We have all been there at some point or another. We have somehow beaten the odds and won some money, but are unable to cash out your winnings. If you have an unverified casino account, there are many hurdles to jump when you are looking to cash out your winnings.
The online gambling industry is a multi-billion business. Many players try their luck at land-based casinos or online casinos to place bets on their favourite games either for leisure or with the aim of winning money. Not a week goes by that we hear about a player who has scooped up a jackpot, so many players naturally think that they could tempt their luck at winning a jackpot.
If you are lucky enough to either meet the wagering requirements of your casino bonus or win a tidy sum of money, you may naturally be all excited to cash out your winnings. What if the casino is refusing to pay you?
You have met the terms and conditions fairly and squarely, but why are online casinos refusing to pay the player? In this article, we will be detailing some of the most common problems and issues that arise when you are unable to cash out your winnings.
Online casinos have gone rogue
Let’s start off with the obvious one. If a casino is refusing to pay out your winnings after you jumped through all the hoops of a casino bonus, it could be that you are dealing with a rogue casino.
Have you done all the necessary checks before signing up for an account? Is the casino licensed and regulated? If the casino is coming up with some silly excuses, it does not necessarily mean they are rigged.
Many online casinos go down that route in the hope that you will give you and keep on gambling your winnings. However, after some complaining, most casinos will give in and pay up with no issues.
However, make sure you are dealing with a legitimate online casino before making your first deposit.
Casino Bonuses and Strict Terms
This is also a fairly straightforward one. If you are new to the online gambling world, you might not fully comprehend how casino bonuses work. Just because you receive bonus funds and free spins, it does not mean that they are yours to cash out. There are wagering requirements in place.
The industry average standard for wagering requirements is 35x. If you find it lower, then welcome it with open arms. However, if your chosen online casino bonus wagering requirements are much higher than the industry average standard, you may want to shop elsewhere.
Similarly, if you are playing games that are on the exempt list, your bets will not contribute to the wagering requirements. The same mostly applies to high RTP online slot games, live casino games or RNG card and table games. Your bets may either not contribute anything at all towards the wagering requirements, or else, will only contribute a small percentage, such as 10%. There is a reason why there are restrictions in place on these games.
The reason is that players can influence the outcome in such games and the house edge can be lowered.
There may also be some caps on winnings as well. If you have won £1,000 from a bonus, but there is a rule that you can only cash out £100, that’s the sum you will be able to withdraw. The remaining £900 will be forfeited.
To tie in with all of the above, there are also maximum bet limits in place to stop players from meeting the playthroughs too easily. Making big bets is quite risky, but if you hit a big win with them, you could be meeting the playthroughs faster than with smaller bets.
To stop players from meeting these playthroughs easily, they will often put a maximum betting cap.
Keeping Players On Hold
One of the other reasons why online casinos withhold withdrawals is simple economics. Online casinos know of a prominent concept known as the ‘hit and run’, where players with a big bankroll will withdraw all their winnings and simply will not come back.
As mentioned, online casinos are first and foremost businesses and they want to take care of their funds for as long as possible.
By using practices such as ‘processing windows’ and ‘confirmation periods’, casinos force players to wait out an arbitrary amount of time before their withdrawal is processed. It could simply be three working days or more, during which time many players will get cold feet, cancel their withdrawal requests and spend it all.
Some players often will want to make a separate deposit whilst waiting for their withdrawals to go through. Casinos will often ask you if you want to cancel your withdrawal so you can continue gambling or deduct it from your pending withdrawal.
As simple as that is, it is one way to ensure they save some money back.
The Verification Process
The verification process is what kicks it all off for most players. It is when they encounter most problems when it comes to cashing out. Many gambling jurisdictions are growing increasingly concerned about who is gambling, so to deter criminal activity and underage gambling, Know your Customer and Anti Money Laundering procedures were introduced.
KYC procedures are quite regular and expected at most online casinos, regardless of whether they are legit or not. While there is a legitimate reason for this, they have also proven to be problematic.
KYC procedures are designed to help identify the identity of the player. Online casinos often ask you to supply proof of identity, address of residence as well as payment method. There are some casinos that take it a step further, by requesting a selfie with your identity card, proof of employment and other cumbersome documents. This is all done to protect against fraudulent attempts.
Some online casinos use the verification process to stop you from withdrawing your winnings. They will repeatedly cancel your withdrawals citing some reason or another. Let’s quickly discuss how they stop the verification process from going smoothly.
In reality, KYC procedures should be completed within 24 to 48 hours, which is quite lengthy when you have money sitting on your casino account. Again, some players may be tempted to burn through it.
Secondly, while there is no problem making a deposit, KYC procedures arise from the moment you request your first withdrawal. Many players will never reach the withdrawal stage, to begin with, due to the high odds and the house edge.
The verification process is never plain sailing. First off, many players are not happy supplying personal and data-sensitive information to casinos, especially when it comes to bank statements or selfies. Even if you do forge ahead, and supply the required documents, some casinos will come up with excuses, such as the passport not being legible enough, or blurred.
As a player, you can read the text on the image properly. At this stage, you will take on more pictures, while the casino is extending your verification process as much as possible. Eventually, they will relent and approve your verification process. The key here is to first of all sign up for a licensed online casino but most importantly, never to give up. Don’t get sucked into gambling your winnings away.
Take screenshots of your pending withdrawal and interaction with the customer support team. These will come in handy if the casino fails to pay out and if you need to get in touch with the relevant gambling authorities.
Even opening a report with a relevant gambling authority can prove a lengthy process, which is why it is important that if possible get the verification process out of the way as soon as possible. Reading player reviews should also give you a good idea of what to expect. Angry and disappointed players are likely to voice their concerns online, so knowing this information beforehand will save you wasting your time.
Online casino sites don’t want any bad reviews available online, so often when you threatened them with some action, they are likely to comply and payout your winnings. It may be a little hostile and offensive, but if you played things by the book, there is no excuse.
To tie in with the verification process, we cannot stress enough the importance of supplying correct and accurate information when registering for an account. If the details do not match, the casino has every right to stop you from withdrawing. Similarly, if you open more than one account per household, it has every right to void your winnings.
In conclusion, you should always be aware that online casinos will take their sweet time to pay out your winnings. This may be due to many possibilities, so it is best to keep an open mind when requesting your first withdrawal. The reason for delays could simply be some red tape, but there may also be some other sinister reasons, such as them wanting you to keep on gambling your winnings.
It can be irritating and frustrating when casinos give you multiple options to make a deposit, but very few for cashing out. This is something that you should also pay close attention to when registering for an account. Try to opt for the same payment method both for deposits and withdrawals. Opting for a deposit method that is not available for withdrawal, will force the casino to request a separate deposit with another payment method and incur additional wagering requirements and a lengthy verification process.
Many players don’t have the patience to wait and think that all hope is lost. Stay strong and hang in there. As mentioned, take screenshots of everything in case things go peary shapes. If you have a good experience with an online casino that has allowed you to cash out your winnings, it would be wise to stick to it on a long-term basis.