The Dutch gambling authority has fined betting site Unibet €4 million for failing to meet its duty of care towards players between July 14, 2022 and July 1, 2024.

Gambling companies are required by law to limit how much customers can stake and to intervene to prevent addiction, but the regulator said Unibet repeatedly failed to do so.

The regulator reviewed a series of player files and found breaches of the duty of care in every case. Players who deposited thousands of euros per day were not approached in time, and income checks were only carried out weeks later, by which time punters had already incurred substantial losses.

Interventions by the company were also deemed far too weak, such as easily dismissed pop-ups. In several cases, Unibet included financial information that the Ksa does not permit, including money from a business account when assessing if punters could afford to gamble.

“When there are signs of excessive play and someone is staking very large sums in a short time, an operator must investigate the source of the funds,” Ksa chairman Michel Groothuizen said. “The Ksa takes violations of the duty of care very seriously and will continue to act firmly.”

Since October 2024, players aged 24 and over may stake a maximum of €350 per month on a gambling site, although there is no limit to the number of sites they can use. Anyone wishing to gamble more must first contact the operator, which must warn them about the risks. For those under 24, the limit is €150.

In February the cabinet also announced plans to raise the minimum age for high-risk games from 18 to 21. It is also proposing a central system to track monthly limits, so players cannot place large sums across multiple sites.

These measures have not yet taken effect and it remains unclear when they will be introduced.

In January 2024, the national addiction watchdog warned that tens of thousands of people have suffered financial difficulties since online gambling was legalised three years ago.

Since 2021, a series of reports have highlighted how legalisation has contributed to a surge in gambling addiction and debt. Currently, 27 companies operate under 37 different labels with a license in the Netherlands.