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Commission research features online gambling trends for the first time

23 February 2016

NEW figures providing better insight into gambling behaviour in Britain have been published by the Gambling Commission.

Accompanied by easily digestible infographics the reports cover participation in gambling, perceptions of gambling and rates of problem gambling.

The research, for the first time ever, also includes information about how people gamble online – the devices they use to gamble, where they gamble, and the number of accounts they use.

Findings include:

  • participation in gambling has fallen from 57% in 2012 to 45% in 2015 - this can be attributed to National Lottery draw participation dropping from 46% to 32% in the same period
  • National Lottery draws remain by far the most popular gambling activity followed by other lotteries and scratchcards
  • at 0.5% rates of problem gambling are static – 2014 (0.5%) and 2013 (0.5%)
  • those aged 18-24 are most likely to be problem gamblers (1.1%), and 1% of men were problem gamblers in 2015 compared with 0% of women
  • 25-34 year olds are most likely to use mobile and tablet devices, bet in-play and gamble outside of the home
  • laptops are the preferred devices among all age groups for online gambling while those aged under 45 are most likely to use mobiles or tablets to gamble in addition to laptops.

Paul Hope, Gambling Commission programme director, said: “It’s vital that we monitor gambling trends and behaviour across society.

“Reports such as these are essential for us when developing regulations and for the Government when developing public policies on gambling.”

Downloads:

Note to editors

  1. More information about how we regulate the gambling industry.
  2. Useful statistics on the gambling industry.
  3. More information on prevention of money-laundering.

For all media enquiries, please contact the Gambling Commission press office.

Last updated: 23 August 2021

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