Not Listed but Still Banned, Who’s at Fault?

[hopenotlate]

Imagine you’re a gambler from a country where gambling is totally banned, offline and online. You look for an offshore casino, check the restricted countries list, and your country isn’t there. You sign up, deposit, gamble, maybe even win.

Then one day, the casino suddenly bans your account, saying gambling is illegal in your country.

So who’s really at fault here?

-snip-

I think it's a player's fault.

I remembered by hand that most casino I have played in specify in their Terms & Conditions section the list of banned countries but they also added some lines in which they state that the responsibility about being compliant with their specific giurisdiction is up to the player; to be sure  I recalled it correctly I just checked on of them and I can read this

2.1 The website accepts players only from those countries and geographic regions where online gambling is allowed by law.
2.2 You are solely responsible for determining whether your accessing and/or use of the website is compliant with applicable laws in your jurisdiction and you warrant to us that gambling is not illegal in the territory where you reside. Any claim against the Company brought by you for any reason whatsoever in regard to the above mentioned will be considered void and shall not be accepted.
2.3 Players from any country where our service may be illegal are prohibited from playing real coin wagering games. If you are a citizen or resident of one of these countries or a country in which our services would be illegal and we determine you have played in violation of these terms, we reserve the right to close your account without notice moving forward.

source : https://www.betcoin.ag/page/terms-of-service/

[348Judah]

Imagine you’re a gambler from a country where gambling is totally banned, offline and online. You look for an offshore casino, check the restricted countries list, and your country isn’t there. You sign up, deposit, gamble, maybe even win.

Then one day, the casino suddenly bans your account, saying gambling is illegal in your country.

The account can only be restricted from login in because the user might forgot to use the same route he applied when making registration at the first instance, which is the use of VPN, some of us don't even know that the VPN has been disconnected, when we might have thought it was connected, if from their policies, they mentioned the use of VPN leads to ban, then you are left without a choice, but majority i knew allow for the use of VPN and cannot because of that ban your account, so the compliance has to be on their policies and we must ensure to read and understand it.

[TastyChillySauce00]

It would be casino's fault when they were banning the users from unrestricted country without noticing them before. They have obligation to tell the users from the country that will be restricted to empty their account. So if they have told users, then users are still stubborn to play and get a ban. It's not their fault, but the player.
However, it's player's fault when they were coming from banned country, and still try to pass it by using VPN. So it's pure player's fault for not comply with the rules.

[MainIbem]

We don’t really stand a chance here. If a casino allows you to gamble, then fine, but we shouldn’t think it’s our right to demand anything. In the first place, we already know gambling is illegal, we’re just finding some kind of temporary shelter to play.

So if they suddenly do something like withholding winnings, we can’t really fight it legally, because what we’re doing is illegal to begin with. The casino might get questioned about its reputation for allowing you to gamble and then banning you later, but at the end of the day, it feels like you just fell into their trap.

You're naking sense mate, although both parties got their own share of the blame but I blame the gambler mostly, becaause he knows fully well that his country doesn't support gambling but went ahead to do so without thinking of the repercussions. If one is that into gambling, then the person should've relocated to a nearby country where gambling ain't prohibited than taking risk of gambling in  a country where it's prohibited, the thing is, some platforms won't restrict you at first but wait till you win a huge reward then restrict you from getting acces to your reward, which is "a teap" like you said, knowing fully well that you can't legally fight them, so to avoid such situation, relocating could be the best idea.

[Die_empty]

Although I have not heard a situation like this where someone was a victim but if the casino didn't list a country where gambling is restricted, it might be a mistake but if they later restrict such player's account, they always have one thing in their ToS that can be used against the player, such as stating that the restrictions is not limited to a country which they might have failed to mention.

If you as the victim wants to sue them, you might not win because of the restriction of gambling in your country and you might also put yourself in trouble since you go against your country policy towards gambling.

The most important law to respect is the law of the country you reside in. You are right, the casino can simply report him to the law enforcement agencies of his home country and he would be punished for violating the state law. Sometimes because of space, casinos might not be able to list all the restricted countries.

Some fraudulent casinos might also intentionally omit these countries because they want to exploit gamblers from these countries. These gamblers will not seek redress from any organisation since they are disobeying the law, so the casino can easily seize their wins and freeze their accounts. Therefore, it is better to avoid breaking any law in the course of gambling.

[masulum]

Should the casino at least allow withdrawal of funds before closing the account, or is confiscation justified?

Interested to hear your thoughts about this scenario.

If banned status because of government, but provider still accept user from that country, provider should provide a way to withdrawal if users win. If government banned the casino and provider banned the country, so user must stay away from casino, never find a shortcut to join. because it's restricted to you, even able to register and open the sites, if already restricted user must stay away never deposit. But if user making deposit and gamble, lucky for him win, i think the fair decision to withdraw his initial deposit. with warning if he being restricted. never ban them just bring back his initial money, and lock his account after that

[swogerino]

Imagine you’re a gambler from a country where gambling is totally banned, offline and online. You look for an offshore casino, check the restricted countries list, and your country isn’t there. You sign up, deposit, gamble, maybe even win.

Then one day, the casino suddenly bans your account, saying gambling is illegal in your country.

So who’s really at fault here?

The gambler checked the rules and wasn’t listed as restricted. The casino allowed registration, deposits, and betting without any issue. If access was not allowed, why wasn’t the country blocked from the start?

On the other hand, casinos always say it’s the player’s responsibility to know local laws. Fair enough, but then what’s the point of publishing a restricted countries list if it can be ignored anytime?

Should the casino at least allow withdrawal of funds before closing the account, or is confiscation justified?

Interested to hear your thoughts about this scenario.

As long as the casino didn't stop you from registering in the first place, everything then is the casino fault, they should block you at the first try of registering, if not a maximum of 24 hours after they should give you a warning to stop because your country is in the restricted country list. If the casino let you play for months and when you lose they stay quiet but when you win they come up with the above excuses then it means that they are at even a greater fault and the player can start a legal battle although we know such battles are always lost and I don't know a person winning one. So bottom line play in casinos that allow your country.

[Obim34]

Interested to hear your thoughts about this scenario.

Your local rule has nothing to do with the casino, since there is no country restriction and the gambler followed everything stated on their TOS, the casino has to pay the gambler and allow the gambler settle whatever that comes after breaking the gambling rule in his country. If the casino allows you deposit, you are entitled to make withdrawal.

[bakasabo]

It would be casino's fault when they were banning the users from unrestricted country without noticing them before. They have obligation to tell the users from the country that will be restricted to empty their account. So if they have told users, then users are still stubborn to play and get a ban. It's not their fault, but the player.
However, it's player's fault when they were coming from banned country, and still try to pass it by using VPN. So it's pure player's fault for not comply with the rules.

I have never seen a casino that warn gamblers before banning them. Usually gamblers find out about ban when they cant access their account and start asking support. Casino always do that silently. There are rare cases when they unban gamblers, but within short period of time they find a reason to ban that gambler again.

How would noticing even look? Dear gambler, we are planning to ban you next 24h, so please lose your balance while you still can as you wont be able to withdraw it anyway.

[Eternad]

It would be casino's fault when they were banning the users from unrestricted country without noticing them before. They have obligation to tell the users from the country that will be restricted to empty their account. So if they have told users, then users are still stubborn to play and get a ban. It's not their fault, but the player.
However, it's player's fault when they were coming from banned country, and still try to pass it by using VPN. So it's pure player's fault for not comply with the rules.

I have never seen a casino that warn gamblers before banning them. Usually gamblers find out about ban when they cant access their account and start asking support. Casino always do that silently. There are rare cases when they unban gamblers, but within short period of time they find a reason to ban that gambler again.

How would noticing even look? Dear gambler, we are planning to ban you next 24h, so please lose your balance while you still can as you wont be able to withdraw it anyway.

I believe he meant about gamblers that initially not restricted to play the casino but suddenly the casino ToS update and includes his country which is happening in reality.

I read forum member experienced this before which they are not aware for the ToS update.

That’s the only case which notification should be sent first to the customer before they start closing the account.

[panjul07]

If the casino also has a clear written terms on the restriction list part like "country where gambling is illegal", then the casino cant be blamed.
I have seen some casinos with such terms but I cant really remember the names but I believe they have ANN thread in this forum.
Lets say the casino has no terms as I'm referring to, casino has no right to ban the player with that reason.

[uneng]

Should the casino at least allow withdrawal of funds before closing the account, or is confiscation justified?

Of course it's casino's fault, because there must be a period of time for gamblers from the newly restricted country to adapt themselves to the new regulation, that is, they must be given some time to cashout their funds and cease their personal accounts. Such regulations aren't enforced overnight. They are voted, and then a date for them taking effect is defined.

Meanwhile, gamblers can still continue depositing, gambling and withdrawing normally. So, it's casino's duty to warn gamblers about the situation and tell them they have until determined date to cashout all their funds. It's similar to when a casino is going to close the doors and warn their users to cashout the funds by a fixed deadline, otherwise the funds will be lost for the user.

[MAAManda]

That's us, Indonesia, which prohibits both offline & online gambling. But the fact is, people in our country still gamble, whether at traditional online casinos or crypto casinos. I've played a lot at various crypto casinos, both reputable & new, but I've not found any that are prohibited our country (Indonesia) to play there.

The biggest I know, Stake.com even created "Chat" section for Indonesian, I'm not sure they're not aware that in Indonesia gambling is completely prohibited, but they still do it, right?

Should the casino at least allow withdrawal of funds before closing the account, or is confiscation justified?

Yes, they should allow withdrawals first before freezing the account, that's etiquette for good platform.

[Charles-Tim]

If the casino also has a clear written terms on the restriction list part like "country where gambling is illegal", then the casino cant be blamed.

What the OP is implying is different and I think it is not true. He posted that the gambling site did not include it on their terms of service that the country is restricted, and also that the IP of the person was able to access the site. I do not believe these two things that the OP posted. Gambling sites will restrict people in restricted countries.

[nimogsm]

This is more likely to be a problem for the player than for the casino. The player's IP address has been blacklisted in countries where gambling is prohibited, and in such a situation, there is little the player can do. It is likely possible to get a refund, but it will take a lot of time. There is no point in going to court; the law is the law, and it clearly states that if gambling is prohibited, then it is prohibited.

[Salahmu]

The gambler and the casino are both at fault on this, casino is at fault because rules are important and without it the casino wouldn't hold any gambler for any reason but however with rules they explain all that they allowed and the limitations every gambler has while on there casino, so actually since they didn't stated the country as one who is on there restrictions, anybody from the country could actually gamble with the mindset they are allowed. For the gamblers there fault was ignorance because so long as the gambling platform is still within the country, definitely it will affect all even if they were anonymous.

[robelneo]

Imagine you’re a gambler from a country where gambling is totally banned, offline and online. You look for an offshore casino, check the restricted countries list, and your country isn’t there. You sign up, deposit, gamble, maybe even win.

Then one day, the casino suddenly bans your account, saying gambling is illegal in your country.

So who’s really at fault here?

It's a bait or trap, something that a gambler should be aware of; they can make a living from this. They check their stats, the countries banning casinos, and their users' locations, then ban them all and confiscate their earnings.

You have to be wise to check the support first, confirm everything, and make sure you have a record of that conversation so you have a good chance of winning the case if such a scenario pops up.
In gambling, the TOS of the casino you're playing at should be your guide, or verify with support first. It only takes a little time, but it will save you money.

[iv4n]

Interested to hear your thoughts about this scenario.

We don't have to think much... We all know that every casino has a list of restricted countries in its ToS. Casinos also include a clause stating that users must comply with the laws & regulations of their own jurisdiction. So even if your country is not on the list, it's still "your" responsibility to know whether gambling is legal or illegal in the place where you live. So if you are playing from a country where gambling is illegal, they can use it against you at some point... or even deny your big wins? A lot of space for manipulations, and there's not much that an ordinary player can do if they get caught in that situation.

[Sonia_123]

Imagine you’re a gambler from a country where gambling is totally banned, offline and online. You look for an offshore casino, check the restricted countries list, and your country isn’t there. You sign up, deposit, gamble, maybe even win.

Then one day, the casino suddenly bans your account, saying gambling is illegal in your country.

So who’s really at fault here?

The gambler checked the rules and wasn’t listed as restricted. The casino allowed registration, deposits, and betting without any issue. If access was not allowed, why wasn’t the country blocked from the start?

On the other hand, casinos always say it’s the player’s responsibility to know local laws. Fair enough, but then what’s the point of publishing a restricted countries list if it can be ignored anytime?

Should the casino at least allow withdrawal of funds before closing the account, or is confiscation justified?

Interested to hear your thoughts about this scenario.

Since it is illegal and your country is not listed among those countries that can gamble then there is no point gamble, because definitely after winning your game there will be proper scrutiny to know who you are and where from before paying you the money since they know that other citizens reside in their country and not every country is free to gamble .

We all know casinos that they are happy when gamblers loose their funds to gambling, they will be so happy not to release the winner's funds since he is from a country that gambling is banned because they know he cannot do anything but just remain silent.

[Cryptomultiplier]

Interested to hear your thoughts about this scenario.

We don't have to think much... We all know that every casino has a list of restricted countries in its ToS. Casinos also include a clause stating that users must comply with the laws & regulations of their own jurisdiction. So even if your country is not on the list, it's still "your" responsibility to know whether gambling is legal or illegal in the place where you live. So if you are playing from a country where gambling is illegal, they can use it against you at some point... or even deny your big wins? A lot of space for manipulations, and there's not much that an ordinary player can do if they get caught in that situation.

A gambler who registered already and failed to be knowledgeable about the local laws regarding gambling in that area, will have to see how tied their hands are when they are denied withdrawal of their wins and have their account restricted or blocked, because one thing is for sure and that is the casino platform has the house advantage, want to remain in business and thus, must avoid fines or lawsuit that can be brought against them by the government responsible to check unregulated gambling in that area.

Ignorance isn't an excuse they say, and that means the gambling platform isn't to blame but the gambler who willfully registered on the site.