MyStake Casino - Player's winnings have been confiscated due to multiple accounts.

I opened an account and deposited 4 amounts totally around £2k. I was successful and had about 8k. I had issues with the verification of my account and was informed that as I had another account they would only pay the most recent deposit of £444. Although I do not recall it seems I did have another account that was closed some time ago. I therefore breached their Ts and Cs. These seems extremely unfair especially as they won't refund my total deposited.

Dear Andygd1982,

Thank you very much for submitting your complaint. I’m sorry to hear about your problem. Please note that most online casinos have a policy against players opening multiple accounts, regardless of the situation. Each casino has the authority to block any accounts associated with the same person or credentials and confiscate all accumulated funds. I checked the General T&Cs and I found this:

"  9. USE OF PLAYER ACCOUNT

Only one Account is allowed per person, household or IP address.

Creating multiple Player Accounts by a single Player can lead to termination of all such Accounts. ..."

Do I understand correctly that you remember having another active account previously? Could you please advise if you activated any bonuses on one or both accounts?

Additionally, please forward all the relevant communication between you and the casino to kristina.s@casino.guru. Alternatively, you can post it here.

Thank you very much in advance for your reply.

Best regards,

Kristina

Hi Kristina

Many thanks for getting in touch.

Yes, I did have an account previously which had been closed. I did not activate any bonus.

I understand that they may confiscate winnings, although this seems unfair. What however is not understandable is that they have confiscated 1.6k of deposits and are only willing to pay the most recent deposit.

Many thanks

Andy

Most recent email sent to Mystake - no reply has been received. Thank you

COMPLAINT

me

To

support@mystake.email

Dec 5 at 10:50 AM

Good morning

I would like to raise a complaint in the hope that this will be resolved before I raise a dispute with your regulator Curaçao egaming.

I have deposited over £2k to this account and as of today I had a balance of over 8k. 

I have been informed that my account has been closed and will be returning £444 to me. You are citing responsibile gambling as a reason, this clearly does not relate to this. Saving paying out £7.5k is clearly the reason and your business model is to make money from customers.

During a live chat an agent referred me to point 9 of your terms and conditions, this states that winnings may be taken from any duplicate account. It is beyond comprehension that you would also take £1.5k in deposits. This is completely unfair and does not align with your conditions. How can you justify this?

Your conditions state about duplicate accounts, I do not recall opening an account with you previously, however it seems that I do which has been blocked. Therefore i do not have 2 active accounts which is the issue implied within your terms and conditions.

I therefore request that you pay out the £8k to reflect the balance in my account. As a minimum you should pay £2k to reflect the amount deposited. As a compromise I request you pay £5k.

If you do not agree I will report your unethical and cruel actions to your regulator. I will also be posting my experiences on numerous review sites.

I'm conclusion your actions and lack of transparency have left me suicidal and feeling desperate and helpless that you can just steak 8k from me.

Andy

Andygd1982 

Thank you for your reply, Andygd1982. Can you please specify when you opened both accounts (or at least the second one) and roughly estimate how long they were active?

Hi Kristina,

I opened my recent account on 30th November and the first one earlier this year - I believe I did not use the first account at all.

Many thanks

Andy

Email received today in response to complaint:

Dear Customer,

Trust this email finds you well 

We would like to let you know that we have investigated the circumstances surrounding your complaint 

Please be informed that you have breached the T&Cs of the website by creating a duplicate account, we closed your duplicate account as soon as you tried to verify it

Kind regards,

Compliance manager

Thank you very much, Andygd1982, for your cooperation. I will now transfer your complaint to my colleague Adam (adam.m@casino.guru) who will be at your service. I wish you the best of luck and hope the problem will be resolved to your satisfaction in the near future.  

Hello Andygd1982,

I have reviewed your case and will contact the casino to see if I can help.

We would like to invite MyStake Casino to join the conversation and participate in the resolution of this complaint.

Dear MyStake Casino,

Can you please provide further information regarding the use of multiple accounts:

• Were any deposits or bets made in the first account?
• When was the first account closed, and why?
• Was the first account verified?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hello Adam,

The player, with the username Andygd82, opened his first account with us in April 2023. The account was verified after providing proof of address and identity. He also made deposits before closing the account permanently in October.  Later, he opened a second account with the username andygd1982 on November 29, 2023. When he tried to get verified for withdrawal purposes, our system detected that he had created a duplicate account.

In accordance with our terms and conditions, we do not allow more than one account per user.

Any returns, winnings or bonuses which the Player has gained or accrued during such time as the duplicate Account was active may be reclaimed by Us.

Best regards,

Hello MyStake Casino,

Thank you for your response.

Can I ask if it is stated in the terms and conditions that a player is not allowed to register a new account after closing an old one? If a player closes their account and then wants to play again at a later date, what is the correct procedure? Also, I can see that the player used a slightly different username, can you advise what other details have been provided by the player when registering (for example email address, and address) that are different from the first account?

Kind regards,

Adam

Thanks for you replies.

Can you also state where in the terms and conditions it states that all deposits may be reclaimed. The winnings are not just being taken. £2k of deposits are being currently withheld.

Hello Adam,

According to our T&Cs, just one account is allowed per person.

Only one Account is allowed per person, household or IP address.

Creating multiple Player Accounts by a single Player can lead to termination of all such Accounts. The Player shall not provide access to their Player Account or allow using the Website to any third party including but not limited to minors.

Players can request to reopen a closed account via email. Then everything depends on our relevant team, which checks if the player is eligible to use the account again.

We strictly prohibit opening a new account without informing us.

The first account was registered with the email mrandrewjamesgilbert@hotmail.com. He can withdraw the last deposited amount of 444 GBP and then the account will permanently be blocked.

Best regards,

MyStake, can you please answer the question.

"Can you also state where in the terms and conditions it states that all deposits may be reclaimed. The winnings are not just being taken. £2k of deposits are being currently withheld." Why are you only allowing £444 to be withdrawn and not the other 3 deposits. You are not just stealing my winnings but also 3 deposits. This is clearly not fair or proportional.

Based on your response I did not have multiple accounts, therefore I have not breached your terms and conditions, thus there is no reason why the full 8k cannot be paid out, apart from players making money is against your business model.

Hello all and thank you for your responses.

Dear Andygd1982,

While I feel the procedure for reopening an/registering a new account could be made more clear in the terms and conditions of the casino, as you have intentionally opened a second account without first contacting the casino, and within a month of closing the previous account, it is very difficult for us to argue your case.

The casino has acted in accordance with its terms and conditions regarding registering more than one account, so I am afraid there is nothing further we can do to assist you.

Consequently, the complaint will now be rejected.

I am sorry I could not be of more help on this occasion.

Kind regards,

Adam

This complaint has been reopened at the request of the player.

Dear MyStake Casino,

According to additional evidence supplied by the player, it seems that their first account was closed due to a gambling addiction/problem. Can you please confirm if this is the case?

Kind regards,

Adam

Thank you for reopening the case Adam.

MyStake are currently not responding to any of my emails - last one sent 29/12 - in relation to refunding any money and my query regarding escalation to their regulator.

My account was closed due to gambling issues I have. Mystake were aware of this and allowed me to open another account. They demonstrated no commitment to responsible gambling and allowed a known gambling addict to make 4 deposits. Only when winnings were attempted to be withdrawn they closed the account and refused to refund this.

Moreover, they have ignored all reference I have made to the impact this has had and continues to have on my mental health and seem oblivious to the fact there are thousands of gambling related suicides a year.

I look forward to Mystake's response.

MyStake has advised

Please be informed that our T&Cs state the following: In these cases, the Company reserves the right to terminate such Account and suspend all payouts to the Player.

The use of the word suspend is interesting- this is by definition temporary. Please advise when this temporary period will end.

Today, i received a completely inappropriate email. Encouraging me to use the account.

Hello Andygd1982,

Thank you for the additional information. We will wait for the casino to respond, in the meantime please feel free to forward the email to me.

kind regards,

Adam

Hello Adam,

The player self-excluded himself via Live chat. The reason he stated is a gambling problem. We will send you the chat transcript by email. In any case, he was not allowed to create a second account. No matter the reason for account closure, the player can only reopen their first and only account, of course, if the relevant team permits it.

MyStake - the point is I was allowed to open another account, you permitted it and allowed me to deposit funds, despite knowing I have a gambling problem. I would be interested to hear how that aligns to your supposed commitment to responsible gambling.

I am still waiting your responses to the emails I have sent you.

Hello MyStake, thank you for your response and the transcript provided.

Can I ask what measures are in place to prevent users from opening a second account, particularly those who have self-excluded or closed their account for this reason? Has the player circumvented these measures in some way, perhaps by using a VPN or providing incorrect personal details?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam, there are clearly no measures in place.

i did not try to circumvent the system. Personal details including name, address, contact details were exactly the same on both accounts. Due to my gambling addiction I have opened accounts with many many betting sites and had simply forgotten i had used Mystake before. The only difference in my accounts was the email address used. They irresponsibly allowed me to open a second account.

I am still awaiting a response from Mystake to the emails I sent in order for me to take this to their regulator.

Mystake also continue to fail to acknowledge the impact this is having on my mental health. My lifeis worth less than a few thousand pounds.

Andy

Email received from Mystake just parroting Ts and Cs and not answering my questions. They seem to like quoting that payouts will be suspended. Again by definition suspension is a temporary period. I await with interest a response that tells me how long that temporary period is.

They are using Ts and Cs to their advantage but when the wording does not suit them they do not abide by them.

Moreover they are avoiding the questions around responsibility gambling and my questions around their regulator.

Casino Guru and MyStake - I have seen the following resolved complaint on your site

https://casino.guru/mystake-casino-player-s-account-flagged-as-duplicate

Why am I being treated differently. This seems to be exactly the same circumstances

Dear Andygd1982,

Please forgive my delayed response.

The case you have mentioned has different circumstances. However, we have had similar cases to yours in the past, and our standpoint remains - if you have closed your account due to a gambling addiction, and then been able to open a new account with exactly the same details as before, but just a different email address, we consider this to be insufficient in protecting players with such problems.

As has been mentioned in previous cases, it would not be difficult for the casino to implement checks that could prevent this, such as asking players for their date of birth when registering and then monitoring accounts with the same details.

It is for this reason I have asked the casino to confirm what measures are in place currently, and how they may have been circumvented.

We would like to ask Mystake Casino to respond to this complaint. I will extend the timer for a further 7 days. If there is no response within the specified timeframe, the complaint will be closed as 'unresolved' and have a negative effect on the rating of the casino.

Kind regards,

Adam

Thank you Adam

Another inappropriate Email received from Mystake today

We've got some exciting news for you!

Now, every deposit you make will be rewarded with an amazing 70% bonus, and the best part is, it's available every single day!

Here's how it works:

Deposit Minimum 20 €/$

Get a whopping 70% bonus added to your account instantly. 

DEPOSIT AND CLAIM BONUS

Hello Adam,

We have sent you an email regarding that matter and please check your inbox.

Kind regards

Hello MyStake Casino,

I have replied to your email, and we await further response.

Kind regards,

Adam

Dear Andygd1982,

There has been no further response from the casino, I will contact them once more. In the meantime, please let us know of any developments.

We would like to ask MyStake Casino to respond to this complaint. I will extend the timer for 7 days. If there is no response within the specified timeframe, the complaint will be closed as 'unresolved' and have a negative effect on the rating of the casino.

Kind regards,

Adam

Hello Adam

What was the message that was sent Mystake?

It seems that Mystake have zero interest in responsible gambling.

Mystake, what is your explanation for allowing a known gambling addict to deposit funds and then steal them all plus winnings?

Completely reprehensible and cowardly behaviour. Your conduct continues to leave me in awful mental state! Have the decency to reply.

An alcoholic walks into a bar. The bar takes the alcoholics money without giving them any drinks.

The alcoholic becomes depressed and finds other bars to drink in.

The alcoholic cannot bear to live anymore.

I am the gambling equivalent

Mystake TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY!

Hello Adam,

Please check the email sent by us.

Kind regards

Dear MyStake Casino,

I have received your email, and as mentioned previously we can’t agree that this is entirely the fault of the player.

It is not merely a case of multiple accounts, but more a case of a failed attempt at self-exclusion.

While the player should not have registered a new account (and is therefore not entitled to any winnings), the fact remains that there should be restrictions in place to stop excluded players from doing this in the first place.

As we have mentioned in previous complaints of this nature, for example: https://casino.guru/mystake-casino-player-s-attempt-to-self-exclude-permanently, we do not consider the measures currently in place effective or sufficient in preventing this kind of situation, and believe it would be fair to to return all of the player's deposits from this second account, not just the last one. Our standpoint has not changed, and so if the casino does not wish to reconsider its decision, we will have no option but to close the complaint as unresolved on this occasion.

Kind regards,

Adam

Hello,

We respect your statement, though that kind of decision goes against our terms.

According to our T & C, we have already refunded the last deposit.

Kind regards,

Mystake

Dear MyStake

If that goes against your terms and conditions why have you refunded a player fully in the same circumstances as myself?

You are also only following Ts and Cs when it suits you. They state that winnings will be suspended - suspension is temporary, I am still waiting for clarification on this.

Moreover, please confirm that you have NO commitment to responsible gambling as per your Ts and Cs and thus taking advantage of vulnerable people.

Also, you have NOT refunded any money.

I await another nothing response just before the deadline to reply to the message expires.

Adam, can you please advise as to how to report MyStake to Curacao EGaming? Would you agree MyStake's conduct breaches the terms of their license?

A

Dear Andygd1982,

I have spoken to the casino again via Skype, and they have stated that they decided to refund all deposits made in the second account.

Can I ask you to please confirm this?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam

Many thanks for this. I have been in contact with MyStake payment team who state the payment is in progress and has been processed from 'their end' - however it has not been received and despite requesting three times they have not confirmed the amount.

Andy

Hello Andygd1982,

We will allow a little more time for the payment to be received, can you confirm on which date the casino stated that the payment has been processed?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam

Please be informed that your withdrawal request has been successful on our side. - this was confirmed on Saturday night.

Thanks

Ok, Thanks Andygd1982.

So we will allow some time for the payment to reach you, please let us know if it happens in the meantime.

Kind regards,

Adam

Good morning, payment has still not been made and the stated time period of three working days has elapsed. I am currently receiving no response to emails about this, including all requests about how much is being paid. I am now starting to doubt whether MyStake will honour this payment.

Hello Andygd1982,

We usually like to allow up to 14 days for payments to reach their destination. Mystake Casino, perhaps you can provide an update on the situation?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hello,

The payment has already been transferred. We are sending you the details and hash:

https://etherscan.io/tx/0xde46b6137bf246b461b418ab20666ed5567f78d976652fa6bf107c2d4283ae3d

0xde46b6137bf246b461b418ab20666ed5567f78d976652fa6bf107c2d4283ae3d

Kind regards,

Mystake

I don't understand what this means, please explain

I'm liaising with my bank, can you please confirm the amount and that the payment is from mystake? Thank you

My bank advise no payment is incoming from MyStake. Can you please provide a banking reference?

My bank are unaware of etherscan. Please advise further on this and the previous queries and what I can do so I can receive the money.

Please provide ARN or faster payment reference

Hello Andygd1982,

According to the casino's response, the funds have been transferred to a cryptocurrency (Ethereum) wallet.

I take it from your response that you were not expecting the transfer of funds via this payment method.

Has the casino asked you to provide cryptocurrency payment details previously? How were your deposits made to the casino?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam

I was certainly not expecting this to be crypto currency and they did not advise this would be the case. I deposited funds via bank card and the casino requested this information for payment. I have never provided them with any crypto into and have never used this method.

Andy

Dear MyStake Casino,

Please respond and clarify the situation regarding the player's payment. What is the wallet that the payment was apparently sent to?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hello Adam,

The user requested withdrawal with the Ethereum payment method. That was the wallet address - 0x4Fda95a2D489Afc7178d080F7A2fF98dCE2c5E66

Our relevant team credited additional 1413 GBP to his balance. That happened on 22.02.2024 . Besides that he already had 444GBP (last deposit) in his account since November.

On that day, the user also had communication with our KYC team to verify used debit/credit card.

Withdrawal was requested by him next day on 23.02.2024 which was processed within 24 hours.

Andygd1982, please confirm the Payment address you used for a withdrawal is the valid one. You can also log in to your account and view that withdrawal is paid successfully.

Best regards,

Good afternoon.

I did not request via this payment method. Where is the evidence for this? I have never heard of this payment method. I do not know how to access this payment method. I cannot log in to my account as it is blocked!

Please make payment via the bank details I have provided.

Dear MyStake Casino,

The player claims that they made no such request, are you able to provide any evidence to the contrary?

Kind regards,

Adam

Good morning

A further week has now past. MyStake have no evidence to the contrary. Can a resolution please found for this, MyStake have not replied to any emails about this. If MyStake are refusing to pay via the method I made payments, could clear instructions be provided on how to access this money that has apparently been sent.

Thank you

Hello Andrew,

I have now reached out to the casino again via Skype and hopefully we will be able to find out what has happened.

Kind regards,

Adam

Thanks Adam, much appreciated.

Hello,

All the information is provided.

Kind regards

Hello Andrew,

The casino has stated that they allowed you access to your account so that you could request the withdrawal of the funds on 23.02.2024, and that you did so via Ethereum as your payment method.

The casino provided evidence that shows the withdrawal was indeed made via Ethereum, but has not been able to provide a transaction history showing the request of the withdrawal.

I would like to ask you if you currently have access to your account and if the casino has granted you access to the account as mentioned. Please also confirm the date that your account was blocked, and if you have ever used a VPN to access the casino.

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam

This is not correct, I did not access my account. I received an email from their KYC team requesting bank card images, which I provided, they then informed me that my account had been verified and payment was being processed. Their inability to prove I requested the withdrawal confirms this is the case. Again why would I request a withdrawal to a method I have not heard of and cannot access?

I cannot access my account, I'm not sure when this was blocked, but I tried to access to find out what was happening with the payment after I was told it had been processed and was unable to. I have never used a VPN to access the casino.

Can the payment be reversed from ethereum and paid into my bank account instead. If this really is not possible can somebody please explain how I can access the funds from ethereum? As all information is not provided.

I do not understand why MyStake continue to be dishonest, evasive and unhelpful.

Thank you

Hello Andrew,

Thank you for the clarification. To answer your questions, it is usually impossible to reverse a cryptocurrency payment, and the funds can only be accessed by the owner of the recipient wallet address. If you do not own this wallet as you say, the funds are essentially lost and cannot be retrieved.

This is where the problem lies - you say that it is not your wallet and you have no knowledge of the payment or withdrawal request, the casino states otherwise.

The casino has now provided us with further evidence and I wish to review and discuss the case with some colleagues internally. I kindly ask for your continued patience while we do this, and then I will post our conclusions.

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam - the below is the only information I have ever received about this. If I set up a wallet could I access this?

The payment has already been transferred. We are sending you the details and hash:

https://etherscan.io/tx/0xde46b6137bf246b461b418ab20666ed5567f78d976652fa6bf107c2d4283ae3d

0xde46b6137bf246b461b418ab20666ed5567f78d976652fa6bf107c2d4283ae3d

Thank you for continuing to look into this.

Hi Andrew,

No, unfortunately setting up a wallet will not allow access to this payment. It has already been received by a wallet and only the owner of that wallet can access the funds.

Kind regards,

Adam

Thanks Adam, I'm baffled as to why MyStake paid the money into this wallet!

Hello Andrew,

Can I ask you to check if your account is still blocked, and provide a screenshot showing if you can access it or not?

Kind regards,

Adam

Hi Adam, I can now log in...

Hello Andrew,

In this case, please provide screenshots of your transaction history from within your account for February, you will find it here:

I strongly advise that you do not do anything else with your account, as it should be blocked at this point. I will ask the casino how it is that you have access when you are supposed to be excluded.

Kind regards,

Adam