Resolution services will be required to take more responsibility in handling online casino complaints under UK Guidance.
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) is continuing its steam roll of irresponsible behavior in the online gaming sector. This week, the Commission published a new set of standards pertaining to the management of customer complaints. The new guidelines will go into effect on October 31, 2018.
Under the updated provisions, the UKGC expects to see vast improvement in the response to grievances from players. The new rules apply to the gaming industry’s alternative dispute resolution (ADR) providers.
New Standards for Handling Online Casino Complaints
The primary goal of the UKGC’s latest move is to build trust between the industry and customers, giving players the assurance that online casino responsibility is of utmost importance. The new standards are designed to resolve complaints quickly, fairly, and effectively, without leaving consumers in the dark throughout the process.
Seven specific points of detail and action are being addressed in the new guidelines: – Defined rubric for the types of complaints ADR will address. – Protocol for the consideration of compensation to consumers. – Qualitative decision policy aimed at defining how ADR providers examine and utilize evidence. – Mandatory enforcement of Ombudsman Association’s (OA) six principles of good governance. The UKGC will require all providers to operate under these principles, whether they are members of the OA or not. – Identifying and eliminating conflicts of interest between providers and customers. – Standards applying to the customer service and information given to consumers by ADR providers. – Standards applying to the data and information shared with the UKGC and other necessary entities by ADR providers. |
Focusing on Online Casino Responsibility
The UKGC has spent the last year cracking the whip on internet gambling providers, issuing progressively larger fines against any and all licensees that fail to comply with the ever-tightening code of conduct. Scripting stricter player protections, and gravely penalizing any who fail to enforce them, is just another way the Commission is working to promote responsibility and confidence in the iGaming industry.
This latest move does the same, giving consumers greater assurance that their complaints won’t go unheard; that they’ll be managed and resolved in a timely and responsible manner. Once the new rules go into effect at the end of the month, the UKGC will begin measuring ADR providers against the newly employed standards. And if history has taught us anything, it’s that the Commission will not stand for insubordination.
“The standards published today seek to simplify existing complaints processes and ensure consumer complaints are handled in a fair, timely, transparent and effective manner. Improved standards will also help cultivate consumer trust and confidence in the industry,” said Ian Angus, Programme Director for Consumer Protection and Empowerment.
Improved management of online casino complaints is only the beginning. Angus went on to confirm that additional changes are on the way to “provide stronger protection for consumers and ensure they are treated fairly.” The Commission, which is already renowned as the strictest remote gambling regulator in the world, has promised to deliver a much broader range of responsible regulatory guidelines, due for publication in April 2019.
