Family’s anger at betting firms over daughter’s suicide
A UNIVERSITY worker who hanged herself after gambling away her entire salary at online casinos was failed by her bank and betting firms, her grieving parents said yesterday.
Natasha White, 34, became hooked on games such as online roulette through apps she could play at home – despite having no interest in going to casinos or betting on sport.
She would sometimes spend more than £1,000 out of her £1,900-a-month salary in a little over 24 hours, putting down a series of bets of £30-£40.
Over a 12-month period the HR systems adviser squandered £20,000 on her addiction – more than she earned in a year. She took out payday loans and attended Gamblers Anonymous, but struggled to cope and she was found hanged at her home in August 2018 after a friend raised the alarm.
Her devastated father later obtained her Barclays Bank statements – and was horrified to see her spending.
Three firms which she lost money with have been sanctioned by the Gambling Commission for failing to protect problem gamblers or misleading advertising in the past three years, the Daily Mail can reveal.
Among them is Malta-based company Casumo, which was fined almost £6million for failing to meet rules on ‘social responsibility’. Now Miss White’s parents David and Jan are demanding tough action against the betting industry. And they want banks to do more to protect people sucked into spending too much at online casinos.
It comes as the Daily Mail’s Stop the Gambling Predators campaign highlights the toll that online gambling takes on the nation’s mental health. Mr and Mrs White, of Telford, Shropshire, said as a teenager Natasha occasionally played slot machines, and they once visited a casino on holiday.
But her mother said: ‘If it hadn’t been for these websites I don’t believe she would have been drawn into gambling.’ Miss White was out of work between June and November 2018 before getting a job at Manchester Metropolitan University. She took home £1,900 a month, but by the time of her death she was gambling away all but £300.
In January 2018 Miss White blew £340 in just two days on sites run by another Maltabased firm, MT SecureTrade. Last year the Gambling Commission ordered it to pay almost £ 600,000 towards projects promoting responsible gambling after licence breaches.
Another is Broadway Gaming Ireland with which she gambled away more than £2,000 in a week shortly before her death. In 2017 it had been told to pay £100,000 by the Gambling Commission for its ‘misleading’ promotions.
‘Online gambling is too easy,’ said Miss White’s mother. ‘A few simple clicks of a button and you’ve lost your whole salary. ‘Surely banks are able to monitor what customers are doing,’ added Mr White.
An inquest in Manchester heard Miss had suffered from depression. Recording a conclusion of suicide, coroner Zak Golombeck said: ‘The history of Natasha’s gambling addiction and the notes found at the scene and evidence of her state of mind leading up to her death demonstrate she took her own life and intended to do so.’ The coroner did not
‘A few clicks and salary is gone’
criticise the firms or her bank and there is no suggestion they are in any way to blame.
A spokesman for MT SecureTrade Ltd said ‘We were very sorry to hear of Natasha White’s tragic death and we offer our condolences to her family. We dealt with the customer in accordance with our regulatory obligations.’ Broadway Gaming Ireland declined to comment and Casumo failed to respond to a request for comment.
A Barclays spokesman said Miss White’s death was a ‘very sad case’, adding: ‘We encourage customers who may have any money worries, now or in the future, to contact us.’
The Betting and Gaming Council, representing bookmakers, insisted that its members are ‘determined to raise standards’.
The Samaritans have a free helpline for those needing support on 116123. Further information is available at www.samaritans.org.
THE tragic case of natasha White should serve as a wake-up call to the evils of online gambling – as if another were needed.
this poor woman was ensnared by online roulette and other games, spending more than half her monthly salary in a day. Funding her addiction with pay-day loans, she used gambling as a way to cope with depression, before resorting to suicide.
the cynical offshore operations benefiting from vulnerable people such as Miss White fuel addiction responsible for up to 650 suicides and £700million in NHS costs a year.
We badly need more checks and balances on this industry. Banks track gambling payments so they know who might have a problem. Surely it is time to encourage them to step in earlier and warn clients about the dangers they face.