The industry body of the UK gaming and betting sector, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), announced Wednesday the results following the Safer Gambling Week which took place back in October. The new data, confirms the success of the initiative as it indicates that thousands of gamblers have set deposit limits, while impressions on social media platforms skyrocketed.
The BGC revealed that Safer Gambling Week helped generate some 30 million impressions via Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. This result, when compared to the figure from 2021, marked an increase of 21%.
“Safer Gambling Week is an annual cross-sector initiative bringing together the UK and Irish regulated betting and gaming industry – including bookmakers, amusement arcades, bingo clubs, casinos and online gaming operators – with charities and stakeholders to encourage safe and responsible play,“
reads a statement released by the BGC
Additionally, during October, when the Safer Gambling Week took place, some 200,000 different accounts implemented deposit limits. This data, when compared to the data from the same period the prior year, marked an increase of 12.5%. What’s more, some 60% of the players that set deposit limits did that for the first time.
Last but not least, the BGC explained that the “number of players actively using reality checks – on-screen alerts tracking how long customers are playing – rose by an astonishing 300%.”
The BGC Is Happy with the Recent Results
BGC’s chief executive, Michael Dugher, praised the latest results acknowledging the positive impact of Safer Gambling Week. He added that the initiative continues to encourage gamblers to use safer gambling tools and benefit from the services of licensed operators.
Dugher said that the popularity of safer gambling tools continues to grow and by now, there are millions of customers benefitting from time outs and deposit limits. According to BGC’s boss, safer gambling tools make the regulated gambling market stand out.
“Safer Gambling Week is further evidence of the regulated industry’s determination to keep raising standards.“
Michael Dugher, chief executive of the BGC
At the same time, Dugher reminded that the black market or unlicensed operators do not offer the same methods for protection as the regulated sector. In conclusion, BGC’s chief executive said that the Council is looking forward to this year’s edition of the initiative which is expected to bring further success.
The recent results were released after recently, the gambling regulator in the UK, the Gambling Commission, confirmed that the problem gambling rate in the country has decreased. The watchdog said that the rate of problem gambling among adults has decreased from 0.3% to 0.2%.