Tips for Family & Friends
Do you have the following feelings/observations about your concerned family member?
| Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|
| You cannot entrust your money to that him/her. | ||
| Does he/she disappear for a period of time without any proper reasons? | ||
| You feel that he/she keeps lying about his/her gambling behavior. | ||
| Does he/she spend more time and money on gambling? | ||
| You find him/her irritable, emotional, sometimes silent and sometimes angry. | ||
| Have you received suspicious phone calls or expired bank or credit card statements? |
When my family member has gambling problems, what should I do?
- Take good care of your psychological and physical health first
- Assist gamblers to take their own responsibility, and not to pay for their debts blindly
- Encourage bidirectional communication: encourage the other to voice out his/her difficulties
- Provide emotional support: listen to his/her difficulties, encourage him/her to face the problem affirmatively, and assist him/her to take his/her own responsibility
- Object against gambling behaviour obviously
- Do NOT try to control the gambler
- Help gambler to build a correct and healthy concept about money
- With the gambler’s consent, you could help manage his/her finance, and do NOT sign any dubious documents or become his/her trustee carelessly
- Do NOT tell lies to financial companies with the gambler
If you are disturbed by debts collectors, you could copy your important documents and keep them with your valuable assets at a safe and convenient place for you to pack and leave when necessary. To complain about bank products and services, you may call Hong Kong Monetary Authority at 2878 1378. If you feel threatened, you may call the police for help. If you need emergency accommodation, please call us at 2827 4321.
