Fresh Casino - Player's bonus winnings have been confiscated.

After depositing $2000 and claiming a 5% bonus for cryptocurrency deposits, I proceeded to play blackjack with my balance. I got the balance on the account up to $2969 and proceeded to make a withdrawal request. When checking the status of my withdrawal I saw that my winnings were removed. I enquired with chat support as to why my winnings were removed; I was told it was due to me using "basic strategy" while playing blackjack and that it was abuse of their bonus system. This seems totally unreasonable to me and I think it is fair and proper to play using "basic strategy'. I can't see how the casino can implement this if it's not even against their terms and conditions?

Dear bim900129,

Thank you very much for submitting your complaint. I’m sorry to hear about your problem. Please allow me to ask you a few questions, so I can understand the whole situation completely. Could you please advise if this was your first game session in this casino playing Blackjack? Do I understand correctly that the accusation of using basic strategy while playing Blackjack was the only reason why your winnings were confiscated?

I have checked the general terms and conditions for paragraph 17 and this is what I found (here):

I would like to emphasize that using the basic strategy shouldn't be a reason to confiscate someone's winnings. Our standpoint is clearly explained in the following articles:

Basic Strategy for Blackjack

Is it possible to win in Blackjack in the long run?

Looking forward to hearing from you. Thank you in advance.

Best regards,

Petronela

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.

I can confirm that this is the first time in this casino playing blackjack (I only played blackjack).

I can also confirm that using basic strategy was the only accusation against me.

Thank you very much, bim900129, for providing all the necessary information. I will now transfer your complaint to my colleague Matej (matej@casino.guru) who will be at your assistance. I wish you best of luck and hope to see your problem being resolved to your satisfaction in the near future.  

Hello bim900129.

I am sorry to hear about your troubles.

I believe that the casino representative is the person who can bring a little light into your situation.

I would like to invite the casino representative into the case:

Dear casino representative, please explain to us what happened and how bim900129 abused the game.

Dear fresh casino representative, could you please be more specific?

Because on the screenshots it is a guide about how to play the game.

Could you please provide me with the bim900129's game log? (matej@casino.guru)

Also report from GameArt that the game is defective would be handy.

Good afternoon!

There is not a guide in the screenshots, but a scheme to minimize the risks when playing.

As we noted above, this provider's game hosts a "basic blackjack strategy", which is known worldwide and is banned even in land-based casinos.

We cannot technically provide game logs, as this would require requesting all the player's bets, of which there were many. If you have the opportunity, you can request them yourself to make sure.

As we can see, this game was disabled in almost all casinos, which confirms our words that it was with a "loophole".

We also do not have a letter from the provider, as the game was recalled by us, after we discovered the basic strategy scheme in it.

The winnings were written off according to rules 10.1.2 and 10.1.6, and we had to disable the game as the "loophole" in it contradicts the site rules that we have.

Regards,

Fresh team.

Dear Fresh Casino representative. 

Just for curiosity, search "basic blackjack strategy" on google. It is not a forbidden strategy but a guide to playing blackjack.

Regarding a loophole - it is possible that the game had some malfunction - in this case, you should provide us with a letter from the game provider with confirmation. 

Also useful would be a player game log where it should be clearly visible that he is only gaining balance and not losing it (in case of a loophole).

Hello Matej and dear player!

Going deeper into the history of the concept and breaking down all the articles in more detail, a basic blackjack strategy implies precisely that it allows the player to cut his losses during the game and stay in the blackjack advantage over the distance. Naturally, each player has his own strategy on how to play, but it is the Basic Strategy that is forbidden when playing. 

This strategy is difficult to determine when the game is played in real time, as there are several players sitting at the table, and you can never guess which move will be made next, but in a one-on-one board game with a dealer it is much easier.

As we described above, there is no letter from the provider, as the game was turned off by us when we noticed that this strategy was placed there. We have provided you with screenshots from the game showing this table, which should not be there. You can check other casino sites, they also do not have this game.

It is also impossible to attach the logs of the player's game, as there were hundreds of bets placed there, and it is impossible to point to a specific moment where he stayed in the winnings, as the strategy allows you to reduce losses, but not to remove them.

In any case, it is a violation of our rules, which we also pointed out above, to use any strategy when playing the game that allows you to reduce your losses.

Only player's winnings obtained in this way were deducted from the player's account. His deposit remains on the balance in full, and he can dispose of it as he wishes.

Dear Fresh Casino representative,

Even if the player follows the best strategy in blackjack, the RTP is 99.44%, so as you can see, the casino still has a slight house edge.

I checked the terms and conditions of Fresh Casino. Could you please tell me which terms the player breached?

Good afternoon!

As we have mentioned above, the rules, which were breached are 10.1.2 and 10.1.6:

• Use of any system (including machines, computers, software, or other automated systems such as bots etc.) designed specifically to forecast game results, make bets, and perform any other activities that may affect game results;
• Developing strategies aimed at gaining dishonest winnings, fraudulent actions with respect to other online casinos or payment service providers, credit card chargebacks or renunciation of prior payments, as well as other types of fraud; provision of false personal information by players that have been declared bankrupt at their place of residence.

Dear Fresh Casino representative,

I believe none of these mentioned rules was breached.

specifically to forecast game results, make bets, and perform any other activities that may affect game results;

By playing the optimal strategy in blackjack, bim900129 didn't get any unfair advantage or change the odds/RTP of the game. 

Developing strategies aimed at gaining dishonest winnings, fraudulent actions with respect to other online casinos or payment service providers, credit card chargebacks or renunciation of prior payments, as well as other types of fraud; provision of false personal information by players that have been declared bankrupt at their place of residence.

This rule is aimed more at fraud but playing smart isn't wrong, nor is fraud. He just played like a pro player, minimising his losses, that's all.

I don't think that the casino has the right in this case, and if they disagree, I would strongly recommend submitting this case to the casino's regulator.

Dear Matej,

Could I please request that you make the first reply from the casino public?

I don't believe there is any sensitive information there

I have sent Gameart an email requesting they have a look at this thread and I have asked if they could confirm that this game is being recalled because I don't believe the casino is being honest in this regard, as I see many other online casinos that still host this game

Good morning, everyone!

Dear player, as well as our partners from Guru Casino.

We value your opinion and listen to it, as well as appreciate each of our users. In order to avoid all inconveniences, the administration decided to reimburse the client the amount of the written off winnings. In the near future, the amount will be returned to your balance, and you will be able to dispose of it.

Please accept our sincerest apologies for the inconvenience. We hope this situation will never happen again. 

Best wishes,

Fresh Casino.

I can confirm that my winnings have been received.

Thanks to all who have helped resolve the issue.

Dear bim900129,

Thank you for using the Casino Guru complaint resolution center. We are glad to hear that your issue got resolved. We will now mark it as 'resolved' in our system.