PokieSpins Casino - Player’s bonus winnings have been voided.

Good Afternoon,

I am writing to you to dispute a voided withdrawal, in which the terms and conditions are interpreted to be valid the withdrawal to a loyal customer.

Initial deposit information:

21st of December, a deposit was made of $50 , in turn claimed a deposit bonus of $35

Payments team deemed the withdrawal void based on the following from the terms and conditions:

13. Players are allowed to place single bets lower than 20% of the total value of the Active Bonus credited and should not exceed 8 EUR, 8 USD, 8 AUD, 8 CAD, 80 SEK, 80 NOK (as applicable).

Our Audit team found bet/s of $7.50, $8, $10.50 and $12.50 while the bonus was active which clearly breach our Bonus Terms & Conditions.

Related / Supported General Bonus-related Rules:

4. Unless otherwise stated, the players’ total balance is made up of both the Cash Balance, as well as the Bonus Balance. 

5. All bets will be deducted from the players’ Cash Balance first, even if there’s an Active Bonus in effect. Only when there are not enough funds in the Cash Balance will the bets be deducted from the Bonus Balance.

6. Unless otherwise stated, all players claiming any type of Bonus, also known as "Active Bonus" will subject themselves to wagering requirements. These, in turn, refer to the total amount the players have to wager while the Bonus is still in effect before any profits/winnings can be withdrawn.

I am very careful with terms and conditions as I have been in a position previously where I lost winnings because of a violation. I did read the terms and conditions in depth and from interpreting them I have bet accordingly.

I understand the maximum bet rule is present and am well aware of the wagering requirements that accompany bonuses.

As per 4. of the Bonus Related Rules, Unless otherwise stated, the players’ total balance is made up of both the Cash Balance, as well as the Bonus Balance

Where an 'Active Bonus' is active, it includes the Total Balance, being the Cash Balance and the Bonus balance. This supported by the fact that the Cash Balance is used first, before funds are deducted from the bonus balance. By depositing $50 and receiving an extra $35 on top, it is interpreted that the 'active bonus' which is received , which includes both the cash and bonus balance, would total the cash and bonus balance as they are subject to the same wagering requirements as well as using the cash balance first. In this case the Active bonus covered $85. If the $50 were not to be inclusive, the wagering requirements would not be applicable to the cash balance.

Based on the interpretation that the wagering requirements (for the active bonus) were applicable to the total balance of $85, the max bet requirement was worked out accordingly. This works out to be $17 at 20%. Careful consideration was taken to ensure that this was not broken, evident with the max bet wagered was $12.50.

I also note part of the terms and conditions that reads:

I am also a regular player at Pokiespins' sister casino Allspinswin, both under Digi Markets Ltd. You will find that I am a Gold Level VIP member there, further supporting the withdrawal as valid by the above VIP condition becoming relevant up to the 10.50 bet based on the max bet being worked out on the $35, or max bet of $25 based on the rule being worked out on the interpreted $85 total balance.

I had previously spoken to live chat, where it was requested that the casino send me the time and date for each bet that supposedly breached the terms be sent to me, as well as the cash and bonus balances at the time and accompanying wagering requirement left at the time of each bet. This would be ignored when asked. No chat transcript could be accessed or provided either, and when questioned about the matter the chat was closed from the casinos end a number of times, with the ability for me to then access live chat again taken away. I found this very unprofessional and discouraging as a customer, and it seemed as the casino would hope it would just be accepted from the consumer end to end the matter.

The total balance is subject to the wagering requirements, which constitutes the "Active Bonus" and careful consideration of the terms and conditions were taken accordingly. If the cash balance is applicable to the wagering requirements then it would be widely understood to be also subject to the maxbet rule. Being a VIP member of the sister casino and based on the above I believe the withdrawal is valid, and should be reinstated, minus the $50 returned at the time of the initial audit totally $4200.

 I will also be seeking advice from the casino ombudsman on the matter, however i'm confident that as a loyal customer that takes the time to become familiar with the terms and conditions, the matter can be resolved in the meantime.

Thanks,

M.***

Dear Max,

Thank you very much for submitting your complaint. I’m sorry to hear about the issue and understand your frustration. I carefully checked the Bonus Terms on the website, and this is what I found https://www.pokiespins.com/en/terms-and-conditions:

„Players are allowed to place single bets lower than 20% of the total value of the Active Bonus credited and should not exceed 8 EUR, 8 USD, 8 AUD, 8 CAD, 8 NZD, 80 SEK, 80 NOK (as applicable). Therefore, placing a bet of 8 EUR while there's an Active Bonus of 100 EUR in effect is considered acceptable practice. VIP players are allowed to place single bets lower than 30% of the total value of the Active Bonus credited and should not exceed 15 EUR, 15 USD, 15 AUD, 15 CAD, 15 NZD, 150 SEK, 150 NOK (as applicable). Please note that your VIP level is defined by the casino's own discretion."

Could you please advise about your player’s tier/level?

We would like to see casinos implementing systems that would prevent players from placing higher than allowed bets, but, unfortunately, this is not a standard practice yet. You were not stopped or blocked when you decided to increase your bet, and, as a result, you breached the maximum bet rule.

If you are aware of placing higher bets then the allowed ones, sadly, there is not much we can do to support your case at this time. I would strongly recommend reading all the T&Cs carefully before you start playing to avoid any misunderstandings in the future. Casinos try to design their bonuses to be as attractive as possible, but the rules must always be followed.

Please do not hesitate to forward your game history to petronela.k@casino.guru if you feel that you’ve been accused mistakenly, otherwise, I will be forced to reject your complaint. Thank you in advance for your reply and understanding.

Best regards,

Petronela

This is where it becomes confusing,

I believed I was Silver Tier VIP which allows bets up to 15AUD, as it says Silver Tier with "x" amount to next level.

They have informed that the bronze silver and gold tiers shown are not related to the bronze silver and gold VIP tiers which is very misleading.

Could you please forward your game history? Thank you in advance.

Dear Max,

We are extending the timer by 7 days. Please, be aware that in case you fail to provide the required information in the given time frame, we will reject your complaint.

Unfortunately, we’re rejecting this case because the player hasn’t responded to our messages and questions. Therefore, we’re not able to proceed with a further investigation or suggest possible solutions.

The player can reopen this complaint anytime.