Disabled gambler loses £100,000

A mother has called for gambling rules to be tightened after her mentally disabled son lost about £100,000 in casinos and betting shops. Alex Mottram, 39, of Bournemouth, lost most of the compensation he was awarded after suffering brain injuries in a cycle race when he was 16.

He was banned from casinos for spending up to £1,000 a day but became addicted to roulette and blackjack machines. His mother, Sue Mottram, said vulnerable people needed protection. Mrs Mottram, who is chief executive of the brain injury association Headway in Dorset, has written to bookmakers in Bournemouth and Poole, asking them not to serve her son.

Mr Mottram signed self-exclusion agreements with a number of bookmakers in the area. It meant staff should not have served him. Mrs Mottram said: "He was allowed in while he was still officially excluded. My son is extremely vulnerable and he is not the only one. I think bookmakers have a duty."

Mr Mottram took out loans and built up a debt on bank cards to fund his gambling addiction. "Alex - despite losing a lot - sees it as a way of making money but he doesn't and people with head injuries don't learn from their mistakes," said Mrs Mottram.

Mr Mottram said he was lonely. "They [gambling establishments] are quite friendly but they are just making money," he said.

A spokesperson for the Gambling Commission, which regulates the industry, said since 1 September 2007, licensed betting operators are required to promote "socially responsible gambling" under the Gambling Act 2005. The self-exclusion period is a minimum of six months but customers should be given the option of extending this to a total of at least five years.

Paul Devlin, director of services at Headway, said: "We know that many people with a brain injury have reduced decision-making capacity as a result of their injury."