Merkur fined after self-excluded player visited casino nine times

The Netherlands' gaming regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has fined Merkur Casino €45,000 (£39,589/$49,763) for allowing a self-excluded player to enter its casino premises in the municipality of Almere.

KSA said that the player was granted access to the Merkur Casino nine times. These incidents took place between 17 February 2022 and 2 March 2022. The player was registered with the Netherlands’ self-exclusion register Cruks.

This infringes upon article 30, paragraph 1.b of the Netherlands’ gaming law, KOA.

When attempting to check the player’s self-exclusion status, employees at the casino received an error message that prevented them from viewing whether the player was registered with Cruks.

On 23 March the player wrote to the regulator to inform them that they had been allowed to enter Merkur Casino in Almere, despite being registered with Cruks. The following day, after following up with the player, KSA began an investigation into the incidents.

It was revealed that the player had signed up to Cruks on 16 October 2021 for a period of one year. This self-exclusion was set to expire on 15 October 2022.

Financial penalty

At the close of the investigation, KSA decided to impose the €45,000 fine.

KSA said that Merkur was given the opportunity to contest the publication of the sanction on 24 November 2022. Although Merkur submitted the contestation on 11 January 2023, ultimately, the sanction was made public.

An appeal can be lodged against the sanction.

Last month, KSA launched an updated version of Cruks, which made it easier for players to temporarily self-exclude.

Original Article