Victoria’s gambling watchdog has slapped a whopping AU$4.6 million fine on Australia’s largest betting firm Tabcorp for repeatedly breaching the state’s gambling code.
A Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) investigation found that the company failed to keep a tab on its harm minimization measures spanning 2020 to 2023, resulting in at least one consumer incurring financial losses, ABC reported.
The commission’s probe exposed a troubling lack of accountability on the part of a Tabcorp account manager. The company’s harm monitor detected a possible gambling problem in one of its customers, but the management did not offer sufficient assistance. Rather than addressing the welfare of the individual, they offered the customer a AU$2000 deposit match promotion, as a way to end the welfare call, reported The Advocate.
The commission flagged “systematic” errors in the company’s system and its culture of prioritizing profit over customer well-being. Tabcorp will have to make big changes now to reverse the damage by the end of 2025.
Tabcorp defended itself by saying that it has since launched multiple measures to address the issues, including restructuring its Safer Gambling Team and deploying new technology designed to quickly identify and address problematic gambling behavior.
However, VGCCC held that Tabcorp showed a troubling lack of commitment to responsible gambling practices.
“They could have conducted themselves in many ways – they did not,” said VGCCC chair Fran Thorn. “They (Tabcorp) were observing this. They didn’t act sufficiently.”
Thorn is also calling for a ban on gambling ads on TV, citing the unusually high volume of such ads in Australia compared to other countries. Thorn says TV networks can survive without gambling ad revenue, citing international examples, and urges broader regulatory changes for consumer protection.
