A lucky player managed to win a mindblowing prize of more than £13,500 after he played a Stockton-based slot machine and won. Paul Kirtley won the massive cash sum while playing on a gambling machine at the Grosvenor Casino Stockton.
The exact sum that the player took home amounted to £13,511.50. Mr. Kirtley shared that he intends to spend the sum to buy a new car.
The general manager of the casino, Garry Oldfield, confirmed that the jackpot had been won and said that the management and staff at Grosvenor Casino Stockton were very glad that the casino joined the list of Grosvenor venues that had a jackpot winner. In addition, Mr. Oldfield shared his opinion that the win would create a lot of excitement around the new additions made to the casino.
The latest legislation changes mean that the jackpot machines in the casino have been qualified in the Category B1, which has resulted in the maximum stake allowed at the machines being increased from £2 to £5, while the jackpot prizes rose from £4,000 to £10,000. In addition, under the new rules, casino venues are allowed to offer a so-called progressive-linked jackpot for machines located in the same premises. Such jackpot could amount to a maximum of £20,000.
Gaming Machines Category B1
Gaming machine types are currently defined by the Gambling Act 2005. Under the definition provided by the Act, a gaming machine allows players to gamble. As mentioned above, they are divided in a number of categories depending on the maximum stake allowed on the machine as well as on the prizes provided by the machines.
As explained above, the gambling machine on which the jackpot was hit at the Grosvenor Casino Stockton was a B1 machine. Currently, such machines allow a maximum stake of £5, as well as a maximum prize of £10,000. There is also an option of a maximum prize estimated to £20,000, to be won on a premises only. Such a jackpot is called a linked progressive jackpot.
Under the provisions of Gambling Act 2005, B1 category machines can only be permitted in venues, which own a casino operating license under the 2005 Act or the 1968 Act. On the other hand, machine manufacturers and suppliers will need a technical license that is suitable to the nature of their business.
Of course, there are certain technical standards that must be met by each machine category, and all gaming machines located on casino premises must be in line with the UK Gambling Commission gaming machine technical standards. What is more, the gaming machines that are classified as category B1, B2, B3 and B3A are required to be put under some tests run by an independent party.
What is specific for the B1 type of machines is the fact that such machines must allow players to see the probable target percentage return to player, which is also known as RTP. For the time being, there is no minimum requirement for the RTP, so it is up to the manufacturer to make a decision upon the game RTP, but it is obligatory for the minimum average return to be displayed to the player.
