Advice please - verified account closed/asked for verification

[george2]

Hi everyone, I've just been accepted here so thank you. My enquiry is, if I have been with a casino a while and also been verified, had numerous withdrawals without a problem, then out of the blue, the casino decides to freeze my account and ask for documentation again, then they have received and reviewed and emailed me to say its been completed. Why are they then asking again for the same documentation? Its all very confusing. This has been going back n forth via calls and emails for a month. All I'm wanting to do is withdraw money. However in their t&c it says that I can self exclude and that any money is to be paid to me. How true is this as I'm seriously thinking of self excluding and sod the lot of them.

 

[jasonuk]

Firstly, welcome to the forum!

So as far as documentation goes, there are two main categories:

• identity - this is done at account creation, and tends to only be requested again when there's a trigger (new address, document expiry etc).
• financial - this is done based on your financial background, so some customers won't be asked at all, others will be reviewed periodically (e.g. 3, 6 or 12 months).

They can ask for documentation for a variety of reasons - but also some operators (or "casinos") have been exploiting this as a "stealth reverse" mechanic by asking for documentation at the point of withdrawal to slow the player down and hope they will play the money back.

While the CDD request is active, you are allowed to deposit and play, but crucially you cannot withdraw.

Furthermore, if you refuse and/or fail the CDD check (at the discretion of the operator), they must close your account and should return all funds at the time of the check plus any subsequent deposits - you'll notice this doesn't include any subsequent winnings, which are likely to be forfeit (and why operators love it - because the player is anti-freerolling themselves).

The

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is crystal clear on this and why it is crucial you stop playing when you receive such a request:

if funds are to be repaid, then the amount repaid should consist of all funds owed to the customer at the point that the threshold was reached, plus all deposits made at that point and thereafter

So they should return your funds if you refuse - but they will close your account as well.

I would not use the self-exclusion mechanism for this, because it can have a lot of unintended consequences:

• If the site has sister properties, those should also exclude you.
• If the site belongs to the GamProtect trial, they may refer you to that and you'll be excluded from all sites participating in the trial (currently Flutter, Entain, Bet365 and WH, but they are looking to expand it in the future) with minimal rights to object.

 

[Video_Poker_Pro]

Firstly, welcome to the forum!

So as far as documentation goes, there are two main categories:

• identity - this is done at account creation, and tends to only be requested again when there's a trigger (new address, document expiry etc).
• financial - this is done based on your financial background, so some customers won't be asked at all, others will be reviewed periodically (e.g. 3, 6 or 12 months).

They can ask for documentation for a variety of reasons - but also some operators (or "casinos") have been exploiting this as a "stealth reverse" mechanic by asking for documentation at the point of withdrawal to slow the player down and hope they will play the money back.

While the CDD request is active, you are allowed to deposit and play, but crucially you cannot withdraw.

Furthermore, if you refuse and/or fail the CDD check (at the discretion of the operator), they must close your account and should return all funds at the time of the check plus any subsequent deposits - you'll notice this doesn't include any subsequent winnings, which are likely to be forfeit (and why operators love it - because the player is anti-freerolling themselves).

The

You do not have permission to view link Log in or register now.

is crystal clear on this and why it is crucial you stop playing when you receive such a request:


So they should return your funds if you refuse - but they will close your account as well.

I would not use the self-exclusion mechanism for this, because it can have a lot of unintended consequences:

• If the site has sister properties, those should also exclude you.
• If the site belongs to the GamProtect trial, they may refer you to that and you'll be excluded from all sites participating in the trial (currently Flutter, Entain, Bet365 and WH, but they are looking to expand it in the future) with minimal rights to object.

If you get hit with the sow and you dont want to send the documention, are the casino going to give you the money that you have on your casino account or only your deposit back?

 

[jasonuk]

If you get hit with the sow and you dont want to send the documention, are the casino going to give you the money that you have on your casino account or only your deposit back?

The UKGC guidance (which is based on AML regulations) splits the money into three pots:

• the full balance at the time of the CDD trigger
• any deposits made at or after the trigger
• any winnings generated after the trigger

So if you complete the CDD, all three pots are released and you can go on with your day.

If you refuse or fail the CDD, then AML winds back the clock to the trigger point - so the first pot is unchanged, the second pot becomes withdrawals (refund of deposits) and third pot would be voided.

The astute will be asking another question here, and yes, there is actually a fourth pot which is any losses generated after the trigger. As written, the UKGC guidance says all funds at the trigger point - unconditionally - which suggests those losses should also be voided.

However, should and will are two different things in both directions. We've seen operators threaten to take all the money "because regulations" as a strongarm tactic for compliance, and similarly someone trying to freeroll the casino will have a fight on their hands - because it echoes the self-exclusion fraud of years prior.

 

[ollygarch]

George, welcome. I've only become a member recently. I had a similar problem with Ladbrokes in the last few weeks. It was eventually resolved and I got my money. Perseverance and determination will hopefully get you a result. Of course I will never play Ladbrokes again. They have lost a loyal and profitable customer due their behaviour. Just as I was roundly shafted by Ryanair 14 years ago. I've never flown with them since, but that's another story.