The player from Germany struggled with a gambling addiction and had repeatedly requested account closure, all while continuing to make deposits. The casino persistently offered bonuses and VIP offers rather than acknowledging the player's self-exclusion request. Hence, the player expected his account to be permanently closed and demanded compensation for the money lost since the day of the first closure request. The Complaints Team determined that the self-exclusion process was delayed due to the player's lack of cooperation in providing necessary verification documents. Consequently, the complaint was rejected, and no refund was granted.
PalmSlots Casino - Casino ignores player's attempt to self-exclude due to gambling addiction.
Amount: €2,497
PalmSlots Casino
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5.3
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Case closed
Our verdict
Unjustified complaint
REJECTED
Case summary
5 months ago
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6 months ago
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On April 19, 2024, I sent an email to the casino's support team requesting that they permanently close my account due to my gambling problems. I've lost a fortune and can't control my gambling addiction. That day, I decided to ask the casino to close my account and explicitly mentioned my gambling addiction/issues, as this has always been a reason for casinos/sports betting sites to swiftly and permanently close an account. Despite repeating this multiple times and sending over 10 emails in the past 3 weeks, the casino has still not closed my account. After my initial email, they responded by offering me a bonus to stay. When I told them I still wanted my account closed, they ignored me for 3 days while I had already sent another 5-6 emails requesting to close my account. Three days later, they replied asking me to clarify my request and explain my reasoning... I mean, I had literally told them in several emails that I'm suffering from gambling addiction. After sending further emails and asking them to delete my account, they just offered me another bonus... I told them to close my account as I have a gambling addiction, and yet they kept sending me offers... After some more emails they started constantly asking me for my passport, proof of address, invoices and a copy of my credit card to process my request... I was very shocked and surprised as these kinds of things are usually asked for when a customer requests a withdrawal... Thereafter, they also included me in the VIP offer and added cashbacks to keep me playing.On May 2, 2024, I sent them two more emails explicitly telling them that I want my account to be closed/deleted due to my addiction to gambling. I sent these emails in both German and English. As of today, my account is still active. In the meantime, since April 19, I've made several deposits totalling over €2500 and lost all my money. It's extremely frustrating that the casino fails to acknowledge my gambling addiction and exploits my mental issues by ignoring my requests and offering VIP deals and cashbacks to a gambling-addicted person to keep them playing. I have lost everything, my last bit of money and my job due to my disease. All that I had wanted was to close the account in a fit of rage so that I would no longer be able to play here. I expect my account to now be permanently closed, and I also expect compensation for the money lost since April 19, 2024. I have compiled all the email conversation into PDF-format screenshots. Unfortunately, the attachment is more than 5mb in size so I am unable to upload it here. I'd be pleased if I could directly email it to you. Additionally, I have screenshots of the transactions since April 19, given I still have access to the account. I also expect an explanation from the casino as to why they have ignored me. I will also report these instances to the German Gaming Authority. This casino should not be allowed to operate in this manner. Moreover, I noticed that they seem to be somehow related to Pribet Casino, which also behaved in a similar way. Their name is also mentioned in some emails.
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6 months ago
Hello goku23,
Thank you very much for submitting your complaint and I'm really sorry to hear about your issue with PalmSlots Casino. Please allow me to ask you a few more question before we would move forward.
Could you please advise if your account is already verified and if yes, since when exactly? How much did you deposit since your first request sent to the casino? Would it be possible to forward your first request sent to the casino to nikolas.b@casino.guru? When was the last time you spoke to the casino and what was it about?
Looking forward to your answer.
Regards,
Nick
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6 months ago
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Hello Nick,
I have just sent you a PDF (contains all screenshots of the email correspondence, chronologically, starting from April 19th - first request to May 2nd, last request) and screenshots of my transactions. I cannot remember whether I am verified or not, as I have never requested withdrawals. I sent my first request on April 19th and also stated my gambling addiction as the reason there, because in my experience the account was immediately blocked permanently as soon as you stated that you were addicted to gambling or that you could no longer control your gambling. I sent my last email requesting that the account be closed/deleted on May 2nd. Best wishes and thank you very much! I have deposited and gambled away around €2500-2600 since April 19th. I was also assigned a VIP manager on Sunday, i.e. 3 days ago, who then offered me cashbacks and asked me to agree so that I could receive cashback. I last wrote to him yesterday and complained that my deposit from Saturday had still not been credited. I also wrote to him yesterday via WhatsApp to say that I wanted to have my account deleted and whether he could forward this or give me the email address I could contact. Whereas 5 minutes earlier he had given me an answer and told me that this was only the "beginning" of our collaboration and that I would still receive so many promotions, he stopped answering me when I told him that I had lost €3300 in the last few weeks and wanted to close the account. He hasn't written back yet either. But knowing them, they will close the account permanently and claim that the process just takes a while...
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6 months ago
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I have now uploaded Whatsapp conversations with my VIP manager. He also offered me bonus today...
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6 months ago
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The account is still open today. I was credited with another free bet yesterday. The casino just ignores everything... I ask for your support!
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6 months ago
Thank you goku23 for all the information provided. I will now forward your complaint to my colleague Michal (michal.v@casino.guru) who will be assisting you from now on.
Wish you best luck resolving it.
Regards,
Nick
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6 months ago
Hello goku23,
My name is Michal and I will be assisting you with your case. I hope that together we will come to a successful resolution of your issue.
I would like to request the presence of a representative from the casino in this conversation.
Dear PalmSlots Casino,
Could you possibly provide additional information regarding the failed self-exclusion and clarify the situation?
Thank you in advance.
Respectfully,
Michal
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6 months ago
Dear Michal,
The player initially had his account closed since he was not happy with the service – he didn’t receive any cashback or sport bonus, however, he requested to be re-opened. Later on, he mentioned that he has a gambling concerns, so our team redirected him to our specialized department at customercare@palmslots.com where he could send a properly formatted request. This process is outlined in our Terms & Conditions (3.22.3 https://palmslots.com/pages/terms-and-conditions), which states that customers wishing to self-exclude from palmslots.com must contact us at the specified email address, including a clear request for voluntary full self-exclusion and specifying the duration, with a minimum of twenty-four hours.
We responded to the player, asking for some basic documentation to proceed with his request. However, the player declined and stopped communicating, preventing us from moving forward accordingly.
Given the lack of cooperation, the account has been permanently closed, with the player being held responsible for any activity on the account. All actions taken are in accordance with our policy.
Best regards,
PalmSlots Casino
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6 months ago
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Dear Michael,
I am speechless at how this casino is reacting. My account was still active until yesterday and I was offered a free bet on Sunday. I have already sent you the email from the casino and several emails. The casino asked me for a copy of my ID, bills, proof of address and a copy of my bank card or credit card. What is that? I did not request a withdrawal, but rather the closure of my account due to gambling addiction and then they ask for such personal documents. I will not accept that and I will definitely not send such documents to a dubious casino that refuses to close my account. It was only after you reported here that they closed the account today. However, since April 19, when I first contacted the casino and asked them to close the account permanently due to gambling addiction, I have deposited and lost €2500. Who is liable for this? I have also reported the casino to the joint German gambling authority. It is a disgrace how this casino defends its actions without even apologizing or offering compensation. I demand consequences.
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6 months ago
Dear goku23,
The fact that the casino was requesting documents from your side is understandable since your account was not verified (you mentioned you have never made any withdrawals). Do I understand correctly that the whole process started on 19.4. and your account was closed on 13.5.?
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6 months ago
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The account was then closed 6 days ago. A question for you: Why does the casino require a copy of my ID, proof of address, and a copy of my debit card or credit card to close the account of a gambling addict customer who has asked for it several times? What is the point of this? Other casinos have not required this and I have never withdrawn money from them either. It also violates GDPR. If you defend this casino here, I will also report you to the gambling authority for advertising and defending casinos that are illegal in Germany. In my last complaint, you also defended a casino that was not on the whitelist and simply closed the case. I am slowly beginning to doubt your objectivity!
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6 months ago
Dear goku23,
The reason is simple. The casino needs to collect player's verification data simply because they need to have those players in the system, should they ever attempt to get around the self-exclusion measures and create another account. If they try to verify that account, the system will immediately flag them and the account will be closed.
The casino wanted to help you with your problem and go through with the self-exclusion request, however, due to your lack of cooperation, the whole process got harder.
However, in the WhatsApp conversation you sent us here in the thread, I suspect this happened after you had already informed the casino about your wish to self-exclude due to a gambling problem, am I correct?
Dear PalmSlots Casino,
Could you comment on the fact that the player has informed you multiple times about his wish to self-exclude due to gambling problems and yet he was still receiving bonus offers?
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6 months ago
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Dear Michael,
have you looked at the emails I sent as attachments? Haven't you seen how many emails I sent and how the casino tried to offer bonuses several times? Even the Sunday before last I received a free bet again. Even 2-3 weeks after I sent several emails, I got a VIP offer and was sent a VIP manager... unbelievable, why did I send all those attachments by email?
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6 months ago
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Furthermore, the casino is obliged to block my account if I ask them to and explicitly mention that I suffer from gambling addiction. Anything else, such as blocking me from all systems etc., they can then explicitly mention again and therefore request the documents. This is a cheap excuse from you, Mr Michal, to protect the casino. The casino deliberately did not fulfill my request and delayed the blocking so that I could continue playing. Otherwise, why would they have offered and credited cashbacks and bonuses several times during this time?
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6 months ago
Hello, Michal
Our dedicated department received the player’s self-exclusion request and acted within the timeframe, which can be seen in our Terms and Conditions. Please note that technical time is required for the exclusion to be completed due to the manual handling and the high volume of requests.
It is worth mentioning that the responsibility for any account activity lies entirely with the player until the self-exclusion procedure is completed.
Regards,
PalmSlots Casino
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6 months ago
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I have forwarded the emails to you, dear Casinoguru team. My first request was sent on April 19th. The account was only closed a week ago. It took almost a whole month. But in the meantime, bonus offers were sent out diligently.
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6 months ago
Dear PalmSlots Casino, the player informed you about the reason of his wish to close the account - gambling addiction - on 20.4 to the email support@palmslots.com. Could you confirm this fact?
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6 months ago
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In my email on the 19th I asked for the account to be closed. I then received an offer of €20 as a free bet in response. On April 20th I then explicitly mentioned that I am addicted to gambling and asked for the account to be closed. On April 21st I also mentioned my addiction to gambling and then another email came from the casino asking why... You should have received the rest of the email correspondence as a PDF. Otherwise I can add everything back here.
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6 months ago
Hello Michal,
The provided screenshots from the player refer to 3 different different e-mails which were all to the incorrect mail address for such requests.
On the 20th he sent an e-mail to which you see our answer in this thread but not his request. He did not provide a specific reason for his decision in e-mail which was being handled on the 20th. He was asked for a reason and then later on when he submitted his official request on the correct e-mail where we requested documents.
As we already mentioned previously due to the Player refusing to provide said basic documentation the handling of his request was delayed.
Regards,
PalmSlots Casino
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6 months ago
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I am extremely angry and feel like I have been completely ripped off. It looks like the casino is just trying to rip us off and is making no admissions. I am warning you, yes, the Casinoguru, for the last time! If you do not take action, I will also report you to the joint German gambling authority because you are advertising an illegal online casino and are also protecting it! One last time on the reasoning given above by the fraud casino: I sent several emails to support@palmslots.com E-mails were sent and also on 21 April to customercare@palmslots.com wrote an email. How many support email addresses does this casino have? A totally cheap excuse and nothing else! And again: every casino in Germany blocks the account immediately without asking for any documents. Why does this casino want such highly sensitive and private documents from me in order to block an account? And why does this casino still include me in the VIP offer and why do they still offer me bonuses after I have been notifying them for weeks about closing the account. And why was it actually possible to close my account permanently after I opened this complaint here and still did not provide my documents? I had nikolas.b@casino.guru send all documents on May 8, 2024. This below is an excerpt from an email to customercare.
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6 months ago
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I wrote to two different email addresses, support@ and customercare@ and surprisingly I received a reply to my first email... only a bonus offer. The excuse is so cheap... I wonder how long they want to keep fooling us all.
https://ibb.co/3NqkmgN
https://ibb.co/qM0mzcC
https://ibb.co/bFyx0tH
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5 months ago
Dear goku23,
Please know that threatening us will not help you resolve your case in any way whatsoever.
However, with that being said, it is clear that you have specified your desire for self-exclusion due to gambling addiction multiple times, yet still, after those mentions, you kept receiving bonus offers from the casino, which we consider absolutely wrong.
Dear PamSlots Casino, please, could you tell us - from your perspective - what was the date the user successfully asked for self-exclusion and what was the date you fulfilled this request? Also, could you comment on those emails with bonus offers?
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5 months ago
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I don't understand how you can still ask the casino... I sent you a PDF file with over 15 emails. You can see that I mentioned for the first time on April 19th or 20th that I suffer from gambling addiction and therefore want the account to be closed permanently. Why are you still asking the casino when I first successfully applied for an account block? Did I fake the emails, are you accusing me of that? According to the casino, they didn't do anything wrong. I should have sent all my private documents... that's absolutely ridiculous, I'm not going to send my personal documents to a casino that isn't even on the whitelist just so they can block my account. This has never been a problem with any other casino/sports betting provider, even when I never verified myself with them because I never made any withdrawals. You can also see in the emails that before they even asked me for the documents, they sent me a number of emails with bonus offers and reasons. It is absolutely ridiculous how you personally from Casinoguru are still defending this casino and dragging things out like that. I have sent you over 15 emails and also WhatsApp messages...
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5 months ago
Dear Michal,
Thank you for reaching us.
As you can see on the screenshots provided by the player, the first one from 20.04.24 refers to a request sent to our customer support team. They acted accordingly and redirected him to our specialized department at customercare@palmslots.com. In the second screenshot from 21.04.24, the player submitted their request to our dedicated team, and they asked him for the basic documentation to proceed with his request. However, the player stopped communicating, preventing the dedicated team from moving forward with his request, which eventually led to prolonging the whole process and resulted in his account being closed on 14.05.24. The third screenshot from 19.04.24, in which only our answer is visible, refers to an account closure request, related to the lack of cashback and, sports bonuses and as he did not previously show any indication of gambling addiction, he was offered a bonus to retain him.
We would like to point out once again that all actions taken are per our terms and conditions with which the player agreed upon registration.
Regards,
PalmSlots Casino
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5 months ago
Dear goku23,
Would you be able to tell us exactly when did you make the deposits in the amount of €2497?
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5 months ago
Thank you goku23 for the confirmation and also for all the evidence.
Dear PalmSlots Casino,
Since we established that the correct request on the correct email address was made on the 21st of April, and the account was closed on the 14th of May, could you tell me when exactly you received all the necessary documents you requested from the player, making his request complete and therefore allowing you to complete the self-exclusion process?
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5 months ago
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Dear Michal, I did not send the documents requested by the casino (ID, proof of address, debit card/credit card). I have never received such a request from other casinos, and I have been playing actively for over 10 years and have been registered with over 50-60 different casinos/betting providers and have mostly asked for account blockings without having made a first withdrawal and thus verified myself, which was always implemented very promptly. I do not see why I have to send such confidential documents to an unlicensed casino so that the casino can permanently block my account. The argument that they are needed for "blacklisting" is also weak, since the casino mainly has to block my user account in its system and, if available, with its partners or subsidiaries. I can take care of everything else myself. The casino only blocked my account after I made this complaint here, and not immediately, but a few days later. Reason for blocking: Because I did not cooperate. This also shows that the casino was quite capable of blocking my account permanently without receiving such personal and confidential documents from me...
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5 months ago
Dear Michal,
It's important to note that a dedicated team handles these inquiries. The player sent his first official request to customercare@palmslots.com on April 23, 2024. Customer Care exclusively manages such inquiries, and self-exclusion requests must be properly formatted for efficient processing. These specialists are trained extensively to manage these situations with efficiency and adherence to strict procedures. Their role is crucial in ensuring players receive appropriate assistance tailored to their needs while maintaining the integrity of the gaming platform's policies. This dedicated approach enhances overall customer satisfaction by addressing complex issues promptly and professionally.
It's also important to mention that the player requested his account to be reopened/kept active by sending additional emails during his initial request. Our chat support team is available to the player 24/7, but he preferred using email, which naturally takes more time for a response and using different threads could only lead to confusion.
The player received an email from us on April 30, 2024, asking for basic documentation, which we believe you are aware that is a standard requirement from casinos. Despite replying to the email thread, the player started a new one, which again delayed his request. He sent another request to Customer Care on May 2, 2024, and we replied on the same day asking for documentation which he refused to provide.
Despite these challenges, we have excluded the account indefinitely, and all actions are in accordance with the Terms & Conditions the player agreed to upon registration.
Kind regards,
PalmSlots Casino
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5 months ago
Dear goku23,
Considering all the evidence I was able to go through, it is clear that the whole self-exclusion process took way longer than it should have, due to your lack of cooperation. When you were asked to provide the documentation to complete the request, you instead started a new thread with another request, prolonging the whole process.
As I have mentioned previously, it is a standard procedure in the industry for casinos to request verification documents to proceed with the self-exclusion requests. Since you did not cooperate with the basic requirements of the casino, the casino didn't even have to close your account. They did it only as a gesture of goodwill. Therefore, due to your lack of cooperation, you are not entitled to any refund whatsoever.
Due to the aforementioned reasons, this complaint will now be rejected. Thank you for your understanding, I am sorry we could not be of more help on this occasion. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you run into any issues with this or any other casino in the future.
