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Unresolved - Information came to us during the investigation of this and 20 other cases that is considered inadmissible. In agreement with the UKGC this case has been passed to IBAS.
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Hi
I signed up to BETAT Casino at the start of October. I deposited £100 and got a £100 sign up bonus. I was playing £5/spin (less than the max spin rule as per the terms of the bonus) and got my balance up to £303.50 including the bonus. The bonus terms stated that wagering requirements would only begin once the original deposit had been used. It also stated that while the bonus has not been touched, a player can forfeit the bonus and withdraw his deposit and winnings without having to complete the wagering requirements of the bonus.
As I had only been wagering with my deposit and not yet touched the £100 bonus, I decided I would withdraw £203.50 and forfeit the bonus.
To make a withdrawal, they first wanted ID documents. I sent these documents to them on 5th October. I received confirmation that the documents were being processed. I then heard nothing for weeks. I enquired on Live Chat several times and I was just told that there was a backlog of documents to be verified and mine would be verified in due course.
Then, on 29th October, I received an email saying my account had been flagged for fraudulent behaviour and all funds would be forfeited. I have pasted the email below.
I wholeheartedly refute these allegations. I read the terms of the bonus carefully before signing up and I know I didn't breach any of the terms. I have no idea why they claim fraudulent behaviour.
My username at this casino: [EDIT]
Email address: [EDIT]
I would be very grateful if you could look into this for me and see whether there is any way this dispute can be resolved and my deposit and winnings paid to me, as I believe that they have no reason to withhold these.
Please let me know if you need any more information. I look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you
[EDIT]
Hi [EDIT],
Please be informed that your account has been flagged for fraudulent behaviour. Due to this, we are required to terminate any direct line of communication with you immediately.
Consequently we have now permanently closed your account, forfeited all funds and removed your email address from our mailing list.
No further correspondence on this matter will be entered into directly. Should you wish to discuss the matter further, you may raise this case with the Malta Gaming Authority who will act as the legal mediator between both parties.
Regards,
BETAT Risk Department
Hi ThePOGG Thanks. Resident in the UK. Kind regards [EDIT]
Hi cpmczak,
As a UK citizen and as we are the officially appointed Alternative Dispute Resolution service for BETAT Casino there is certain information we have to provide you now.
You can find all the relevant information about this service here – http://thepogg.com/terms-of-use/
To summarise.
– Use of this service does not preclude your seeking redress through court proceedings .
– This service is free to use for both the complainant and operator.
– At any point during the procedure the submitting party retains the right to withdraw their complaint. This does not preclude our right to continue the discussion with the involved operator of general issues related to the complaint (i.e. insufficiently clear terms and conditions).
– You are not obliged to obtain independent or legal advice or representation, though you may choose to do so.
The above is somewhat clunky but a necessary part of the process for any complaint that comes in under ADR procedures.
If you have any questions about the above, let me know.
There is a significant volume of complaints coming through about very similar issues at the moment and having had a preliminary conversation with the operator regarding the reasons for these account closures I can say at this juncture that this is a complex issue that will require liaising with a number of external agencies including regulatory bodies. As such, and as an effort to ensure you have reasonable expectations regarding the time frames that are likely to be involved, I would suggest that you should be prepared for this process to take several months while all the necessary information is gathered and reviewed.
Thanks in advance for your patience.
ThePOGG
Hi ThePogg Thanks for the update. I understand it will take some time to resolve and I am happy to wait. Please let me know if you need any more information. Kind regards [EDIT]
Hi cpmczak,
I can now confirm that the complete complaint file has been received from the operator and reviewed and that there is now an ongoing dialogue with the UKGC regarding various issues raised by this situation that needs to be concluded before a final ruling can be made.
I'll provide further information as/when it is appropriate to do so.
Thanks for your patience.
ThePOGG
Hi cpmczak,
Unfortunately while our investigation has concluded there is still an ongoing dialogue with the UKGC regarding this issue. As such it seems unlikely at the present time that we will be able to deliver a final decision within the standard allotted time frame for ADRs (90 days from the point of receiving the complete complaint file - though we are counting from the submission of the complaint in this instance) and as such are obligated to provide you with that information and a proposed time frame within which we feel we should be able to reach the end of this process.
It is our objective and intention to bring this issue to a close as soon as possible. Your complaint already vastly exceeds the average complaint time for our service. However, given the involvement of outside agencies it is impossible for us to give an accurate assessment of how long the wrap up of this issue will take. On that basis we will extend this deadline by a further 90 days with the hope of reaching a conclusion far sooner.
I will keep you updated as and when we receive actionable information from the UKGC.
Thanks for your patience,
ThePOGG
Hi cpmczak, After extended discussion with the UKGC’s legal team related to your complaint alongside over 20 other complaints related to this same issue with the same operator in the same time period it has been agreed that some of the information that has been gathered in relation to these complaints is inadmissible in terms of the ADR process. The above being the case, at the suggestion of ThePOGG.com, the UKGC has agreed that the most appropriate course of action in this situation is for an alternative ADR who has not been party to the inadmissible information to review the involved cases. As such ThePOGG.com has made arrangements with IBAS to review and conclude your case. NRR Entertainment has already agreed to this proposal. The IBAS service is free to consumers and as such there will be no financial burden on your part. However you need to be aware that in order to provide IBAS appropriate time to review all the information related to this issue they will require to start the review process from the beginning, meaning that the time that ThePOGG.com has spent reviewing these issues cannot be offset against the time that IBAS would have as standard to manage a complaint under the ADR arrangements. If you are happy to go ahead with the transfer of your complaint to IBAS you need let us know so we can forward the initial complaint submission to the relevant personnel at that organization. Please also be aware that we will not be able to engage any discussion in regard to any part of the complaint package due to the need to ensure that the integrity of the IBAS review of these cases is not inadvertently subject to any of the issues that have arisen here. We apologise for the inconvenience caused, but would state that this action is being taken to preserve the integrity of the ADR process and ensure a fair and unbiased conclusion is reached. Thanks, ThePOGG
Hi I am happy for my complaint to be transferred to IBAS. I look forward to receiving further updates. Regards [EDIT]
Hi cpmczak,
Thanks for your prompt response. I'll make the necessary arrangements to transfer your complaint.
ThePOGG
Hi cpmczak,
Just to keep you informed, I can confirm your case has now been passed to IBAS and I've requested that they contact you directly via email once they've completed an initial review.
Thanks,
ThePOGG
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cpmczak consented for ThePOGG to act on their behalf and share the personal information that they provide to ThePOGG with the following agencies for the purposes of resolving their complaint:
October 30, 2016
Hi cpmczak - welcome to ThePOGG.com!
Before going any further I need you to confirm which country you are resident in?
Thanks,
ThePOGG