Gambling Commission sets new standards for category B gaming machines
The Gambling Commission said on 30 September 2026 that new rules for gaming machines will require improved consumer tools and responsible game design changes, with most measures taking effect in June 2027.
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The Gambling Commission said on 30 September 2026 that new standards are being introduced to make gaming machines fairer and safer for consumers.
According to the Commission, new category B gaming machines must give consumers improved access to gambling management tools and sessional information showing how long they have been playing and how much they have won or lost. The Commission said this sessional information will also be made available to licensees to help them meet regulatory obligations, including interacting with consumers who show signs of gambling harm.
The Commission said the changes will also improve responsible game design by ensuring that awards below the stake size are not celebrated, and by prohibiting features that let a customer reduce the time until a result is known.
The Commission said the new rules follow a consultation carried out to implement proposals from the 2023 Gambling Act Review White Paper. It said that during the consultation process it considered the evidence provided and made changes to the original proposals to take account of practical and technical considerations and to reduce the risk of unintended consequences.
The Commission said existing gaming machines will be exempt from the new requirements, citing the complex technical changes and costs to business that would not necessarily deliver proportionate consumer benefits. It added that steps have been taken to reduce the risk of consumer and staff alert fatigue and to protect consumer privacy.
The Commission said there will be a staged implementation, with the bulk of the changes coming into effect in June 2027.
Helen Rhodes, the Commission’s Director of Major Policy Projects and Evaluation, said the measures would help empower consumers to understand and manage their gambling and ensure operators play their part. She said: “We are confident that the consultation has led to a package of changes where the benefits to consumers are proportionate to the costs of implementation and that the staged timeline for implementation is reasonable and achievable.”