What to Do If a Casino Doesn’t Pay (Online and In-Person)
It’s a rare occurrence, but occasionally you will come across a casino which doesn’t pay you. While the situation will vary depending on where you are playing online or in person, there are steps you can take in either instance.
Online players should check KYC terms, the contact customer service. In-person players likely need to provide an ID, and speak with a manager if terms persist. Read on to learn everything you can do if a casino doesn’t pay.
What to Do if an Online Casino Doesn’t Pay
Online casinos are generally safe, as most countries still require them to register with the proper authorities. That being said, there is still a chance that you will run into issues withdrawing from the website.
1. Check the KYC Terms
For many online casinos to remain legal, they have to collect certain information from their players—typically age and location information. As such, many will not pay out until you have verified your ID. If you have already submitted your ID and are just waiting on verification, it is likely your withdrawal won’t go through until that is processed.
2. Contact Customer Service
If you are certain your identity has already been verified, it’s time to contact customer service. Occasionally there are technical issues, where your request for withdrawal went to the wrong area, or didn’t go through at all. Customer service can verify this for you, just make sure you have your transaction ID when you contact them.
It’s quite common that first time withdrawals on online casinos are flagged for a security review, so don’t panic if the website informs you it may take a little longer. However, if the time frame they give you is longer than 48 hours, you may want to consider the next step.
3. File a Formal Complaint
After ensuring you’ve been verified and the withdrawal request isn’t lost or stuck, it may be time to contact the regulatory authorities. You’ll want to contact the authorities in your country, or in the one where the casino is registered. Explain the issue and ask for an investigation. Please note that most regulators won’t take you seriously until the withdrawal is more than 10 days overdue, as anything within this time is considered common processing time.
In the United States of America, all fraud must be reported to the FTC in addition to your state regulators.
4. File a Complaint with Your Bank
In rare cases, authorities may be unable to do anything, especially if the website disappears before they can perform their investigation. It may also happen that the authorities are investigating for 6 months or more. In these cases, you may be able to contact your financial institution, especially if you used their accounts to fund your bankroll. If you used PayPal, you can contact them about their purchase protection policies. Just know that most of these policies run out in 180 days, which is why it’s imperative to contact them sooner rather than later.
If you were playing at a online cryptocurrency casino, unless you bought the crypto with your bank balance, unfortunately this step does not apply to you.
What to Do if an In-Person Casino Doesn’t Pay
Now, an in-person casino refusing to pay is rare, but it does happen and it is typically more serious than an online casino refusing to pay. If this unfortunate situation happens to you, go through the steps below.
1. Call Over an Attendant
Some wins are too large for a machine to pay out. In these instances, the pop-up “hand pay” should show on your machine and an attendant should be on their way over. However, in some unique locations, like airports and gas stations, the pop-ups on the machine may be less clear and the attendant may be busy. Just be patient, and call one over when you see one.
2. You May Need to Go to Another Location
In cases of extremely large wins, such as numbers in the millions, you will need to provide tax information and head to a secondary location for your winnings. While the hand pay attendant will usually explain this to you, there is a chance they may not. Remember to collect whatever print-out the machine provides before leaving the machine.
**In the United States, all wins over $1200 are verified by security camera, so you don’t need to worry about leaving your machine unattended.
3. You Must Prove Your Identity
You must prove your identity before collecting large wins. If you do not meet the qualifications (such as gambling underage or gambling when banned from the casino) the casino can refuse to pay out your winnings. Additionally, in the United States, if you are in tax debt, when the casino registers your winning the IRS can ask them to hold the winnings until they are able to collect their share. The payer is required, by law, to withhold a certain portion of your winnings for taxes.
**Additionally, in many states, if you owe child support to a partner, winnings will be withheld until the partner is paid.
4. You May Be Investigated
Unfortunately, there are some people who do shady things to win money. If the casino suspects you’ve done any of this, or something illegal on their property, they are allowed to hold the winnings while they investigate. In these cases, there is no limit to how long the investigation will take and you may be banned from the casino in the meantime.
**Keep in mind that any “technical glitch” or “machine error” voids all winnings in pretty much all countries and states.
5. Attain Legal Aid
If you are certain you did nothing illegal, and owe no back taxes, and still a casino refuses to pay you, it is time to consult a lawyer. While this help will not be cheap, if a large win hangs in the balance it may be worth it. A lawyer can help further educate you on what can be done, your next steps, and your chances of collecting the win.
**In some countries with less regulatory oversight, you can file a formal complaint against the casino at your local gambling commission.
Overall, we know how terrible it is when a casino won’t pay your winnings. While there is generally no quick solution, follow the steps we provided above to give you the best chances of collecting your money.
