Allwyn UK has confirmed to SBC News that it is working closely with the Gambling Commission on responsible gaming and player monitoring amid calls for National Lottery draws to be included under Gamstop.
A British coroner has written to the Commission to suggest that National Lottery draw games should form part of the Gamstop national gambling self-exclusion scheme, reports The Times.
Online sports betting and casino operators are required to join the scheme as part of their licence conditions, but while National Lottery instant win games fall within the scope of the Gamstop regime, there is an exemption for draw games.
Emma Whitting, Senior Coroner for Bedfordshire and Luton, made the recommendation in a prevention of future deaths report sent to the Gambling Commission concerning the death of Steve Goff, a father-of-two who tragically took his own life after a long-running battle with gambling addiction.
The coroner noted that one of the last things Goff did before taking his own life was spend some of his final remaining money on a National Lottery draw game. Goff had attempted to take his own life twice previously, and at the time of his death was facing homelessness.
Goff had also gambled with both licensed and unlicensed gambling websites, the latter of which are not covered by Gamstop due to their offshore nature, but often falsely present themselves as regulated platforms by including the logos of the Gambling Commission and other organisations.
Allwyn UK, which took over from Camelot as the National Lottery operator in 2024, told SBC News: “Our thoughts are with Mr Goff’s family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time.
“We are working closely with the Gambling Commission as it considers any regulatory changes needed to the scope of Gamstop, which it currently applies to National Lottery online instant win games only.”
The National Lottery – low risks must meet high standards
Ultimately, the decision on whether or not draw games will be covered by the Gamstop self-exclusion scheme lies with the Commission – hence why Bedfordshire corner Whiting made the recommendation directly to the regulator.
“We wish to reiterate our sincere condolences and deepest sympathies to Mr Goff’s family following their tragic loss,” a Gambling Commission spokesperson told SBC News.
“While it is important to note that National Lottery draw-based games are generally lower-risk products relative to other gambling activities and that consumers can already self-exclude from all online National Lottery games directly with the National Lottery operator, following the inquest into Mr Goff’s death, we have been engaging with Gamstop and Allwyn to consider what more could be done to increase consumer protections.”
Nonetheless, the tragic story does shine a light on another conversation around British gambling regulation. This is the regulatory differences between the National Lottery and the wider gambling sector (sports betting, horse racing, casinos etc).
This topic is often raised during conversations around advertising, as one example.
Some betting companies feel that they are being increasingly constrained by advertising rules, such as by the CAP Code’s requirements on who and who cannot be included in advertising material, or are often targeted by pro-gambling reform advocates such as the members of a House of Lords committee who recently called for a full ban on gambling advertising.
In contrast, there are fewer restrictions on the National Lottery’s marketing abilities. It is, for example, free to promote its games as a way to win life-changing money.
The other factor to consider here, however, is the categorisation of different products at different levels of harm. The Gambling Commission routinely classes National Lottery draws as being low-risk, in comparison to much higher risk casino games, particularly slots.
Government research has consistently backed this up. A 2023 report by Public Health England and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) explicitly stated that the National Lottery is the least likely product to be engaged with by people exhibiting harmful gambling behaviour.
This does not mean that the Commission has given Allwyn and the National Lottery free rein. Acting Chief Executive Officer Sarah Gardner recently made this point at Allwyn’s Participant Protection Conference.
The National Lottery’s status as a national institution “brings with it the need to live up to higher standards and the reality of greater scrutiny,” she said, also stating that “we know the risk of harm can never be fully removed”.
The mention of the National Lottery in a coroner’s report into a suicide has really hammered Gardner’s point home.
While government statistics back the Lottery’s status as a lower-risk form of gambling, the Commission’s Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB) shows it is still the most widely practised form of gambling in the country, to the tune of 31% of the adult population.
This huge player base makes monitoring all the more important; something that Allwyn UK states it has been investing a lot of time and resources into since taking over the National Lottery licence back in February 2024.
“Although National Lottery games are lower risk, we take the protection of our players very seriously,” Allwyn UK said.
“Since becoming operator, we have improved player protections, including the introduction of monitoring of draw-based games, and our safeguarding measures include self-exclusion options, mandatory deposit and spend maximum limits, and daily play caps.”
The Gambling Commission’s spokesperson added: “Since January Allwyn has enhanced its player protection controls in a number of ways and, in the coming months, we will be working with Gamstop and Allwyn to explore the potential for further changes, including the possibility of extending the scope of Gamstop in some form.”