This article originates from njsportsbookreview.com.
Patron Protection
All legal and responsible gaming institutions including those of New Jersey go out of their way to encourage betting responsibly. Abusive gambling habits can harm yourself, your family or your friends and work colleagues. The following pages will assist you to gain valuable information about Patron Protection in New Jersey and how to gamble responsibly.
Without exception, all legal Sportsbook operators in New Jersey have undertaken to provide a responsible gaming environment. As part of doing so, they offer punters advice and assistance if or when they find they have a gambling problem.
How to Bet Responsibly
Know When To Stop
The 888sport’s tip “Know when to stop before you start®” probably best reflects the kind of keynote advice you will get from each and every one of the DGE license NJ online sportsbooks.
You should always think of sports betting and gambling as a form of entertainment that you can afford.
Betting should be planned and budgeted for just as you would for a concert, a big football match, an evening out at the theatre or for a dinner date at an exclusive restaurant.
Times When You Should Not Gamble
There are times when you should never gamble. It is illegal to do so while undergoing treatment for addictive disorders or dependencies. Also, gambling when under the influence of drugs or alcohol is unwise because your judgment will be impaired.
Similarly, you should avoid gambling when you are stressed, emotionally angry or depressed and under no circumstances should you gamble in the hope to solve a financial problem.
If you do run into a problem with betting or gambling. Please remember that you can always receive counseling if you contact the Council on Compulsive Gambling New Jersey or the National Council on Problem Gambling.
Set Limits
As is the case with so many things in life, moderation is the key. You should gamble only with money you can afford to lose. Time and monetary limits should be set even before you start to gamble and they should always be adhered to.
The story of the gambler who wins big, but never knows when to stop and loses it all is as old as time itself.
Limits will differ, of course, from person to person, according to their financial situations. However, a player should establish their own limits by developing a set of personal guidelines to determine when and how much to gamble.
Most of the world’s best legal sportsbooks and Casinos – including those in New Jersey – now offer a facility that enables bettors to set limits on their sportsbook accounts (a ‘playing-time limit’, a ‘deposit limit’ and a ‘loss limit’ are the most common) or you can purposefully exclude yourself from gambling for a specified ‘cooling-off’ period or on a permanent basis.
Time Limits
A punter may set daily playing time limits with the sportsbook or books with whom they are wagering with. This means they are automatically notified by pop-ups on their screen when they have reached their limit.
Deposit Limits
A player may also set a limit to the amount they can deposit into their account. They can do this either on a rolling 24-hour, a rolling seven-day or a rolling 30-day period. This means that the player’s deposit limit is calculated by the past 24 hours, 7 days or 30 days – depending on which one you set.
When a player reaches their deposit limit. They will receive a pop-up notification advising them they can no longer make any further deposits into their account until their next rolling daily, weekly or monthly time period begins.
Loss Limits
In order to restrict the amount of money a player loses. They may also set a loss limit.
In this case, the limit can be set for a calendar 24-hour day beginning at 12 am, a calendar 7-day week beginning Monday at 12 am or a calendar month beginning on Day 1 of the month at 12 am
Loss is calculated on the basis of player’s winnings minus his losses during the applicable period. So as soon as his loss limit is reached a pop-up will advise the losing punter cannot play for real money anymore until a new loss-limit period has been set.
Cooling-Off Time
If players wish to take a break from gambling. Most legal gambling operators will officially grant them a ‘cooling-off’ break of between 2, and 6 months
This can be done by email or live chat with your online sportsbook. One of their representatives of the 24/7 customer care facility will help you with this.
During the ‘cooling-off’ period your account will be suspended and your sportsbook or casino will take ‘all reasonable measures’ to make sure the player does not receive promotional offers.
Although a player may withdraw his remaining bankroll during this ‘cooling-off’ period’. The suspension is irrevocable until it ends at which stage the player’s account will automatically be re-opened
Self-Exclusion
If at any stage, a player begins to worry about their gambling habits. They can make a request online to be ‘self-excluded’ for periods of 1 or 5 years.
To permanently self-exclude yourself, you will need to present yourself in person at a brick and mortar location designated by the NJDGE.
When a punter self-excludes themselves, their sportsbook/casino will immediately block their account. Should they attempt to open another account during his spell of self-exclusion that too will be blocked?
When a player self-excludes themselves, the NJDGE is automatically authorized to direct all New Jersey Internet gaming licensed permit holders to restrict the player’s gaming activities in accordance with their request.
The player is only able to remove themselves from the Self-Exclusion List by appearing in person at one of the NJDGE Offices. Alternatively, they can appear in person at the offices of a racetrack associated to the New Jersey Racing Commission.
A warning! A request for permanent self-exclusion is irrevocable, and the player’s account will not be eligible for reinstatement.
if a sportsbook/casino decides there is a strong risk that a player will not gamble responsibly and refuses to self-limit or self-exclude themselves. It reserves the right to exclude such a player from all casino properties and online sites that it owns operates or manages.
Under-age Gambling
It is a criminal offense in New Jersey for persons under the age of 21 to gamble. Also, anyone who assists an under-aged gambler will be considered to have committed a criminal offense. This person may be prosecuted and prohibited from any further Internet gaming.
Protecting Your Children From Under-Age Gambling
Responsible gaming operators make it their business to ensure parents understand the importance of preventing their underage children from gambling online.
To keep online gambling out of the hands of the under-21s. It is recommended that parents install special filtering software that blocks minors from accessing certain websites and programs.
Do You Have A Gambling Problem?
If you think you do, you should not hesitate to seek professional help.
If you are not sure, the following are some questions you might want to ask yourself.
This is not an official psychological or medical test. However, helplines have found these questions to recognize problem gambling:
- Do you take off time from work to gamble?
- Is gambling affecting your home life?
- Do you ever gamble in the hope that it will help you pay off debts?
- Has gambling lowered your life’s expectations and ambitions?
- After a winning wager, do you have a strong urge to try and win some more?
- And after a losing wager, do you have urges to try to win back the money you have lost?
- Do you often gamble until your last cent has gone?
- Have you ever borrowed money or sold personal property to fund your gambling?
- Similarly, have you ever committed or considered committing a crime to do it?
- And would you be able to give up gambling if it threatens your family’s welfare?
Now count your yes answers and if you’re worried you have a gambling problem. Please Contact 1800-GAMBLER
This article originates from njsportsbookreview.com, who offer sportsbook reviews and industry news in New Jersey.