Gambling problems result when players cannot control their casino gambling behavior. Gambling is considered a form of addiction sickness in many cases. There are movements afoot in various places to hold a casino responsible for the gambling problems of bingo game players who gamble in their establishments. According to the Casino Gambling Web, a recent report by the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Centre, reaches these exact conclusions. The Centre claims that casinos track the gambling expenditures of their regulars for the purpose of awarding comps. Therefore, they should be able to spot people with gambling problems. They also claim that the government’s expenditure on treatment of gambling related problems and issues amount to $35 million per year. The Centre feels that casinos have a responsibility to gamblers with problems.
This isn’t the only place in the world where this kind of thinking is occurring. In Dunedin New Zealand, the Dunedin Casino’s license was suspended for two days when they didn’t act in the case of a gambler who gambled with stolen money. The free casino was basically penalized by the two day closure.
In the United States various states have programs where players with gambling problems volunteer the information and the casino must bar their admittance or if they do gain admittance, deny them any winnings and have them arrested for trespassing. This is a tricky issue. Many people view the casinos responsibility to prevent people with gambling problems from playing just as a bar is required to prevent people who have been drinking from driving. |