Ladbrokes Coral ordered to pay £2.3m by Gambling Commission for failings at Gala Interactive
Ladbrokes Coral has been fined £2.3m for breaching consumer protection regulations, it was confirmed this morning.
The group’s subsidiary, Gala Interactive, has been fined after two high-spending gamblers who later went to prison lost £1.3m between them on the site. Both used stolen money to fund their gambling addictions.
The Gambling Commission found in an investigation that Gala had failed in its responsibility to oversee problem gambling behaviour, and added it had not effectively interacted with the customers concerned and did not have written policies and procedures in place to deal with the problem.
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“It is the responsibility of all operators – particularly key decision makers in those companies – to ensure they are protecting their customers and step in when there is behaviour that might indicate problem gambling,” explained Gambling Commission chief executive Sarah Harrison.
“This did not happen in this case and the £2.3m penalty package should serve as a warning to other operators.”
The commission noted the case was particularly frustrating because Gala had previously given assurances it would identify problem gamblers sooner.
The penalty amount includes £1.3m to be paid to those who were stolen from by the problem gamblers, while an additional £1m will go to fund research into gambling addiction. Gala has also volunteered a further £200,000 towards research.
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