Safe Online Casinos UK

The online gambling space has come a long way since its inception in the late 1990s. In a time not so long ago, players would be able to open a casino account without having to verify their identity. Fast forward and the UK iGaming industry is now one of the most regulated in the global gambling arena - with safe online casinos plentiful.

With that being said, it is imperative that you remain vigilant at all times when using gambling sites, not least because certain operators are more trustworthy than others. In order to help you along the way, we at  BestRatedSlotSites.co.uk have created the ultimate guide to finding safe casinos online.

With online casinos now coming in a range of shapes of sizes, there are a number of factors that you need to look out for prior to opening an account. As such, your research needs to make some considerations regarding the following five metrics.

Regulation: Without a shadow of a doubt, the most important factor that you need to look out for is whether or not the online slot site is regulated by the Gambling Commission. If trusted online gambling sites wish to accept account registrations from UK players, this is a minimum requirement.

As such, if the casino is above-board, its website should clearly display its Gambling Commission license number. As a further safeguard, you can verify the license number on the Gambling Commission website to ensure it is still valid.

Established: Next on your checkout should be the year in which the online slot site in question was launched. You can do this by searching through the casino’s website. If it isn’t displayed, then it might be worth using secondary sources online. Either way, the longer the secure online casino has been operational, the better.

Public Reviews: On top of ascertaining when the online casino was launched, you should also assess what sort of reputation it has in the public domain. By this, we mean searching the internet for reviews that have been posted by current and former players. In particular, look out for any common complaints - especially regarding withdrawals.

Ownership: Once you have assessed when the casino was launched and what reputation it has in the public domain, you should then attempt to find out who owns the casino. The reason for this is that many platforms are now owned by a wider group. This isn’t a problem per-say, as long as the parent company has a notable reputation!

SSL Security: Finally, you should also check to see whether or not the trusted online casino has the required safeguards in place to protect your personal data. Safe casinos will always have a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate on its website. In layman terms, this means that your data is encrypted between you and the casinos’ server, subsequently ensuring that it doesn’t get into the wrong hands.

Once you have worked your way through the above five metrics - and you think you’ve found a safe online casino, you also need to make some considerations regarding compliance. By this, we mean that all UK casinos must comply with the Gambling Commission’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP).

In other words - and as we have seen repeatedly over the past few years from the likes of William Hill and Paddy Power, just because an online casino is licensed, this doesn’t necessarily mean the casino complies with its regulatory obligations.

Notably, this centres on the following:

• Gamble Responsibly:

  All UK casinos operating online must have safeguards in place to protect vulnerable players. Known as ‘Social Responsibility’, this ensures that those having issues controlling their gambling endeavours are able to self-exclude themselves from the casino. For safe online casinos to comply, players must have the option of self-excluding in a seamless manner via their online casino account.

It is also important to note that Social Responsibility ensures that online casinos do not accept account registrations from players that are aged below 18 years old.

• KYC:

  Know Your Customer, or simply ‘KYC’ was introduced as a means to ensure that online casinos identify each and every player that uses their platform. UK legislation dictates that players must satisfy KYC requirements within 72 hours of opening an online account, or when they first make a withdrawal - whichever comes first.

For those unaware, this will require you to upload a copy of your government-issued ID (passport or driver’s license), a proof of address (bank statement, utility bill, etc), and in some cases - a copy of the front and back of the debit/credit card you used to fund your account (if applicable).

• Anti-Money-Laundering:

  The final commitment that safe online casinos must ensure they make is with respect to anti-money laundering (AML) controls. While this links directly to the above point on KYC, AML compliance is much broader. For example, safe online casinos will state that ‘net deposits’ must be sent back to the original payment method.

This means that were you to deposit £250 on your debit card, and you subsequently won £500, you would need to withdraw at least £250 back to the same debit card you used to make the deposit.

Ultimately, safe online casinos will ensure that they remain fully compliant with all relevant UK and EU laws. In doing so, you can rest assured that you are gambling in a safe and secure environment.

On top of your concerns regarding the gambling site itself, you might be wondering whether or not online casino games can be trusted? If so, it is important to note that a number of safeguards are in place to ensure that each and every gaming outcome is true and fair.

First and foremost - much like the online gambling site itself, software providers that license their games to operators must also be regulated by the Gambling Commission. This means that developers will need to have their gaming data audited on a regular basis, subsequently protecting the integrity of the casino game in question.

Not only this, but regulated software providers must also get their games certified prior to launch. This requires them to send their games to a Testing House, which will analyse the underlying software algorithm to make sure it is water-tight. As Testing Houses must also be in receipt of a Gambling Commission license, this offers yet another safeguard to your online gambling endeavours.

If you have read our guide on finding safe casinos up to this point, then you’ll now know that there is a lot to look out for. The good news for you is that we at BestRatedSlotSites.co.uk have compiled heaps of online casino reviews for our readers.

We have a team of in-house experts that independently open accounts with the online casino. They will then go through the entire end-to-end testing process, such as depositing funds, exploring the gaming suite, assessing the platform’s regulatory status, and withdrawing our real money balance back out. This allows us to provide you with an in-depth, unbiased overview of the casino site. By reading it, you’ll be able to make an informed decision as to whether or not you think the online gambling site is worth joining.

It is also important for us to note that we will never be influenced by any of the casino sites that we review. We pride ourselves on our long-standing integrity within the gambling arena, which is why we always engage in an impartial analysis of all of the casino sites that we review. This is in stark contrast to other casino review websites in the space, which simply ‘re-hash’ reviews from other platforms!