Land based bingo clubs in the UK have been severely hurt by recent government actions and policies. First came the draconian national smoking ban that put severe pressure on the land based bingo industry. Surveys have shown that over half of all bingo players smoke and attendance at bingo games dramatically dropped after the implementation of the ban. Bingo halls tried adding outdoor areas for smokers and one enterprising company offered bingo cruises outside of territorial waters where the smoking ban does not apply. Then came double taxation and bingo was taxed at a much higher rate than other forms of gambling. The taxes coupled with the smoking ban caused many bingo halls to close forever.
Now another threat to bingo clubs and arcades has emerged. Recent news reports revealed that the Treasury is considering a plan to make new coins from nickel plated steel instead of the alloy currently used. Business groups say that the move will cost the private sector over ten times what the government would save by using the new coins. The 10pence and 5pence coins are more expensive to make due to a rise in copper prices.
The move would hit bingo halls and arcades hard because they would have to recalibrate all their machines to receive the new coins. In the past the costs of adjusting to new coinage were not as great and bingo halls and arcades only needed to adjust arcade machines and coin counting machines. Unfortunately most of the cash systems used by most bingo halls will only take £1 pound and 10pence coins which means that most bingo halls would have to quickly replace most of the gaming machines at a very high cost.
Mechanized cash bingo is very popular at UK bingo halls and most bingo halls have about 500 positions (individual stations where players sit) and many experts say it would cost bingo hall operators about £40 per position to change the mechanisms to accept the new coins. Other gaming machines and change machines would also have to be changed or replaced. Members of the vending industry have also voiced concerns about the new coins. While the government would save about £8 million pounds the move would cost private industry and bingo halls as much as £100 million pounds. Many bingo halls are just scraping by and the new move by the government could cause several private bingo halls to close. A representative of the vending industry told the Daily Telegraph, “We’ve told the Treasury and the Royal Mint that this is going to be a disaster, but they haven’t taken notice.”
It appears that people will have to revert to playing internet bingo games. Not only do many of the sites offer great bingo promotions and bingo bonuses, however, they also offer side games, such as poker, slot games, roulette, and many more.
