DraftKings will pay out civil penalties totalling $7,000 to New Jersey’s gaming regulator and return $3,277 to customers after failing to adhere to self-exclusion rules.
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) has released details of two separate actions against the sports betting and daily fantasy sports (DFS) operator.
The regulator hit DraftKings with the maximum $5,000 civil penalty for taking wagers from customers who had requested a ‘cooling off’ period be placed on their accounts.
DraftKings discovered an error within its systems in November 2018 whereby the ‘cooling off’ period had been set to zero days. During the month in which the system was not correctly in place, 54 people who were not meant to be able to deposit were able to place bets totalling $28,887. They lost $3,277, which DraftKings will now have to pay back.
DraftKings fixed the problem on the same day it was discovered and notified the DGE. However, it was penalised for failing to ensure its systems were functioning correctly, for not having an account suspension option in effect, and for failing to stop suspended players from gambling. The DGE took into account that it had received no customer complaints regarding the issue.
DraftKings was also ordered to pay a civil penalty of $2,000 for sending promotional emails and direct mailings to an undisclosed number of individuals who had self-excluded form gambling in New Jersey.
DraftKings was notified of its violation on April 12, and agreed to pay the penalty on May 1.
Under New Jersey gambling rules, players may set a minimum 72-hour cooling‐off period and self‐exclude from online gaming sites via a state-wide system for a period of one or five years.