lockdown

UKGC data finds low level gambling pick-up in lockdown

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has published further data revealing that the British public has engaged less in gambling during national lockdown.

The data for April was collected from the UK’s biggest operators combined with YouGov‘s ongoing ‘COVID-19 tracker’ measuring public trends and habits in lockdown.

Citing general consumer trends, the UKGC underlined that lockdown ‘does not appear to have attracted new customers to gambling’ – with only 0.2% of adults surveyed stating that they had taken up gambling during the period.

Meanwhile, operator data on ‘overall activity’ indicated a 5% decrease in player activity recorded between March and April, reflecting the lack of sports wagering available to consumers.

Despite the drop in activity, the UKGC stated that ‘gambling participation has not fallen as drastically as anticipated at the beginning of the crisis’.

Surveying active players, the UKGC reported that 75% of gamblers had ‘no increase in time or money spent gambling’ (including National Lottery products).

However, as mentioned in its previous update, UK gambling consumers appear to be engaging in new products – a figure which has increased to 42% during April.  

For active gamblers, new activities are driven by the National Lottery, with one in five surveyed claiming to have participated in weekly draws during the last four weeks.

Presenting its research, the UKGC explained that data is consistent with the first set of findings – “Overall participation[1] has decreased but some engaged players are spending more time and money gambling on certain products”.

Closing its statement, the UKGC said that it will continue to track and monitor risks by collecting the data to protect national consumers.

Check Also

SBC News SBC Summit Rio: there's room for all kinds of AI tech developments

SBC Summit Rio: there’s room for all kinds of AI tech developments

Technological developments are a core focus of any organisation amid a constant jockeying for position, …

SBC News UKGC committed to measure evaluation of Gambling Review proposals

UKGC committed to measure evaluation of Gambling Review proposals

David Taylor, Head of Evidence Assurance and Evaluation at the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has outlined …

SBC News UKGC assists in illegal South Wales gambling bust 

UKGC assists in illegal South Wales gambling bust 

South Wales’ Tarian Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) has collaborated with the UKGC, HMRC and …