A two-way conversation: our plan for communicating with consumers

Sarah H

arrison – Chief E

xecutive

Our recent annual report and business plan described our continued focus on putting consumers at the heart of everything we do. In the business plan we said we would publish a plan for engaging more effectively with consumers. But what does this actually mean in practice? We think it’s a way of doing two key things better:

We also want gambling companies to do more to put consumers at the heart of their businesses. We are doing this by the regulations we set and the way we enforce them against companies.

We see this document as the start of a conversation. It’s not something that we will publish and leave to gather dust. The things people tell us after reading it will help us build on it over time. It may also change as we learn what works and, equally importantly, what doesn’t.

For us, ‘consumers’ are not just those people who are active customers of a gambling company, but any interested member of the public. Someone who does not gamble now may choose to do so in future. And at its extreme, gambling can affect the families and friends of those who have problems controlling it.

We are looking for a wide range of views to make this work, from consumers themselves and all kinds of organisations that represent their interests. We are keen to learn what you think.

ForewordThank you for reading our plan for communicating with consumers. We emphasise to gambling companies the importance of putting consumers at the heart of business culture and practice. That’s all very well, but when encouraging others to do that, we should also be prepared to look at ourselves to see what we can do better.

Information from consumers helps

us understand their needs, gets their

‘voice’ heard and makes better policy

Information helps them solve

their own problems or avoid

harm in the first place

Getting

Giving

1

IntroductionWe were set up to regulate commercial gambling and lotteries in Great Britain. We aim to keep gambling fair and free from crime, as well as protecting the young and the vulnerable from being harmed by gambling. We also license and regulate the operator of the National Lottery, currently Camelot UK Lotteries Limited.

0.5%45%of those surveyed were classed as problem gamblers.

Away from a computer or mobile phone, consumers can gamble in around:

of people say they have gambled in the last month

8,800 betting shops...

600 bingo premises...

...as well as being able to buy National Lottery tickets at shops on every high street.

147 casinos...

Currently, online betting, bingo and casino games have... of the market

share

29%

1,700 arcades...

From our research we know that around...

Britain’s gambling market is very diverse with around 3,000 licensed operators. Our regulation covers companies and individuals offering a variety of forms of gambling including betting, bingo, lotteries (including the National Lottery), arcades and casinos; plus companies providing gaming machines and gambling software. It also includes the largest market for online gambling in the world. Any company that wants to offer gambling to British consumers – regardless of where the company or its equipment is based – must have a licence from us. But, gaining that licence is only the start. We check that the licensed companies are following our licence conditions and rules, taking enforcement action when needed.

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It would be a fair question to ask: “Why should I be interested in what you do?” The answer is that our work directly impacts on many aspects of the public’s gambling experience. For example:

• Our technical standards control the ‘mechanics’ of the games played online and on gaming machines

• Our codes of practice cover the marketing of rewards and bonuses

• There are requirements on gambling companies to combat problem gambling.

In thinking about all of these aspects – and many more including the effect that gambling itself has on consumers – we want to be sure that we understand the outcomes of our work. This is especially important given that the gambling sector is one of rapid innovation and product development.

As an organisation we hear from consumers every day. We want to think more about aspects such as the evidence we have on consumers’ views on gambling and the way they make decisions, and how we should be engaging with them to make sure we provide them with the information and support they need.

Aiming for transparency is a sound principle for any regulator to follow. It is important that we clearly explain what we do and how we make decisions.

Actions:

• We plan to do a consumer interest assessment. This will be an objective look at how well we respond to consumers’ needs and put them at the heart of our work. Knowing where we are now will help us judge the progress we make in the future.

• Effective engagement is about clear communication. There is little point publishing something if readers can’t understand it, or do not see the significance it has for them. We are committing to plain English standards on our website and in published documents.

• We are looking at ways to make our publications more accessible – is the ‘usual’ way we publish a consultation or other document the best one? Different options might include producing summary versions of lengthy documents that are easier to digest. We have also been looking at ways to present information in a more visual way, so that it is more easily shared and publicised via social media.

The effect of our work on consumers

Themes and actions

Our proposed approach to communicating with consumers is based on three themes. Each theme has related actions:

Transparency and clarity1

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The gambling sectors are fast-moving, with rapid innovation and development of new forms of gaming. If we are to regulate effectively we need to keep pace with developments by being responsive to change.

Actions:

• Consumers often come to us when they have a problem with a gambling operator. Sometimes their problems are issues we need to hear about directly because they concern behaviour that might be illegal or break our rules. On other occasions the problem may be one that we require operators to resolve and the consumer should instead follow the operator’s own disputes process, and use an ‘alternative dispute resolution’ body if needed. We expect operators to make sure that their arrangements for dealing with complaints and disputes are easy to understand and work effectively. We recognise that it may not be obvious to consumers who to go to, so we will develop guides and signposting tools to help consumers navigate their way through these problems. We will make these available to everyone on our website.

• We have a strong research base in consumer participation and the extent of problem gambling. We’re looking at ways we can expand that research, including building our knowledge of consumer behaviour. That should help to shape the interventions we make because we’ll better understand what will work, and make our policy decisions more effective.

• Our contact centre handles thousands of calls and emails from consumers every year. These queries are becoming increasingly complex. We will continue to develop the way we handle these contacts, and how colleagues in the contact centre and specialists work together to answer them as well and as quickly as we can.

Other organisations are involved in work which is relevant to our objectives. For example, we work with the local authorities because they are responsible for licensing the individual gambling premises. We want to cast our net wide in both learning from and communicating with consumers. We know that other organisations may have the reach and expertise that we do not, and we can achieve much more by working together.

Actions:

• We host a ‘community liaison group’ that is attended by representatives of consumer organisations, academics, problem gambling treatment providers and others. This group has great value to us, and we will review its remit and membership to make sure it continues to provide the input we need.

• Partnerships can extend the reach we achieve as a regulator and help the work we do be more effective. We will look to build partnerships with consumer organisations that can help relevant information reach those that need it. We also work with other regulators on areas of shared interest and are looking to build on these relationships to increase the impact of our work for the benefit of consumers.

• We will also examine other ways we can gain insight into what consumers think about gambling and the effects it has on them, particularly those that are vulnerable. There are a variety of methods we will explore, including focus groups, setting up an online forum and establishing a consumer panel.

Responsiveness2 3 Forming partnerships

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We already spend a lot of our time talking to consumers and considering how our regulation affects them. We want to build on this, so this consumer engagement policy is asking two questions of ourselves:

• Where we are already engaging with consumers, are there ways we can do this more efficiently so they get the information they need more quickly?

• Are there gaps where we are not hearing the consumer ‘voice’ or is there key consumer information missing?

Collectively, we think the actions in this plan will help us to communicate more effectively with consumers. We are happy to have your input on any aspect, but there are some areas where we would particularly like to know what you think:

• Are there any actions described here that you think should be priorities for us?

• Do you think there are things we could do that are not mentioned here?

• What kinds of organisations do you think we should look to partner with?

Following the publication of this plan the work on our new website will continue, focusing on improving the way we provide information to consumers and how the site is used as a tool to gather feedback on particular issues. We are also planning to review our social media policy to make sure it encourages the two-way flow of information that we seek.

Please email us at:

consumers@gamblingcommission.gov.uk

or write to:

Consumers Gambling Commission Victoria Square House Victoria Square Birmingham B2 4BP

Tell us what you think

More information

Go to our consumer pages

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Gambling Commission Victoria Square House Victoria Square Birmingham B2 4BP

Telephone: +44 121 230 6666 consumers@gamblingcommission.gov.uk

gamblingcommission.gov.uk