Gambling Commission sets out first stage of Financial Risk Assessments

The largest remote operators will be the first to carry out Financial Risk Assessments (FRAs), initially covering unusually high net deposits over a rolling 24-hour period.

Published on 7 July 2026, the announcement follows several years of consultation, industry engagement and a pilot involving credit reference agencies and remote gambling operators.

For customers aged 25 and over, an assessment will be triggered where net deposits exceed £5,000 during a rolling 24-hour period. For customers under 25, the initial threshold will be £2,500 over the same period.

The operators included in the first stage and the implementation date remain to be confirmed. The Commission will establish implementation groups involving operators, credit reference agencies and other stakeholders over the summer. The start date will be published in its formal consultation response following that engagement.

What Financial Risk Assessments cover

Financial Risk Assessments are intended to identify high-spending customers experiencing current financial difficulties. They will draw on limited credit reference data. The four indicators are defaults, multiple arrears, significant arrears and debt management plans.

Income and the amount a customer can afford to gamble sit outside the assessment’s scope. The Commission distinguishes FRAs from affordability checks. Customers’ credit scores will remain unchanged. Information obtained through an assessment will be restricted to regulatory use, with marketing and other commercial uses prohibited.

The pilot found that 97 per cent of customers requiring an assessment could receive a frictionless, document-free assessment without taking any action themselves.

Once the requirements are fully implemented, fewer than 3 per cent of customer accounts are expected to require an assessment. The Commission says fewer than one in 1,000 accounts would need an assessment and be unable to receive one frictionlessly.

In those cases, operators may first need to confirm the customer’s identity details. Open banking or document checks could then be used to assess financial risk. The Commission says documents should not be requested routinely following an assessment.

Initial and final thresholds

The initial thresholds are considerably higher than those intended to apply once the regime is fully implemented.

For customers aged 25 and over, the final thresholds will be net deposits exceeding £1,000 during a rolling 24-hour period or £3,000 during a rolling 90-day period.

For customers under 25, the final thresholds will be £750 during a rolling 24-hour period or £2,000 during a rolling 90-day period.

The Commission plans one or more interim stages between the initial and final thresholds. Their thresholds, timetable and operators in scope will be considered through further engagement with the implementation groups.

Using assessment results

An assessment result will form part of the information operators use to understand a customer’s overall risk. Operators will continue to be expected to consider other relevant information, including spending patterns, time spent gambling, use of gambling management tools and account indicators such as multiple or changing payment methods.

Where an assessment identifies financial difficulties, the Commission expects operators to consider an appropriate and proportionate response based on the customer’s wider circumstances. Possible actions include reducing marketing, helping the customer set a deposit limit or taking further action where needed.

The Commission is developing guidance on how operators should interpret assessment results and include them within their customer interaction arrangements.

Stage 1 implementation and guidance

During early implementation, the Commission says it will not take enforcement action solely for a failure to act following a Financial Risk Assessment, provided existing requirements are met. Existing licence conditions and customer interaction requirements will continue to apply. Breaches may still lead to compliance or enforcement action.

Operators can use the preparation period to decide how assessment results will fit into existing risk and case management systems, including any external monitoring or safer gambling platforms.

The implementation groups will consider these practical issues as the Commission develops its guidance.