The threshold for mandatory financial vulnerability checks on gambling customers will lower significantly next month, reducing from £500 to £150 in net deposits over a rolling 30-day period. 

28 February will mark the end of the transitional six-month period during which the threshold has been £500. This introductory figure was designed to give operators time to adjust, particularly those that weren’t already conducting financial vulnerability checks. The new £150 limit, despite being much less than what many spend on a month’s worth of entertainment, is designed to target high spending customers.

“In setting thresholds for the financial vulnerability check, we sought to support the principle set out in our consultation and in the government’s White Paper proposal that the checks are targeted at highest spending customers,” read the Gambling Commission’s response to the consultation on financial vulnerability checks. “Broadly speaking, we anticipate this to be in the region of 20 percent of active customer accounts.”

The change from £500 to £150 marks a significant shift in affordability assessments, and for many it further erodes freedom at the expense of perceived security. From 28 February, many more gamblers will face financial checks – and many of them won’t like it, especially against the current trend of more personal and less nanny interference.