Gambling addict calls out NTRC over ‘disgusting’ BetNation fine
A recovering gambling addict from Tasmania, Mark Kempster, has described the fine issued by the Northern Territory Racing Commission to Amused Group as “disgusting” and ineffective.
Kempster was one of the 772 self-excluded individuals that was sent a promotional gambling ad by BetNation, a sports betting website owned by Amused Group. The NTRC fined the company $13,770, half of the maximum amount usually issued for such serious breaches.
BetNation sent an email to 7,713 people advertising its ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?’ Melbourne Cup promotion. The ad told them the operator was open to accept bets of up to $1,000 on any horse in the race and even promised to grant bonus payments of up to $50 if any of their chosen horses was in the lead.
Despite being on the Northern Territory self-exclusion register, Kempster still received this mail. For the past seven years, Kempster has been trying to quit gambling, but after 50 attempts and the loss of part of his superannuation funds, he finally made a breakthrough.
Though the ad did not affect him, Kempster wonders how many individuals still on the path to recovery would have suffered a setback. He condemned the fine as weak and not enough to make the operator change its behaviour.
“It’s disgusting,” Kempster said.
“$13,770? They’ll make that back in half an hour.
“To see that was really disappointing. I worked in this industry and know how much money goes through these places.
“Even for a smaller company like BetNation, this is chump change.”
Meanwhile, BetNation has apologised for the incident, promising that “corrective and preventive measures” had been put in place. The NTRC also used the opportunity to warn other operators to avoid practices that had “the potential to harm persons who have admitted that they have a gambling problem and have taken positive steps to prevent themselves from operating a betting account”.
