Journalist Wanted - Gambling Commission Complaint

lincroft1710

How about this for a solution?

All persons diagnosed as bipolar are fitted with a wristband or an implant which gives off a signal and all licensed betting premises must install a device which picks up this signal and thus a bipolar person is immediately identified and is either politely escorted from the premises or their gambling is closely monitored.

Hopefully the would be gambler is deterred/embarrassed from doing this more than once a day, so can't get their fix from other premises. It might even stop them from gambling altogether.

It may be demeaning for a bipolar person to have to wear this, but it should save them money. However it may be difficult for on course bookmakers to have such a device.

That's another point. If a chronic gambler goes to a dog track or racecourse, he can make bets with several different bookies who won't be able to regulate him. The "Code of Practice" cannot work everywhere. Whatever the "legislation" you will never stop a determined gambler. Outlaw gambling and it will go underground and will probably be run by organised criminals.

competitionscafe

On a related note - Facebook seem happy to allow irresponsible gambling to be promoted on their site.

The above ad:

Leads to this page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Make-Serious-Money-500-Per-Day/114157568674913

The "way to make £500 a day" is to bet at online casinos using the Martingale system: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martingale_(betting_system)

Of course the advertised site makes no mention of the fact that you are guaranteed to eventually lose money doing this:
http://casinogambling.about.com/od/moneymanagement/a/martingale.htm
http://www.iansharpe.com/martingale-betting.php

Have reported the page/ad to Facebook several times yet it is still running so clearly they are okay with irresponsible/dangerous gambling advice being promoted on their website.

Perhaps a journalist would be interested in that seeing as Facebook is always in the news?

liam8282

Jeff_Bridges_hair wrote: »

Yup. And there was never a period of waiting time for online gambling either. Sign up, Deposit, Spend.

Same with Telephone accounts too.

Maybe they should bring it back then?

But include bookies, online gambling, etc, make it members only, make it a bit harder to gamble?

I don't claim to have the answers, but can see where the op is coming from.

Elle7

My mum had bipolar. She didn't gamble, but she did shop.

She'd spend money on anything. It didn't matter what, where or if she wanted it. She'd cancel important DDs, not pay bills, not pay the rent...she didn't need the money, but her urges meant she felt she needed to shop. She'd come home with bags of things...sometimes food, which she'd consume huge amounts of, or things she put behind the sofa and never look at, or silly little things which she'd lay out across the room.

It is a sign of bipolar that the urges come, and are irresistable. For you, it seems to be gambling, and drinking. For her, it was shopping and eating. If you couldn't gamble, maybe you'd pick up another trait? And shopping and eating were just as bad...obesity is a killer, and having to beg the electric company to turn the lights back on every few days is humiliating.

My point is, that you can't ban everything because you can't control it. You have to find some control. If you can't control your betting inside a bookies, control yourself before you go in, and make the decision to go home. If you can't, speak to your doctor about other help you can have.

With the best will in the world, and knowing all of the signs, we couldn't stop my mum going on shopping binges. You can hide it too well. You'll learn how to fool everyone, those close to you and the people you are placing bets with, or buying rubbish from, or getting your 5th Big Mac. It isn't possible to regulate everything - if you've got an addictive personality, you'll simply get addicted to something else until you do learn that control.

michael1983l

Im away on holiday so this will be brief, here is my reply )or imaginary reply as some think) from my MP.

Dear Mr Thorn In Their Side,

Thank you for contacting me and for raising with me your concerns about the current Regulations set out by the Gambling Commission and the current inability to protect the consumer.

I can confirm that I have written on your behalf to John Penrose MP the Minister responsible for the Gambling Industry to raise with him all the points of concern that you have raised with me about this issue.

Please be assured that I will be back in contact with you as soon as a reply is received.

With very best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
Andrew Selous
Member of Parliament for SW Bedfordshire

Optimist

michael1983l wrote: »

Im away on holiday so this will be brief, here is my reply )or imaginary reply as some think) from my MP.

Michael, that is a pretty standard reply from a MP. They pass your letter on to the relevant authority who then write back usually saying not much unless it happens to coincide with the current policy in which case they agree with your points and tell you that legislation is planned.

I did suggest you get in touch with MIND they will I am sure help you more plus they do collate problems like you have and present them to the powers that be when they think they can make a difference.

Enjoy your holiday

manray3331

I feel very sorry for you, but at least you've recognised the problem and are hopefully now not gambling. As others have said, the bookmakers wouldn't have seen you as someone with a problem... maybe just someone wealthy enough who liked a flutter. Albeit a fairly big flutter, but by no means a business changing flutter. High rollers wager £100,000's a year online and off.

michael1983l

Thanks for the advice, this is coming along nicely with my MP, cant say now not enough time but when çI retuern from holiday I will fill you in.

Jeff_Bridges_hair

So we still have not heard about these signs that you say only a gambler with Bipolar shows when gambling are Michael.

i would be interested in hearing about them so i can keep an eye out. and maybe help someone in future.

trebor21

Sorry mate, but a Doctor isnt a lawyer. He should not be offering legal advice!

Also as you were miss diagonsed at the begining, it shows that the signs of Bi Polar are sometimes not clear cut, so if a Doctor cant get the signs right how could a cashier at a bookmaker?

Surely the banks and other finicial inistitutions should have also seen the signs and not lent you the money?

I think you have to move on you have lost a fortune, and this is still eating you up inside the chance of getting the money back are slim. Plenty of similar cases have all got thrown out by the courts.

Your doctor is giving you false hope, and until you let go the rest of your life is on hold!