Danish Gambling Authority reminds operators of RG duties

The Danish Gambling Authority (DGA), Spillemyndigheden has issued an update to licence holders on responsible gambling requirements.

Issuing an update this week, the DGA reminded operators of guidance on deposit limits, duty of care and interventions, and marketing in cases of self-exclusion.

On deposit limits, the authority asserted that the ‘it is important’ for the measures to be implemented by players, adding that it should be a mandatory step for customers when setting up an account.

Additionally, the DGA stressed that deposit limits should not be ‘illusory’, citing examples of players setting thresholds of several hundred thousand’, without any assessment being made as to how realistic this is.

“The licensee should be careful if the way the player sets his deposit limit encourages the 

player to set very high deposit limits rather than realistic and lower limits,” the DGA’s statement read. 

Lastly, operators should adhere to a licence condition which prevents deposit limits from coming into effect until 24 hours after being set, ensuring that players cannot continuously increase their limit.

On a similar note, licence holders have also been reminded that they are required to ‘take appropriate measures and make interventions’ for players who show signs of problem gambling. 

Firms can take steps using either ‘passive’ or ‘active’ measures, the former being responsibility measures to prevent problem gambling which are general and not tailored to any individual player. 

Active measures, on the other hand, encompass ‘all the responsibility measures that are put in place for the individual player or a group of players on the basis of his or her concrete and current gambling behaviour’. 

The DGA maintains that operators should ‘take an interest’ in the impact of both sets of measures whilst continuing to develop their responsibility and safer gambling strategy.

“Permit holders cannot meaningfully be said to take measures to prevent and prevent problematic gambling, if they are aware that the measures do not lead to a real positive change in gambling behaviour,” the DGA’s statement read.

This fulfils an anti-money laundering responsibility as well as safer gambling duties, the authority added, as firms can and should monitor player behaviour, stakes and winnings to detect any signs of this.

Money laundering has been an issue of concern for the DGA this year, having reported Tipwin to the police to concerns in this area although it later backtracked on the case.

Finally, licensees have been urged to practise caution when awarding bonus offers and conducting promotional activity, specifically stating that such marketing initiatives should not be distributed to players who have been inactive.