Responsible Gaming at XL Casino

Our commitment: gambling is entertainment, not a way to make money

We treat our games as paid entertainment, in the same way as a cinema ticket or a meal out. Every game we offer carries a built-in advantage to the house, so over time play is expected to cost you money rather than earn it. Any single session can end in a win, but no system, stake pattern or run of results changes the long-run maths.

Most people who play with us stay within their means. A smaller number find that gambling stops being a choice and starts costing more time and money than they can afford. We would rather you played less and stayed in control than played more and came to regret it, so the tools described below are free, always available and never treated as a reason to question your account.

Before you deposit, decide what you can comfortably afford to lose and treat that figure as the price of the entertainment:

• Set your budget from money that is left over after rent or mortgage, bills, food and other commitments.
• Never gamble with borrowed money, credit, or funds set aside for something else.
• Decide in advance how long you will play for, and stop when that time is up rather than when the money runs out.
• Do not raise your stakes to win back losses. A loss is the cost of the session, not a debt waiting to be recovered.
• Keep gambling as one activity among several, and take regular breaks from it.
• Never play while under the influence of alcohol, or when you are angry, bored or upset.

The tools in your account and how to switch them on

Your account includes a set of controls that cap what you can deposit or lose, limit how long you play, and lock the account altogether if you want a break. You can use one tool or several at the same time, and you do not need to give a reason for setting any of them.

Switching a tool on

1. Sign in to your account.
2. Open the safer gambling section of your account menu.
3. Choose the tool you want and the amount or period that suits you.
4. Confirm the change; you will see it on screen and receive an e-mail confirmation.
5. If you would rather we set it up for you, ask on live chat or write to support@casinoxl.co.uk.

When changes take effect

A new or tighter limit applies immediately. A request to raise or remove a limit is held for the cooling-off period shown in your account and then needs confirming, so a decision made in the moment cannot take effect in the moment. Time-outs and self-exclusions cannot be shortened or cancelled once they begin, and we will not accept a new registration from you while one is running. During a self-exclusion we remove you from marketing lists and take reasonable steps to block attempts to open another account.

Signs that gambling may be becoming a problem

Problem gambling develops gradually, and the people closest to it are often the last to see it. Go through the list below honestly. If several points sound familiar, it is worth using a limit or a time-out and speaking to one of the organisations in the next section.

• You spend more time or money on gambling than you intended, and more often than you planned.
• You chase losses, raising stakes to get back to where you were.
• You gamble with money meant for bills, rent, food or family.
• You borrow, sell things or use credit to fund play.
• You hide your gambling from your partner, family or friends, or lie about how much you have spent.
• Gambling gets in the way of work, study, sleep, relationships or things you used to enjoy.
• You feel restless, anxious or irritable when you try to stop or cut back.
• You gamble to escape stress, loneliness or low mood rather than for enjoyment.
• You feel relief when you are playing and guilt or regret afterwards.

Our own team may also contact you if activity on your account suggests you may be at risk, and we may apply limits or close an account where we judge it necessary to protect you.

Where to get free, confidential help

The organisations below are not part of our business and will give you advice without taking your side or ours. Their services are free, confidential and open to friends and family as well as to players.

• GambleAware funds and promotes prevention, advice and treatment for gambling harm in Great Britain, and publishes plain guidance on how gambling works and where to turn for support.
• GamCare provides free counselling, treatment and practical support for anyone affected by gambling, including information on debt and money worries.
• GamStop runs the national online self-exclusion scheme: one free registration blocks you from the online gambling sites licensed in Great Britain, including ours, for the period you choose.
• The National Gambling Helpline offers free and confidential advice from trained advisers every day of the year, for your own gambling or someone else's.

Registering with the national self-exclusion scheme works alongside, not instead of, the self-exclusion in your account: the first covers the operators in the scheme, the second covers us. Your GP can also refer you to local treatment services, and free debt advice is available separately from gambling support.

Protecting children and other people in your home

We verify the age and identity of every player as part of our account checks, and we may ask for documents at registration, before a withdrawal or at any point afterwards. Play is suspended until those checks are complete. We do not direct any of our advertising at under-18s.

Keeping a shared device safe is something only you can do, so please:

• Keep your username and password to yourself and never let anyone else use your account.
• Avoid saving your password in a browser on a computer, tablet or phone that other people use.
• Log out fully when you finish playing, and lock the device with a PIN, pattern or fingerprint.
• Store your payment cards and banking details where children cannot reach them.
• Install filtering or parental control software to block gambling sites on a shared device; several products do this, and many operating systems and home broadband routers include similar controls as standard.

If you believe a child has used your account or anyone else has played on it without your permission, tell us at once on live chat or at support@casinoxl.co.uk so that we can secure the account and look into what happened.