Victoria’s state regulator, the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC), said Tuesday it had censured Crown Melbourne for multiple breaches of its gambling harm minimization obligations after players were allowed to continue playing beyond their mandatory pre-commitment limits.
The breaches relate to 22 instances of Crown customers being able to continue using a poker machine after reaching their nominated time or spend limit between December 2023 – when mandatory carded play and pre-commitment was introduced – and 21 July 2024. An additional 10 customers were able to gamble on poker machines between 23 December 2023 and 4 August 2024 using a card linked to a “YourPlay” account that was not in their legal name. The government’s “YourPlay” pre-commitment program is installed on all poker machines in Victoria, and mandatory carded play and pre-commitment currently applies to all poker machines at the casino.
“Poker machines are a high-risk, high-harm product, which is why we place so much emphasis on holding industry to account when they fail to honor their legal and social licenses to protect customers from gambling harm,” said VGCCC Chair Chris O’Neill.
“Pre-commitment programs empower people to manage their gambling by making decisions, before they start gambling, about the amount of time and money they will spend.
“Research has shown that well-designed pre-commitment systems with binding limits can be effective in preventing harm from poker machine use. It is imperative, therefore, from both a legal and ethical perspective, that the casino is vigilant about meeting its pre-commitment obligations.”
The VGCCC noted in censuring Crown that the company had cooperated with the investigation and provided evidence that demonstrated the breaches were isolated and that remedial efforts had been undertaken, including additional monitoring and staff training.
“This reprimand is now on Crown’s record, and we will not hesitate to take more serious disciplinary action in the future, should similar or further breaches occur,” O’Neill said.
Crown’s implementation of mandatory carded play and pre-commitment limits have formed part of its substantial remediation in recent years, the primary result of which has been findings of suitability to operate its casinos in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth.
RelatedPosts
