Staying in control of play at BetWest
1. What our site says about gambling
1.1 Entertainment, not income
Our responsible gaming page states that gambling is entertainment and not a way to earn money, and that a player should risk only what they can afford. We repeat it here because the offers on our site are priced in play: a first welcome step on £100 asks for £7,000 of play.
1.2 Time and money
That page also asks players to watch two things in every session: how long they have played and how much they have spent. The cashier history lists every deposit and withdrawal, so the amounts can be read back after the session.
1.3 A budget set against our figures
Set the budget before you read an offer, then test the offer against it. With £50 for the week, the first welcome step on £100 is already out of reach, and the fourth step, which asks for £525 a day for 10 days on £100, is further out of reach still. The offer does not change the budget.
2. Recognising a warning sign
2.1 Questions to ask yourself
Does gambling interfere with work or study? Does it cause problems with a partner or family? Do you play to win back what you have lost? Does it leave you anxious or low? A yes to any of these is a reason to pause.
2.2 What a yes means
Stop the session, leave the balance where it is and speak to someone: our support team, a person you trust or one of the organisations in clause 5.
2.3 Numbers that add pressure
An open bonus carries figures that can push a player to stake more than planned. On a deposit of £100 at the first welcome step, the play required at 35 times deposit and bonus is £7,000, which over 10 days means £700 each day. A player for whom that is not a reasonable daily amount should decline the step. Declining the step is never a reason to chase.
2.4 Signs seen in the session
Playing for longer than you meant to, raising stakes to recover a loss, depositing again within minutes of a withdrawal and leaving the account open on a phone all day are signs that a session is no longer under control. The cashier history shows how often you deposit, so read it at the end of each week.
2.5 A second opinion
Tell one person how much you spent last month. If saying the figure aloud is uncomfortable, treat that as a reason to review the budget.
3. Slowing down
3.1 Fix the budget first
Decide the amount and the time before you open the site, and keep to them. A budget set after a loss is a reaction. Write the amount and the end time down before you start, because a figure you can see is harder to move than one you remember.
3.2 Decline an offer
You may decline a welcome step by telling our live chat before you pay. A step begins with the deposit, so the decision must come first.
3.3 Rewards are not a reason to stake
Coins are credited at 5% of deposits and 10% of bets, and Challenges, the Shop, tournaments and the Wheel of Fortune reward activity. A reward does not make a stake sensible, and a task that asks for 150 spins is optional.
3.4 Use the breaks the schedule gives
Weekly and weekend offers, and tournaments that run for days, are built to bring a player back. Choose the days on which you play and leave the others alone, even when a reload or a tournament card is open.
3.5 Read the history
The cashier history lists every deposit and withdrawal. A rising count of deposits in a week, or a deposit made soon after a withdrawal, is a reason to stop and review the budget.
4. Stopping
4.1 Self-exclusion by request
To close your account, write to our support team at [email protected]. The request is the instruction, and you do not need to give a reason.
4.2 Your responsibility afterwards
After self-exclusion it remains your sole responsibility to make sure that no further account is opened.
4.3 What to put in the message
State the account name, say that you ask for self-exclusion and name any period. Keep the reply.
4.4 A shorter break
If you want a shorter pause rather than a closure, say so in the message and name the length. Do not return to the site during that time. If you are unsure whether a pause is enough, choose the closure.
5. Independent help
5.1 GAMSTOP
GAMSTOP is a free self-exclusion service that blocks access to licensed UK online gambling sites and apps. It is run independently of us, and a registration can be extended from the GAMSTOP account.
5.2 GamCare and the National Gambling Helpline
GamCare offers consultation and practical help, and support in Great Britain is available at any hour. It is independent of us, and you do not need to tell us that you have called.
5.3 Gamblers Anonymous and Gambling Therapy
Gamblers Anonymous offers support from other people who have gambled, with groups in many countries. Gambling Therapy offers counselling services online.
5.4 How to use them
Contact one of these services before you deposit again, not after. GAMSTOP covers licensed UK sites, so a request to us for self-exclusion stays useful beside it.
6. Minors and shared devices
6.1 If a minor has used an account
Tell our support team by email. Registration is prohibited under 18, and winnings of an underage player are cancelled.
6.2 Keeping devices apart
Net Nanny, the filter our site recommends, can keep gambling sites off a device that a child uses; it is set on the device, not on the account.
7. Talking to us
7.1 Live chat
Live chat is open 24 hours a day. It suits a question about a limit, a break or a bonus step, and it is the quickest way to ask us to explain a figure on an offer before you accept it.
7.2 Email
Email suits a request that needs a record, such as self-exclusion.
7.3 Our commitment
We answer a request about play controls on its own terms, and we do not attach an offer to the answer.
8. Keeping these figures current
8.1 When it changes
If a figure here changes on the site, we correct the page. The 35-times condition, the 10-day period and the coin rates are checked against the offers in the account.
8.2 Reporting a mistake
If a figure here differs from your account, write to [email protected] and name the figure. We reply when the page has been corrected.