Casino Choice UK News Archive
French gambler sues casino for failing to prevent him losing his money
If he wins the peculiar sight of casinos stopping their most valuable customers from gambling could become reality.
Jean-Philippe Bryk, 43, from Vichy in central France, made his first trip to a casino ten years ago, when he won 10,000 francs, roughly equivalent to $1780. On subsequent visits he won another 100,000 francs ($17,800) and became hooked. Over the next ten years Mr Bryk gambled away almost 5 million francs ($890,000).
Mr Bryk, who has a wife and two children, claims that his casino did not prevent him from gambling even when they could see he was addicted beyond his control. Furthermore he claims the casino encouraged him: “they treat you like a VIP, giving you drinks and meals.” He compared it to being “a drug addict. Something changes in your head”.
The crux of Bryk’s case is that he claims the casino had a duty of care to him, much as other companies involved with addictive products do. However whereas there is already an established duty of care with tobacco and alcohol products, there is no such protective measure for gamblers. Bryk hopes to create one.
He claims he was “drugged” by the business and that the casino he frequented was partly to blame for the “cancer” of gambling addiction that afflicted him. “I accept some responsibility of course,” said Bryk, “but gambling is big business and none of the money is spent to help addiction.”
But Georges Sabah, who manages one of the two Partouche casinos in Vichy, roundly rejects Bryk’s claims: “It is the responsibility of the player and he must keep his head on his shoulders,” he said, adding “he is an adult of sound mind, he does not have a chance of winning.”
Even so, the case is bound to excite interest across the global gambling industry, both for its possible (if remote) legal implications and its fairytale ‘little man versus big business’ story.
Jean-Philippe Bryk, 43, from Vichy in central France, made his first trip to a casino ten years ago, when he won 10,000 francs, roughly equivalent to $1780. On subsequent visits he won another 100,000 francs ($17,800) and became hooked. Over the next ten years Mr Bryk gambled away almost 5 million francs ($890,000).
Mr Bryk, who has a wife and two children, claims that his casino did not prevent him from gambling even when they could see he was addicted beyond his control. Furthermore he claims the casino encouraged him: “they treat you like a VIP, giving you drinks and meals.” He compared it to being “a drug addict. Something changes in your head”.
The crux of Bryk’s case is that he claims the casino had a duty of care to him, much as other companies involved with addictive products do. However whereas there is already an established duty of care with tobacco and alcohol products, there is no such protective measure for gamblers. Bryk hopes to create one.
He claims he was “drugged” by the business and that the casino he frequented was partly to blame for the “cancer” of gambling addiction that afflicted him. “I accept some responsibility of course,” said Bryk, “but gambling is big business and none of the money is spent to help addiction.”
But Georges Sabah, who manages one of the two Partouche casinos in Vichy, roundly rejects Bryk’s claims: “It is the responsibility of the player and he must keep his head on his shoulders,” he said, adding “he is an adult of sound mind, he does not have a chance of winning.”
Even so, the case is bound to excite interest across the global gambling industry, both for its possible (if remote) legal implications and its fairytale ‘little man versus big business’ story.
Submitted: 2005/11/16 at 10:19:55
