Isle of Man gambling survey reveals progress in blocking underage access, promoting responsible gambling

The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC) has reported positive efforts by licensees in preventing underage gambling and enhancing responsible gambling practices, based on data from its 2023 Online Responsible Gambling Survey. The survey, spanning from January 1 to December 31, compiled responses from 33 of 35 licensed operators, revealing proactive measures in compliance with the GSC’s responsible gambling guidelines.

The survey found that operators blocked nearly 3,000 underage players from accessing gambling services last year. Controls, such as age consent requests at registration, were instrumental, with 79% of licensees reporting no incidents of underage registration. Monitoring systems were praised for their efficacy, as all respondents indicated their controls were “effective” or “very effective” in deterring minors from gambling.

Additional findings revealed a modest uptake of voluntary gambling controls, with 2.5% of users opting for measures like deposit and spending limits, totaling 67,907 users across all surveyed operators. The GSC noted that some respondents could not provide full data, suggesting actual usage rates might be understated.

The survey also identified areas for improvement. Self-exclusion requests, for instance, varied in processing time, with most immediate but others taking up to 12 hours depending on the submission method. Operators were generally able to implement self-exclusions within six hours, though 4% required longer.

In response to survey findings, the GSC acknowledged the need to potentially refine its responsible gambling policies, planning to offer more guidance to operators and the public on regulatory expectations. “The GSC is committed to ensuring that the interventions that are specified in regulation are evidence-led and intends to use the results of the survey to inform the future legislative changes,” it stated.

With 73% of licensees receiving responsible gambling-related complaints, the GSC emphasized transparency, noting that operators provided users with transaction history access over 1.19 million times in 2023 to support user awareness and control.