How to complain about gambling companies?

 

It can be great fun to chance your luck on a few hands of blackjack or a few turns of the roulette wheel, but sometimes your experience can be ruined by something like having your account closed down for no reason.

So what can you do if this happens to you? Well, the first step to take is to file a complaint so they become aware of your grievance.

online casino complaint

How to Write a complaint to a gambling company?

  1. First, it’s imperative to search through their terms and conditions to make sure that you didn’t break any conditions associated with your gameplay.
  2. Once you’re sure you have a valid claim, make sure to document everything, as without documentation, online casinos will often try and ignore your complaint.
  3. State clearly what your grievance is and include the terms and conditions if the complaint stems from a specific offer or bonus the casino gave you.
  4. It may be that a lot of money is riding on your complaint, but do not lose your cool. Stick to the facts and back it up with your captured evidence.
  5. Alert them that you are going to speak to an Alternative Dispute Resolution provider if you do not receive a response to your complaint.

Since we are dealing with online companies, you are going to need to screenshot all of the information pertaining to your complaint and correspond via email. It’s often the case that online casinos base themselves overseas in low-tax jurisdictions, making posting your complaint in writing very difficult.

You could try seeking recourse through social media, by tagging them on twitter or any other social media platform that they have a presence on. Explain you’ve made a complaint and are expecting a response. If they ignore you, tell the world exactly what it is they have done wrong (remain professional in your writing) and see if that sparks a reaction.

As a last resort, you can look for (online) casino representatives in gambling forums. There are often customer experience managers who personally respond to queries and they may be able to expedite your case if you manage to make contact with them.

When should you complain about a casino?

Online casino complaints perhaps differ from traditional complaints.

Most of the time with any other type of company, cases for complaint are clear cut. Whereas in this industry, the myriad of terms and conditions attached to your online play prevent you from rightfully complaining about many items.

If you were playing with any kind of bonus there are often strenuous terms and conditions attached to it. For example, you are often required to wager that bonus numerous times before you can withdraw it as cash.

If you do try to withdraw the money before it’s been wagered a sufficient number of times, then the money will disappear and you won’t be able to complain about it.

Similarly, there are usually terms about minimum and maximum stakes, minimum time spent on games, and capped winnings on certain games. Not knowing the terms and conditions is unfortunately not an acceptable excuse, so make sure you read and understand them before playing.

Know your Customer (KYC) checks are a common part of the process with dealing with online casinos and they’re usually pretty stringent to prevent any possibility of criminal money laundering. Therefore, you cannot complain about being asked to provide information such as your ID, utility bills or proof of funds as part of this process.

Finally, there is nothing worse than winning a huge payout, only for the game to crash and you restart it only to find you haven’t won anything. Once again, most (if not all) online casinos insert a clause in their terms that says they are not liable for gaming errors, crashes or internet connection failures.

So with this long list of items that you can’t complain about, what can you lodge a complaint for?

  • When a casino is unreasonably slow to pay out your winnings
  • When a casino alters or lowers your balance (theft)
  • When a casino refuses to pay out despite you abiding all of their terms and conditions
  • A casino does not uphold a self-imposed ban to stop you gambling
  • A casino withholds bonus funds that should be rightfully yours as cash
  • When your account is closed without explanation (with funds trapped inside)

Why complain about an online casino?

Unfortunately, for the instances above whereby you have a valid grievance, the only way to resolve the issue is often by launching a complaint.

Failure to do so will mean your grievance will go no further, as the attitude of most online casinos is to ignore customer queries until more official action is taken. What’s worse is many will initially also ignore your complaint.

That’s why you must enlist the help of an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) provider such as IBAS, who will add weight to your complaint and make them take notice.

It also helps to be a public as possible which is why it makes sense to file a complaint on our website as we can give your complaint much more exposure than you ever could if you were just battling the online casino alone.

Possible results of an online casino complaint?

In most cases, online casino complaints usually revolve around money owed to a player. A well-structured complaint campaign could see you receive what you are owed, or have your balance with the casino restored to what it should be.

In some cases, the online casino may receive punishment from their respective industry regulator if your case is one of many surrounding the same issue, in which case you may also receive damages.

Unfortunately, as this can be a rather unscrupulous industry, you are unlikely to receive a written apology, although you may receive an email with words to the same effect. Online casinos have sadly developed an infamous reputation so make sure that you’ve done your research on your company of choice before depositing your money with them.

Where to complain about an online casino?

Besides complaining directly, we advise to give your complaint some online publicity.We can help by giving your complaint the publicity it deserves, hopefully forcing them to acknowledge your case.

It may also grab the attention of ADR providers and even regulators of the industry within your country, advancing your complaint even further.

If you’ve got a grievance with an online casino, file a complaint!

Current complaint sentiment: Positive

Our sentiment meter has detected a -24% decline in Gambling complaints over the past 28 days compared to the average rate.

Updated on March 15, 2024

Gambling complaints chart

In the graph below you will find a monthly breakdown of the complaints we have received in the category Gambling over the last 12 months.

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