The Alderney Gambling Control Commission: Uncovered

Although seemingly just a tiny member of the Channel Islands found north of France, Alderney is a leading hub when it comes to online gaming, and one of the most important issuers of gambling licences in the world.

Regulation in online gambling is vitally important in order to protect player interests and provide people with fair, transparent gaming experiences in which they – along with their data – are safe. It is with this in mind that the Alderney Gambling Control Commission was established in 2000.

Alderney provides eGambling Licences to online gambling companies that can prove they match the standards set out by the AGCC, and thus can provide a safe and fair gaming experience to its players. Currently, around 60 online companies hold Alderney-issued eGambling Licences.

What is the Alderney Gambling Control Commission?

The purpose of the Alderney Gambling Control Commission is to provide layers of structure, safety and accountability to companies offering services in the world of remote gambling. With the strict regulations set out by the AGCC, many other territories and countries follow the lead of AGCC recommendations and recognise the high value of their gambling licences.

The primary areas that the AGCC focuses on are players safety, fair gaming, and the integrity of gambling businesses.

How the Organisation Works

Obtaining an eGambling Licence from the Alderney Gambling Control Commission can be a lengthy and difficult, due to the vast number of safeguards the commission puts in to ensure that companies that want to use its licence are behaving responsibly and offering fair and safe playing experiences to players. The main areas that the Alderney Gambling Control Commission looks at when issuing licences are that the company has a clear ownership structure, that the company has sufficient finances available to comfortably offer its services and meet obligatory payments to winning players, that the company offers the utmost integrity, is sufficiently competent to safely provide the services it advices, and in no way has any ties with criminal activity.

Should an online gambling company meet these conditions, they may be eligible to receive an eGambling Licence from the Alderney Gambling Control Commission. Importantly, though, is the AGCC discovers that one of its licensees has subsequently broken the terms as set out by the licence, it can revoke the company’s licence.

The Advantages of Playing at a AGCC Regulated Casino

Peace of mind is one of the most important factors players consider when selecting an online casino to play at. They want to play safe in the knowledge that their personal data and financial details are completely secure, while having enough trust in the casino in question to believe that they have a fair and real chance of winning.

With these goals in mind, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission sets about ensuring the highest level of gambling experience for online players, with the commission only licensing companies that ensure player protection, offer a fair gaming experience, separate played funds from operating funds, and thereby create a layer of operator accountability.

Player Protection

One of the biggest priorities set out by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission is to ensure that players are protected in terms of their data, their finances and in their gaming experience. Companies with an eGambling Licence from Alderney must demonstrate that they are capable of storing data in a secure and responsible manner. The Alderney Gambling Control Commission ensures that companies that fall under its jurisdiction apply with the data protection act in order to guarantee the safety of player data and reduce the risk of theft and fraud.

Fair Gaming

Any gambling companies that offer virtual online games – whether they be table games such as real money blackjack and online roulette, or video slot games – must use RNGs (random number generators) and show expected RTP (return to player) rates in game descriptions if they are to comply with regulation set out by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission – as well as other gambling regulators such as the UK Gambling Commission and the Malta Gaming Authority. As the mechanics of virtual games are unseen by players, online casinos must use random number generators (RNGs) in order to produce an outcome to games. This means that software providers, as well as the online casino, has no control over the outcome of the game – providing players with a fair gaming experience.

So, if the software provider and online casino has no control over the outcome of games, how do they make money? Well, in the same way that land-based casinos have for years: by implementing a house edge. Most casino games – including both table games and slots – typically offer a house edge of between 0.5% and 10%. This advantage means that when games are played over thousands or even millions of times, casino will usually win on more occasions than they lose. This long-term strategy is perfect for players too, as casinos are worried about players winning in any given moment. On the contrary, this is the great appeal of casino games to players and is why players return.

The RTP rate indicates to players the likelihood of them winning, while also demonstrating the house edge. Let’s say for example, that an online slot has a 96% return to player rate. This means that 96% of money spent on a game will return to the player pool in the form of winnings. So if a player spends £100 on a game, £96 of this will form the games prizes, while the remaining £4 is the company’s profit.

Player Funds Separated

One critical operational function that the Alderney Gambling Control Commission monitors at online casinos is how they manage their finances, especially with regards to player funds. Online casinos are legally obliged to keep their player’s money completely separate from the casino’s operational funds. The reason for this is hugely important to player safety, as should an online casino go broke for whatever reason, player’s money will still be available to withdraw and won’t be lost.

Operator Accountability

The likes of the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, Malta Gaming Authority and UK Gambling Commission are vital bodies to the online gambling industry, as they ensure that online gambling operators are responsible for their actions – and can be legally challenged if the behave unethically or incompetently.

By boasting an eGambling Licence from the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, the AGCC is effectively staking its considerable reputation and saying that the online operator is fair and safe to use. Therefore, if an operator then goes on to break the regulations it has agreed to follow, the AGCC has a legal basis on which to challenge them. This is hugely important for ensuring players can gamble online without fear of being scammed.

How to Find out if a Casino is Regulated by the AGCC

Should an online casino or operator claim it has an eGambling Licence from the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, you should always check that this is the case by either cross-referencing their licence with the AGCC, or by simply by checking out Scams.info’s range of online casino reviews such as our Slots52 review – as we have double and triple checked all major online casinos already.

If you prefer to check the validity of an operators eGambling licence yourself, you can do so by visiting the Alderney Gambling Control Commission website and searching through the companies, brands and URLs that have obtained such a licence on their AGCC licensees page.

Issues You Can Raise

If you have a problem with an online casino that has an eGambling licence from the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, you have a few options in which to raise a complaint. Obviously, the first thing you should do is report the problem to the casino operator itself, to see if they can help to resolve the issue. All online casinos are obliged to offer customer support during working hours, and they can typically be contacted via email, phone or live chat.

If, however, the casino won’t reply to your messages or hasn’t resolved the issue, you may consider filing a complaint about the operator to the Alderney Gambling Control Commission. Problems at online casinos can be wide-ranging, but they tend to fit in one of the following categories: prize disputes, bet outcome disputes, bonus disputes, IT issues, customer service problems and, most notoriously, operators voiding bets.

How to Complain

If you wish to pursue a claim against an online operator with the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, the AGCC website gives you plenty of details on what to do. Once you have issued a formal complaint with the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, the regulatory body will then establish contact with the operator in question, in order to uncover all facts regarding the case.

Lodging a complaint with the AGCC can be a lengthy process though, and should only be used as a last resort if you cannot resolve the problem directly with the operator. A player can submit a complaint about an operator to the Alderney Gambling Control Commission here.

The History of the Alderney Gambling Control Commission

Established in May 2000, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission in an independent, not-for-profit body that regulates online gambling for the States of Alderney. The purpose of the AGCC is to maintain integrity and ensure fairness regarding any online gambling operators that involve Alderney.

Conclusion

In this guide to the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, we’ve looked at the purpose of the regulatory body, as well as what benefits an online casino operator boasting an eGambling Licence from the AGCC has for players.

In order to help protect you when playing online, we’ve done reviews of the best AGCC licensed gambling sites, such as Betsafe and Jackpot247. You can also learn about other regulatory bodies such as the UKGC and Malta Gaming Authority.