Duncan Garvie Cautions Against New Bonus Rules in the UK

Duncan Garvie has spent most of his career tackling the big issues in gambling tied to gambling-related harm. His charity, BetBlocker, is releasing versions in different local languages to offer players the opportunity to restrict their total gambling spend through self-exclusion and thus strengthen the overall player protection ecosystem.

Ducan Garvie Calles New UK Bonus Rules Catastrophic

Now, Garvie has addressed the issue in an interview with VegasSlotsOnline.com in which he outlined how the suggestion to fix the bonus wagering requirement to a maximum value of 10 will blow back and possibly empower the black market at the expense of regulated companies.

Garvie did not mince his words and called the proposed change a “catastrophically bad” policy, which, albeit rooted in good intentions, was not as effective in practice. Garvie said that the idea of low rollover requirements is not exactly new and that in the 90s and the early aughts, the industry did offer lower bonusing requirements, which gave players the upper hand – statistically.

The instant that players had a bonus and that bonus came with low wagering requirements, they were ahead, but Garvie argues that this is not necessarily a good thing. For starters, the industry takes a hit this way because of widespread fraud and abuse that makes it easier for both accounts to play and abuse the casinos.

Although it does sound like players would have a better chance at winning, and therefore the industry is unfairly inflating the bonus rules, another consideration is important, Garvin says – if casinos are not incentivized to use bonuses, they will discontinue them.

Without bonuses, players could flock to the black market sector, Garvie says. He has a point, too.

Players who frequent offshore gambling sites do so mostly because they are tired of the regulated market and what it has to offer, and a growing number of self-excluded players are also targeted by websites that specifically look for them with terms such as “sites not on GamStop,” the UK self-exclusion program.

So, in theory, the change to a 10x rollover requirement in the UK should, on the face of it, protect consumers, but it may have an adverse impact and once again empower black market operators.

Beware of Public Consultations, Garvie Cautions

Garvie has also made another interesting point in which he argued that public consultations are well-intended, but they are not necessarily effective.

“Consumers are presented with a choice, without understanding the wider context or consequences of their decision. Respondents make a surface-level assessment of what is in their best interests, and all too often it ends up backfiring,” Garvie said in the statement provided to the publication.

Overall, Garvie’s efforts to educate the public and lawmakers on the dangers of gambling-related harm and problem gambling are rooted in a deep understanding of the industry. Populist practices ought to be cut out of the conversation and not prioritized at the expense of best practices.

As Garvie once said, “anecdotal evidence” is not good evidence.