VIP Play takes responsible gaming seriously. We want our customers to have fun while gambling and betting on sports and look at it as a form of entertainment. While the vast majority of our customers are able to do this, there is a small subset of the population that may encounter problems controlling their gambling or looking at it as a means of gaining financial wealth. Neither of which is healthy or encouraged. Our goal is to provide the tools and information necessary to assist any of our customers exhibiting problem gaming characteristics.
Warning Signs That You May Have a Problem
Do you gamble to escape worry or trouble?
Do you gamble to get money to solve financial difficulties?
Are you unable to stop playing, regardless of winning or losing?
Do you often gamble until your last dollar is gone?
Have you neglected your family because of gambling?
Has gambling ever made your home life unhappy?
Did gambling cause you to have difficulty sleeping?
Were you reluctant to use “gambling money” for normal expenditures?
Resources for Help
If you feel that you may have a gambling problem and/or can't control your gambling, there is help available that's only a phone call away:
Tennessee REDLINE 800-889-9789
The Tennessee REDLINE is a 24-hour hotline that can make referrals for people and families seeking problem gambling and gambling addiction services.
For more information, contact:
Linda McCorkle
Director of Treatment and Recovery Services
615-944-8246
Or
Donathan Knowles
Program Manager
(615) 927-1161
The Problem Gambling Prevention and Treatment Services Program is a multi-purpose program designed to increase knowledge about problem and/or pathological gambling for those persons at risk, their families, and the general community; to identify and assess those with problem and/or pathological gambling conditions and provide outpatient treatment services if needed, and to continually assess regional needs and coordinate outreach activities for potential service recipients. Services are provided in person or through telehealth.
For more information, contact:
Dr. James Whelan, Executive Director, The Gambling Clinic
University of Memphis, Department of Psychology
(901) 678-3736
National Council on Problem Gambling
1-800-522-4700
Counselors are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to provide information on available treatment and support groups in your area for both the gambler and those affected by the gambler’s problem. All calls are completely confidential.
Self-Exclusion and VIP Play Role in Responsible Gaming
Customers that feel that they have a problem with gambling can temporarily “self-limit” or "self-exclude" themselves from using VIP Play (or any other licensee in Tennessee) further. This eliminates the temptation to immediately gamble and provides a necessary break from gambling in order to seek the necessary professional help.
Customers can either self-limit or self-exclude themselves automatically within the VIP Play app, or by reaching out to VIP Play’s 24x7 customer support team (via chat or email).
How self-exclusion / banning works with VIP Play
1. Customers can temporarily self-limit or self-exclude themselves by going to the “More” screen within the VIP Play app and tapping on “Your Time & Limits in VIP Play”. From there, the customer can choose the following menu options:
a. Self-Limitation
Wager Limits – Set the maximum total amount that can be wagered per 24 hours, per week, and/or per month.
Deposit Limits – Set the maximum total amount that can be deposited per 24 hours, per week, and/or per month.
Time in App – Set the maximum amount of time that can be spent in the VIP Play app per 24 hours, per week, and/or per month.
Session Limits – Set the maximum amount of time that can be spent in the VIP Play app during any current session.
Account Cool-Off – Set a time limit in days to temporarily self-exclude oneself from using VIP Play. During this cool-off period, customers will be unable to access the features within the VIP Play app. Withdrawal requests can still be made via VIP Play customer support.
b. Self-Exclusion - 1350-01-.06(9)(c)
i. Self-Exclusion is a ban from using VIP Play that will not let a customer access the features within the VIP Play app during the selected self-exclusion period (1 Year, 3 Year, and 5 Year). Any remaining Available Balance funds are sent to the designated account provided by the customer. The customer is unsubscribed from all marketing content, and is blocked from further accessing the VIP Play app.
ii. To self-exclude yourself from all other sports betting operators in Tennessee, player will need to contact SWC directly:https://www.tn.gov/swac/forms/self-exclusion.html.
c. Resources for Problem Gambling
This section provides additional resources on how to get help with problem gambling.
2. In addition to customers being able to automatically self-limit or self-exclude themselves within the VIP Play app, customers can self-exclude themselves, get an account cool-off, or get additional resources on problem gambling by chatting with customer support in the VIP Play app. If a customer has already previously provided all of their PII during previous steps in the app (such as going through the KYC verification process), VIP Play can self-authenticate the customer automatically while chatting with the customer in the app and without any additional information needed from the customer.
3. Customers looking for help with problem gambling can also chat with VIP Play customer support on the VIPPlayinc.com website or by emailing [email protected] with the following info (this info is needed if we can’t automatically authenticate the customer):
a. First and Last Name.
b. Email Address associated with the player’s VIP Play account.
c. Amount and Date of a recent bet that was accepted.
d. The destination account or wallet to send any remaining Available Balance funds.
e. Time duration for temporary self-exclusion or whether the request is for a ban.
If a customer chooses option #3 above, then the following additional steps will be needed:
1. Upon verification of the above information in #3 above, VIP Play will then send an email to the email address on file for the customer, including information on additional responsible gaming resources.
2. The customer is then required to reply back to the above email and confirm that they indeed want the self-exclusion or ban.
3. Once VIP Play receives the above confirmation, it implements the self-exclusion or account cool-off.
VIP Play also excludes from play all individuals who have requested restrictions from all Licensees once VIP Play receives the notification of such information from the Tennessee Sports Wagering Advisory Council.
Customers may request from VIP Play information about their play, including history, money spent, games played, net wins/losses, limits history, and any other relevant information. Additionally, VIP Play provides customers with updates during a play about time and money spent and account balances in cash.
Employee training and awareness of problem gambling
As part of VIP Play efforts to ensure that any customers that feel like they’re experiencing a problem with gambling are able to get the help that they need, all VIP Play employees and contractors (not just customer service personnel) receive comprehensive training (annual and periodic refresher training) on how to spot problem gambling, what problem gambling looks like, and how to handle both proactive and reactive problem gambling situations. Training is designed to equip the trainee to respond to circumstances in which customer account activity may indicate signs that are consistent with problem gambling.
By functional area, this looks like the following:
Customer Support
All Customer Support personnel must be extra keenly capable in their ability to spot problem gamblers, as they are the most likely to encounter problem gambling throughout their customer interactions. If a Customer Support Representative thinks that a customer might be exhibiting the signs of problem gambling, they are required to escalate the situation, along with all communication and research that backs up their hypothesis, to the executive team for further investigation.
Due to the sensitivity with which customers may perceive a direct outreach about potential problem gambling, Customer Support Representatives are instructed to not do their own outreach directly to customers about this subject. Instead, Customer Support Representatives should only respond to inbound inquiries, or if they see a problem on their own without an inbound inquiry from the customer, to escalate it to the executive team.
Marketing & Sales
All Marketing and Sales personnel are prohibited from doing any targeted marketing specifically to players that have self-excluded or banned themselves from VIP Play or have been placed on the list of self-excluded or banned players maintained by the Tennessee Sports Wagering Advisory Council.
In addition, our Marketing team takes great care to make sure that all branding and messaging does not target low-income demographics, promises of “turning someone’s fortunes around”, or other content that could entice someone without the means to gamble. We only want those that have the financial means and the self-control to wager on sports using our product.
It is unlawful for a person under twenty-one (21) years of age to engage in Interactive Sports Gaming in the State of Tennessee and a notice to such effect shall appear on our website, mobile applications, advertisements, and other platforms. Accordingly, VIP Play utilizes third-party player identification technology and procedures to prevent underage gambling (KYC), including age-affirmation mechanisms that utilize, at a minimum, month, date, and year of birth that will apply before the customer can gain access to KeyStar wagering systems.
Product & Development
All Product and Development work that centers around problem gambling is given the highest priority in our company. Whether it be new features or bug fixes to ensure that everyone who uses our product is not abusing or using it in incorrect ways, we prioritize this work above all else.