Avoid Rogue Casinos like Jackpot Capital

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, while Real Time Gaming powered online casinos may seem innovative and offer some great games, beware of playing here.

This warning has been echoed in recent events wherein a slots player was playing the Spirit of Incas slot and hit a whopping $1,684,999.60 jackpot. Unlike the various other jackpot winners at other reputable online casino properties, this story did not have a happy ending.

The player in question subsequently found that their account was locked by the operator, Jackpot Capital. After querying this a week later the account was unlocked and the life-changing sum reflected in the balance. As the withdrawal process was initiated, suddenly the balance of more than $1 million just disappeared.

The player was then approached by the operator who offered them a compensatory payment of $1,000 or the option to have their June deposits refunded due to the fact that the jackpot payment had been revoked due to a technician’s error that had triggered what was referred to as a “false jackpot“.

A futile dialogue ensued before the matter was published on the player forums which then prompted a response from RTG’s parent company Hastings International BV which stated that there were two servers in play – a quality assurance “test” server and an operational server. According to the Hastings representative the technician was carrying out routine checks on the progressive jackpots which trigger when a set amount is reached when he accidently used the operational server, manually increasing the Spirit of Inca slot’s jackpot over the trigger limit in order to run the test.

This apparently happened to coincide with the players game play and resulted in a false win.

The Hastings International representative then assured players that measures were already in place to prevent such an error from occurring again. They also noted that Jackpot Capital is protected in this matter in the casino Terms and Conditions which state that “all pays and wins are void in the event of a technical flaw“.

Obviously this is of no consolation to the player who believed that their life had changed for ever with a million dollar win and this is simply unacceptable. So be warned – RTG casinos have been blacklisted and should be avoided. And if you’re ever in about playing at a casino, find out how to judge the credibility of an online casino here.

Every time we as players think that we are aware of the rules, terms and conditions at a particular casino, we find something new that shocks us, especially when the underhanded practice is carried out by what is by all accounts, regarded to be a reputable online casino that seldom, if ever cause any issues for players whatsoever.

In this article we are going to examine two recent cases involving two generally solid casinos and their questionable actions towards players.

Mansion Casino Group

A long-standing player at Mansion Casino who had played for four years with no prior issues and consistently good service was made an elite VIP Player by the casino and receiving the various perks of casino bonuses and offers that came with this sought after status. The player in question then received an offer via chat from the casino hostess assigned to their profile, and decided to accept it, but upon reviewing the terms and conditions found the following rule way down on the list:

“If you bet more than £/€/$5 per spin and £/€/$0.5 per bet line on any game round on any slots or video poker games, while wagering funds that are associated with a deposit bonus, the bonus and winnings may be voided.”

In the chat the player in question points this offer out the hostess and asks if he is only permitted to wager £/€/$5 to which the reply is that he can wager as much as he wants and as long as there is no pure bonus abuse game play his winnings will not be voided. The host then added that he can only wager up to 20% of the bonus amount (so therefore he can’t be as much as he wants), but that still goes against what the rule states, but this is after all a VIP host and perhaps VIP’s aren’t subject to all the rules other players are.

The player then deposited €1000 and received a €550 bonus, and finished €24k up at the end of his gaming session after betting higher than €5 but in the same increments, then opted to cash out a small portion and leave the rest in play for a future date. A few days later he discovered that his winning had been voided due to the above-mentioned rule which was explicitly discussed in the chat session with his VIP host. He subsequently submitted the chat log to the casinos top management for review which took over 5 weeks to garner a response. According to the player, they have promised to resolve the issue for him, but details are still forthcoming.

Regardless of how this issue is resolved, the fact remains that predatory rules such as the above are included in bonus terms and conditions and you should ALWAYS read these with every offer you receive – yes, it’s time consuming, yes – it’s annoying but it is essential. Another valuable lesson is to always take the fine print as the final word, no matter what casino staff may tell you, humans can make mistakes but what’s written in black and white will ultimately be the thing that stands up in court.

Roxy Palace Casino Group

Back in the day Roxy Palace wasn’t the biggest or best online casino, but it was honest, paid on time and generally kept those who played there happy. The honesty factor it seems has changed slightly of late, which is surprising given the fact that it is one of the few online casinos who has obtained licensing in the UK under the new legislation.

It has recently come to light on the player forums that Roxy Palace has instituted a very predatory rule to its Terms and Conditions (it’s been in force since December 2014), a rule which most players are not aware of until it’s too late and of course, one that is well hidden.

In the case of one player, he/she was awarded a 100% match bonus when depositing £20 at the casino. So with a total of £40 he/she played and won £1750 – then played the additional time to fulfill the £1k limit imposed by the casino after which they cashed out a total of £1600.

While awaiting their payment, the player in question received a mail from Roxy Palace stating that he/she would only receive £120 as the remaining balance was forfeited due to a rule in their terms and conditions which states that when a welcome bonus is granted to a player, when all of the stipulated wagering requirements have been met, the player will be limited to a maximum withdrawal value of 6 times their initial deposit amount and any remaining balance will be forfeited. It is noted that Progressive Jackpot wins are exempt from this clause.

Of course Progressive Jackpots are excluded from this term but this is due to the fact that Microgaming pays these and not the casino themselves.

While it may seem like there is not much players affected can do at present, this kind of rule definitely does not comply with the current UK consumer credit laws or the Advertising Standards regulations for any UK facing promotion of the sign-up bonus and complaints against Roxy Palace have been lodged. Furthermore, the UKGC has recently issued operator guidelines stressing the importance of complying with the UK consumer protection laws – while Roxy argues that they have complied with these, that is debatable…in which world is confiscating player winnings under any circumstances acceptable?

The fact of the matter however is that this predatory term does exist and based on their responses to the players concerned and on the player forums like Casino Meister, it doesn’t look like Roxy Palace will be withdrawing this term any time soon. This means that the onus is still always on you to read the casino terms and conditions no matter how long and boring they may seem to be and decide whether you want to play at the casino (although we would suggest that you rather avoid them), accept their bonuses and be subject to this kind of rogue behaviour.