Crown Melbourne Fined AU$2M for Allowing Self-Excluded Persons Casino Access

Posted on: October 15, 2024, 02:06h. 

Last updated on: October 15, 2024, 02:41h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Crown Melbourne has been fined AU$2 million (US$1.34 million) after government-appointed monitors detected the casino allowed at least 242 people who had previously self-excluded themselves from the property’s gaming floor access to its slot machines and table games.

Crown Melbourne self-exclusion Australia casinos
Crown Melbourne has been fined AU$2 million for failing to keep self-excluded gamblers off its casino floor. The penalty was handed down by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission. (Image: News Corp. Australia)

The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) announced the financial penalty on Tuesday. The state gaming regulator said the violations occurred between October 2023 and May 2024.

Those who self-exclude must be able to trust that gambling providers will take all reasonable steps to enforce their decision to avail themselves of this harm prevention initiative,” said VGCCC Chair Fran Thorn. “By allowing people who have self-excluded to enter the casino and gamble, Crown has put them at risk of experiencing further gambling harm.”

While Thorn said Crown’s safeguards in preventing self-excluded individuals from accessing the casino’s pokies and tables proved inadequate, the chief gaming regulator recognized that many of the individuals who unlawfully bypassed the entry gates went to “considerable lengths to avoid detection and break their exclusion requirements.” 

Latest Regulatory Shortcoming

Crown Resorts, the Australian casino giant that owns and operates Crown Melbourne, continues to strengthen its corporate structure and improve its efficiencies in meeting regulatory obligations. The company’s overhaul came after state inquiries in Victoria, New South Wales, and Western Australia found that Crown had done little to prevent money laundering at its casinos. The cleansing of dirty money was largely linked to organized crime and Chinese triads.

Though Crown retained its gaming licenses in each jurisdiction, Crown’s majority owner, Blackstone Group, paid $450 million in fines and invested $130 million to update the firm’s regulatory defenses.

In announcing the $2 million fine, Thorn said Crown Melbourne since May had taken steps to improve its entrance security. She said the casino has strengthened its policing of exclusion lists and implemented new monitoring compliance procedures.

Thorn ordered Crown to commission a third-party security firm to “assess the effectiveness of, and make recommendations for improving, the management of its self-exclusion program.”

Thorn said the $2 million fine was warranted under the Australia Casino Control Act of 1991.

Problem Gambling Rampant

Australia is considered one of the most irrational gaming populations. Nearly 75% of the adult population gambles at least once a year, with nearly four in 10 gambling weekly.

A 2022 government study concluded that over 70% of men and 56% of women aged 18-34 were “at risk” of experiencing gambling harm.

In response to the alarming data, in 2023, the Australian Government launched its first national self-exclusion registry called BetStop. Since debuting in August 2023, more than 28K people have registered with BetStop, with 35% signing up for self-imposed lifetime bans.

BetStop offers varying self-exclusion times from three months to a lifetime.

Those who self-exclude can rescind their participation by applying to the Australian Communications and Media Authority, which facilitates the registry, demonstrating that the individual has sought help in overcoming their gambling addiction. Self-excluded individuals can only apply for revocation after being on the prohibited person list for a minimum of three months.