PokerStars Casino - Player’s account has been blocked and audited.

I was restricted from withdrawals and transfers on Feb 19, 2023 and restricted from playing on Feb 21, 2023. pokerstars asked me to provide proof of identity and I did so immediately, but there has been no progress since then.

I understand why they are being cautious as the amount of money in my account is too large, but I am constantly wondering if I will be able to successfully withdraw my money and I am very anxious about it. It's quite stressful.

Dear koisomakoto,

Thank you very much for submitting your complaint. Foremost, allow me to congratulate you on your great win.

Please understand that it is a common procedure for casinos to audit players’ accounts, particularly, after accumulating a substantial win. From our experience, it may take 14 days, but every casino is different and has its own procedure which needs to be followed. That’s why we advise players to be patient and fully cooperate with the casino.

Could you please specify if you have withdrawn any winnings from this casino in the past or if this was your very first game session? Was your account successfully verified in the past?

Hopefully, we will be able to help you as soon as possible. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

Petronela

 

Thank you for contacting us.

I was able to successfully withdraw $50,000 and transfer about $40,000 to another player about a few days before the withdrawal limit was imposed.

Thank you, koisomakoto, for the clarification. Is transferring funds to another player something common in this casino? Could you please describe the process?

It is common practice in this casino to transfer funds to another player, and most players have used it. It's often used for private transactions apart from withdrawals.

When I won big at the casino, I wanted to withdraw the money on this site right away, so I decided to use both withdrawals and transfers to cash out the money immediately.

This is because I was concerned that the amount was too large and might be counteracted by the casino.

In detail, the timeline can be summarized as follows

･From February 17 to February 18, I made withdrawals and transfers from PokerStars (both were successful).

･On February 19, my withdrawals and transfers were restricted and I was asked to provide identification (which I already did).

･On February 21, I was also restricted from 

Thank you very much, koisomakoto, for providing all the necessary information. I will now transfer your complaint to my colleague Branislav (branislav.b@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, koisomakoto,

I am sorry to hear about your problem. I will contact the casino and try my best to resolve the issue as soon as possible. Now I would like to invite PokerStars Casino's representative to join this conversation and participate in the resolution of this complaint.

 

Dear PokerStars Casino Team,

Could you please provide us with an explanation of the player's situation in more detail? What steps should the player take to unblock the account? If we are talking about routine account checks, what is the estimated time frame to complete the process?

Thank you in advance for providing the information.

Hello koisomakoto,

Thanks for reaching out. We are sorry for the issue.

We can confirm that the security department has temporarily restricted your account while it's undergoing a routine security review. Unfortunately, as you were informed via email, they can't discuss the specifics of the case until the review is completed.

Please kindly note that depending on the complexity of the case and the different procedures to be carried out, it is possible that the resolution of some cases takes longer than that of others. We are sorry that we cannot provide a time frame but rest assured that you will be contacted via email as soon as the review is finished.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Kind regards

PokerStars Casino

I'm worried every day whether I'll be able to get about $2 million detained for a month and withdraw money safely.It's not that I don't understand your mind to be cautious, but I want you to understand my mind as well.Now I'll be patient and wait for the restrictions to be lifted soon.

Thank you, PokerStars Casino team, for your reply and the update.

Dear koisomakoto,

As we can see, it is just a routine check of your account and gameplay for now. Although I cannot keep the complaint open indefinitely, at least I could extend the timer for a longer period, let's say a few weeks or a month, and wait for an update. Would you please agree with such a temporary "solution"?

Thank you

All right, I agree.I will contact you again if there is any progress.

Alright, koisomakoto.

Now I will extend the timer by 21 days, until April 14, 2023, and will wait if there is any progress.

If, in the meantime, you receive any update from the casino, please, let me know about it. In case you do not contact me until the timer expires, I will ask you for an update on April 14.

Thank you for understanding, and I sincerely hope the casino will finish the checks on your account soon.

I received this email.

It seems my account is permanently frozen. However, as far as withdrawals are concerned, they have not been made yet. I have no idea why I am being frozen. What should I do from now on? Please help me.

Thank you for the update, koisomakoto. Now I would like to ask the casino representative about the details.

Dear PokerStars Casino Team,

Could you please provide us with an explanation of the player's situation in more detail? What steps should the player take to unblock the account? If we are talking about a breach of the casino's Terms and Conditions, is the casino able to substantiate its decision with relevant evidence?

It is possible to share the data directly here, with your reply, or by sending them to my email address (branislav.b@casino.guru).

Thank you for your response.

I don't have a problem with the freezing of my account.

I just want to know if I can withdraw the money.

There has been some progress. pokerstars contacted me and asked me to submit the necessary documents (identification, etc.) in order to make a withdrawal, so I submitted them on 3/31. However, I have not heard from them since then.

I wonder if I can really withdraw the money.

Hello koisomakoto,

Thanks for your message.

We can confirm that the documents have been accepted.

The relevant department is now reviewing the arrangement for a manual withdrawal.

We are sorry that there are delays in replying to you. You will be contacted via email soon.

Kind regards

PokerStars Casino

Greetings all,

Thank you both for the updates.

Dear koisomakoto,

Can you please confirm your account has already been successfully verified and re-activated? What information did you receive from the casino? Is there any progress on the withdrawal request(s)?

account remains frozen.There is no particular problem with that, but I haven't heard from you about the withdrawal yet.Please let me know when I can make the payment

I haven't received any withdrawal yet.

Are you willing to withdraw money from Pokerstars?

As expected, it's too late.

Dear koisomakoto,

If I understood the last information from the casino representative correctly, your account should have been verified. Your account has been blocked/closed for some unspecified reasons, but there is no information about winnings confiscation.

Dear PokerStars Casino Team,

We would need clear answers to the following questions:

• When should the casino contact the player via email?
• Has the verification been fully completed?
• Has any portion of his winning been confiscated? If yes, how much was confiscated and why?
• Can the player count on his entire balance will be paid out? If yes, what is the estimated time frame for the balance withdrawal process?

Hello koisomakoto,

Thanks for reaching our again.

Please note that the relevant department is still reviewing the withdrawal request, and they haven't provided us with any information yet. Hence, we cannot reply to the questions above. Once they finish the review, you will be contacted via email.

We know our replies are becoming repetitive, but there really is nothing we can do from support, except from asking you to be patient, and wait for their reply, as they say, they are treating it as a priority and will let you know their final conclusion, as soon as they reach it.

Your patience is highly appreciated.

Kind regards

PokerStars Casino

It's strange that I've been forced to wait so long for the withdrawal even though I've never cheated."

I can only imagine that I have no intention of withdrawing money

Shouldn't we contact Malta, the regulatory authority that issued the license, to take action?

Dear koisomakoto,

To be honest, under normal circumstances, such a complaint would have been closed as 'unresolved' a few weeks ago. The reason for keeping it open is the casino's rating/reputation and the disputed amount. If we closed it as 'unresolved', the casino rating would be completely destroyed. There has been no progress since the casino was invited to the thread, and now it is more than 1.5 months, but we do not know the details yet.

There are 3 options to proceed further, but all will require your patience.

1. Complaint closure as 'unresolved' with a recommendation to submit a complaint to the regulator - a significant influence on the casino's rating.
2. Temporary closure of the complaint as 'unresolved', but with a note that the complaint was submitted to the regulator (after your confirmation), and we are waiting for its final decision - no penalization, then reopening of the case in a reasonable time, and reviewing the regulator's decision as well as the complaint again on our side. However, this could take a long anyway since we cannot influence the regulator's investigation and processes, and the regulator likely cannot influence the processes on the casino's side.
3. Keeping the complaint open - although the casino's rating would not be influenced during this time, and it also could take longer, the casino would be at least forced to regularly check it, and try to resolve it as soon as possible because complaint closure in your favour would mean a huge decrease in its rating.

From our point of view, and to the satisfaction of all parties involved, I lean toward the third option, or a combination of options 2 and 3.

For now, unfortunately, we do not know enough to say something for sure, and only our patience is needed. Based on the fact we are talking about a high disputed amount, there is likely a rich gaming history in your account that has to be completely reviewed by the casino. Unless you did not breach any of the casino's Terms and Conditions, I sincerely think that the disputed funds of such an amount are worth the time we can devote to it. Anyway, if you feel it might help speed up the process, I fully agree with you in the meantime submitting a complaint directly to the regulator (MGA) and involving them in resolving your issue.

Do you please agree with my recommendation (option 3) - to leave the complaint open while you will also contact the regulator? If yes, are you going to file a complaint to the MGA, and do you know how? Will you need any help or assistance in submitting the complaint to the regulator?

Thanks for getting back to me.

I agree with you on option 3.

I would like to file a complaint with MGA, but I don't know how, so I need assistance.

Dear koisomakoto,

I recommend that you contact the Malta Gaming Authority (https://www.mga.org.mt/player-hub/lodge-a-complaint/) and/or eCOGRA (https://ecogra.org/alternative-dispute-resolution/) and submit a complaint to them. Before submitting the complaint, make sure you provide all the necessary information: your personal data, the casino details, your login details in the casino, the issue description, and supporting attachments if it is needed. However, you should be asked for filling in all the necessary details during the process.

In case of any questions, feel free to ask me. Also, please, let me know once you have it done.

Thank you for your support.

I have filed a complaint with the regulator (MGA) I have filed a complaint with all information provided to

https://www.mga.org.mt/player-hub/lodge-a-complaint/

I am writing to inform you that I have received this communication from MuchBetter, which I use to make withdrawals from Pokerstars.

Is this correct that Pokerstars is willing to withdraw the balance on my account?

Let me know if you are willing to pull out.

Imagine how stressful the last few months have been for me, waiting without knowing if I'll be able to withdraw my money.

Dear koisomakoto,

Thank you for the update.

Have you already provided MuchBetter with the required documents? If yes, have you received any news from them? What information did you receive? Is there any progress?

As for the main issue and the disputed funds - could you please ask MuchBetter to share with you the following:

• What is the total amount that should be paid to you?
• How high should the increased limits be, and what are the estimated time frames for processing the payments?

I understand your concern, but it is necessary to ask the questions to PokerStars or MuchBetter.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

I sent them the necessary documents and it was approved.

After that, I received an email like this, so I'm going to answer their questions now.

There was a withdrawal from pokerstars to Much Better.

I would like to thank you for being able to withdraw money safely, even though it was really long.Thank you very much.

I don't need to communicate with you anymore, so could you please settle this claim?

What great news!

Thank you, koisomakoto, for confirmation and for using the Casino Guru complaint resolution centre. I am very glad you have received your funds. As the issue has been successfully resolved, I will now mark your complaint as 'resolved' in our system. Although I sincerely hope it will not happen, please do not hesitate to contact us in the future if you run into any issues with this or any other casino. We are here to help.

Thank you, PokerStars Casino Team, for your help and cooperation.

Best regards,

Branislav, Casino.guru