Usoftgaming, the company behind the non UK regulated online casinos, has lost a lawsuit from the SBGOK (Foundation for representation of online gaming victims). The lawsuit concerns six people who requested withdrawing their winnings from Betswagger Casino and the non GamStop Ph.Casino.
Breach of Duty of Care
In one of the cases, the judge finds that Usoftgaming has not fulfilled its duty of care as a gaming provider. The man, who sued Betswagger for £8,011.55 (€9,497), had gotten into financial trouble because of gambling with Betswagger.
The British man had signed up with Gamstop, the British version of Cruks, because he was struggling with a gambling addiction. Although Betswagger actively focuses on the British gambling market, it is not affiliated with Gamstop, so the man could still gamble at that online casino. He did this until he got into financial problems.
He received the message ‘Banned for life’.
Although Betswagger is not registered with Gamstop, it does have its own prevention measures. For example, there is a button that allows players to permanently close their account. The man decided to do this and saw the message ‘Banned for life’ appear on the screen.
During a relapse in his addiction, the man wrote to the casino by email and asked them to reopen the account. The online casino did this, after which the man could gamble online again at Betswagger. This scenario repeated itself several more times.
On July 4, 2020, the man sent an email to Betswagger asking not to reopen his account, even if he asked for it. He explained in the email that he was struggling with a gambling addiction and did not want to get into further financial trouble.
Despite the email, the aforementioned scenario repeated itself again, after which the man gambled away several thousand euros. By his own estimate this amounted to £8,011.55.
Violation of the General Terms & Conditions
According to Usoftgaming, the British man violated Betswagger’s terms and conditions by creating multiple accounts at the online casino.
The man is said to have created a total of six different accounts. Not only at Betswagger, but also at three other Usoftgaming casinos.
The man created these accounts after his permanent blockage. In doing so, he circumvented the blockade and thus violated Betswagger’s general terms and conditions.
However, the judge does not agree with that. In the communication between the player and the online casino it is clear that Betswagger reopened the account at the man’s request. The judge calls the fact that the man was able to create accounts under other names and e-mail addresses as bad. The verification process to create an account would fall short in this regard.
The online casino must pay the man back the money he lost after the email of July 4, 2020. This is the claimed amount of £8,011.55.
Bonus Abuse
The biggest claim comes from another Brit who also played for Betswagger. He won £87,750 (€104,060) including a bonus of over £8,000. When he wanted to pay out this winning amount, his account was blocked.
According to Usoftgaming, the man had created three accounts to be able to use the bonus multiple times. This is bonus abuse according to the general terms and conditions. In addition, the man is said to have made several withdrawals to bank accounts other than those with which he had deposited money, but the man denies this.
The man is said to have created multiple accounts to claim bonuses.
The judge ruled that Usoftgaming could again not rely on the general terms and conditions. In addition, the company could not prove that the man had made the withdrawals or had abused the bonuses. When the man stopped playing at Betswagger, there was £79,000 (€93,684) in his account. This is the amount that Betswagger will have to pay to him.
SBGOK vs Usoftgaming
Three Usoftgaming customers left their claims to the SBGOK. These three people were also owed money from the Usoftgaming online casinos. They asked the SBGOK to claim that money on their behalf.
In all three cases, Usoftgaming again appealed to the general terms and conditions, but the judge stuck to his position. According to Betswagger, one of the players allegedly made a fictitious deposit and manipulated the site. Usoftgaming could not prove this.
Another wanted to withdraw his money after meeting the wagering requirements of his bonus. However, the casino then claimed that he had to wager another twenty times the amount deposited and the bonus. Ph.Casino then closed the player’s account because he allegedly circumvented the wagering requirements. This should not be allowed according to the general terms and conditions.
The man received €100 in compensation for the €5,000 that had disappeared from his account.
The last player suddenly had money disappear from his account. The gambler had made a successful gamble and at one point had €5,868.24 in his account. When he wanted to record this, he had to provide documents to verify his details. This he did and his verification was successful. When he logged into his account after verification, his balance was adjusted to €549.89. When he went to get a story, he was given no explanation. He did receive €100 in compensation, but that was not enough for the man.
The judge agreed and decided that Usoftgaming must still pay the difference of €5,218.35 to the customer.
