Responsible Gaming

The Société des casinos du Québec (SCQ) offers players, on a voluntary and confidential basis, the ability to be barred from Québec's casinos (Montréal, Lac-Leamy, Charlevoix and Mont-Tremblant) for a specific period ranging from 3 months to 5 years. This program is confidential, free and bilingual.

Anyone can register by simply following the steps below:

• The applicant must go to the Customer Service desk at one of the Québec's casinos and specify that he or she would like to register for the self-exclusion program. The attendant will have a security agent lead him or her to a private room used for this purpose.
• In the applicant's presence, an investigator from the security department will complete the self-exclusion form.
• A photo will be taken once the file is opened.

It is also possible to arrange for self-exclusion from the casinos or Gaming Halls at Loto-Québec's head office in Montreal, at Loto-Québec’s office in Québec City and at certain treatment centres in the province. The centres are: La Maison Jean Lapointe in Montréal, Centre CASA in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, Centre de réadaptation Ubald-Villeneuve in Beauport and Centre de réadaptation Domrémy Mauricie/Centre-du-Québec.

By joining the self-exclusion program, the applicant authorizes the SCQ to exclude him or her from all Québec's casinos (including the gaming areas, bars, snack bars, restaurants, performance halls and boutiques located in the casinos) for the requested period, which can range from 3 months to 5 years. Once processed, the registration cannot be reversed. The Société des casinos du Québec assumes no responsibility if the applicant violates the rules of self-exclusion to which he or she voluntarily committed.

Registration in the self-exclusion program automatically entails the cancellation of the applicant's Casino Privilèges membership. If applicable, the SCQ will pay the client in cash for any Privilèges Points already accumulated.

Registration in the self-exclusion program automatically involves the recording of the person's first and last names and mailing address in the Société des casinos du Québec database to ensure that no documents are sent which announce upcoming activities at its gaming establishments.

A Program That Has Made Its Mark

In 2008-2009, 1,597 self-exclusion agreements were signed, bringing the total of active agreements to 3,489. During that period, over 6,422 identifications were made by security personnel.

One of the first in North America, the Québec casinos' self-exclusion program has served as a model for other Canadian and U.S. casinos.

The program has proved to be extremely effective for a good number of people, as reported in the study led by the Centre québécois d'excellence pour la prévention et le traitement du jeu, Analysis of a Casino's self-exclusion program [PDF format, 77 KB, Help], published in 2000.

A pilot project was introduced by the Fondation Mise sur toi in conjunction with three help centres for compulsive gamblers that allows individuals wanting to be denied access to Québec's casinos to do so from one of these centres: La Maison Jean Lapointe in Montréal, Centre CASA in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures and the Centre de réadaptation Ubald-Villeneuve in Beauport.

An Improved Self-Exclusion Program

The program was enhanced in 2007 with the addition of professional counselling services, and players who so desire may have access to these services for the duration of their self-exclusion. Upon expiry of the contract, the player will be invited to participate in an evaluation and information session so as to be able to make the best decision on this matter.

View the pamphlet "Self-Exclusion Program at Québec Casinos" for more information. [PDF Format, 220 KB, Help]

Concrete measures for the prevention of compulsive gambling are being developed and applied in every sector of activity at Loto-Québec. In addition to the self-exclusion program, here are the measures implemented in the casino sector:

• Access to the casinos is prohibited to persons under the age of 18.
• Contrary to most casinos in the rest of North America, Québec's casinos do not offer credit to their clients.
• No alcohol is allowed in the gaming areas.
• To raise player awareness, responsible playing messages are posted on all slot machines, along with the 1 866 SOS-JEUX help line.
• In 2000, interactive multimedia information terminals were installed to raise player awareness about the addictive nature of gambling. Since then, more than 300,000 persons have used these terminals.
• Supplementing the information provided by the interactive terminal, a brochure entitled "Make sure gambling remains a game" is available at the terminals.
• In 2001, Loto-Québec equipped its casinos with a crisis response plan designed to provide instant help to people exhibiting signs of distress linked to compulsive gambling. This service is offered by expert centres mandated by the Health and Social Services network and located in proximity to the casinos:
• Casino de Montréal:
  Maison Jean-Lapointe (in French only)
  514 288-2611
• Casino du Lac-Leamy:
  Centre d'aide 24/7 (in French only)
  819 595-9999
• Casino de Charlevoix:
  Ressource Génésis Charlevoix inc. (in French only)
  418 690-7900
• Casino de Mont-Tremblant:
  CSSS des Sommets (in French only)
  819 324-4000
• The Fondation Mise sur toi subsequently put in place an educational training session to raise awareness about compulsive gambling among the over 5,000 employees of the Québec's casinos who deal directly with patrons. The educational training session's goal was to provide employees with a better understanding of the phenomenon of excessive gambling and to improve their ability to identify and subsequently report a person exhibiting signs of distress. This system created a vast chain of support in which each employee is an important link. To this day, over 400 people have been identified and directed to specialized help centres.

New Measures Aimed at Promoting Responsible Gaming

Au Centre du Hasard

A first in Québec, Au Centre du Hasard is a gaming information centre located at the Casino de Montréal and at the Casino du Lac-Leamy, whose goal is to educate and sensitize patrons about responsible gaming.

This new initiative by the Fondation Mise sur toi was developed in collaboration with Université Laval's Centre québécois d'excellence pour la prévention et le traitement du jeu, which will assume full responsibility for managing the centre. The Fondation, for its part, will finance all the centre's activities. Au Centre du Hasard is a pilot project that will eventually be introduced to the other casinos.

Between the time it opened in February 2006 and March 31, 2009, the Casino de Montréal's information centre has welcomed over 56,000 visitors. As for the information centre at the Casino du Lac-Leamy, it has been visited some 28,000 times between its inauguration in June 2007 and March 31, 2009.

8/8, The Winning Combination

Casino de Montréal visitors can readily determine their player profile before going to Au Centre du Hasard, thanks to a new information terminal called 8/8, The Winning Combination. This is a user-friendly console that identifies their gaming behaviour pattern by means of eight easy questions.

For corresponding information, a pamphlet containing a player profile questionnaire and eight tips to maintain healthy gaming habits can be picked up not too far from the console. This pamphlet also supplies information on compulsive gambling and a list of services for addicted players.

A new venture by the Fondation Mise sur toi, the 8/8, The Winning Combination, information terminal was created by Loto-Québec subsidiary Ingenio.