Australian online bookmaker VicBet has been fined $130,000 by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) for targeting customers with prohibited offers.
VicBet Fined for Sending Bonus Offers to Self-Excluding Customer, the fine was issued following an investigation which revealed that the had breached its licensing conditions.The breaches included:
- Offering bonus credit to a user that requested their account be closed
- Sending promotional materials to self-excluding customers.
In the first breach VicBet offered a $1,800 bonus bet to a customer. This was after the customer had requested that their account be closed. The customer accepted the offer and was provided with the bonus credit. It’s an offence to encourage a customer to keep an account open by offering free credit or bonuses. The VGCCC fined VicBet $50,000 for this breach.
The second breach saw the company send gambling promotional material on multiple occasions to a customer who had previously permanently self-excluded from VicBet. This contravenes the Victorian Bookmakers’ Association Code of Conduct. The penalty for this breach was $80,000.
VicBet Fined for Sending Bonus Offers to Self-Excluding Customer VicBet Fined for Sending Bonus Offers to Self-Excluding Customer VicBet Fined for Sending Bonus Offers to Self-Excluding CustomerOn these occasions, VicBet failed to live up to both its legal and social licences to operate, which include minimising the risk of harm to customers.
Industry must respect the wishes of people who decide to have a break from, or quit, gambling. This means taking all reasonable steps to enforce harm prevention initiatives that customers commit themselves to, such as self-exclusion programs.”
This fine means that the total fines issued in 2025 has now reached $8,613,232 / £7,039,786 in less than a month.
