Quote:
Originally Posted by smallfishy
Hi,
I noticed the $1000 free play at Lucky Nugget advertised on this site and decided to sign up.
I wagered 1000 credits and was well up so I claimed my maximum of $50 credits.
I deposited $50 and my freeplay credits were not transferred immediately so I chatted to live support - I then noticed this in the Ts and Cs Link:
- All winnings transferred to a Real account will be subject to standard play-through requirements.
- If you attempt a withdrawal before fulfilling all the play-through requirements of the welcome bonus, you will forfeit your cash winnings and Bonus Balance.
- In the interest of avoiding any confusion related to the bonus offer, please be certain to read the play-through requirements contained in the Promotion- specific Terms & Conditions.
So I asked live support if I had to wager anything to withdraw my freeplay winnings - and the reply was that I have to wager the bonus 30 times. I asked them where on their website does it state this - and they pointed me towards the same Ts and Cs I have quoted above which mention no specific WR for the Freeplay bonus, only for the instant deposit bonus.
So I'm feeling a little annoyed - but think hey I can claim the sign up bonus and get another free $50 when I deposit. So I go to the Sign Up page and notice that you apparently can't claim both the $1000 Freeplay and the Deposit Bonus - even though this isn't stated in the terms and conditions - this URL is the only place this is stated.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but this seems like a bit of a sham. The $1000 Freeplay is attached to phrases like "Win as much as you can" (Click Promotions) and "Keep your winnings" - but the best situation you can hope for is the same as the standard first deposit bonus....which apparently you can't claim if you do the $1000 Freeplay and don't win.
Is this worth making a complaint about? |
This statement is misleading under the advertising code of conduct. It is grossly misleading on 2 points. "Win as much as you can" is plain wrong, and so is "keep your winnings".
The key is the fact that, legally, restricting the transfer to $50 (£50) is not consistent with the first statement, and the second is false since you have to wager 30x the transferred amount, and "keep" legally implies they are already yours to withdraw at will (and that would be a plain daft offer for any casino to give out).
Many advertisements embroider the facts, but legally they must NOT MISLEAD or LIE about the offer, heavy fines can result.
This is pertinent to this case, as this lot are licenced in the EU (Gibraltar) and the laws do indeed apply to their advertisements insofar as they apply to EU resident companies.
To comply with the law, such MG adverts must be reworded to make it clear that all you are doing is playing to earn a fixed introductory bonus, not to win a big stack to transfer. If the adverts were truthful, they would get a far lower takeup as players would see what a bad deal it really was.
Lucky Nugget have now joined Grand Mondial and Spin Palace with their spamming campaigns. As a Gibraltar licenced outfit they should know better.
Although the
OP is Australian, any EU resident receiving this offer in this form can make a complaint to the advertising watchdogs. We do NOT have to take up the offer, just show that the advertising copy is in breach of the rules by submitting it along with evidence showing how the "small print" contradicts what is offered in the main advert copy. Internet ads ARE covered where the offending company is EU resident.
Seasoned players know these offers are worthless anyway, and will not be impressed by this steady escalation of the "free cash" to ever more striking headline grabbing numbers.
They could call it £10,000 or even £100,000 - it would look good, but would be equally as bad as £1000, or even the £500 it used to be when this type of offer came out (when the max transfer was also a more inviting £200).
These casinos would be better advised spending their budgets keeping their existing players enthusiastic.
When existing players see their own table scraps, and compare them with the banquet laid on for potential new ones, they feel unwanted, and probably drift away to play elsewhere, or even not at all.