In a perfect world, businesses would be able to provide 100% satisfactory services to all their customers. In that same perfect world, crooked individuals or companies who masquerade as legitimate businesses with the sole aim of swindling people wouldn’t exist.
Alas, we do not exist in such a world, which is why we have courts of law and consumer complaint authorities in almost all markets. The online gambling arena is no exception. The vast majority of online casinos are legit, honest entities providing a legally approved service to people.
But since the entire transaction between a player and the casino takes place online, with zero face-to-face interactions, misunderstandings can occur. Expectations may not be met, or the terms may not be fully communicated.
This, combined with the existence of bad actors in the gambling business, has given rise to a lot of player complaints over the years. In virtually all cases, common player complaints are related to these actions by the casino:
- Withholding of winnings
- Delays in payouts
- Canceling winnings/Refusal to payout
- Lack of action related to self-exclusion requests
All these actions on behalf of the casino are usually the result of either of the following factors:
- A mistake by the player
- The attempt at fraud by the player
- An honest error by the casino
- A willful attempt at fraud by the casino
- Technical glitches or breakdowns
Now that we have established a rough outline of the complaints landscape in the online casino business, it is time to look closely at two of the most common scenarios that play out in Alternate Dispute Resolution platforms across the world.
Complaints Related to Terms & Conditions
This is one of the most common types of complaints that arise at casino dispute forums all the time. There are two sides to the equation here. Casino terms and conditions tend to be long and boring to read, like most things in the fine print out there. Therefore, players often sign up without paying attention to it.
This usually ends up with the player violating one of the terms, usually related to casino bonuses and wagering requirements. This gives the casino a valid reason to withhold the winnings in toto.
And since most casinos are aware of this sort of player behavior, many of them add complicated rules and provisions to their T&C pages. Whenever a player violates these terms, it results in a net profit for the casino.
Bonus and wagering-related complaints have become so commonplace in recent years, that major licensing authorities like the UK Gambling Condition and Competitions & Marketing Authority have initiated crackdowns against complicated and convoluted bonus terms.
Casinos these days are required to clearly spell out all terms and conditions to players. But that does not solve the issue completely. Players still have to take the time and effort to read these terms in full before they wager at the casino.
Ignorance of the law is no excuse after all.
Withdrawal Complaints
Even if a player does everything per the rules of the casino, disputes can arise when they make a withdrawal request. All online casinos have a vested interest in keeping the money for as long as possible in the player account.
The longer the money stays in a player’s account, the higher the chance of it getting wagered at the casino. This way, the casino can recoup its losses. Unlike popular perception, it is not about earning interest on the winnings, at least at law-abiding casinos.
Most regulating agencies require casinos to place player funds and winnings in separate accounts. Therefore, all the fracas about withdrawal delays is just about the casinos trying to keep the player betting.
There are several ways in which online casinos do this.
One of the most common methods was to require additional KYC verification checks. Often taking up to 48 hours or more, these checks create a long enough window that entices players back to their favorite slots and table games.
Like in the case of bonus terms, rampant violations by online casinos have resulted in licensing authorities changing the rules regarding KYC. In the UK for instance, the Gambling Commission has made it clear that casinos are only allowed to do one major KYC check during the player registration process.
While this is a welcome step in the right direction, it is only valid in the UK market. In other jurisdictions, players still have to keep up the pressure on online casinos to speed up the withdrawal process.