The pubs and clubs are facing a new threat to introduce credit cards to replace cash money when people play poker machines. Patrons would not simply present their Mastercard or Visa card to the machine. It would be more like the Opal card system which is used to pay bus and train fares.
This innovation is designed to curb compulsive gamblers who often dissipate their fortune when they get in the grip of gambling mania. The card system would introduce a control measure where the family of out of control gamblers could limit the amount permitted to be held in card reserve or ban the issue of such cards completely.
This is suggested as an alternative to face recognition cameras in all gambling venues. The purchase and installation of such cameras is an expense that runs to thousands of dollars and people resort to such disguises as dyeing their hair and altering their appearance. It is impossible to keep a close check on patrons when all that is required is money in their pocket to play the machines.
Unfortunately, the problem gambler is often the life blood of individual pubs and clubs. In some instances the management provides free drinks and meals to keep the player at the machines because it is the profits from the poker machines that are keeping the venue solvent. Without poker machines, many of the smaller pubs and clubs would be closing their doors - permanently.
If the card system is introduced there is a fear that it will drive away the typical person who puts the change from paying for a meal through the poker machines. That person would have to have gone to the trouble of registering for a card and have it with them and it removes the spontaneuously accepted urge to " have a flutter " that prompts much of the machine access.
There is a high degree of urgency in this debate. We are slowly coming out of the coronavirus lockdown and it will probably take years to bring unemployment back to pre-virus figures. It is statistically proven that times of high stress increase the number of people who gamble and also increase the size of the wagers they make in a desperate effort to achieve a financial miracle.
That is the problem with linked poker machines. They promise miracles in exchange for a few dollars and few bother to examine the odds. The chance of winning that massive first prize runs in million to one categories and often the machine runs congratulatory music and light displays when your winning roll of the characters pays less than it cost to pull the handle. That display is targetted to keep you playing the machine.
At least using a card instead of money would avoid the impulse to gamble excessively if the card needed to be topped up elsewhere than at any gambling venue. It also raises the question of whether the cards should only apply to poker machines, or be extended to horse racing, casinos and even buying tickets in the various Lotto draws. There would be the further advantage of all forms of gambling being registered, and forgotten winning bets would automatically be credited back to the card,.
Most people gamble sensibly. A minority don't ! The expectation of a big win is all that is necessary to induce some people to make unfortunate decisions. It would help if winnings were not paid out in cash, but merely credited to the card.
It seems we need to protect some citizens - from themselves !
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