
Responsible Gambling
Enjoy Safe and Responsible Gambling with Our Guide
At Go Spin, we genuinely care for our readers, who make us what we are. We take great care not to lead you astray or provide false information in anything we publish. Once you have left our site and headed over to a casino to play, there’s little we can do to help you. However, we can provide you with a heads-up about gambling responsibly, which is something we strongly encourage. Here, then, is our guide to enjoying safe and responsible online casino gameplay when betting online.
Why Is Responsible Gambling at Casinos So Important?
Responsible gambling is something every casino player should be engaged in. It involves utilising disciplines and a series of tools to ensure that you don’t end up in trouble. We regularly talk about these on Go Spin’s gambling blog. If you’re new to gambling at online casinos, then allow us to give you a heads-up on how to stay safe and play at casinos responsibly.
Make Use of Responsible Gambling Tools
While the buck stops with you when it comes to sticking to good gambling practices, the best online casinos at Go Spin will provide a handful of responsible gambling tools to aid you in staying safe. Just like you might use our Go Spin casino bonus calculator to ensure that you only claim the best bonuses, you should make full use of our online casino reviews to discover which tools each has to offer. We’ve detailed how those tools work below.
Deposit, Wager and Loss Limits
These tools allow you to set limits to reduce the chance that you’ll end up in financial trouble when playing. Deposit, wager and loss limits will put caps on what you can deposit, bet and lose within a given timeframe. Until that time frame passes (which is often set by you), you won’t be able to play.
Reality Checks and Time-Outs
Some players may find reality checks annoying, but at Go Spin, we love these friendly little reminders, which are designed to tell you how long you’ve been playing. You can often set how frequently these appear yourself. Time-outs are a more extreme version and cut off your gameplay once a predetermined time has elapsed.
Gambling Histories
Trusted sites will offer gambling histories alongside their responsible gambling tools. It can sometimes help to browse these, as they detail how much you’ve deposited, when and how much you’ve wagered, won and lost. If you don’t like what you see, it’s time to take a break.
Cool-Down and Self-Exclusion Tools
If you need that break mentioned above, then cool-down and self-exclusion tools come in handy. Using these, you can close yourself off from the casino for a predetermined amount of time. You may still be able to sign in, but you can’t do much else until that time passes.
Self-Assessment Tests
Almost all of Go Spin’s recommended online casinos also support self-assessment tests. You can take these freely. As long as you answer honestly (and not what you think the test wants you to say), you’ll get a rough idea of whether you’re inching your way to becoming a problem gambler. Again, if you don’t like the answer, you can act before things get too rough.
Recognising the Signs of Problem Gambling
Alongside using responsible gambling tools, it is also advised to keep an eye out for the early warning signs of problem gambling. To play at casinos responsibly and not slip into trouble, keep a lookout for the following signs and symptoms:
- Borrowing money from friends and family
- Keeping your gameplay and gambling activity a secret
- Chasses losing by continually depositing
- Regularly spending money that isn’t classed as disposable income
- Becoming irritated or frustrated when you aren’t playing
- Not being able to tear yourself away from your game when something important comes up
- Believing that you’re owed a win or suspecting that the casino is cheating you
A Word About Problem Gambling Programs
If things become very bad, you can always rely on problem gambling programs. Some of these offer support groups where you can talk about your issues. Others, such as GamStop, effectively block your access to all casinos signed up to their program. Once you activate a block such as this, you’ll be excluded from most major casinos (again, if they are signed up to the program) for anything from six months to a number of years. Just don’t accidentally sign up, as there is no way to undo this step.
Go Spin recommends that you read up on how each program works, even if you don’t suspect you have an issue. Knowing how these programs work may be helpful later.
Be Gamble Aware: Offers free, confidential help and support to anyone worried about gambling, promoting understanding of problem gambling and advocating for responsible gambling practices.
GamStop: A free service that allows you to put controls in place to help restrict your online gambling activities.
GamCare: Provides support, information, and advice to anyone suffering through a gambling problem. Services include a national helpline and a treatment program.
Gordon Moody: Offers residential, one-on-one, and online treatment programs specifically designed for severely addicted gamblers.
GamBlock: A software tool that blocks access to online gambling sites and apps on computers and mobile devices.
BetBlocker: Free app to help control gambling urges by restricting access to gambling sites and apps on your devices.
Gamban: Software that lets you block access to thousands of gambling websites and apps on all of your devices.
Gamblers Anonymous: A fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength, and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from a gambling problem.
Gamtalk: A supportive community offering a safe space to discuss personal experiences and find resources on problem gambling.
FAQs
Most mainstream casinos have some form of responsible gambling tools. All our recommended online casinos have at least some of these tools.
Ordinarily, all the options you need will be under your account settings. However, you can often contact customer support and have them implement them for you.
That depends. You will be blocked from all casinos run by the same operator. Problem gambling programs such as GamStop block you from all sites signed up to its program. However, unaffiliated casinos will remain an option for you.