WinSpirit Casino - Player faces verification issues with a virtual card.

WS wouldn't allow me to withdraw $4000 in winnings because weeks earlier I made a deposit with a virtual card that was issued by a Canadian Bank that they wouldn't verify. I applied for the card online and it was instantly approved. I received the card #, expiry date in an email and the 3 digit security code in a text message. An image of the front of the card was shown on my phone when I added the details to my Google Wallet as the issuer advised me to do. As I said, I used this virtual card that one day on WS. It was frozen that same day due to suspected fraud. So when I won the money weeks later the deposit was made with another method, obviously. When WS asked me to verify the new card, I explained it was virtual, therefore there was no physical card to hold and take a pic of front and back, there was no card with my name on it, and there was no card in which I could place a piece over to cover up the middle digits on the front and the 3 digits on the back. I did submit every single piece of physical evidence I had to them proving I owned the virtual card, including the email showing I was approved, the credit limit, the card #, the expiry #, and the 3 digit code. I also sent them a screenshot of my credit bureau report showing them where the issuer did a credit check the same day the virtual card was issued. After fighting for a week or more just before Christmas, I never did get to with my winnings. They wanted a letter from the bank stating the card was mine, but the bank said they don't do that for security reasons. I had other banks tell me the same thing when WS wanted to me to verify debit cards issued by Canadian Banks that don't print your name on them. Verification is an ongoing issue with this casino.

Dear kellybragg9,

Thank you very much for submitting your complaint. I’m sorry to hear about your problem.

Please understand that KYC is a very important and essential process, during which the casino makes sure that the money is sent to the rightful owner. As they don't have the luxury of being able to physically see all of the players and check their identification and documents, this is the only way gambling establishments are able to complete the verification procedures. None of the serious and licensed casinos take KYC lightly and it might take a few working days to complete this thorough process.

• Do I understand correctly that verifying the payment method seems to be the only obstacle standing between you and your winnings?
• Have you provided all the other personal documents to verify your identity?

I hope we will be able to help you to resolve your problem as soon as possible. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

Petronela

I have since been fully verified again for the fourth time. This is not the first issue I've had. This just happens to be the most costly. They verified the card in question after I asked the bank that issued the virtual card to send a physical card in the mail to me. But by the time that was all said and done, the $4000 was played with zero winnings. I was told I wouldn't be able to withdraw it, so as everyday went by and I just watched it sit there, I decided to spin it out. No point in letting it sit there as it was making me very upset and angry. It truly was one of the most frustrating incidents I have ever experienced. It was as if the proof in front of them was being blatantly ignored. The verification process was in no way compromised. If anything, they had more info on that particular payment method than they had on any I had used. To add insult to injury, it was just days before Christmas and the win couldn't have come at a better time for me. My VIP manager knew darn well I had enough documents/evidence, and then some, to pass verification. I mean the details in the personal letters were pretty indepth between me and the bank. My name and address was clearly shown as was the account/card #, expiry, security code, date of issue, credit limit etc. I exhausted myself into a mental breakdown over the pressure of trying to deal with my VIP manager and support staff. I still to this day don't fully understand why they refused to verify that particular payment method. The amount of money I deposited into the casino in the course of 9 months is astonishing. The $4000 was a small fraction of that. I felt cheated. I still feel cheated. I don't for one single moment think that I failed the verification process in the slightest. Then, during all of this, to make matters worse, I would get notices from the verification department asking me to verify previously verified cards, proof of address, etc. all over again. It felt like I was beating my head against a brick wall. I had a panic attack from my frustration and angry. I asked for a refund of some of my losses for the undue stress they had caused me, but was denied. Overall, it was a terrible ordeal, I would even go so far as calling it a tramautic event. I have playing at the casino since the big curfuffel, and I can't come handy to a win. I'm convinced there's a red flag on my file. My deposits are in and gone in minutes. Today I decided I'm done with WinSpirit for good. I gave them a second chance after they refused to pay me my winnings, but after more big losses today, I'm finished. They would bankrupt me if I continued to play there.

Hi kellybragg9,

Regrettably, since you have already played your winnings, there is limited recourse available to us. It's important to note that players are solely responsible for their accounts, active balances, and all wagers placed. For future reference, we encourage you to contact us as soon as issues arise so that we may intervene in a timely manner.

Please inform me if there is any additional information that I may have overlooked. However, I regret to inform you that I may be compelled to reject your complaint as unjustified. I sincerely wish I could offer more assistance. Thank you in advance for your understanding and response.

That's fine. I didnt anyone would see things from my perspective. In my head, at the time, there was no point in leaving all that money in my account to taunt me after being told no so many times. It upset me to see it sit there when I easily should have been given it fair and square. There was so much evidence that the virtual card was mine. To this very day, WS support staff say they didn't believe there was. I begged to differ then, I beg to differ now and I will beg to differ tomorrow. To see that word "rejected" repeatedly felt like torture after I spent days emailing proof of ownership. I wish I could show you what I sent to them just to prove my point. I don't want to put anymore of my personal information on display or waste anymore time and energy on this topic. WS reached out to me on Friday and offered 3 one-hundred cash bonuses with a 5x wager. They made the offer after seeing my complaint filed her. Each bonus is to be given out separately, spaced out over a one and half week period.

As to how the $4000 ended up going poof, here's the real untold story.

I was so full of frustration and disappointment, I regrettably did start playing the money. However, at first I didn't plan on losing it all. My intention was to play it down to no more than half. So no less than $2000. No one will believe what happened next, but I swear on everything and anything that is near and dear to my heart that what I'm about to tell you is true. And thankfully, there is a record/transcript with WS support somewhere to back up my claim. Something odd happened so that plan A went into the dumpster. When I started playing at the $4000 mark I was keeping my bet at a reasonable low to medium amount and decided if I got down to $2,000, I'd stop and keep it in my account in case by some Christmas miracle, WS would have a change of heart and accept all my documents and verify that one card that was used one night, but not the night when I had the $4000 windfall. However, at one point I looked down at the balance and I was shocked to see it had dropped substantially. If I remember correctly, it was at least $1500 below what I assumed it would be, and, more importantly, it was under the $2000 mark. It felt like a kick it the gut again. At first I was dazed and confused, but then I noticed my bet was 10 x higher than my average bet set about 30 mins or so before. I immediately reached out to support and explained there was no way I had changed the bet. There had to be a malfunction. I'm left handed and the increase bet button was on the right. You can't just hit it by mistake and increase the bet unknowingly. You'd have to do multiple maneuvers to make it lower or higher. The support rep was adament that it was impossible for the money counter to malfunction. It was either they were trying to convince me I was 100 wrong, or that I was losing my mind. I argued that I was 100 per cent certain that my bank dropped approximately in half in very short time. My argument feel on deaf ears and I lost yet another attempt to plead my case. I was under that $2000 benchmark so then I tried to get it back up to that amount but failed miserably. That's the real story of how the $4000 windfall became 0. I have since read reports of people experiencing the same thing in regards to balance accuracy. They too had no explanation as to what happened and they got no pitty or help from the casino staff.

So it is, what is it. It's gone, but not forgotten. I won't let it bother me anymore, but I will refrain from gambling at least 8 times out of 10 when that temptation hits hard. When you think about it, it's just a very quick and easy way to throw away what could be used to spruce up your retirement. Or if you're already retired, it could make the difference of whether or not you can go visit your children or other family members more often. It could be the difference of whether or not you take your dream vacation. As someone very close to me said today, "A fool and his money soon departs."

Unless you're very lucky of course. Then nothing I said matters. You're enjoying the good life and good you!!!

Dear kellybragg9,

We appreciate your honest feedback and apologize for any difficulties you may have encountered. We have analyzed your case in detail.

You did not provide a statement or screenshot with the necessary data for verification and you notified us that you were going to wait for a physical bank card.

As we see now, this card is verified, so you can use it without any problems. Also we sent you an email with a special offer, this offer is our gesture of goodwill, hoping to make your next sessions both enjoyable and rewarding.

If you have any additional questions, please contact our support team.

I wish I could be of more help. I’m sorry we couldn’t help you to resolve this case, but please do not hesitate to contact us if you run into any issues with any other casino in the future. For the abovementioned reasons, I will now reject this complaint. Thank you for your understanding.