A man from Sydney, who asked to remain anonymous, spent more than $160,000 on lottery tickets and poker machines in less than two years at The Star Sydney casino and The Lottery Corporation. However, following this, he claimed that not enough is being done to protect people who are vulnerable to developing gambling addiction.
The Star Sydney and The Lottery Corporation Didn’t Stop Him
The man claimed that between October 2024 and September 2025, he lost nearly $37,500 on poker machines at The Star Sydney, including $21,334.97 in September alone. Although The Star recorded 11 alerts on his account between July and September, he was not excluded from the casino until after he lodged a formal complaint with the operator that month. Instead, his membership was upgraded, which he said gave him access to complimentary drinks and higher jackpot payouts.
In addition, Liquor and Gaming NSW (LGNSW) investigated the man’s complaints about both The Star and The Lottery Corporation, where the man also gambled. However, LGNSW found no breaches of the relevant legislation. Speaking of The Star, the casino was recently fined $7.2 million on a series of compliance failures around gambling practices and financial crime controls.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for The Lottery Corporation said the company was unable to comment on individual customers. They further explained that lotteries are a low-frequency form of gambling generally associated with a very low incidence of gambling harm. Still, the spokesperson claimed that The Lottery Corporation recognizes the harms of gambling addiction and remains committed to minimizing that risk for its customers.
More Needs to Be Done for Vulnerable People, the Man Says
The man said no one approached him or intervened about his gambling, and that his account was only suspended, and he was excluded from the venue after he lodged a complaint. He said most of his gambling was funded through credit cards that he believes he should never have been approved to receive. With the assistance of a financial counsellor, the man is disputing four National Australia Bank (NAB) credit card debts, totalling about $164,000, through the Australian Financial Complaints Authority.
The man also acknowledged that he bears some responsibility for his situation, but said gambling operators and financial institutions also have a duty of care to their customers and the broader community. He said more needed to be done to support people experiencing gambling harm, criticising what he described as a lack of empathy, care, and financial assistance for those who had reached rock bottom.