Betway has been charged $20,000 for violating Virginia’s responsible gambling regulations.
According to the Virginia Lottery, Betway inadvertently sent messages to self-excluded Virginians. Despite the accidental nature of the communications, sending any gambling-related messaging to a self-excluded player is a violation of Virginia’s policies governing responsible gambling.
More on the messages to self-excluded players
Six of the users who received correspondence were on the self-exclusion list run by the Virginia Lottery. Ninety-four individuals were from Betway VA‘s self-exclusion list, or had elected to take a cooling-off period.
The Virginia Lottery reports Betway is working to make sure its mistake is not repeated in the future. In an unrelated situation, Betway self-reported a separate violation involving its trading partner. That company didn’t have proper licensing to operate as a vendor in Virginia.
Betway declined to comment when approached by PlayVirginia earlier this week.
Virginia gambling still ironing out the wrinkles
Virginia gambling is still in a growth stage. Operators – both online and retail – are learning to navigate the strict regulations put in place to protect players. Earlier this year, Rivers Portsmouth Casino received a $275,000 fine for a few issues, including unauthorized games on the casino floor and allowing underage or self-excluded individuals on the premises.
Rivers paid the fine and committed to fixing the issues. Virginia regulators take a firm but understanding approach to such violations. State Sen. Louise Lucas told 10 On Your Side that she fully trusted Rivers to fix the issues that led to the fine.
In 2021, FanDuel VA was slapped with a fine similar to Betway’s. The operator paid $10,000 after violating Virginia’s responsible gambling policies.
About Betway in Virginia
Betway is a longtime European operator carving out its foothold in the US. In 2021, the operator was approved for a license in Virginia alongside 888, which later rebranded to Sports Illustrated.
Betway offers online sports betting in Virginia. However, the company does not have any retail operations in the state.
