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Online Gambling sites are all over the web now with a wealth of options to choose from. Whether you want to bet on horses, dogs, sports, play bingo, poker, blackjack or enter a lottery, the choice is vast and it is all made so very easy. Online gambling is particularly prone to excess due to the combination of being available 24 hours a day and the separation between you and the real cash you are spending. Internet gambling addiction is therefore on the increase, and more and more people are suffering as a result of online gambling debts.
This page is intended to provide information about the legal nature of online gambling debts, advice on how to tackle the underlying problem of internet gambling addiction and then how to deal with the actual debts.
There is a lot of confusion about debts from gambling and whether they are enforceable in law. In the UK it is perfectly legal to gamble on credit and be expected to pay whatever you owe afterwards. However, the debt you incur is not enforceable through the law.
Credit in this sense means credit extended by the bookie, casino, etc. Using a credit card to pay money to an online gambling account is NOT considered to be gambling on credit because you are borrowing from the card company, not the gambling company. If you borrow money to gamble, you have to pay that money back to the lender and this IS enforceable through the law.
Some credit cards now treat payments to gambling sites as cash advances, to avoid any doubt about it being credit. This is then clearly borrowing money and the repayment can be chased up through the legal process. The further downside of this is that cash advances on credit cards are always charged at much higher interest rates than normal credit.
In the US a recent law prevents credit cards being used for payments to online gambling websites.
Tackling online gambling debts is a bit of a waste of time unless the source of the problem has been sorted out first. It is vital to take a two pronged approach to the problem of online gambling debt - you need to take action to get rid of the debt as well as taking action to ensure that the same cycle of spending does not occur again.
The following are the main options for dealing with gambling debts. The one that is right for you will depend on your circumstances.
Main Points:
Main Points:
Main Points:
It will also be worthwhile giving some thought to how you manage your spending, in order to help ensure that your finances are kept under control while you are repaying your debts. You will find some very useful advice in the budgeting pages and money saving techniques section.
It is vital that the spending stops first, and to do this you must tackle the underlying problems around the internet gambling addiction or the need to gamble excessively. Please refer to the sections below for help with this.
Factors Leading To Internet Gambling Addiction Can Include:
Can You Answer 'Yes' To Any Of These Warning signs?
Consider the following ways of reducing/stopping online gambling:
Two of the main organisations that exist to help those experiencing problems with gambling are Gamcare and Gamblers Anonymous.
GamCare
Telephone helpline or live online support.
Gamblers anonymous
Read and Share stories with other people experiencing similar problems, and find out how to attend GA meetings.
