Minors Can Spend Up to £350 Per Week on the National Lottery – Should The Age Limit Be Increased?
The National Lottery is a very appealing activity for young people in the UK. With the promise of winning a top prize of £500,000 on scratch card games such as Treasure Temple and an even bigger lottery that is promoted each week, you can see why anyone would want to get involved. However, with customers as young as 16 being allowed to participate in the National Lottery, there is certainly cause for concern. Below, we look at what minors are doing and discuss the issue of stricter restrictions and age verification.
Minors Spending £350 Per Week
According to recent reports, children aged 16 and 17 can spend up to £350 per week on the National Lottery and scratch card games. In 2017-18, minors aged 16 and 17 spent £47m on National Lottery games. It was also made clear that two-thirds of this was spent on scratch cards legally purchased in stores across the UK.
While this kind of activity is perfectly legal and enjoyable for young people, it contradicts the UKGC guidelines which prohibit anyone under 18 from engaging in online gambling or gambling at a casino. So, why are those under 18 allowed to purchase scratch cards?
Could There Be Tighter Restrictions?
There have been a few attempts over the years which saw MPs such as Tracey Crouch attempt to increase the minimum age for participation in the National Lottery. However, only recently have we seen a real commitment from the government to address these concerns and review the age limit. Talks which were entitled ‘Gambling Harm – Time for Action” are currently taking place thanks to a report from the House of Lords Gambling Select Committee.
These talks will look at raising the minimum age limit for purchasing National Lottery tickets and scratch cards. This review would aim to make sure that the new age limit is in line with gambling restrictions that operators have to follow.
However, it is worth noting that any changes, should they be pushed through, will not come into effect until at least 2023. Of course, any change in the future is better than what is currently in place. For 25 years now, the minimum age for the National Lottery has been 16 years old. Hopefully, these changes will come into effect as soon as possible.
AgeChecked Age Verification
It appears that while we are getting closer to increasing the minimum age for participation in the National Lottery, we won’t see any strong changes for a while. When the time does come, there must be some consideration to how these new age restrictions will be managed and adequate age verification checks must take place.
In comparison, online casino and betting operators must ensure that they are adhering to all minimum age restrictions that are currently in place. AgeChecked provides advanced software that can maintain compliancy and ensure no customers under the age of 18 are slipping through the cracks. If you are operating in this sector, get in touch with AgeChecked today to find out more.
