More than 80% of children exposed to gambling adverts

More than 80% of 11-16 year olds have been exposed to gambling adverts on TV, with 39% having seen these adverts more than once per week, according to new figures from the UK Gambling Commission.

Around 70% of young people had also seen gambling adverts on social media, while 66% had seen gambling adverts on other sites online.

The figures prompted concern from the Gambling Commission and responsible gambling charities who urged operators to strengthen their protections and age verification protocols.

The figures also showed that 12% of 11-16 year olds had gambled with their own money in the last week, equivalent to around 370,000 children.

Around 25,000 children between 11 and 16 were identified as problem gamblers, while more than 300,000 children had bet with in-game items in video games, known as skins betting.

Marc Etches, chief executive of GambleAware, said the charity was “very concerned” about the number of children discovering gambling through social media, video games, and free-to-play casino games.

“With more than 500,000 11-16 year olds reporting that they gamble we are in great danger of sleepwalking into a future public health storm over gambling-related harm in Britain,” Etches said.

“That 40% of young people who gamble said they did so ‘to make money” shows exactly why teenage misconceptions of chance and risk leave them so vulnerable. We need better education and prevention measures in place to give children the resilience to avoid gambling-related harm.”

The gambling industry has come under fire for targeting children before, with the Commission ordering operators to remove child-friendly games from their sites back in October.

Tim Miller, the Gambling Commission’s executive director, added: “We require gambling operators to have strong protections in place to prevent children from accessing their products and are actively reviewing how some, like age verification, can continue to be strengthened.

“However, it is clear that many children’s experiences of gambling-style activities are coming from the playground, the games console or social media rather than the bookmaker, the casino or the gambling website. That’s why it is essential that we work across industries and with parents so that together we can protect children and encourage those that choose to gamble in adulthood to do so safely.”

Operators have also been asked previously to tighten up age restrictions on their social media and YouTube channels.