Could Banning Credit Cards Be Wrong?

Those in the industry have talked extensively about the ban on credit cards within UK gambling, and while on the face of it the idea seems sound as we look to protect those who perhaps cannot protect themselves.

The Tories however, now with a majority in government, are really coming down hard on the industry including the gamblers themselves.

Now, finally, they have instituted their ban on using credit cards for gambling purposes which, in the interests of balance, could arguably now put pressure on not just the bookmakers and online casinos but also those who want to exercise their right to have a bet in Britain.

Firms such as bet365, in the news again due to their owner and founder being regarded as the country’s biggest contributor to tax, will now have to rely on more than 10million of their customers adopting a new payment method.

With that in mind, here are seven reasons why we think the credit card ban could actually be bad news.

True Implementation of the Nanny State

The credit card ban in Britain is another reminder that, in the western world generally, the “freedom” we supposedly have is constantly trampled upon.

It should not be for the government of the day to be permanently watching our habits like a hawk and then decide en masse what is best for us.

Should we as players and most importantly as customers of a business decide that, for whatever reason, we want to use a credit card to perhaps boost our credit rating then that should be entirely up to us but it seems the government in their infinite wisdom disagrees with this.

It’s Plastic Hypocrisy

Remember during all of this that the ban we’re discussing is only a bad on credit cards, not debit cards. You can still use these instead of paying your household bills and you can still go into whatever overdraft your bank has seen fit to grant you.

So, this rule is a ban specifically on credit card debt or at least the assumption that you will be in debt and not pay it off. The government by implementing this is NOT stopping you from prioritising gambling over managing your debt, it’s just about what type of plastic you choose to use.

They’ve Added Time to Your Day

Gambling is a much-loved pastime in the UK whether people like it or not. This is how some people choose to spend their money and, sometimes we even win!

Having banned credit cards the government have made it so that you must now enter more details and change your payment method which goes against everything we’ve achieved in terms of having the freedom to make very quick online bets when we want to.

It Simply Shifts the Problem

Those who have a gambling problem and get into trouble have a condition that needs to be addressed. It will not be solved by banning such people, as well as the rest of us of course, from using a certain type of card.

If a gambling problem is so embedded in the psyche of a person, they will find other arguably scarier means to find the cash they need to place their bets. If and when this happens, the idea of owing a credit card company some interest over whatever period of time will seem almost insignificant.

You’re Back in the Grip of the Bankers

Britain’s bankers. Remember them? The ones who gambled our money away and then asked us to pay it back via government bail-outs.

Well, by ensuring that their close pals in the Tory government make sure we cannot give our debt repayments to credit card companies or hand a fee gladly to e-wallets and cyber currency providers, we instead have to use our trusty debit card.

Remember as we mentioned earlier, you’ll still be able to use your overdraft. This is DEBT. The difference is that this debt is controlled by our banks and they are once again the ones to profit when you are hit with fines and fees and future high interest.

We’re Regressing, Not Progressing

The Conservative government have recently asked European trading partners not to impose a tariff on UK products. If only there was some sort of collaborative or common market, they could have been part of to stop that happening?

By leaving the European Union, the UK could be dragged back in time and with the ban on credit cards for gambling, their choice, they have removed a payment method we previously had the choice to use. This is prohibition, much like 1920’s America.

Credit Card Bans Are Simply Headlines for the Tory Tabloid Press

We all know how recent votes have been played out in Britain’s press. The lack of impartiality is frankly bordering criminal.

Banning credit cards for gambling purposes appears to be simply another headline grabber for the government, something they can feed to their press who will make it look as though this regime has all of our best interests at heart which, by very definition as proven by the Brexit vote, it does not.