Bingo has stumbled into the so-called 'new normal', after the end of the lockdown by COVID-19. Little by little, bingos have opened their doors with the maximum sanitary security measures, recovering personnel from the Ertes, and hoping to overcome the state of alarm and the forced closure of their activity. The establishments that opened first, always in accordance with the authorizations of the local authorities and capacity, have not even been operational for a month, but the data is very worrying, between 40 and 50% of sales and similar numbers of customer influx.
The Spanish bingo industry trade body (CEJ) has evaluated these first weeks of bingos reopening, and in words of it's presidente Fernando Henar "the data is so bad that we insist, as a mantra, that without the help of the authorities, bingo has no future". And, he added: "We have been insisting for several years that the only solution is to refer the tax rate to prizes". Applied rates of 30%, 40% and 50% win are not sustainable.
The bingo situation, if it was critical before the pandemic, is now worse. In May, the State Observatory of the Bingo Labor Sector, which unites trade bodys (CEJ and FEJBA) and unions (UGT and CCOO), proposed to public administrations to lower taxation to 10%, since it continues to be the subsector of game with higher tax pressure. And they also requested a 50% bonus on prize bingo rates until at least the end of the year.
“The ball is on the roof of the autonomous administrations, but we are not sure that they want to help us. What's more, we observe with concern some behaviors such as those of the Valencian Community, La Rioja or the Balearic Islands, and others that with planning and distance setting measures can produce bingo closings in a few months”
18+ | Juegoseguro.es – Jugarbien.es
