Two Sydney pubs have been fined a combined total of $154,000 for gambling related offences, including operating gaming machines during mandatory shutdown hours.
In the first instance, the NSW Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (ILGA) fined the Concourse Hotel at Wynyard $110,000 for repeatedly allowing patrons to play its 29 gaming machines between 8am and 10am from March to November 2023
While the hotel has 24-hour trading, it is still required to comply with the general 4am to 10am gaming machine shutdown period each day of the week.
At 8.40am on 28 November 2023, Liquor & Gaming NSW inspectors attended the venue and observed all 29 gaming machines were switched on and ready for play.
Liquor & Gaming NSW’s executive director of regulatory operations, Dimitri Argeres, said the large fine reflected the seriousness of the Concourse Hotel’s offending.
“The frequent and repeated operation of gaming machines during the six-hour shutdown period over eight months is an extremely serious breach of laws aimed at reducing gambling harm,” Argeres said.
“Providing patrons with access to gaming machines during the shutdown period increases the risk of gambling harm by enabling gambling for longer hours of uninterrupted play.”
ILGA chair Caroline Lamb reiterated that apart from breaking the law, the Concourse Hotel placed its patrons at greater risk of gambling harm.
“As this case shows, venues that fail to abide by gaming machine trading hours can expect to be caught and face significant penalties. The licensee is ultimately responsible for what goes on at their venue,” Lamb said.
In the second case, the Olympic Hotel at Paddington was fined $44,000 after Liquor & Gaming NSW (L&GNSW) officers found three gaming machines were not connected to the Centralised Monitoring System (CMS), which monitors all gaming machine operations in NSW and calculates relevant taxes.
The inspectors also found an ATM on the premises had the ability to dispense cash from credit card accounts. Under the Gaming Machines Act 2001, hotels or clubs with gaming machines are not allowed to have ATMs with credit access in any part of the premises. The L&GNSW investigation revealed that since 2021, the hotel had permitted more than $16,000 to be withdrawn from the ATM from credit card accounts.
Argeres said venues having ATMs that permit the withdrawal of cash from a credit card account can allow patrons to gamble beyond their means and potentially create an environment of gambling harm.
“Credit card restrictions are an important measure to stop people from gambling with money they don’t have.”