Category D Machines
Request
Can license holders for a Category D machine place the machine on the premises of other businesses without further licensing (often referred to as "on location", for example: a shopping centre)?
If an additional license is required for placing the machine on other business premises, please clarify whether the license is required by the operator of the machine or by the business where the machine will be located.
Are there any additional requirements or regulations for machines imported from overseas sellers?
Where the value of the prize cannot exceed £50, is there a maximum markup rule for these machines?
Response
Thank you for your request which has been processed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
In your email you have requested:
Can license holders for a Category D machine place the machine on the premises of other businesses without further licensing (often referred to as “on location”, for example: a shopping centre)?
If an additional license is required for placing the machine on other business premises, please clarify whether the license is required by the operator of the machine or by the business where the machine will be located.
Are there any additional requirements or regulations for machines imported from overseas sellers?
Where the value of the prize cannot exceed £50, is there a maximum markup rule for these machines?
Question 1 and 2:
The Gambling Commission can confirm that only premises that are wholly or mainly used for making gaming machines available may hold an Unlicensed Family Entertainment Centre (UFEC) gaming machine permit or a Family Entertainment Centre (FEC) premises licence. Both a licensed FEC and an UFEC are classified as premises. Because of this, it is generally not permitted for such premises to correspond to an entire shopping centre, airport, motorway service station or similar. Typically, the machines would be in a designated, enclosed area. Gaming machines, which should be contained within the UFEC or FEC premises, should not be located in corridors and walkways which form part of the larger building.
Further guidance on the requirements for machines sited ‘“on location”, for example: a shopping centre’ can be found here:
Unlicensed Family Entertainment Centres (gamblingcommission.gov.uk)
Additional information regarding Category D machines, where they can be situated, and what type of licence is required can be found here:
Gaming machines and software sector guidance (gamblingcommission.gov.uk)
D gaming machines (gamblingcommission.gov.uk)
Question 3:
The manufacturer and supplier of such gaming machines needs an operating licence from the Commission in order to manufacture, adapt, install and supply them in premises in Great Britain. Consequently, if an overseas company was manufacturing and supplying such machines, to be sited within premises in Great Britain, that overseas company would need an operating licence from the Commission.
There are no additional requirements if the operating licence holder is based overseas. All operating licence holders are bound by the Gambling Act 2005 (legislation.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab), Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (gamblingcommission.gov.uk) and, where relevant, which it is to gaming machine manufacturers, technical standards for gaming machines whether a remote or non-remote licence is held. Links to the various standards can again be found here: Gaming machines and software sector guidance (gamblingcommission.gov.uk).
However, as advised on the Commission’s website page regarding Category D machines, depending on the type of premises the machine is situated in (and there are restrictions on the types of premises and, for some of those premises, restrictions on the number of machines that can be sited), the owner (company running the premises) does not always need an operating licence from the Commission.
For example, if the machines are situated in a casino or a betting shop, then the company running that casino or betting premises would need an operating licence from the Commission (and a premises licence from the LA). However, if the machines are situated in a pub, then the company running the pub does not need an operating licence from the Commission.
Question 4:
In terms of a ‘maximum mark-up rule’ for the max prize of £50 for D non-money prize, this is based on ‘wholesale’ value and is something that the Commission would expect the supplier to be able to evidence if challenged. The £50 prize value (which must be non-cash) only applies to crane grab machines and not to any other type of Category D product, no matter where sited.
Review of the decision
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Please note, internal review requests should be made within 40 working days of the initial response. Requests made outside this timeframe will not be processed.
If you are not content with the outcome of our review, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have already exhausted the review procedure provided by the Gambling Commission.
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The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office (opens in a new tab), Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Information Management Team
Gambling Commission