Unibet Fined For Not Closing Self-Excluded Gambler Accounts

The owner of the online gambling site Unibet has paid a $1 million penalty in Australia for problem gambling breaches.

The company failed to close the accounts of 954 people who had self-excluded from gambling, according to a government investigation.

The Unibet players had registered with BetStop, the National Self-Exclusion Register (NSER).

The controversy follows a recent Australian study that found more than 70% of “regular” online bettors have experienced harm.

Unibet Violates Gambling Act

An Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) investigation found Unibet violated the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 by not closing the accounts of those 954 people “as soon as practicable” after registering on the NSER. 

The investigation found that 45 accounts remained open for 190 days or more. Many registered to self-exclude from online and telephone betting on the first day of the NSER.

BetStop launched in Australia in 2023. The initiative allows individuals to voluntarily exclude themselves from all licensed online and telephone wagering services across the country, with exclusion periods ranging from a minimum of three months to a lifetime.

The U.S. has no such national self-exclusion list, but one has been proposed in the federal SAFE Bet Act.

“Our investigation found very serious breaches by Unibet over a sustained period of time,” said Carolyn Lidgerwood, gambling lead at the ACMA.

“Taking in some cases 190 days to close accounts is clearly unacceptable and does not reflect the decisions made by Unibet customers to seek support to help them not gamble.”

According to the regulator, none of the 954 people who had self-excluded from online gambling in Australia used Unibet for gambling after registering with the NSER. It appears that no one realized that they could still gamble on Unibet and then continued playing.

Recommencing Gambling

Unibet also allowed dozens of customers to gamble using old accounts after their names were removed from the NSER.

The ACMA found evidence that these customers placed thousands of bets through their old accounts after their NSER registration ended.

One customer placed more than 1,200 bets on their old account.

Under the Interactive Gambling Act, once an individual registers with the NSER, sportsbooks must quickly close that person’s account.

If the person’s self-exclusion ends and they choose to gamble again, they must be required to open a new account rather than being allowed to log into their old account.

“The NSER rules are also there to ensure that people are making a clear and deliberate choice to recommence gambling,” Lidgerwood said. “That is not the case if they can simply access old accounts.”

On top of the fine, Unibet must facilitate an independent review of its “compliance systems and processes.” Unibet will also refund people who accessed accounts that should have been closed.