Australia: Victoria Introduces Restrictions for EGMs

Widely spread across Australia, gambling represents a serious health concern, considering that hundreds of millions are lost every month to the activity, resulting in losses that surpass billions annually. In Victoria, some AU$7 billion ($4.8 billion) is lost to gambling annually. But besides lost money, excessive gambling brings harm to families and at the same time can cause mental health concerns and result in financial distress. Some 330,000 residents of the state experience gambling-related harm and new changes to the sector are seeking to address this rising issue.

Announcement about the gambling reform came Sunday from Premier Daniel Andrews, as well as Melissa Horne, Victoria’s minister for casino, gaming and liquor regulation. Ultimately, the reform of the gambling regulation seeks to reduce the rate of gambling harm, protect consumers from excessive gambling and decrease the money lost to gambling. This, lawmakers hope, can be achieved with changes related to electronic gaming machines (EGMs) around the state.

The state’s Premier explained that the changes to the sector will make Victoria a leader in gambling harm prevention. Additionally, Andrews predicted that the reform of the sector will help reduce money laundering and help many people that are experiencing at-risk gambling or gambling harm. “I look forward to the implementation working group’s input and effort,” he said in conclusion.

“These reforms will provide the strongest gambling harm preventions and anti-money laundering measures in Australia – we owe it to all Victorians to take this stance and help those experiencing harm turn their lives around.“

Daniel Andrews Premier of Victoria, Australia

Introducing Carded Play, Load-up Limits

The changes to EGMs will require mandatory pre-commitment limits, as well as carded play. Thanks to this, the state plans to reduce money laundering and at the same time help track easily money that goes through casinos. Additionally, changes seek to reduce the speed of play. This will be achieved via a mandatory spin rate of at least three seconds per game for new EGMs.

Further changes will include the implementation of load-up limits. While the current limit is set at AU$1,000 ($680), changes to the sector will cap this limit to only AU$100 ($68). This change seeks to help people better manage their gambling and make informed decisions. At the same time, the new load-up limits seek to decrease the money lost to gambling.

The new load-up limits mark a radical change for the sector, considering how low the threshold is for money that can be loaded at any one time in an EGM. In contrast, changes to the gambling regulations in New South Wales reduced the load-up limits from AU$5,000 ($3,400) to AU$500 ($340), which is still significantly higher than the limit planned for Victoria.

The state’s minister for casino, gaming and liquor regulations spoke about the devastating impact of gambling harm. “Everyone loses when it comes to gambling harm, and it’s not confined to money – people lose their relationships, their jobs and their wellbeing,” said Horne.

The reforms also plan to see the state’s regulator, the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC), actively participate in gambling harm reduction. Per the changes, the VGCCC’s budget will be AU$71 million.