The Irish Greyhound Board is encouraging all of its
betting customers to gamble responsibly as Responsible Gambling Week 2019 gets
underway.
Thousands of customers and staff at greyhound stadia
nationwide will be participating during RG Week, which runs from November 7th –
13th.
The IGB joins the Irish Bookmakers Association,
Horse Racing Ireland, SkyBet and several English Football League clubs in supporting
the initiative.
During Responsible Gambling Week, staff at
IGB-licensed stadia across Ireland will be encouraged to initiate conversations
with customers about problem gambling, with messaging being prominently
displayed at all venues.
Director of Tote Wagering with the Irish Greyhound
Board, Joe Lewins, commented: “We’re proud to be supporting Responsible
Gambling Week 2019, a very worthwhile initiative, having successfully supported
last year’s campaign. We would encourage visitors to Irish greyhound tracks at
all times, but particularly this week, to be very mindful of only spending what
you can afford and to set limits for both time and money when gambling.
Visitors to our tracks this week will notice the IGB’s commitment to
responsible gambling all year round.”
CEO of the Irish Greyhound Board, Gerard Dollard,
commented: “It’s very important that people are aware of not only how to gamble
responsibly, but of the tools that are out there to help people to do that. The
theme of the week is ‘let’s talk about gambling’, which is what staff at
greyhound stadia will be available to do. The IGB Strategic Plan 2018-2022
targets competing within the betting industry as a priority for the Board. To
do that, we need to demonstrate ethical responsibility and to engage with
others to ensure our customers are betting responsibly.”
Tips to manage responsible gambling and contact
details available for those in need of help will be published throughout the
IGB’s racing programmes, through in-stadia messaging and on its social media
platforms throughout RG Week 2019.
What
is Responsible Gambling?
Responsible gambling is a broad term often used by
the gambling industry which describes the initiatives and measures they have in
place to inform gamblers on how to keep gambling fun and safe, provide helpful
tools to protect players from adverse consequences of gambling, as well as
ensuring gamblers have adequate support services if and when required.
Tips
to avoid allowing gambling becoming a problem;
Some tips for ensuring your gambling remains fun
include;
· Only
gamble with what you can afford.
· Set limits and stick to them.
·
Avoid chasing losses.
·
Never allow gambling to interfere with your personal relationships.
·
Don’t use gambling as a means of escape.
· Take
frequent breaks from your gambling.
·
Don’t think of gambling as a way to make money.
·
Gambling and alcohol are not a good combination
What
does the gambling industry do to try and reduce or prevent problem gambling?
Social responsibility has been increasingly
fundamental to the industry’s approach to customers and business. As an industry, we recognise that we cannot
prevent problem gambling on our own. A
number of safeguarding measures have been introduced and we will continue to
improve those measures in-line with International best practices. These
measures include;
·
Staff training and awareness to identify and approach persons that may
be affected by problem gambling.
·
Prominent display and availability of relevant material relating to
identifying problem gambling and the services and support that is available
·
On-line Reality checks, allow customers to set a session duration
reminder. This reminder can help them to manage how long they are in a gaming
session.
·
Deposit limits, with the option to set personal daily, weekly or monthly
deposit limits.
·
Regular Responsible gambling messaging in stores, on sites, via social
media channels and on customer communications. Which assist to reinforce the
responsible gambling messaging, and the little tips and reminders about how to
keep gambling under control
·
Self-exclusion facilities, which will prevent customer from accessing
gambling services in that premises.
