Do I have to be sure before I call?
No. Call 0800 654 655 if gambling is costing you money, sleep, work, or a relationship. You do not need a diagnosis to ask for a conversation.
Signs it has stopped being a game
- The money is someone else's
- Rent, food, a loan, or money you told yourself you would not touch. If the stake is a bill, stop.
- You hide it
- A second account, a deleted history, or a story about where the money went. Secrecy is part of the pattern.
- You chase
- The next session is there to win back the last one. The amount goes up because the loss feels unfinished.
- You cannot stop when you said you would
- The limit was real until you crossed it. Then it moved. That is the point to get help, not the point to prove you can handle one more hour.
Who to call
Call 0800 654 655. This is the Gambling Helpline. The call is free, every day, around the clock, for players and for people close to them. You can also send an anonymous text to 8006. The site is gamblinghelpline.co.nz.
The same number answers at night. If someone is in immediate danger, call 111.
Barring yourself
You can ask a casino, or a venue with pokie machines, to bar you from its gambling area. Ask in person, or write or telephone the venue. An order can last up to two years. The Problem Gambling Foundation says an order cannot be cancelled before it ends. The Gambling Helpline can help you make the request. The Department of Internal Affairs explains exclusion orders at dia.govt.nz.
A bar at one venue does not close an account at a casino that does not check it. Ask that casino to close the account as well.
Questions
Can I call about someone else?
Yes. The Gambling Helpline will talk to someone close to a player. You still cannot bar them from a venue. Only they can ask for that.
Can Black-jack.net close a casino account for me?
No. We do not run those casinos and we cannot reverse a deposit. Call 0800 654 655, and ask each casino you use to close the account.