Warning signs
- Spending more than you planned, or chasing losses to win them back.
- Borrowing money, or using money meant for bills.
- Gambling to escape stress, or feeling restless when you try to stop.
- Hiding how much you gamble from the people close to you.
- Playing on because a bonus deadline is running, when you would rather stop.
If any of these sound familiar, it is worth pausing now rather than later. Talking to someone helps, and the services below are free.
Tools casinos offer
- Deposit, loss and wager limits cap what you can spend over a day, week or month.
- Session limits and reality checks remind you how long you have been playing.
- Time-outs lock your account for a short break.
- Self-exclusion closes your account for months or years.
Curaçao’s regulator expects licence holders to offer self-exclusion online, without needing the operator’s approval, across every brand under the same licence, with long-term periods of at least a year. Not every casino’s public pages make clear how it does this, so ask support to confirm in writing which accounts an exclusion covers.
Blocking gambling sites
Excluding yourself from one casino does not stop you signing up at another. Gambling-blocking software, and the gambling blocks that some banks offer on cards, add a second barrier that works across every site.
Free, confidential support
- United Kingdom: GamCare’s National Gambling Helpline, 0808 8020 133, available 24 hours a day.
- New Zealand: the Gambling Helpline, 0800 654 655.
- Canada (Ontario): ConnexOntario, 1-866-531-2600.
Support services for other countries and provinces are listed in each country guide.
Bonuses and stopping
A bonus deadline is never a reason to keep playing. Forfeiting a bonus costs you its winnings; stopping costs nothing. If you notice that offers are pulling you back in, switch off marketing emails in your account settings, or exclude yourself.