Online casinos that are not legit or regulated always have a dispute with players. Often this dispute is related to cashouts or not paying the players their online casino winnings amounts. If you will search the web you will find hundreds of such rogue casinos that at first offer lucrative bonuses to players luring them to play at their site and make deposits, but when it comes to paying out they either don’t do so or create ruckus over the winning amount.
That’s why it is always good to play at the best and well-regulated online casino. You can look at online casino reviews at authenticated sites, know from players, visit casino audit sites and governmental consumer protection agencies and find about the bad casinos to avoid them. This means you should first screen online casinos prior to signing up with them and note their terms and conditions as well as test their customer support.
What to do when Online Casino Doesn’t Give Your Winnings
So if you ever get into a bad situation at an online casino or have a dispute with them over payback or any other issue you can do the following:
- Start the dispute with a casino with their support team according to their complaint handling protocol
- Contact the Gambling Commission under which the casino is registered or approved or dispute resolution organisation chosen by the casino
- Choose the ADR (alternate dispute resolution) that is the most appropriate for your case
- Know what are your rights according to the Australian consumer law
- Be patient and don’t underestimate the costs associated with the mediation even though filling for one is free
- Take your case to court but make sure you have a good case, before you proceed contact the casino authorities for a detailed analysis of your case.
1. Contact the casino support team
As a first step, you need to first contact casino customer support. Do some research and find out the casino’s terms and conditions once again before approaching them. Send the support team the section in the terms and conditions that relates to the dispute at first and request feedback and advice on how to handle the situation. Furthermore, you need to give them all the details regarding the issue with dates, transactions amount, and anything else that can help solve your case.
If you are not happy with the investigation and the outcome you can move further with the complaint and contact dispute mediation institutions like ADRg, CEDR, and IPCA that can handle the case for you.
2. Contact an alternative dispute resolution party
Take your complaint and contact an external party that can look deeper into the issue. Every casino comes under different Gambling Commissions to provide you with at least one alternative resolution body such as Citizens Advice, ADRg, CEDR, ECOGRA, IPCA, and many others. On average solving, such issues take about 90 days after the mediators contact the operator on behalf of the player. However, this might differ on a case-to-case basis depending on the complexity of the dispute. While initiating a conversation and starting a claim with an ADR is free of charge for you; there might be expenses related to seeking information to support your case.
Even if contacting an ADR is what the Gambling commissions recommend, there are further steps you can take in case you are not happy with the results and outcome of the work an ADR did for you. Thus, you have the option to take the case to court.
2. Filing a case at court
Know your rights and under which claims you should sue the casino before proceeding with this. Generally, disputes between operators and players fall under the Australian Consumer Laws
Commonwealth and state and territory governments have launched the National Consumer Protection Framework (National Framework) for Online Wagering in Australia; which provides stronger consumer protections for Australians gambling online.
So when you complete any financial transaction as an individual you are initiating a contract with a business according to law and therefore your claim and protection falls under the consumer law act.
The Gambling Commissions has two essential requirements from operators when issuing a new license which are fairness and transparency.
- By fairness the licence issuer means the way casinos handle disputes with their players and the casinos ability to find an objective and impartial solution to the issues raised by players.
- Transparency on the other hand refers to the ease by which a player’s can find the information it needs to make a conscious and legitimised decision to play at an online casino, by this we mean updated terms and conditions, bonus terms, ease to find correct information about their support team and how to proceed in case of a dispute.
Before you proceed to court, reach out to Citizens Advice and seek objective guidance on the relevance of the case and chances to win.
List of Alternative Dispute Resolution Providers approved by the Gambling Commissions
Here is the list of Alternative Dispute Resolution Providers approved by the Gambling Commissions. Note that as often the offshore Australian friendly online casinos are regulated by UK Gambling Commission, Curacao Gaming Commission, and a few others so you will have to approach the ADR according to the commission under which the casino falls.
1. ADRg
One of the oldest dispute resolution providers in the ADRg express which has as main focus the resolution of disputes if the online casino is registered under the UK Gambling commission in the online environment.
2. Bacta ADR Service
Specialized dispute resolution entity in solving conflicts between customers and operators in the gambling industry. The company operates only in the English language and complaint submissions can only be processed in that respective language.
3. Centre for Effective Dispute Resolutions (CEDR)
Founded in 1990 the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolutions or CEDR is an alternative dispute resolution body based in London. It’s organized as a non-profit organization and it does not have gambling as its core business, with their focus being on commercial disputes in general.
4. eCommerce Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA)
It’s a London-based internationally approved agency that conducts testing, certifications, player protection and develops standards for the gaming industry. The body is also a leading international and approved testing agency and certification body focusing on the certification of online gaming software and the audit of Information Security Management Systems. Furthermore, they also specialize in conflict resolution between online casinos and their customers.
5. Independent Betting Adjudication Service (IBAS)
Acts as an impartial adjudicator on disputes that arise and haven’t been solved by the casino’s customer service internally. They act as an impartial party in the process meant to find a solution to the opened claim by a player towards an operator.
6. Pro Mediate
Oriented towards all forms of mediation Pro Mediate is also certified by the Gambling Commission for the arbitration of gambling-related disputes.
How to test an online casino for their fairness and trust?
There are so many online casinos and finding a trustworthy casino is the first and most essential step in avoiding the frustration a hustle of disputes with online casinos.
Do a bit of effort into researching the reputation of the casino on forums, review sites, and checking out casino blacklists.
Test the Customer support for responsiveness, join player forums and engage in conversations regarding payouts and casinos reputation with them.
The best way also is to test the casino by playing free spins or using the no deposits bonus and always read the terms and conditions as they differ from casino to casino even in the same category of deposit bonuses.
Find the casino’s terms and conditions before you make any deposits or agree to the terms will surely help you avoid casinos with predatory bonuses. It’s noteworthy that once you agree to the terms and conditions you are bound by them and any issues you might have will be solved accordingly.
Remember that other than the general terms every single casino has a separate set of T&C linked to promotions, tournaments, and VIP bonuses. Such terms and conditions often overwrite the general terms and conditions you initially went through.
Finally, be positive as not all online casinos in Australia are unfair. Most online casinos care a lot about their reputation online as it represents their main means of acquiring players, consequently, they would rather stick to their complaints procedures and launch an investigation instead of gambling with their reputation if you ever find a dispute at the online casino where your winnings are withheld.
