Dutch regulator widens efforts to combat illegal games of chance

Dutch gambling regulator the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has set out plans to focus on tackling illegal land-based games of chance in 2020, with the aim of working with more local authorities to combat the issue.

In 2019, the KSA provided specialist support to police and municipalities across the country on around 35 different occasions, but the regulator has set itself a target of supporting authorities at least 50 times during the next 12 months.

The KSA said it can advise authorities on how to prepare checks for illegal gaming activities, while the regulator can also send out its own inspectors to support officers. In addition, the KSA can prepare an expert report to help investigations.

“As a supervisor, the KSA has the expertise to recognise illegal games of chance, for example in the form of gambling columns or illegal poker tournaments,” the KSA said in a statement.

Authorities that want to work with the KSA, or would like access to supporting information on illegal games of chance, can contact the regulator directly.

The announcement comes after the KSA last month published the results of a joint report with self-help organisation AGOG, which suggested that Dutch consumers are more likely to encounter issues with problem gambling when playing gaming machines than other forms of gambling.

The study, which was based on the responses of 86 people who have signed up with AGOG, found that 67% of respondents who had suffered with gambling problems had played gaming machines.

Other key findings included that one-third of players gambled an average of two or three times per week in the year before they sought help with AGOG. A third of respondents had gambled between four and six times per week, while a quarter of players took part in gambling on a daily basis.