written and last updated by
Sam Smith at
09 Jun 2022
Journalist, Editorial Department
A new study commissioned by the charity GambleAware reveals that residents of the most disadvantaged areas in the UK are among those spending record amounts on online gambling. The report, titled "Patterns of Play," was compiled by experts from the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) in collaboration with Professors David Forrest and Ian McHale from the University of Liverpool. The findings indicate that the poorest citizens in the UK are the country's biggest gamblers.
The researchers analyzed data from 139,152 online accounts provided by seven major operators between July 2018 and June 2019. Of all the accounts, 29% were registered to users from the most deprived areas, while only 13% belonged to individuals from the least deprived locations in the UK.
The study covered both online gaming and betting, highlighting the disparity between these two activities in terms of participation and losses. The report states: "This research provides us with an unprecedented global opportunity to understand the landscape of online gambling. Unlike betting, we see that customer participation and losses in gambling are concentrated in more deprived areas."
GambleAware's CEO, Zoë Osmond, echoed this sentiment, adding, "The current cost-of-living crisis, along with the economic fallout from the pandemic, may only exacerbate the situation, underscoring the need for coordinated systemic action to prevent gambling-related harm."
It is important to note that this research was conducted prior to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
In related news, Germany has approved a decision by Incode Technologies to verify the identities of casino customers.
