Internet gambling is not my cup of tea, for many reasons. If I'm going
to play, I prefer it to be in a social situation rather than alone on a
computer. Too many online casinos are either unregulated or barely
regulated, leaving the question of whether the games are random.
Internet gaming remains illegal in the United States, and well-regulated
jurisdictions such as the Isle of Man exclude U.S. gamblers.
There's also some anxiety over collecting winnings long-distance rather
than walking to the cashier's cage. It's that last problem that has
become the stickler for David Lyell, a California player who e-mailed me
with a problem. He'd been playing at 1casino.1cnp.com and tried to cash
out $459. He'd cashed out winnings a couple of times before, but this
time it wasn't going to be so easy. When 20 days passed and he had
neither a check nor an explanation, he sent me an e-mail describing the
situation.
Not that he hadn't tried himself. He'd sent several e-mails to the
company, and the only response he'd received was that they hadn't
responded because he'd sent too many e-mails.
I don't usually get involved in such disputes. I have neither time nor
inclination to do that kind of troubleshooting, and I rarely write about
Internet gaming for the same reasons I don't gamble online. But I
decided to check out the Web site, and found something that intrigued
me. This particular Internet casino, based in Costa Rica, was associated
with mycasino-builder.com, a company that promotes "own your own casino"
opportunities. The "own your own" deal is one I'd personally avoid, and
a week's worth of e-mail exchanges turned out to be even less attractive.
In an e-mail to the casino, I explained Lyell's problem and my interest,
and asked the following question:
"Could you explain your policy to me on paying players, and how soon a
check can be expected when a player chooses to cash out?"
The response from "David, Support Team" made it clear they weren't
interested in answering any questions:
"John,
"We manage relations between customer and casino in confidential manner
without any third party intervention. In any case you're invited to play
at our casinos."
That was an invitation I could do without. I e-mailed again, explaining
that I could neither play at nor recommend a site where operators
refused to explain policies on paying players. "Jennifer" from the
support team replied:
"Usually it takes 5-7 days for U.S. banks and up to 45 days in a Costa
Rican bank. It depends on a customer bank, country, etc. Hope that
helps."
I responded that the player in question was in the United States, and
asked if it was unusual for a U.S. player to wait three weeks for
payment. Once again, Jennifer replied:
"I believe we already informed you that any problem which may arise or
not we solve between us and a customer."
I forwarded the exchange to Lyell, and it turned out he finally had
heard from David Moor, the mycasino-builder CEO, as well as from
support-team Jennifer. Somehow, Lyell didn't regard the problem as
solved. He was informed that his winnings were being canceled, and that
his deposits would be refunded. Not all his deposits, which totaled
$450, but only the three deposits made since he last cashed out
winnings. He was to receive a total of $150 in deposits. If he wanted
all deposits back, he was to return previous winnings.
Lyell's appeals for explanation went for naught. Several lengthy
messages were exchanged, but the bottom line was that his winnings would
not be paid.
His final e-mail from Jennifer said, "It's our decision to cancel or not
your cashout. It was based on your inappropriate behavior. I'll not
discuss with you any issues related to your cashout that was canceled
and your behavior. You emails will be not answered anymore."
As far as Lyell can tell, the "inappropriate behavior" consisted of
having the temerity to send e-mails demanding payment, posting the
problem on a Web site and complaining to media outlets.
Not knowing first-hand whether there was any other cause for the
casino's behavior, I e-mailed David Moor once more. I wanted to be fair
and give him a chance to explain the situation. The crux of the matter,
to me, was this question:
"Is it your contention that by e-mailing you in an attempt to collect,
by posting on a bulletin board and by e-mailing media outlets, that Mr.
Lyell somehow forfeits his winnings? Why? If you think he's a problem
customer, I can understand your refusing future business from him, but
how can you refuse to pay him money he's already won?"
I'll bet you can guess the reponse.
"John,
"Please, don't send me emails any more and feel free to post whatever
you wish anywhere you want."
It's very difficult to know just whom you're dealing with on the
Internet, where there are hundreds of virtual casinos based in Costa
Rica and in the Caribbean. I, for one, would neither want to play nor
invest with a company so determined to stonewall a player over $459. But
then, I'm wary of most Internet gaming. Be careful out there.
