Help with debt through online gambling sites

[livesey4917]

Hi, Please forgive my babbling post but I have found myself in trouble through an online gambling site.

My wife had an account with an online gambling site which she ran up £40,000 worth of debts through credit cards and loans, after a few conversations with the company i managed to get her account suspended (approx sep 2015) she assured me the account was closed down and she sought treatment for her addiction. Unfortunately after her treatment ended she started the online gambling again and has added a further 20,000 to the debts, my basic question is - After closing an account with reason cited as a gambling addiction/problem, how can they simply re open an account ?

I have tried a live chat but as the account was my wife's I was left facing a dead end.

The company advertise themselves as 'responsible' yet re opening this account is exactly the opposite?

I have now taken full control of bank accounts and we are going together to seek help for my wife's ongoing problem but I find the attitude and information received from the company incredibly poor and unwilling to give any reasonable answers.

Many thanks for your time reading this and any advice would be gratefully received.

Andy

[wales01man]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Have you tried their livechat by using her details to contact them and see if they will help in anyway
They have no way of knowing its you.

Has she sought help for her addiction now

[livesey4917]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

I have thought of trying that but to be honest I will get her to do it, the problem is they have told me already they may not release all the notes, as some is internal information. All sounds a bit suspicious to me but I'm quite raw about it all at the minute.

She saw someone previously and told me it had finished through NHS but Ive found some local meetings that we can both attend to try and help with her problem.

Thanks for your reply

[wales01man]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Get the help its out there and then try to sort the Money side out its obvious you support her remember its only money hopefully she is more important to you than the money.

Plenty of support on here to come

[livesey4917]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

oh absolutely yes I agree, Its the issue that the company is advertising being a responsible company but have acted in my opinion completely the opposite, I would hate to think there have been other people in a similar position with companies that are only looking after their own profits, Thanks again

[Debt Camel]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Which is the company?

Have you installed Gamblock or similar on every PC / tablet / phone that she has access to? If you haven't, it's like expecting an alcoholic to stop drinking when you have alcohol in the house - help her by making it much harder to gamble online.

The debts - are they in accounts in her name? It sounds brutal but what ever you intend to do about these, it is important that she defaults on these debts right now. Do not pay anything to them for the next few months. One of the best ways of trying to prevent this sort of problem in the future is by her having a wrecked credit rating.

If she has been using any accounts in your name, you need obviously to change pins etc. Even if she hasn't, you should consider registering for CIFAS protection to prevent any chance of her taking out credit in your name. https://www.cifas.org.uk/pr_for_individuals. This may sound over the top, but better safe than sorry.

If you do not jointly own a house with equity, you should be seriously considering bankruptcy as an option for her.

[livesey4917]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Company was Jackpot joy and the debts are all in her name. We already consolidated the previous debts into a loan but the extra 20 odd thousand is partly loan and credit cards in her name. I intend to pay off the debts and am not trying to dodge any responsibility. Thanks for your advice

[Openlaw15]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Hi, Please forgive my babbling post but I have found myself in trouble through an online gambling site.

My wife had an account with an online gambling site which she ran up £40,000 worth of debts through credit cards and loans, after a few conversations with the company i managed to get her account suspended (approx sep 2015) she assured me the account was closed down and she sought treatment for her addiction. Unfortunately after her treatment ended she started the online gambling again and has added a further 20,000 to the debts, my basic question is - After closing an account with reason cited as a gambling addiction/problem, how can they simply re open an account ?

I have tried a live chat but as the account was my wife's I was left facing a dead end.

The company advertise themselves as 'responsible' yet re opening this account is exactly the opposite?

I have now taken full control of bank accounts and we are going together to seek help for my wife's ongoing problem but I find the attitude and information received from the company incredibly poor and unwilling to give any reasonable answers.

Many thanks for your time reading this and any advice would be gratefully received.

Andy

This company is regulated by the Gambling Commission and they must abide by a Code of Practice issued by the Gambling Commission under the law. So you could make a complaint to the gambling commission for potentially breaching their licence conditions. http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk...ions/LCCP.aspx. It may also be something that Trading Standards would investigate. If you have a joint owned property, as Debt Camel asks above, you could lose your property if you were made bankrupt. How much equity does your property have? The official receiver (gov official in bankruptcy) could put a charge on your home or sell it under his own powers under law, in which case he has 3 years to do so under insolvency law. Unless any of your wife's creditors have land charges (security for the debt against the property), all the creditors interests are pari passu (ie not secured) so will be cancelled. So, if you declare bankruptcy your property is at risk, but her debts will be cleared. Is bankruptcy suitable?

[Openlaw15]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Company was Jackpot joy and the debts are all in her name. We already consolidated the previous debts into a loan but the extra 20 odd thousand is partly loan and credit cards in her name. I intend to pay off the debts and am not trying to dodge any responsibility. Thanks for your advice

Listen it's not your fault, your wife has unfortunately acquired addictive behaviour. How long has this been going on, has she received help for such as counselling? The gambling company has a responsibility to and for vulnerable persons. If your wife tended to lose substantially more than she won long-term and in consequence made her oblivious to the risks posed when compared to someone else with normal gambling behaviour, it is likely your wife should be considered a vulnerable person. It could be argued that this sort of addictive behaviour is also a disability under the law.

[Noah]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Please do not believe that the gambling commission looks after anyones interest other than the shareholders of gambling companies and of course the government who make a tidy buck out of tax. There is an interesting topic in the Times today on this

I am not sure saying you wife has acquired addictive behaviour is quite accurate, it sounds as if she has acquired a car
I am afraid , just like an alcoholic , only when she is ready for treatment will it be effective. There are however some good people out there. Was the treatment she had at a inpatient rehab centre ?
If you give gam care a call they can refer both you and your wife to help groups, you need to look after yourself as well

[Debt Camel]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Company was Jackpot joy and the debts are all in her name. We already consolidated the previous debts into a loan but the extra 20 odd thousand is partly loan and credit cards in her name. I intend to pay off the debts and am not trying to dodge any responsibility. Thanks for your advice

OK they are Gibraltar registered so I can't see you getting anywhere with a Subject Access Request to see all the information they have on file.

Your wife previously closed her account with them - did she ask to be permanently excluded? If she did, then you should ask them to refund her losses, which you can then use to repay the debts.

If they refuse, you don't have many good options. Complaining to the Gambling Commission is likely just a waste of your time.

I was serious when I said you need to install gambling blocking software and also that her credit rating needs to be wrecked. Default on the debts for at least 3 months. After that you can repay them if you want, but the important thing is she needs a poor credit rating so she can't get more money to gamble with.

[Noah]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Hi
I am not sure how relevant it is but i believe that for at least the last year even off shore businesses have to be licensed ( and therefore pay) with the gambling commission . Might be worth looking into

I would agree with debt camel about getting blocking software, your ISP might well provide it although if she is intent on gambling she will find a way around it
I think short term the options are
1) Deprive her of money so that there is nothing to gamble with however if the compulsion is that strong she will find ways to raise money
2) Tough love, now what that might be I will not say as it would be up to you

I am not advocating a course of action just trying to offer some alternatives

[Openlaw15]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Hi
I am not sure how relevant it is but i believe that for at least the last year even off shore businesses have to be licensed ( and therefore pay) with the gambling commission . Might be worth looking into

I would agree with debt camel about getting blocking software, your ISP might well provide it although if she is intent on gambling she will find a way around it
I think short term the options are
1) Deprive her of money so that there is nothing to gamble with however if the compulsion is that strong she will find ways to raise money
2) Tough love, now what that might be I will not say as it would be up to you

I am not advocating a course of action just trying to offer some alternatives

They are, under the 2014 Act.

[Noah]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Livesey

I have been giving your comments some thought and I am afraid that they do not really offer you mush hope.
You said that the account was suspended, to be honest that fact that you managed to do that for an account in someone else's name is quite remarkable , unless you had legal authority to act on her behalf

In my opinion, sadly, in a liberal western economy the onus is on the individual to monitor and maintain their own health and condition and I think you would have a serious uphill battle to get it recognised as a disability.

To give you some idea of how the governments view this, the Gambling Act (2005) liberalised the restrictions placed on gambling. Two surveys were done , one in 2007 and one in 2010 . One method of assessment showed significant increases in the numbers of problem gamblers , as much as 30% which suggest that there are up to 600,000 adults in Britain who are problem gamblers yet the government continue to do nothing about it.
I wish you luck

[Openlaw15]

Re: Help with debt through online gambling sites

Please do not believe that the gambling commission looks after anyones interest other than the shareholders of gambling companies and of course the government who make a tidy buck out of tax. There is an interesting topic in the Times today on this

I am not sure saying you wife has acquired addictive behaviour is quite accurate, it sounds as if she has acquired a car
I am afraid , just like an alcoholic , only when she is ready for treatment will it be effective. There are however some good people out there. Was the treatment she had at a inpatient rehab centre ?
If you give gam care a call they can refer both you and your wife to help groups, you need to look after yourself as well

I used the term in an academic context - as i have studied psychology I understand the various forms of addiction etc. What I meant by acquired is that the addiction is more likely than not learnt behaviour and developed over time rather than being born with addictive behaviour. I am saying it's not her fault per se.