Should banks have a duty of care?

I don't think there's anything banks could possibly do. If someone wants to gamble they can use many different forms of payment & banks aren't around to babysit people's money.

There will always be a way to gamble for those that wish to & nothing a bank could do could stop it in my opinion.

Man I definately know what you mean, why can't a bank or building society acknowledge a customers plight to have the amount of cash available to them restricted or not to release payments to certain places?

How else could they gamble fatuesque?

At the end of the day, a few banks recognise that shopping addiction is a problem and are trialing limits to stop people who have this sort of problem. So why should it not be done for gambling addicts?

What if someone doesn't have anyone who can manage their money? Or what if the person managing someones money is a pushover?

All money gambled online or offline would go through someones bank account so surely having a limit on their account set would help stop cravings (knowing they cant gamble at all would prevent thoughts of gambling).

I know this too well from experience as well. In the last year I lost, through slips around £20,000. The biggest loss in 1 session was around £7000. All slips were sudden impulse, not something I fully planned before but just a spur of the moment thing. Had I been able to set myself limits to £50 a week on my debit card, there is no way I would have caused as much damage or had the slips because when I slip, I often think "it's ok, if I lose £100 because I have another £500 in my bank to try and win it back". Not being able to deposit the money to begin with would have helped me greatly

Hi all

Thank you for this useful topic. We have moved it to the debates and discussions section.

Best wishes

Forum Admin

Shopping addiction gambaling addiction same thing really
So if they're trialling it for shopping addiction the same format could be used for someone with gambaling addiction could it not?

Bank's won't jump over their selves to offer what you're asking because transaction fee's is how they make their cash it's worth 6 billion a year to each bank I believe.
Basically every time customer makes a transaction the bank gets paid a fee from the recipient
It's why the offer free accounts and pay you interest.

Bank's love you making transactions.

Maybe look at having a notice of correction on your credit report which states you don't want to be considered for any credit?
That way as they have to check your eligibility they won't add anything unwanted

Bw
Deano

You ask "How else could they gamble"

They could "borrow" money under false pretences from anyone and everyone. They could steal from friends, family, your business. They can pawn everything they can get their hands on for some cash. The list goes on and that is just my personal experience.

Then who do I blame and ask to help my son stop gambling?

Banks are in business to make money and are not a social service.

Sorry if I sound bi***y but over the 10+ years of dealing with my son I have heard all the retoric and from my end it's just one more person/thing to blame.

Cathyx

Hi Everyone

Its an interesting one this. Banks should help more but they cant and wont really. Their products arent really set up to help and monitor us in that way. Ultimately they dont care what you spend or where you spend it as long as they arent at risk. They will ultimately take you to court for an unauthorized overdraft but the computers will prevent withdrawals long before it worries the bank too much

Also admitting to your financial institition that you are not in control can be risky. If they think you arent stable it can affect your relationship with them.

Thet see it as the thin end of the wedge and they arent really there to tell you how to spend. They also make money from overdraft fees and they wont pay staff to run a nanny service as they might see it

They wouldnt reduce my cash withdrawal limit when I casually told them I had a spending problem. I didnt really want to admit to a full on gambling problem...maybe that was my error

As we all know and its already been said...they are really not a social service...they are a business....they charge interest on what you borrow and fees on anything you do wrong.

The answer is NO overdraft facilities and that should be shut down as soon as possible. I dont have the possibility of an overdraft and I dont want one. I have a small credit card which is monitored and the limit kept very low even when they try and raise it

The answer is in other blocks or finding a way not to know the security number on bank cards. The answer is not being able to access the cash machine and living on an allowance monitored by family and people close.

Best wishes to everyone on the forum

Hi,

An interesting question. When i was at my gambling worst i would ask the bank for a bigger overdraft (authorised), a loan (authorised), increased cc limit (authorised).

All with no questions asked as to why i needed extra. No questions on how i was going to pay all this back but when it all went wrong they wanted there monies ASAP.

Even with Stepchange they (Lloyds) tried to be difficult but eventually relented

Now i have one card with a debit facility and cash withdrawal facility with a different financial institution.

Perhaps credit was to easy to get.

Best wishes

Banks aren't there to babysit. Where would they draw the line anyway given the amount of potentially harmful substances/activities available? The answer is as JD says to have an account with strictly no OD facilities. Several banks offer theses basic accounts because they have to but they won't tell you about them because they don't make anything on them.

Agree with Bal though. Mr L was able to lay his hands on eye watering amounts in loans and credit cards with no questions asked and he was able to do it all over again within a few months of everything being closed down all of which was noted on his credit reports. Why this rang no alarm bells is entirely beyond me and IMO that's where their system is falling down. Not that they'll do anything about it. Snouts way too deep in the trough.

The buck stops with you. What are you doing about it? Blame the bank, blame the evil bookie, blame mummy & daddy or your terrible opportunities in life. Where does that get you? A pity party. You & only you can change this. Spend less time looking to blame & more time on your part in this & maybe you will see progress.

I think banks should definitely do more. They seem happy to increase credit limits on credit cards when it's obvious that all the spending is going on gambling. There's not much they can do about debit cards, but I don't think it's right that they increase credit limits so easily - I don't think gambling transactions should be allowed on credit cards.

day@atime wrote: The buck stops with you. What are you doing about it? Blame the bank, blame the evil bookie, blame mummy & daddy or your terrible opportunities in life. Where does that get you? A pity party. You & only you can change this. Spend less time looking to blame & more time on your part in this & maybe you will see progress.

Your right, blaming elsewhere is the easy way out. We all know deep down we only have ourselves to blame and it's only us who can change.

andyrr wrote:

I think banks should definitely do more. They seem happy to increase credit limits on credit cards when it's obvious that all the spending is going on gambling. There's not much they can do about debit cards, but I don't think it's right that they increase credit limits so easily - I don't think gambling transactions should be allowed on credit cards.

Yes thats a very interesting point. You wouldnt have thought in a right minded society that gambling transactions would NOT be allowed on a credit card.

Its a statement that I do irresponsible things with borrowed money which is doubly dangerous. To borrow money to gamble with should set the alarm bell ringing on the wall

Its odd but not if you consider that credit card companies play a game of risk and do actually like customers with a heavy debt to pay back. They like raising limits and they like debt. They actually dont like the people who pay it off every month. They have created this money out of thin air so look forward to the interest and legitimisation of a large debt

I have read the payday loan companies will accept gambling debts as a reason to borrow which also seems very strange.

Unfortunately it seems that the finance companies are not on our side. They should be more responsible

Best wishes

I have gone through a similar thing. I maxed my £800 overdraft on online gambling, so took out a 2nd account with a £2,000 overdraft that I quickly maxed.

Next I took a loan, for £8,000 - lost it and upped the loan to £13,000 - lost that too.

This was all in the space of a couple of weeks and all completed online, usually in the early hours.

Yes, I did it all myself. I am responsible for my own actions and I am now working 2 jobs to pay it all off ASAP and have an 18-month plan to be debt free and start saving to buy a house, although my credit rating will also need some work.

However, I was in a vulnerable and volatile place, and the bank could see where each piece of credit I was given went into online gambling sites. I would consider it irresponsible lending.

Safeguards should be in place.

I still have the itch to gamble and each month when I get paid I pay off as much of my debt as I can afford immediately to empty my account so that I can't blow all my money again. There have been one or two mishaps although I am not doing too bad.

For anyone that's interested, I try to control it by allwoing myself a £1 bet each day, so I can still feel the buzz/stress/tension whatever you wanna call it.

These £1 bets have potential payouts of anything from £5 to the £10,000 I need, depending on what mood I am in each day.

Good luck to all out there, it's only money at the end of the day remember, there are still people that love you and need your love in return.