Endeavour’s ALH Group has been ordered to pay more than half a million dollars in penalties over “serious” breaches of Victoria’s pre-commitment scheme.
Prompted by an anonymous tip-off, the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) carried out an inspection ‘blitz’ of ALH venues across Victoria.
This resulted in 220 non-compliant gaming machines being identified and turned off and the regulator charging ALH in November with 62 counts of failing to ensure YourPlay was properly installed on gaming machines across 62 of its 77 venues in the state.
Holding a portfolio of more than 340 pubs, ALH is Australia’s largest pub operator and largest operator of electronic gaming machines.
YourPlay is the statewide pre-commitment scheme allowing players to set time and loss limits. It is mandatory for YourPlay to be available on all EGMs in Victoria.
The VGCCC drove a prosecution, arguing the gravity of the charges given the important role the YourPlay scheme plays in Victoria, and that this should be a primary factor in sentencing.
The Magistrate’s ruling dubbed the breaches “serious and wilful” but noted the group’s early guilty plea and cooperation with the VGCCC, which were factors in reducing the final penalty.
ALH was fined $550k for operating the 220 machines without YourPlay installed, plus ordered to pay VGCCC’s legal costs of $50k. It had faced a maximum fine of $1.35 million for the penalties.
The VGCCC encourages information from the public, allowing communication over concerns regarding a gambling provider via its complaints and ‘tip-offs’ page.
It welcomed the result of the process with ALH, suggesting providers must remain vigilant regarding their obligations.
“This outcome demonstrates the VGCCC’s commitment to pursuing those operators who opportunistically or deliberately contravene their obligations to protect the community from gambling harm,” stated VGCCC CEO Annette Kimmitt AM.
