Bank gambling blocker didnt work

Hi I'm lea I can relate, so I was in a horrible relationship for 10 where I was told what I could and couldn't do, when the relationship ended I was free to do what I liked and gambling was one of them, did notice it was starting to cause financial problems so signed up with one of theses companies that ban you from gambling on UK sites, but then I came across other sites... never received my winnings... it's new year my kids think iv got a problem I didn't see it as a problem I enjoy it, well I played tonight and I lost the money, I adore my children and I want to stop for them, I have got a money box so everytime I get the urge to gamble its going to start going into a money box, after 2 months I want to see how much I'm actually spending. In terms of you using a credit card is there no feature on mobile banking where you can block using gambling sites? 

You can try and press a complaint with the bank but they'll likely only reimburse a tiny percentage and there's a high probability that they'll blacklist you and close your bank account.

Not really worth it imo 

@3y9voe5ub8 

Yeah im worried about being black listed. 

Now ive got gamban i feel safer like I needed something physical to help be stop. Before this i was so low and full of regret I didn't see the bigger picture. Im not taking away from it being my own responsibility and mistake but if a person puts safeguarding like a blocker in place they're identifying an issue which makes them vulnerable. Banks have a responsibility to their customers amd of gam ban has the software to identify all sites then banks could use that software too. Regardless of the outcome with the bank I think it needs sorting out 

They won’t black list you as that’s discrimination.

Google it.

Take care

@0s5l8jyxu7 

Thank you, I have researched it and it seems they cant. Im not overly hopeful about getting anything back but now im out of the hole I was in, I think they need to be held accountable. Im going to take it to the ombudsmen too and then the fca. I just think if gam ban and other support systems can identify all sites then banks should be able to do the same. They hide under the guise of merchants not reporting to be gambling sites but as I said before if other technology can identify these sites then banks should invest in that tech too. I am lucky in a sense that although I have a large amount of debt bow, I am managing it. Others are not so fortunate. When I person puts a blocker on they should automatically be deemed as vulnerable so more should be done to safeguard people. 

Yeah I am in exactly the same situation. I was so happy that I’d finally be free from it only to make the same mistake. To find ways around it is so detrimental.
Ive put in a complaint to my bank but im not hopeful tbh. I think they might offer me £60 or something along those lines. 

im not taking it any further. to stressful. 
sorry to hear you had the same situation.

I hope you get something.

Take care,

Lucy

i do agree the banks should be more aware and more check need to be carried out however saying this if u were blocked on a legal gamblimg site example bet 365 and u manage to some how able to gamble you would legally have a case whereas if u gambled in bookies casino and u did manage to gamble u will only be able to collect and worst case any winnings will not be paid out which in my eyes alot worse

I think if they promise blocks it should work. That’s my argument anyway. Not sure they’ll buy it. They might just think she just wants money to gamble again. I’m yet to find out. The waiting games is awful as you can probably relate I like things instant which is probs why I got into gambling. The win/loss is instant. Not taking about pay outs as that unfortunately depends on which site used. They should all be the same in my opinion. It lowers expectations if you go on one and can’t withdraw fast it’s like why didn’t I know this 😩 

I’m slowly admitting I have a problem and I’m trying to stop. It’s so hard. Like you got all blocks in place now. My friend said please stop gambling It actually helped.

im sure a few gamblers can relate to wanting money back and its so difficult. The bank should outline when have the appointment (it should be an appointment) everything you can and carnt use. They should be more serious about gambling rather than blazay “oh yeah it’s in place now” blah blah. I could still use payments 😩. I think I would have been taking more serious if I had an appointment.

All the best,

Lucy

@0s5l8jyxu7 

Hi lucy,

Im totally on the same mind set as you. Im not diminishing my responsibility but in any other circumstances this would never happen. Ive had a reply from the bank and they acknowledge that I was able to gamblendispite the block but state that as the sites that I was on did not classify as gambling merchants the block did not work. Ive done a bit of research and my argument is this should be explained at the point of blocking so that people can put further blocks in place as the average person would assume that gambling sites would always classify as a gambling merchant! It shouldn't take someone hitting rock bottom to find out all of this information. 

Ive gone to the ombudsmen im not hopeful but ill let you know how I get on.

Plus there is software out there that blocks all gambling which I have now discovered with gam ban, so banks should work harder to safeguard their customers. 

Im feeling a lot better now but still desperate to sort my debts out. I work a pretty heavy job but looking for weekend/evening work to try get it paid off quicker. 

Im so P****d off with myself but I shouldn't have been able to get to this point in the first place. Lucy I think with gambling there needs to be physical barriers stopping the gambling gamban has really helped me. And even if I start thinking about gambling ive not tried to get round the block ive just come on here and had a read.

I hope youre doing ok, we can do this and in time things will get better 

Posted by: @43x79odb1l

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Hi all,

I realised I had a problem a long time ago and went on gam stop and self excluded from alot of the uk sites. As soon as my year was up I was back on the sites before banning again. Then came the not on gamstop sites. Initially I had a few big wins but the started losing alot. I went through the cycle of self exclusion, signing up to a new site, self exclusion and so on. I put a blocker in my bank and credit card but soon found that I would still pay on my credit card so have ended up in a substantial amount of debt. 

My question is how come the bank doesn't pick on these sites as gambling sites when that is clearly what they are promoted as. And if Gamban can identify these sites, why cant the bank? Initially I blamed myself and still do to and extent but after speaking about it it was highlighted that I had tried to safeguard myself and those safeguards failed. It wasn't u til I found Gambian that I feel completely protected from myself.

 

 

Has anyone here had any positive outcomes in complaining to the bank about the safeguards failing? Has anyone managed to get any reimbursement at all? 

 

Hopefully but doubtful 

Hi, 

The reality with gambling is that there will always be a way, a block on a card leads to another card being ordered or another bank account being opened, or money taken out at a cash machine being used in betting shops. Today unlike 10-15 years ago it is exponentially harder to get rid of such an addiction as avenues to fuel it are everywhere and will never stopped being opened. I have first hand experience, I signed up on my 18th birthday and hit big and that was the unluckiest I ever got I then proceeded to lose money and signed up for gamstop and blocked all my cards, My year of gamstop ended and I unblocked my cards and within a month I was back in gamstop and my cards were blocked, thankfully you can IP address ban yourself but this also happened too late at this point I had accrued debt and went into a depressive state when life should have been getting better I was left behind and constantly having to say no to fun things because I was paying back debt, I got debt free and off online gambling, crypto casinos, cards are banned and decided to have a cheeky bet in a betting shop. The true solution is you have to fight yourself everytime you get the urge you have to fill it with a disctraction, a replacement for the dopamine whether that be getting up and going for a run or the gym or posting on here, a gambling addiction cannot be cured it must be replaced with an addiction to something positive and a constant uphill battle with the way your brain wires itself after that first bet telling you 'just another deposit it wont hurt' or 'you lost last time now you must win'. This battle is a tough one but a block put in place by your mind to stop that dopamine addiction from creeping back in and taking that downwards path back to the place none of us want to be. I hope you remain gamble free its the best thing you will ever do.

@t5e6inuj4p 

Thank you. 

Yeah its a dark place to be in. I do feel so much more positive now and im not gambling ever again. Not even a scratch card. Im just trying to recoup some of the losses because I actually didn't cancel the block. Im not hopeful but I feel like even questioning the system officially is helping me process everything and see the gambling world for what it is.