The Gambling Commission has today published the second annual
report from the Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB), the
world's largest dedicated study of gambling participation,
behaviours and consequences.
Produced by National Centre for Social Research and University of
Glasgow the survey has
undergone independent review and complements the Commission's
wider exploration of gambling in Britain through a range of
research and data.
Key findings in this year's report include:
- overall, 48% of adults aged 18+ in Great Britain have gambled
in the last 4 weeks, decreasing to 28% when those who had only
bought tickets for a lottery draw were excluded
- 42% of adults who gambled in the past 12 months rated the
last time they gambled positively, compared to 21% who rated it
negatively. For the chance of winning big money was the main
reason why people gamble (85%) followed by because gambling is
fun (72%)
- in 2024, 2.7% of adults aged 18+ in Great Britain scored 8+
on the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI)1, which is
statistically stable compared to 2023.
Recent research published by Professor Patrick Sturgis to further
understand the impact of methodology on survey estimates has
strengthened confidence in the robustness of GSGB estimates.
The large survey sample size – 19,714 respondents – has enabled
the Commission to publish two supplementary reports into risk
profiles among people who gamble on a weekly basis and the
potential negative consequences of gambling.
The first report highlights the risk profiles among
people who gamble on a weekly basis. These findings show that
levels of risk vary not only between gambling products, but also
within product categories themselves – underlining the need for
operators to take account of risks within their customer bases.
The second
report broadens our understanding of the potential
negative consequences of gambling. Our findings reinforce
evidence from earlier qualitative research indicating gambling
can simultaneously impact multiple aspects of a person's life
such as their relationships with others and their health.
Today's releases complement other research published by the
Commission over the last year including:
Andrew Rhodes, Chief Executive of the Gambling Commission, said:
“The Gambling Survey for Great Britain is a key building block of
the evidence base which helps government, industry and other
partners understand both gambling behaviour and potential
consequences from gambling.
“This year's findings deepen our understanding of consequences
from gambling and provide crucial insight into risk profiles
among those who gamble most frequently. We strongly encourage
operators to use this evidence to consider the risks within their
own customer bases.
“Data and research, such as GSGB, is essential to helping us
identify where our regulatory focus should be and informs our
ongoing work to implement player protection recommendations from
the Gambling Act Review White Paper.
“We have already introduced light-touch financial vulnerability
checks on those spending £150 a month, reduced the intensity of
all online games by banning autoplay and slowing game speed, and
tightened age verification in premises.
“We've also banned potentially harmful marketing offers involving
consumers having to carry out two or more types of gambling, such
as betting and playing slots, and limited the number of times
bonus funds must be re-staked before a consumer can withdraw
winnings.
He continued: “From the end of this month [31 October] our new
rules will give consumer controls over deposit limits and all
gambling businesses must prompt their customers to set a
financial limit before they make their first deposit.”
“In the land-based sector, we are also considering time and
monetary limit setting functionality and safer gambling messaging
on machines.
“In addition, we have been piloting enhanced frictionless
financial risk assessments for those spending £1,000 within 24
hours or £2,000 within 90 days. We are currently analysing the
data gathered during the pilot examining data-sharing between
credit reference agencies and gambling businesses.”
As part of the drive to ensure the new statistics are used
correctly the Commission has updated and published guidance on how this data can be
interpreted and presented.
Note to editors
1 PGSI 8+ is defined as a person who will
have experienced adverse consequences from gambling and may have
lost control of their behaviour. Involvement in gambling can be
at any level, but it is likely to be heavy. Read more about
the Problem Gambling Severity
Index.
