noBendik
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Joined: 11 Apr 2015
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Thanks given: 1
11 April 2015 - 11:28am

Winner Casino and Bonus scam.

3 replies • Last post

I joined Winner Casino a few days ago and deposited about USD 80. This gave me a signup bonus of 200% so I had USD 240 on my account.
I was very lucky, suspiciously I won large amounts the first 24 hours. Then the payouts suddenly fell, I hardly won anything, but managed to meet my Wagering requirements which were about USD 8000.
When I wanted to withdraw the winnings, less than my initial deposit, I was first told that I could not withdraw my bonus as I had not met my Wagering requirements. They finally conceded that I indeed had met the requirements and needed a copy of my ID and proof of Address. I provided the documents by mail.
As I did not hear from them I mailed and received the following answer:

We received your email concern.

Would like to clarify that the withdrawable balance in your account is NOK482.12, since the First Deposit Bonus is non-redeemable as per Terms and Conditions that you have accepted upon signing up with us.

You may also check the link casino.winner.com/bonus-terms/#generalterms where you can see that all First Deposit Bonuses regardless of the amount are not withdrawable.

We hope this has been of assistance.

I have read the terms and can't find any reference to their claims. If the first bonus is not wthdrawable I don't consider it a bonus at all, but a loan and it should be marketed as such.
Have any here experienced something similar and can you call it a Bonus if "First Deposit Bonuses regardless of the amount are not withdrawable."
It is the first time I have experienced anything like this, in all the casinos I have played I have benn able to withdraw the bonus if I have fulfilled all Wagering requirements.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

auCL-Ed
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Location: Sydney
Joined: 7 Sep 2007
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11 April 2015 - 11:56pm
#1

Hi Bendik, first let me say that I have a very low regard for this casino and do not trust them at all. They are currently on our blacklist.

From what I can gather, you deposited $80 and received another $160 in bonus money which gave you $240 in total to play with. When a casino says that a deposit bonus is "non-withdrawable" (a.k.a. non-cashable, non-redeemable, or "phantom") this means that the bonus amount is subtracted from your balance when you make a withdrawal. So if you withdrew $8000, they should pay you this:

$8000 - $160 = $7840

I looked at the page referred to by the support. Bear in mind that I see a page that is specific to my country so it may be different to what you see. However for me there is nothing there that would contradict that interpretation, so long as what you have said is accurate. There is this clause that appears under the conditions for "FREE SIGN UP (NO DEPOSIT) & SPECIAL TRIAL BONUSES"

Quote:

Please note: A player may make only one withdrawal of any winnings earned using a free sign-up bonus, and this withdrawal is limited to a maximum amount of $/€/£.200 or R/kr.1,000.

However if you claimed a 200% match bonus that was only granted in response to a deposit then that term does not apply and if they are trying to claim that it does, then they are mistaken. I see a "200% up to $450 first deposit bonus" on that page so I believe that must be what you claimed.

I have sent you a private message, please respond to that and I will try to contact the casino on your behalf. Some advice: until this is sorted do not play with any of the money in your account, do not harass or threaten anyone at the casino.

2 Bendik, lpangborn76

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gbGreyFaceFang
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Joined: 29 Dec 2015
Posts: 1
29 December 2015 - 6:33pm
#2

It's a total scam "winner" should not be allowed to operate under these terms. They should have a fair gaming licence. What seemed like a match bonus, is basically a no win situation.

Terms here for reference.
mobile.winner.co.uk/sports/200free

auCL-Ed
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Location: Sydney
Joined: 7 Sep 2007
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31 December 2015 - 7:32am
#3

Although it is slightly different as it is a sports bonus, the sad thing is that I read those terms and don't see anything particularly unusual about them, compared to most casino bonuses these days. That is not to say that I find all the limit clauses, exceptions and traps acceptable. It seems that is what the majority of casinos and betting sites seem to think are acceptable these days, and many people sign up and accept them either through ignorance or low care factor.

As I say to most people who ask these days, just forget about the bonuses unless you can find ones without a win limitation and with a reasonable wagering requirement. For a casino bonus, IMHO it should be no higher than 30x the bonus amount. Beyond that and you are just putting yourself further behind the house edge eight ball that you start at.

When you say that Winner Casino should have a fair gaming license, despite our experience of them being a shady and predatory operator, they are in fact licensed by the UKGC.

coolsongss

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