GAMSTOP registrations pass 250,000
March 2021 recorded second highest registrations in the scheme’s history, with 7,047
British online gambling self-exclusion scheme GAMSTOP has recorded over 250,000 registrations in the three years since its inception.
The service, which allows users to block themselves from being able to access sites and apps run by British gambling companies, witnessed a spike in registrations in 2021 with more than 67,000 people signing up, a figure that surpassed the number of registrations in the whole of 2020 (51,000) by 31.4%.
March of this year was the second-highest registration month in the scheme’s history to date, with 7,047 registrations.
Of the 250,000 people registered with GAMSTOP, more than 228,000 are currently self-excluding through the service.
Fiona Palmer, CEO of GAMSTOP, said: “The registration levels are higher than anticipated this year, though we cannot pinpoint one specific reason for this.”
Registration with GAMSTOP is free and individuals are able to select exclusion periods of six months, one year or five years. Earlier in September, the service provider reported that over 40,000 people had registered with GAMSTOP in the first-half of the year.
GAMSTOP’s association with several football clubs could be one of the reasons behind the spike in registration. Clubs such as Crystal Palace, Brentford, Luton, Middlesbrough, QPR, Morecambe, Preston North End, Bolton Wanderers, Milton Keynes Dons and Harrogate Town have worked closely with GAMSTOP in raising awareness around safer gambling.
Additionally, GAMSTOP has also partnered with financial services organisations and treatment providers including Citizens Advice, Gamcare, the Northern Gambling Clinic, Gordon Moody, Peer Aid and Betknowmore.
Palmer further stated: “We have developed the scheme to make it easier to register and have worked hard on raising our profile to make sure we are more visible to those who might need us. The effects of the pandemic might also have something to do with the rise.
“The independent evaluation which took place during the first 3 months of this year showed us how effective our consumers felt the scheme had been to their ongoing recovery.”