Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) chair Michel Groothuizen has called on the Dutch government to automatically add a subset of vulnerable citizens to the country’s national gambling self-exclusion register, Cruks
Cruks currently has around 120,000 people registered, with customers voluntarily self-excluding themselves from gambling activity with licensed operators for a minimum of six months after signing up.
Groothuizen proposed that people on the Netherlands’ Central Curatorship and Administration Register (CCBR) should automatically be excluded from gambling.
The register includes people under curatorship due to long-standing addiction issues which leave them unable to manage personal and financial affairs, as well as individuals who are under administration for problematic debts.
Its key function is to protect vulnerable adults and serve as a public verification register for third parties.
Around 250,000 people in the Netherlands are under protective administration, with another 25,000 under curatorship.
Groothuizen argued that adding CCBR-registered citizens to Cruks would provide “optimal protection to an extremely vulnerable group”.
He also called for the minimum period of self-exclusion in the Netherlands to be extended beyond the current six-month threshold.
The government has previously proposed extending the time period to a year, although Groothuizen suggests it “could be even longer”.
Groothuizen said: “I would like to make a proposal to the state secretary: use the recess period to develop a simple proposal, in addition to extending the minimum registration period in Cruks, to automatically include all those registered in the CCBR in Cruks for the duration that they are under protection or guardianship.
“We have noticed recently that there is a need for this among administrators and guardians. By linking the CCBR directly and integrally to Cruks, we offer optimal offer protection to an extremely vulnerable group. This is already happening in our neighbouring countries, Belgium and Germany.
“I once heard an addict say he was ‘glad’ to have a gambling addiction because, thanks to Cruks, he could keep himself relatively far away from temptation, whereas that is much more difficult with other addictions.
“We cannot close the door to the liquor store for the alcoholic, but we can certainly lock the door to the (legal) casino for the (future) addict.”
Groothuizen pointed out that the average loss with the legal and licensed market in the Netherlands is €125 (£107) per month, while adding that losses can spiral on unregulated sites.
Last month, EGR exclusively revealed the KSA could look to rerun its tender process to offer gambling blocking software for legal and illegal sites for free to Dutch citizens after invalidating both bids from Gamban and BetBlocker.
The regulator identified issues with both tenders submitted via the Dutch government’s official online procurement system, TenderNed.nl, and subsequently chose to abandon the process.
The KSA initially withdrew its provisional awarding of the contract to BetBlocker after Gamban filed a legal objection.
The post KSA calls for vulnerable people to be added to self-exclusion register first appeared on EGR Intel.
Chair Michel Groothuizen makes plea to the Dutch government, while also proposing the minimum period of self-exclusion be extended beyond the current six months
The post KSA calls for vulnerable people to be added to self-exclusion register first appeared on EGR Intel.