Trustpilot hosts reviews of illegal casinos, raising concern among MPs

Trustpilot, the reviews website that offers to “find a company you can trust”, is hosting ratings of illegal casinos, raising concerns in Westminster about the potential risks posed to consumers.

Unlicensed casino operators linked to financial harm, addiction and even suicide have flooded the UK market in recent years, often targeting people who are trying to limit their gambling by “self-excluding” from licensed operators.

Despite this, Trustpilot hosts reviews of some of the largest unlicensed sites, exposed in a recent investigation into the illegal Santeda casino network by the Guardian and Investigate Europe, as if they were legitimate businesses.

Analysis by the Guardian found reviews for brands including Santeda’s MyStake, Velobet and Goldenbet, which do not have a licence from the Gambling Commission.

Offering gambling services without a licence from the regulator is a criminal offence.

But Trustpilot hosted review pages praising the sites’ supposed qualities, including the variety of slot machine games and fast loading speeds.

Trustpilot also hosted review pages for so-called “affiliates”, which drive traffic towards such sites.

Trustpilot took down the affiliate review pages after the Guardian contacted the company. However, it appeared to claim that reviews for illegal casinos did not breach its policies.

A spokesperson for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) expressed concern about the reviews on Trustpilot.

“We are deeply concerned about all forms of illegal gambling, including the growing number of unlicensed online casinos,” they said.

“Examples like this show why the work of our new illegal gambling taskforce is so important,” they said, referring to plans funded by £26m of new funding announced in November’s budget.

“We need urgent collective action from all parties to protect consumers and ensure that those who want to gamble are directed to the regulated market, where they can do so safely,” DCMS added.

Alex Ballinger, a Labour MP who has campaigned for tougher gambling regulation, said he was concerned by the reviews, given that Trustpilot is “intended to reassure the public of the trustworthiness of a business”.

“There is no justification for promoting sites that are not permitted to operate in the UK and are contributing to increased gambling harm and tax evasion,” he added.

Trustpilot said it “takes the risks associated with unlicensed gambling extremely seriously and has ongoing systems and processes in place to identify and take action against these types of businesses on our platform”.