Irish Lottery Hit With $160K Fine in Self-Exclusion Breach Ruling

Premier Lotteries Ireland (PLI), the operator of the Irish National Lottery, was subject to a fine after the country’s lottery regulator uncovered breaches related to self-exclusion. The Irish lottery regulator imposed a monetary sanction of €150,000 ($160,900) against PLI after uncovering that the operator breached its license conditions.

The penalty stems from an investigation into PLI’s operations. The lottery regulator in the country probed the operator’s business, uncovering deficiencies with self-exclusion dating back to 2021. Under the current regulatory framework, PLI is not required to adhere to self-exclusion options.

However, back in 2019, PLI implemented self-exclusion options. At the time, the operator sought to reduce at-risk and problem gambling by voluntarily introducing self-exclusion functions. Then, in 2021, PLI complied with a GDPR requirement that resulted in the deletion of 126 customer accounts that have been permanently self-excluded.

Upon investigating, the Irish lottery regulator uncovered that a dozen of the people who had previously self-excluded permanently but had their accounts deleted were able to create new accounts. The regulatory watchdog said that out of the 126 deleted accounts, 16 people opened new accounts. Out of that total, ten people were able to engage in gambling activities via their new accounts, purchasing tickets for nearly €3,300 ($3,073).

Additionally, the regulator’s probe uncovered that four of the players even received marketing communication from PLI. In light of the financial sanction, the withheld money was sent to the exchequer who will help with their distribution to different good causes.

Protection of Consumers Remains a Priority for the Regulator

Carol Boate, the chief of the Irish lottery regulator, spoke about its commitment to protecting players and ensuring that the National Lottery operator complies with the established regulations, a report released by The Irish Sun reveals. She addressed the mandatory identity and age verification checks applicable to all online players of the National Lottery.

Boate added that the robust measures seek to eliminate underage gambling and also reduce problem gambling. “The effect of the finding of a breach by the Operator in respect of self-excluded players has been to further tighten controls that detect and prevent such players from opening another account,” added Boate.

“I am confident that this measure has already deterred and prevented underage and problem gamers from accessing National Lottery games online, including those who self-exclude.“

Carol Boate, chief of the Irish lottery regulator

Self-exclusion options are growing in popularity and have so far proven their effectiveness. Along with self-exclusion, iGaming operators offer options for deposit and spending limits, allowing customers to stay on top of their gambling spend.