How to Deal With Gambling Debt?

Gambling is all about taking risks. The worst-case scenario is when you develop problem gambling and eventually end up in debt. If you find yourself chasing losses or borrowing money to gamble, you should take the appropriate action immediately.

Today, I’ll teach you how to deal with your gambling debt. Since prevention is always better than cure, I’ll start with the causes you need to prevent debts. Next, I’ll talk about solutions to gambling debt, including financial help and bank loans. Keep reading to find out more.

What Causes Gambling Debt?

Depending on your gambling tendencies, you may incur a gambling debt in different ways. If you understand the causes of your gambling problem, you can save yourself from debts. Here are some of the symptoms you should look for to address your problem in advance.

Chasing Losses

In the world of gambling, chasing losses means placing bet after bet despite losing continuously. Every gambler expects to lose or win, but the thrill of winning can lure you into chasing losses.

If you are playing a jackpot slot machine, for example, you know that you could win a life-changing jackpot. As a result, it’s easy to find yourself placing one bet after the other even though you are losing.

Sometimes you have to place the highest possible bet to win a jackpot. In this case, it’s easy to deplete your bankroll if you keep chasing losses. This is especially a big problem if you are a budget player.

Gambling Without Knowledge

If you venture into gambling without knowing how things work, you are likely to have the worst gaming experience. Any newcomer who does not understand how a certain casino game works must research. For instance, you cannot play skill-based games like blackjack or poker without knowing the rules.

Inexperienced players also need to understand how things like house edge and return to player (RTP) rates work. You could talk to a seasoned gambler or read gambling tips online.

Failure to Plan

As they say, failing to plan is planning to fail. If you often gamble for real money, it’s important to have a detailed plan for your gambling activity. Failure to do so will lead to risky habits such as unnecessary borrowing to fund gambling.

Also, you may have a small bankroll and end up placing huge bets just because you didn’t plan. Another alarming sign is when you spend every cent on gambling instead of important bills like rent and utilities. In other words, failure to plan translates to irresponsible gambling.

Solutions for Gambling Debt

Now that you know the primary causes of problem gambling let’s talk about solutions for gambling debts. In case you find yourself deep in debt because of problem gambling, don’t worry because you’re not alone. Many people have been in the same situation and solved their problem through responsible gambling. I will now talk about the most suitable solutions.

Treat Problem Gambling

Before you think about how to get out of gambling debt, it’s important to acknowledge that there’s a problem. Huge or many gambling debts are a good sign of gambling addiction. If you’ve been chasing huge losses and borrowing to finance gambling, your problem is likely to be an addiction.

For those gambling online, authentic casinos have links to resources to help you address addiction problems. Organisations like begambleaware.org and gamblersanonymous.org can help you get out of addiction. Make use of such resources to address problem gambling and addiction issues. If possible, open up to the people around you or speak to counselling experts. Above all, stop gambling until you pay off your debts.

Create a Gambling Budget

As I said earlier, you can get into debt if you fail to plan. One key element of planning is to create a gambling budget. However, it won’t make a difference if you don’t stick to your budget. If your budget is €30 per day, don’t exceed that amount under any circumstance.

Stop Funding

If you’ve already incurred a serious gambling debt, you should cut off your sources of funding. Payment options like credit cards allow you to borrow even when there’s no money in your account. Close such sources to make sure that you don’t borrow more.

Financial Help for Gamblers

Once you address addiction and cut off your funding sources, the next step is to pay off your gambling debt. Financial help for gamblers takes different forms, including borrowing from friends and financial institutions. You should calculate your debt amount and urgency of payment to find the best solution. Start by creating a list of the lenders you owe money.

If you have a small debt, you can pay it off by borrowing money from close friends and family members. Another viable solution is to sell your assets, such as furniture and vehicles. These solutions may pay off all or a large percentage of your debt.

Loan to Pay Off Gambling Debt

You could take out a bank loan if the aforementioned options didn’t pay off your debt. Of course, this will only work if you qualify for a loan. The good thing about taking out a bank loan is that you can get enough money to pay other creditors. In this case, you only have to focus on paying off the bank loan. The last resort is to file for bankruptcy if there’s no practical way to pay off your gambling debt.  

Conclusion

In sum, the best way to deal with gambling debt is to prevent it from happening. If it’s too late, you can solve your problem by using the solutions described here. Always remember that gambling can lead to huge wins as well as painful losses, so gamble responsibly.

FAQ

What Causes Gambling Debt?

You may incur gambling debts if you chase losses, fail to budget and gamble unwisely.

How Can I Prevent or Treat Problem Gambling?

You should find a support network of friends, family members and counselling experts. Also, you should plan well, stick to your gambling budget and cut off funding sources.

What’s the Best Way to Pay Off My Gambling Debt?

You could borrow from friends and banking institutions. If you have valuable assets, you could also sell them to pay off your debts.