department maintains a healthier gambling culture.
Our verdict
The strict laws imposed by the UK Gambling Commission have kept Britain’s gambling industry secure and operating orderly. Its primary role is to ensure consumer safety and security are a priority and that a healthy gambling culture is maintained.
It does this by implementing various policies, including the KYC and AML. Gambling operators must ensure they work hand-in-hand with the UKGC in implementing these policies to keep their licences and continue with their businesses.