National Bingo game - Players' Rules

Here are the full Players' Rules covering The National Bingo Game effective from 30th April 2018.

The rules are also available to download in a printer-friendly document by clicking HERE

INTRODUCTION

We are the National Bingo Game Association Limited, a company limited by guarantee, whose registered office is at Lexham House, 75 High Street North, Dunstable, Bedfordshire LU6 1JF (we, NBGA).

We are licenced by the Gambling Commission and we organise the National Game and other games of bingo for participating licensed bingo clubs.
These are the Players’ Rules applicable to the playing of the National Bingo Game, a game of bingo played under the Gambling Act 2005. The National Bingo Game allows players the opportunity to win a house prize, a nationally available jackpot prize and where advertised, instant or bonus prizes.

The club from where you play the National Bingo Game will also have its own arrangements and rules applicable to your attendance at the club and the playing of other games in club and the purchase of tickets to play bingo. These Player Rules cover the playing of the National Bingo Game in all participating clubs and supersede any house rules that might otherwise apply to the playing of games of bingo in your club. However, they do not affect any other arrangements or agreement between you and your participating club including those for the sale and purchase of tickets to play the National Bingo Game.

Players should always gamble responsibly and play the National Bingo Game within their limits. For more information and advice visit www.BeGambleAware.org.

TERMS USED IN THESE PLAYERS’ RULES

In these Players’ Rules the following words shall have the following meanings:

Claim: means a claim made by a player that his or her Ticket is a winning Ticket that entitles him or her to receive a prize on that playing of the National Game.

Club Manager: means the person with overall responsibility for the day to day operation of the participating club and also any member of staff at the participating club appointed to perform the function of club manager from time to time.

Club Prize: a prize offered on a playing of the National Bingo Game at a participating club and which is designated by the NBGA to be a club or a house prize.

EBT: means the electronic bingo terminal on which a player may play the National Bingo Game.

National Bingo Game: means the game of bingo known as the National Bingo Game, the National and the NBG which is a full house game of bingo organised by the NBGA from time to time and includes any other game configuration permitted by law which the NBGA may from time to time determine to be the National Bingo Game.

National Prize: means a jackpot, instant or other bonus prize offered on a playing of the National Bingo Game, which is capable of being won in more than one participating club and which is designated by the NBGA to be a National Prize. For the avoidance of doubt, a prize can still be designated a National Prize even though, by virtue of the random generation of numbers, that prize could only ever have been won in one participating club.

Ticket: means as the context requires, either a paper ticket or an electronic ticket to play the National Bingo Game on paper or using an EBT, respectively.

You: means you, the person who plays or intends to play the National Bingo Game and your shall be interpreted accordingly.

1. AGE REQUIREMENT

You must be at least 18 years old to play the National Bingo Game.

2       TICKETS

2.1   The National Bingo Game can be played on paper or using an EBT, or a combination of the two as decided at each participating club, but always using Tickets supplied by NBGA.

2.2   The Ticket price includes an amount known as the participation fee and a further amount known as the stake.

2.3   Sometimes a particular playing of the National Bingo Game has a prize of a minimum guaranteed amount. At other times the prizes available to be won at a playing of the National Bingo Game may depend upon fixed odds or other variable criteria.

2.4   Tickets may be purchased in sets of two grids of numbers (twenty numbers available to mark in two grids of ten numbers) or five grids of numbers (fifty numbers available to mark in five grids of ten numbers). Unless otherwise indicated at your participating club for a particular playing of a National Bingo Game, individual or alternative sets are not valid for the playing of the National Bingo Game.

2.5   It is your responsibility to check that any paper Ticket you purchase is intact and that the security and serial numbers on each Ticket is clearly legible when you collect them. If any Ticket in a set of paper Tickets is split, damaged, defaced or separated in any way, it will generally invalidate and void each Ticket within the set so, before play of that National Bingo Game commences, you should arrange to exchange all Tickets within the set if one or more individual Tickets is damaged or defaced.

2.6   If a player makes a Claim on a Ticket that is damaged or defaced the NBGA will have final discretion to decide whether that Ticket is eligible for a prize.

2.7   You can cancel your purchase of National Bingo Game Tickets at a participating club at any time until your participating club has stopped selling Tickets for the playing of that particular National Bingo Game.

3       PRIZES

3.1   It is the responsibility of your participating club to:

3.1.1            Display and/or announce:
(i)     The winning criteria and the amount of any National Prize available on the playing of that National Bingo Game before it commences;
(ii)   Whether a minimum guaranteed prize is applicable to that playing of the National Bingo Game;
3.1.2            Announce the amount of any participation fee which the participating club will charge as part of the Ticket price and to display the amount on the clubs’ Charges To Play notice for that relevant session of bingo.

3.2   If there is more than one winning Ticket for a National Prize and unless the NBGA have notified your participating club otherwise, each of the winning Tickets will win the advertised prize fund for that National Prize. However, if the National Bingo Game is only being played for a Club Prize and there is more than one winning Ticket of that Club Prize, the Club Prize will be shared by the holders of the winning Tickets equally.

4       PLAYING THE NATIONAL GAME

4.1   The NBGA reserves the right to change the game configuration and to introduce additional elements or win criteria to the National Bingo Game from time to time. Details of the prizes available, the winning criteria and whether a minimum guaranteed prize amount exists on a particular playing of the National Bingo Game will be announced at your participating club prior to the game commencing.

4.2   Subject to Rule 4.1, the National Bingo Game features a Club Prize and a National Prize. Each prize is usually played for a full house.

4.3   Paper Tickets: If you are playing with a paper Ticket you must mark off the numbers called on each paper Ticket in such a way that the Ticket can be easily checked. It is essential that you do not obscure the serial number, perm number / plate number on the Ticket. Circles, the use of dabbers or underlining are recommended markings for paper Tickets. If a paper Ticket is marked in such a way that makes it difficult or impossible to be validated or verified, it is a disputed claim and the Club Manger may cause the playing of the Game to continue to be played under Rule 5.5.

EBT Tickets: Players playing with an EBT must operate the EBT in accordance with the user instructions and any directions given in your participating club so that it will properly mark off the numbers called on the display.

4.4   The numbers to be called on each playing are selected by the NBGA from a random sequence of numbers and are supplied to your participating club electronically. The Club Manager at each participating club must prepare a print out of the numbers that are to be called prior to that game commencing.

4.5   The person designated as the caller at your participating club is expected to call the numbers three times using the proper name first e.g. twenty-two. Once the caller has started to call the first syllable of a number, the calling of that number will be completed and that number becomes the last number called. The Club Manager is responsible for verifying the numbers as they are called against a copy of the print-out. The Club Manager will sign the print-out which they have verified and the signed copy will be retained at the participating club for a period of at least seven days after the playing of the National Bingo Game in question.

4.6   Occasionally there is a discrepancy between a number actually called and a number due to be called on the Club Manager’s print-out. If this situation arises the Club Manager should stop the playing of that National Bingo Game in that participating club and may decide either to re-call the entire game or to re-call from any number that was incorrectly called. The Club Manager’s decision is final and must be respected.

4.7   Sometimes, because of technical problems or for other reasons beyond the reasonable control of the NBGA or a participating club, it is not possible a) to call all or any of the numbers supplied to the participating club by the NBGA or b) to properly play the National Bingo Game. In this case, the Club Manager may decide to offer a house game in which case these Players’ Rules will cease to apply and the house game will be played under the participating club’s house rules. This situation is further discussed at Rule 7.

4.8   If you believe you have a valid Claim it is your responsibility to immediately stop the playing of the National Bingo Game at your participating club. You should do this by calling out audibly. On hearing a call for a Claim, the Club Manager should stop play in your participating club while your Ticket is checked. Please note that you will forfeit any right to claim that prize if you fail to have the Club Manager stop the playing of that game before the caller has started to call the next number.

4.9   Where the National Bingo Game is being played for a National Prize, the winners of that National Prize will be the player(s) across all of the participating clubs to validly mark off (or cause their EBT to mark off) all the numbers on a Ticket grid within the applicable win criteria.

4.10             The criteria required to win a jackpot, instant or bonus prize is set by the NBGA from time to time and the NBGA reserves the right to change the criteria from game to game. Details of the particular prize criteria should be announced in accordance with Rule 3.1.

4.11             If a playing of a National Bingo Game features a National Prize which is not won, the NBGA will transfer to a designated bank account in the NBGA’s name an amount equal to the stake money allocated to the Ticket price of each Ticket sold for that playing of the game for that National Prize and retain it for use in funding future National Prizes at subsequent playing(s) of the National Bingo Game.

4.12             A winning Ticket will only win one National Prize, being the highest single prize capable of being won by that Ticket. So if a National Prize with different win criteria is offered on the playing of a particular National Bingo Game, the available prize fund is calculated on the basis that those prizes capable of being won on the lower winning criteria will be disregarded and added to the prize fund available to the winner of the highest winning criteria, if the higher criteria are achieved. For example, if a jackpot prize of £1,000 is offered to the player who makes a successful Claim within 20 calls and a £100 prize was offered for a successful Claim within 24 calls, the holder of a Ticket who makes a successful Claim on the 18th call would receive £1,000 and not £1,100 despite a claim on 18 calls also being a claim within 24 calls.

5       MAKING A CLAIM TO A PRIZE

5.1   All claims to be a winner of any prize offered on the National Bingo Game are subject to scrutiny and verification by your participating club and by the NBGA in accordance with this Rule. Any dispute as to whether a Claim was validly made or whether a Ticket is valid is subject to the NBGA’s Complaints Procedure provided for in Rule 9 below.

5.2   When a player announces a Claim, the member of staff with responsibility for calling the numbers at the participating club must take steps to ascertain whether there may be other Claims at the club. The National Bingo Game at that participating club will not be closed until Claims have been checked in accordance with Rule 5.3 and the caller has made one final request to see if there are any more Claims. After making the final request the caller must announce how many winning Tickets there were and on how many calls such Claim(s) were made. No further Claims in that participating club can be made and the National Bingo Game in that participating club shall be declared closed subject to re-opening under Rule 5.5 below.

5.3   In order to have a Claim checked you must deliver your winning Ticket or the EBT on which you made your winning Claim to the Club Manager. The Club Manager will inspect the Ticket to ascertain that it is intact (with the security and serial numbers and all other numbers clearly visible) or the EBT to ensure it is working. Even if the Club Manager has indicated that a Claim is valid, that Claim and the Ticket or EBT on which the Claim was made will be subject to further scrutiny by the NBGA under Rule 5.10.

5.4   Players must be over 18 years of age to play the National Bingo Game and, if requested by the Club Manager, a player must provide evidence to prove his or her age as a condition of receiving a prize. Such evidence can be an original passport or a driving licence with photo-card or other form of photographic identification acceptable to the Club Manager.

5.5   If the Club Manager forms the view that, for any reason, a Claim may not be valid or that there may be reason to dispute the validity of the Claim, he or she may cause the National Bingo Game in the participating club to be re-opened and the calling of the numbers to continue until there are one or more successful Claims.

5.6   If more than one Claim is made for a National Prize and it transpires that a duplicate Ticket (either paper or electronic) has been issued the relevant National Prize will be paid in full to all winning Tickets. In the instance where duplicate Tickets have been found to be in play during the playing of a National Bingo Game, the NBGA will investigate how such duplicate Tickets came to be played in the game and to ensure any further instances of duplicate Tickets being played can be avoided as far as is reasonably possible.

5.7   Winners of a Club Prize or a National Prize must hand over the winning Tickets to the Club Manager of the participating club where the prize was won so that the Ticket can be inspected. Your participating club will retain the winning Ticket for seven days, or if it was also a winning Ticket for a National Prize, for six months, after which time the Ticket may be destroyed.

5.8   On handing over his or her Ticket to the Club Manager the player should obtain an official NBGA receipt for the Ticket (whether it is a paper Ticket or an electronic Ticket).

5.9   Subject always to Rule 5.10, Club Prizes won on the playing of the National Bingo Game, will be paid by the participating club where the successful Claim was made within 10 days. Winners of National Prizes will be notified in the club at the time of the win how the prize will be paid. If a prize is a non-cash prize, this will be announced at each participating club in advance of the playing of the relevant National Bingo Game.

5.10             All Claims and winning Tickets may be subject to additional scrutiny and verification by the NBGA. In determining the validity of any Claim or any Ticket the NBGA will follow a fair procedure so that:
5.10.1         The NBGA will perform its own inspection of the winning Ticket and consider any information about the Claim provided to it by the Club Manager;
5.10.2         If the NBGA is minded to reject a Claim (even one in which a prize has been paid), it will write to the player in question informing him or her of any issues observed and inviting him or her to provide comments to the NBGA in writing within 7 days of receipt of the letter;
5.10.3         Provided the NBGA receives comments in writing from the player within such 7-day period, the NBGA will have regard to those comments in reaching its final decision;
5.10.4         The NBGA aims to provide its final decision as soon as practicable and within 14 days of the Claim being made; and
5.10.5         The NBGA may require you to forfeit a prize if it should not have been paid to you and you agree to return or refund the prize in this situation.
5.10.6         The NBGA’s decision will be binding on the player, subject to your rights under Rule 9.

6       BONUS PRIZE PAYMENTS

If a bonus prize is offered as part of a National Bingo Game and you win it, your participating club will pay that prize within 7 to 30 days and in accordance with procedures set by the NBGA. Further details about the payments to customers of any bonus prizes will be explained by your Club Manager on request.

7       PROBLEMS

7.1   Occasionally, because of circumstances beyond the reasonable control of the NBGA or the participating club (including, without limitation, acts of God, technical problems or equipment failure) each a force majeure event, we may consider it necessary to cancel or abandon the playing of a National Bingo Game.

7.2   In these circumstances, your Club Manager may choose to play a house game instead of the National Bingo Game using all the stake monies collected at your participating club on the Ticket(s) sold to the game that was cancelled or abandoned.

7.3   For these purposes:
7.3.1            The stake monies will be the Ticket price less the participation fee allocated to that Ticket price by the NBGA and includes the stake collected to fund the Club Prizes and National Prizes on that playing of the National Bingo Game;
7.3.2            The house game will be played under the participating club’s house rules and will not be subject to these Player Rules.

8       REDUCED LIABILITY OF THE NBGA

8.1   Subject to Rule 8.2:
8.1.1            If a National Bingo Game is abandoned, cancelled, delayed or interrupted for any reason the total liability of both the NBGA and the participating club shall not together exceed the price you paid for your Tickets to play that National Bingo Game.
8.1.2            Neither the NBGA nor any participating club shall be liable to any person for any unforeseen loss or damage (including damage to reputation, loss of profit or consequential loss or damage) arising from the playing of the National Bingo Game by you; and
8.1.3            Neither the NBGA nor any participating club shall have any liability to any person for any loss, charge, costs, expenses or other claims for compensation arising out of a player’s failure to comply with these Players’ Rules.

8.2   Nothing in these Players’ Rules shall limit any liability which cannot legally be limited including, without limitation:
8.2.1            The liability of the NBGA or participating clubs for death or personal injury caused by negligence;
8.2.2            Fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or
8.2.3            Other rights available to you as a consumer.

8.3   No variation to these Player’s Rules is effective unless it is in writing and is displayed at the participating club before the sale of National Bingo Game tickets begins for the playing of the National Bingo Game in question.

9       COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

9.1   We hope you do not have cause to complain about the operation of the National Bingo Game but if you do, you should first try to resolve the matter with the Club Manager of your participating club at the time. The Club Manager may need to investigate your complaint further, in which case the participating company shall, within 7 days, fully investigate and resolve the complaint. If the participating company requires the assistance of the NBGA a further period of 7 day’s will be permitted to fully investigate and resolve your complaint. If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your complaint, you can refer the complaint to an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) provider, details of which are available from your Club Manager, the NBGA or from IBAS at www.ibas-uk.com.

9.2   If you raise a complaint about the conduct of the National Bingo Game the NBGA shall undertake a full investigation which may require the payment of prizes to be withheld or delayed until the investigation has been completed.

10    MISCELLANEOUS

10.1             Where the NBGA is required to exercise its discretion over any matter under these Players’ Rules, it shall exercise that discretion reasonably and in good faith. If you are not satisfied at the outcome of the NBGA’s decision you should exercise your rights under the Complaints Procedure explained at Rule 9.

10.2             The NBGA will only use any personal information provided by or about you for the purpose of organising and administering the National Bingo Game or for crime prevention purposes.

10.3             Nothing in these Players’ Rules gives any right to any third party to enforce any provision under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 or otherwise.

10.4             These Players’ Rules are subject to English law and the English Courts have exclusive jurisdiction in respect of any dispute arising under these Players’ Rules or from any playing of the National Bingo Game.