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UK licensing and player safety
All six operators listed on this site hold a UK Gambling Commission licence. This page explains what that means in practice — the protections it provides and the obligations it places on operators.
What the UKGC is
The UK Gambling Commission is the statutory regulator for all commercial gambling in Great Britain, operating under the Gambling Act 2005. It is funded by licence fees paid by operators rather than from general taxation, and it operates independently of government. The Commission is responsible for both issuing licences and enforcing compliance — it can investigate, fine, suspend and revoke licences when operators breach their conditions.
The licensing objectives
All UKGC-licensed operators must uphold three core licensing objectives: preventing gambling from being associated with crime, ensuring gambling is conducted fairly and openly, and protecting children and vulnerable people. These objectives translate into specific operational requirements that every licensee must follow.
What a licence does not guarantee
A UKGC licence is a minimum standard, not a quality award. All licensed operators must meet the base requirements, but the quality of their game library, mobile experience, support and overall product varies considerably — which is the entire reason a comparison site like this one has value. Some licensed operators have also accumulated significant regulatory fines while remaining licensed; the Commission publishes all enforcement actions, and it is worth checking an operator's record before signing up.
How to verify a licence
The UKGC maintains a public register of all current and former licensees at gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-register. Every licensed operator is required to display their licence number in the footer of their site. You can enter that number into the register to confirm the licence is active, see the issue date, and check whether any conditions or restrictions apply.
Player protection tools all licensees must provide
Beyond fair games, UKGC-licensed operators are required to offer specific player-protection tools. These are not optional extras — they are licence conditions. Any operator that does not provide them is in breach of their licence and can be reported to the Commission.
Deposit limits
Daily, weekly and monthly deposit limits that you set and that cannot be increased immediately — increases require a cooling-off period.
Loss limits
Limits on how much you can lose in a given period, similar to deposit limits in operation.
Session time limits
Limits on how long a single session can run, with reminder notifications before the limit is reached.
Self-exclusion
The ability to exclude yourself from that specific operator for a minimum of six months. The operator cannot reactivate your account during the exclusion.
Reality checks
Pop-up reminders at intervals showing how long you have been playing and how much you have spent in the session.