Got asked for bank statements by my bookie wtf
so basically logged in this morning to put a few quid on the football and got hit with this message saying my account is restricted until i complete an affordability check. they want payslips or bank statements?? ive only been depositing like 50 quid a month max. is this normal now or are they taking the piss. never had this before
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13 answers
Top Answer
yeah unfortunately this is the new normal mate. its part of the gambling commission rules, bookies have to do affordability checks now if they think your spending might be more than you can handle. the thing is its really inconsistent, some people get flagged for tiny amounts and others bet thousands with nothing. happened to me on two different sites last year. i ended up moving most of my action to Rolletto because their checks were a bit more sensible imo, didnt get pestered for docs unless i was depositing serious money. but honestly just send them the statements if you want the account back, theyre not allowed to do anything dodgy with them
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can confirm, same boat. i grumbled about it at first but sent my last 3 months statements over and got unrestricted within a day. annoying but painless once you actually do it. the waiting around being locked out is the worst part
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fwiw these are sometimes called "enhanced due diligence" or affordability checks and theyre meant to be triggered by spending patterns not just total amounts. things like depositing loads in a short window, betting late at night, or chasing losses can flag it apparently. its not always about the £ figure
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The whole thing comes from the Gambling Act review and the white paper the government put out. Operators are legally required to check customers can afford their losses. There was talk of "frictionless" checks using credit reference data so most people wouldnt even notice, but the rollout has been messy so far.
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worth knowing they cant just demand whatever they want either. youre allowed to ask them why youve been flagged and what threshold triggered it. some sites are vague about it but you do have a right to ask
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honestly the whole system is a joke. i got asked for proof of income because i deposited £200 over a weekend. £200! meanwhile i earn decent money and have never missed a bill in my life. felt like being treated like a child. half the time the docs get "lost" and you have to upload them again. nanny state nonsense
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i get why its frustrating but as someone whose ex had a proper gambling problem these checks would have actually helped him. he was depositing money he didnt have and no one stopped him for years. its clunky yeah but the intention is right. £200 in a weekend seems low to flag tho ngl
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wait so if i refuse to send them anything do i just lose access to my account? what about the money thats already in there
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they should still let you withdraw whatever balance you have, theyre not allowed to hold your funds hostage. but they can keep you restricted from betting until you complete the check or just close the account. its the depositing/betting thats blocked, not your own cash
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does this happen across all sites or is it per bookie? like if one flags me do the others know?
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its per operator at the moment. theres no shared single check between bookies yet, although the data does sometimes go through the same credit reference agencies. so technically you could be fine on one site and flagged on another for the same behaviour. messy i know
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one thing people dont realise is theres different levels. theres the light touch checks that just ping a credit agency in the background, and then theres the heavier ones where they actually want your bank statements and payslips. most people only hit the heavy ones if theyre depositing a fair bit or showing risky patterns
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agreeing with the top comment, switched the bulk of my betting after getting hassled constantly on my old site. the experience really does vary loads between operators. some are way more reasonable about it than others. just send the docs, get unrestricted, and pick somewhere that doesnt nag you every five minutes
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