Veikkaus Survey: Number of Problem Gamblers Decreases in 2021

Veikkaus unveiled the results of its new survey, outlining that problem gambling in Finland has significantly decreased in 2021 when compared to 2020.

Finnish Population Affected by Problem Gambling Decreases in 2021

The Finnish state-owned gaming operator, Veikkaus, released the results of a new survey on Wednesday. This was Veikkaus’ 11th population-level survey and it was conducted between August and November 2021. When compared to 2020, the latest survey found that the problem gambling rate in the country fell by 1.8% to 0.8%.

While in 2020, problem gambling affected approximately 2% of the population or 109,000 people, in 2021, the number of people affected decreased significantly to 75,000. With that in mind, in previous years, the percentage of problem gambling varied between 2% and 3%. However, the latest result marks the lowest-ever recorded since Veikkaus started conducting the surveys in 2017.

Temporary and Permanent Gambling Offering Changes Impact Problem Gambling

The newly commissioned survey acknowledged that over the last few years, Veikkaus customers have seen temporary and permanent changes when it comes to gambling offerings. Gambling offering was also impacted by the pandemic-related temporary closures and limits introduced for gaming venues and sportsbooks.

The whitepaper outlined that in the last few years, an “unprecedented emphasis has been placed on responsible gaming.” Finland also significantly decreased the number of slot machines. Seeking to protect players, Veikkaus added mandatory authentication for its slots last year. Among other restrictions, loss limits were also introduced to help reduce problem gambling.

The latest survey found that the effects of the different measures on problem gambling cannot be distinguished. However, judging by the results of the survey, ultimately problem gambling has seen a decline.

Respondents Reaffirm Veikkaus Acts Responsibly

The people who gambled during 2021 were asked about the efforts related to responsible gambling offered by the gaming providers. An overwhelming majority of 76% of the respondents acknowledged that Veikkaus had implemented measures to help prevent problem gambling and acted responsibly. This marked an increase of 8% when compared to the result from the survey in 2020.

On the other hand, 11% of the respondents said that Paf, the Åland gaming company, was responsible, while only 3% found that foreign gaming operators support responsible gambling. The year-on-year comparison regarding the result of Paf and foreign operators showed approximately the same result.

Considering the results of the latest survey it looks like the measures introduced by Veikkaus are paying out. The state-owned gaming operator plans to further probe into the topic by commissioning a new survey that is expected to start this month.