The ban on credit cards for payments in online casinos is debated
The parliament of the Balearic Islands has approved a non-legislative proposal that urges the central government to ban credit cards for making payments in physical and online casinos, as well as in bookmakers. The proposal is part of the initiatives promoted by the DGOJ and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs in favor of responsible gambling. It is not the first time that something similar has been proposed and if fulfilled New Zealand would not be the first country to implement such a measure.
Credit cards pose a risk for players with pathological behaviors because they increase the danger of getting into debt. This is the conclusion reached by the members of the Més per Mallorca party on the initiative of which the parliament of the Balearic Islands has approved a non-legislative proposal that urges the government to ban them. ©Ahmadarity/Pixabay
What has Més per Mallorca proposed?
As stated in the document of Més per Mallorca dated September 28 and to which he has had access minkcafe.co , the non-law proposition urges the Spanish government to implement the following measures :
- the prohibition of the use of credit cards for payments related to gambling and games for money in general, including both online and face-to-face sports betting at the state level;
- the elimination of the VAT exemption currently enjoyed by lotteries, gambling and games for money in general, including betting;
- the defense before the European instances of the expediency of the elimination of the VAT exemption for gambling and betting according to Directive 2006/112/EEC.
The non-law proposition presented by Deputy Joana Aina Campomar i Orell it has had the majority support of the parliament and the votes against VOX and the Citizens' deputy Maxo Benalal.
The arguments presented by Més per Mallorca, composed of the Socialist Party, Entesa and Verds Initiative, reiterate the dangers that the widespread use of credit cards present for those at risk of addiction . In this sense, various initiatives launched by Alberto Garzón at the head of the Ministry of Consumption are going in the same direction.
Last January concluded the public consultation open from Consumption for what is expected to become the Royal Decree on Responsible Gambling . With this one you are looking for strengthening consumer protection mechanisms for online gambling , since the eighth article of the Gambling Law 13/2011 in which responsible gambling policies are contemplated is too general and has become obsolete.
In the document presented by deputy Joana Campomar, the last one is mentioned player report published by the DGOJ in which he stands out the wide use of cards among Spanish bettors , although the study makes no distinction between credit and debit cards. According to data from the DGOJ, almost 72% of players would use the cards to deposit at online casinos and more than 46% to make withdrawals.
These data would confirm, in the opinion of Deputy Campomar, that people who are in a problem gambling situation have a high risk of using credit cards at the time of placing their bets, so the risk of indebtedness of these people affected by pathological gambling disorders also increases, with the usual social consequences that this entails.
On the other hand, from Més per Mallorca it is considered that in line with the recommendation number 72 of the Commission of Experts for the Reform of the Spanish Tax System created by the Ministry of Finance in 2014 lotteries and gambling should stop enjoying the VAT exemption . In fact, it is an old aspiration of the United Left that in May last year already proposed a reform of the gambling tax within the framework of the series of economic recovery measures contemplated in its Country Horizon Programme .
FACUA had already proposed the same in 2020
This is not the first time something like this has been proposed in New Zealand. The non-governmental organization for consumer protection FACUA-Consumidores en Acción publicly requested Minister Garzón in 2020 to take action on the matter and consider a ban on the use of credit cards to place bets online and in physical establishments, a ban that leads to in force in the UK since April 2020 , although not without problems .
In his open letter to Garzón FACUA he asked the government going beyond the text of the Law of the Game on what he considers the main problem of credit cards:
"the indebtedness of consumers by betting money they do not have when paying with credit cards.” – FACUA-Consumers in Action , public communication
In fact, it seems that in the Royal Decree on Responsible Gambling on which the government is working, some kind of limitation on the use of credit cards would already be contemplated. In his public message to the government, FACUA also insisted on the ban on installing ATMs inside betting premises .
"Likewise, FACUA demands the prohibition that betting shops can have ATMs inside. The association highlights that payment with credit cards or the location of ATMs within the premises themselves, can facilitate participation in them, creating an even greater problem of indebtedness of users and risk of gambling addiction.”
Also in December of last year, the Joint Commission for the Study of Addiction Problems approved a non-legislative proposal at the initiative of Unidas Podemos to urge the government to carry out a study on how payment methods influence the addictive characteristics of the game .
Such initiatives are important contributions in the struggle for safe and responsible gambling. Electronic payment methods are evolving at a rapid pace and there are more and more solutions on the internet . What is at issue with the aforementioned proposals is to limit or restrict those forms of payment that they constitute a risk of indebtedness for problem gamblers. Prevention is not the same as prohibition.
