Gambling Commission Refutes Suggested “Insufficient” FRA Process

The Gambling Commission has denied the suggestion its engagement with industry stakeholders prior to announcing financial risk assessments (FRAs) was “insufficient”, responding to a letter from the UK’s Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee.

The plan to implement FRAs, which stemmed from the recommendations in the government’s 2023 Gambling White Paper, was announced by the British regulator earlier this month.

The first stage of implementation will be carried out by the largest operators, where a high spend of multiple thousands of pounds across a 24-hour period is identified.

For most players, this will mean a £5,000 net deposit in a rolling 24-hour period, which the Commission said less than 0.5% of players exceed. Once fully implemented, FRAs will be applied to players aged 25 or older with net deposits exceeding £1,000 in a rolling 24-hour period or £3,000 over a rolling 90-day period. For players under the age of 25, the threshold will be reduced to £750 in a rolling 24 hours or £2,000 in a rolling 90-day period.

Questions put forward

Following the announcement of the implementation, Dame Caroline Dinenage MP wrote to Acting Commission CEO Sarah Gardner, posing five questions in an attempt to better understand the policy and its likely impact on consumers and the industry.

In the third of these questions, Dinenage said some stakeholders have told the Committee that engagement from the Commission throughout the process has been “insufficient”. Dinenage asked for the Commission to detail its activities taken out with operators, consumers, sporting bodies and other stakeholders during the development of the FRA proposals.

In the final question meanwhile, Dinenage said stakeholders have informed the Committee that there may be no representation from the racing industry within implementation groups that will help with the next stage of delivery.

Gambling Commission’s rebuttal

In a written response, Gardner listed a number of occasions where the Commission argues the racing industry in particular was spoken to about the prospect of FRAs following the publication of the White Paper.

This included discussions with horseracing’s leadership including meeting their Sports Gambling Strategy Group, meetings with the leadership of the British Horseracing Authority and meetings with the Horserace Betting Levy Board.

Gardner wrote:

“We have also provided regular updates on our work to DCMS, to Parliamentary stakeholders - through meetings, quarterly newsletters and proactive and reactive correspondence.

I2n the case of FRAs, we have also engaged with stakeholders who we recognise as having a particular interest in this issue. This would include, for example, the horseracing industry, who we have engaged with extensively about FRAs.”

Further explanation incoming

In answering Dinenage’s other questions, Gardner confirmed the Commission will publish further information that informed its decision to proceed with FRAs and to determine the proposed thresholds. Gardner was a little less straightforward though, when answering whether these changes will result in more or fewer recreational bettors being asked to provide documents or other financial information, compared with existing arrangements.

Gardner wrote:

“In future, only the highest spending consumers (less than the top 3%) will need to have an FRA, which of course will be frictionless for the vast majority (97%).”

Gardner did not give much information in response to a question about how decisions have been made regarding who will be included in implementation groups to support the next phase of delivery, stating these will be made up of a mix of groups and individuals.