KYC Changes Must be Adhered to by New Bookmakers in the UK

The Know Your Customer (KYC) process has been used by bookmakers for some time now, although many changes were enforced in May 2021 to make this process even stricter for punters. The basics of this are simple, the bookmaker must verify who their customers are, to ensure the safety and legality of betting in the UK.

In May, the rules changed how this process works, with the Gambling Commission tightening things up. From this point, any new customers would not be able to bet either on sports or through a casino service without verifying their details beforehand. This change also took into account those who had already opened an account with a bookmaker or casino, they were required to verify themselves before they could bet after the day of change.

When announcing the changes, the UK Gambling Commission said:

“from Tuesday 7 May, if an operator has not yet verified the name, address and date of birth of any customer, they will need to have completed verification before allowing that customer to gamble. Operators will, therefore, need to prevent any unverified customer from gambling until they have gone through the verification process.”

One important note for the customer was the following, which is also in the press release from the UK Gambling Commission:

“Operators should also remember that they cannot confiscate a customer’s funds on the basis that they have not provided ID in time for Tuesday 7 May. Last year the Competitions and Markets Authority’s action in the remote sector established that consumers are legally entitled to money which they have deposited in their account, to winnings made with money they have deposited and gambled, and winnings made from a bonus where the relevant conditions have been met (subject to AML or other regulatory requirements).”

This is vital to know as a punter as you know that your money is saved, and anything you have in your account cannot be touched or taken by anyone. You will have to prove your identity by sending in the required documents before you can bet with them, but nothing can happen with the money already in your account. This also includes any money you win when you take advantage of a bonus, something that almost everyone does when they sign up to a new account, whether this is a betting account or a casino account.

The new changes brought into play earlier this year will mean that punters have to show proof of identity before they can bet. This may seem like a step too far for some, especially those that have to spend endless amounts of paperwork and documents to multiple bookmakers as they have a number of accounts. However, this is all designed to make betting with a UK Gambling Commission registered bookmaker or casino as safe as possible. Practices are being put in from both sides like this, and overall this is certainly for the greater good when it comes to online gambling.