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Offering help and support

Encourage customers to think about their gambling. Their responses will help you work out the right kind of help and support to offer.

You will need to direct some customers to information about safer gambling and/or suggest appropriate gambling management tools. You might need to signpost them to sources of help and specialist support from organisations which deal with advice and treatment for problem gambling.

You must also make information about safer gambling readily available to customers, as well as information about problem gambling.

You will need to interact with some customers a number of times. Your records of previous interactions with customers will help you decide how to provide the right help and support.

Feedback from consumers shows that they often respond better to being informed about their behaviour and why, rather than being “told” what to do. But for some customers, and particularly if the behaviour continues to cause concern, you may need to take a more proactive approach. In some cases, you may need to take action for the customer, which could mean refusing service.

The role of staff

You should ensure that your staff:

  • understand the types of interaction that could take place and how to interact appropriately. For example, they may only need a brief intervention.
  • know the type of help or support to offer, such as information, signposting customers to specialist support or the gambling management tools which are available. These may be the minimum required under the LCCP or tools you offer which go beyond minimum requirements.
  • know the circumstances and process for refusing service to customers, such as requesting a customer to leave or barring a customer.
  • understand their respective responsibilities and who is designated to carry out customer interactions, if only certain staff members are authorised to interact.
  • are advised how to deal with situations where customers demonstrate signs of agitation, distress, intimidation, aggression or other behaviours that may inhibit customer interaction, and what to do if the interaction does not take place at that time.

Whilst training on the legislative framework is important, staff also need to be trained on the skills and techniques they need to help them carry out customer interactions.

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Keeping records

Last updated: 4 June 2021

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