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It is common practice for casino policy to be set by upper level management. This helps to create the culture of the organization and ensure the rules are fair to all employees. The policies are also usually set in order to align with financial risk, especially when dealing with potential liabilities and how to handle them.

Skilled Blackjack players can represent a small risk to a casino’s bottom line. To combat new tricks and acquired skills, the casino must implement a revolving policy. There are a few things to consider with this policy including:

• The significance of the risk
• State or federal regulation
• How much the casino is willing to risk
• The handling of these players
• The point where the player is no longer desirable

Casinos generally are referring to the significance of the financial risk involved with these players. The question is always posed by management; do these players or groups of players pose a significant financial risk to the casino? Also, the policy must abide by state and federal regulations as to the refusal of play for any guest.

Additionally, management must analyze the risk of losing other less-skilled players due to the handling of skilled players that may be detrimental to their bottom line. Furthermore, the actual handling of these players must be considered as well as the point where the player is out-of-control. These points are critical and a balance must be established.

This is an extremely subjective area of the casino. Some gaming corporations implement a no card counters rule while others have a “let them play” mentality. These are the two extremes of the issue and neither is correct over the long-run. Instead, a common balance must be found which is casino specific and is a decision left for upper management.

Whichever policy is selected, it is important that it is consistently enforced in the instance where it is challenged in court. There are different layers of policy that can be created, each presenting different benefits and challenges.

An effective policy takes into consideration the above points and must be strictly enforced by all parties in order to be effective. As casinos evolve and grow, the corporate policy on various issues and liabilities changes to fit the needs of the business. Creating the policy is half the battle, the other half is ensuring it is accepted and being enforced.

There is a great deal of controversy regarding how to handle skilled gamblers (card-counters), especially those playing Blackjack. In many cases the debate is based on lack of knowledge of the game or misconceptions by the surveillance, security and pit management departments. Depending on casino policy and the casino personnel, these opinionated differences can lead to liabilities.

Casino Policy

All casinos should have some type of policy on how to handle skilled players. This is commonly decided by upper casino management and verified by the legal counsel. The result of this collaboration is specific procedures that confirm how to handle players of high skill that are less than desirable customers.

Liabilities

Skilled Blackjack players do not hugely affect the casino’s bottom line. Instead they are a liability when practicing fraud by using false names. Another liability is that these players are using card counting methods which can be discovered through their betting and playing patterns.

Single card counters can easily be detected by surveillance and/or security. As a result, their income is minimal. On the other hand, card counting groups that risk little money and place large wagers when the cards are favorable can impact the pit income greatly when allowed to operate for an extended period of time.

The biggest liability is the actual lack of policy for handling these players. Without a procedure, the casino staff can mishandle patrons resulting in terrible public relations with potential customers. Also, this type of behavior often leads to lawsuits against the casino because they are treating players like criminals.

Why a Policy is Important

A detailed policy must be implemented prior to the opening of a casino to avoid these situations. There are too many areas where public relations can greatly diminish as well as legal battles can ensue as a result of improper customer relations. There is so much potential for liabilities within the casino business. Some are easily noticeable while others are hidden.

It is a shame when situations such as the previous go overlooked and the casino must engage in legal battles and poor press when it could have simply been avoided with policy and procedure. Once a policy is in place, security, surveillance, management and floor personnel will develop a better understanding as to how to manage these individuals and save the casino from the trouble and hassle of negative results.