The Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has launched a new mechanism to simplify the process for authorised third-parties to register problem gamblers with the national self-exclusion scheme CRUKS.

Changes are meant to provide persons or guardians authorised by court to manage the finances of others with more legal leverage to put them on the register if problem gambling occurs.

These authorisations are generally made when there are financial problems already occurring in the first place with individuals who are at risk of mismanaging their finances.

Adding them to CRUKS eliminates the possibility of problem gambling exacerbating the issue. Previous mechanisms for authorised guardians to do so have been deemed ineffective and legally cumbersome, the KSA added.

Complaints about the process highlighted an unnecessary volume of evidence to prove that problem gambling is taking place and that it has caused damage, together with slow processing times.

Now, the KSA has made it so that the authorised entity’s judgement carries more weight and therefore reducing the need for additional evidence, in addition to lowering the processing deadline to a maximum of two weeks.

CRUKS is one of the mechanisms that the KSA has at its disposal to combat disruptive gambling behaviours among the Dutch population, with the system launching back in 2021 and coinciding with the introduction of regulated online gambling.

Besides CRUKS, the gambling authority is also managing a specialised fund subsidised directly by the government to provide economic support for projects aimed at reducing gambling harm.

The latest round of funding saw a total of five initiatives receiving grants to develop research, education, prevention initiatives, and policy work to drive relevant advancements within the space.