EGBA hails KPMG report on consumer protection measures

The European Gaming & Betting Association (EGBA) welcomed the findings of a new report by KPMG, a consultancy and one of the big four accountancy services globally. The report reviewed different consumer protection measures available across a number of online services, including the gambling industry, and established that EGBA members were in general more likely to offer a detailed breakdown of their available consumer protection measures and options, and stick to industry benchmarks.

KPMG’s report established that gambling companies and services that are member of EGBA had robust measures in place pertaining to safer gambling and data protection. The report was commissioned by EGBA and sought to better understand whether gambling companies that stick to the organization’s guidelines for consumer protection are actually able to make an impactful change in the industry.

The report looked into several key areas, including KYC, Customer Safety, Data Protection, AML, and Advertising. KPMG used gambling websites based in the United Kingdom and Denmark as its basis of comparison and analysis, with the two jurisdictions arguably the two strictest regulated gambling markets in Europe right now. To conduct its report, KPMG reviewed the terms and conditions contracts of each of the selected sample websites.

EGBA Secretary General Maarten Haijer welcomed the report and its findings and said that it offered a valuable gauge of the progress that EGBA members have made in ensuring that consumer protection measures are met by all members. Haijer was pleased with the findings and said:

"The findings clearly show that EGBA members have a high commitment to offering their customers a high standard of consumer protection."

The report went info details about each of the surveyed areas. According to KPMG, all websites showed robust KYC procedures in place for both the Denmark and the United Kingdom. All surveyed websites had extensive safer gambling practices, the consultancy added. Data protection was on the expected level.

In terms of AML, most websites had detailed AML practices, albeit two companies were qualified as offering "moderate information" about their AML policies, a small shortcoming. In terms of advertising, all states made it abundantly clear that the data they collect will then be leveraged to offer personalized advertising to consumers.

All in all, KPMG was very happy with the findings and found the gambling companies members of EGBA to have done well. KPMG previously talked about the importance of sustainability in the gaming sector and outlined its pillars in an article contributed to Casino Guru News.

Image credit: KPMG