William Hill Refusing a bonus retroactively

dada55

Dormant Account
PABnonaccred
Joined
Jul 24, 2015
Location
England
Been screwed over by William hill:

They had a double your winnings promotion up to £100. I opted in and all was fine.

I won about £160 and was thus eligible for full bonus.

Hadn't received it when it was due so contacted live chat support.

LC support claim they can deny bonuses retroactively even if I have opted in and risked cash due to their terms and conditions.

I replied saying that they would have to alert me of promotion eligibility prior to taking part in a promotion and not after I had won.

Their reply was that they can and will retroactively deny people bonuses as and when they please due to their terms and conditions.

Its even more funny that the LC operator, agreed it was unfair and not right but they can do as they like because of these terms and conditions.

I asked to escalate it to promotions team but the LC operator said that their word was final and there was no need to escalate such an issue.

Literally a joke off a company and really, I don't just want my bonus, I want to put a stop to this practise. How can one of the biggest names in UK betting be so fraudulent and no one is doing anything to stop it? Is the UK's gambling commission on full time holiday leave or something?

Any help would be appreciated. William hill are not accredited by Casinomeister and I have already had a PAB against a non-accredited casino, so I don't really know what my options are?
 
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Under UK rules, you have the right to an ADR (Alternate Dispute Resolution IIRC). They should list one in their terms, but I believe you have the right to use one of your own choosing, and CM is accredited as one.

You can PM maxd to ask, but I think this would fall outside of the PAB service perhaps.
 
I would escalate it beyond live chat support. In my experience they often do not even understand what you are asking them, let alone give an authoritative answer. Good luck.
 
Under UK rules, you have the right to an ADR (Alternate Dispute Resolution IIRC). They should list one in their terms, but I believe you have the right to use one of your own choosing, and CM is accredited as one.

You can PM maxd to ask, but I think this would fall outside of the PAB service perhaps.


Their terms seem to state IBAS is their ADR so if possible I think CM would be much fairer. I will attempt contacting William hill via twitter and email first to try and get them to see reason.

But genuinely why are gambling businesses so unregulated? The amount of issues encountered and the amount of time needed to solve some them are just frustrating. I have a few friends that just never dispute wrongdoings because they can't be bothered and that is exactly why bookies/casinos repeatedly cheat people out. They should be fined every time they place misleading promotions / attempt to wrongly dishonour promos.
 
These are the things that will continue to happen as long as people keep playing there. Im sure you were aware of the warnings around here yet you still played. Thats what this forum is for. To guide people in the right direction. Yet for whatever reason, people ignore the warnings and keep supporting these shady casinos.

Now that I got that rant out of the way, thats completely ridiculous. But not surprising. When companies are that large and that rich and have even just a little bit shady management, they can and will do what they want because they know just one person doesnt matter.

Please dont ever play with this group again
 
Although they have a 'respected' name of sorts, in some parts of the market, this was one of my first bad experiences with a Casino (it was actually Joycasino, which was part of it) and in all my years of playing, i personally have never had to deal with such a bunch of heartless and arrogant basterds, as i encountered there...I don't remember exactly what and how, but it also came down to me not getting paid what i was owed, as per Terms&Conditions
Say what you will, but i never ever looked back, although i did raise a sceptic eyebrow every time i read something positive about them later..

Not too long ago i was at the AAC, had a meeting there, and as it was my first time didn't know my way about, so saw bunch of people coming my way, and asked them friendly where exactly the meeting was, to only be stared at arrogantly and unfriendly by more then half of the group ( most guys looked like downright crooks too) and all i got was a few negatory headshakes and 'no's'...wasn't surprised one bit to notice they all were dressed in a William Hill team get up :rolleyes:

This is 12 years later, but it just oozed negativity..so nothing had changed there, i.m.o.
Just saying..

On your case: it's scandalous i think, and i would definitely take steps, but also still try and elevate the issue to their management directly first..sometimes management is more willing, and you'ld be surprised at what kind of ignorant 'heads of support' and such, are working in this business..

Hope you get your moneys worth, and if not that at least you can drop a formal complaint against these bums.

Note: this is all my opinion.
 
Although they have a 'respected' name of sorts, in some parts of the market, this was one of my first bad experiences with a Casino (it was actually Joycasino, which was part of it) and in all my years of playing, i personally have never had to deal with such a bunch of heartless and arrogant basterds, as i encountered there...I don't remember exactly what and how, but it also came down to me not getting paid what i was owed, as per Terms&Conditions
Say what you will, but i never ever looked back, although i did raise a sceptic eyebrow every time i read something positive about them later..

Not too long ago i was at the AAC, had a meeting there, and as it was my first time didn't know my way about, so saw bunch of people coming my way, and asked them friendly where exactly the meeting was, to only be stared at arrogantly and unfriendly by more then half of the group ( most guys looked like downright crooks too) and all i got was a few negatory headshakes and 'no's'...wasn't surprised one bit to notice they all were dressed in a William Hill team get up :rolleyes:

This is 12 years later, but it just oozed negativity..so nothing had changed there, i.m.o.
Just saying..

On your case: it's scandalous i think, and i would definitely take steps, but also still try and elevate the issue to their management directly first..sometimes management is more willing, and you'ld be surprised at what kind of ignorant 'heads of support' and such, are working in this business..

Hope you get your moneys worth, and if not that at least you can drop a formal complaint against these bums.

Note: this is all my opinion.


It feels like if everyone who has ever had an issue with WH posted here, this thread would reach many pages...

Its crazy that such a big name can do stuff like that but I guess why not when there are no repercussions for doing it. Casinos and bookies constantly make win-win situations for themselves because there is no one to stop them.
 
Support Email Reply

So I have received an email response to my query and they are backing their view that they can deny promotions to any customer at any point they want.

I don't even know what basis they have to consider my playing style as unwanted. Have lost much more than I have won at WH and have played without any promotions before.

On this particular case, I did £2 spins on a slot until I hit relatively large win (£160) and decided to stop soon after that. No changes in stakes or anything that might constitute the usual crap they put in their T & Cs.


The email is full of laughable statements but this one in particular is just astonishing:

"For future reference, I would strongly advise to contact and discuss the eligibility of any promotional campaign prior to partaking in the same!"

1. Do they really believe there will be a future reference?

2. Why bother having an opt-in system if you need to contact support prior to doing a promotion.
 
IBAS reply time?

Does anyone have any idea on how long IBAS take to reply? I haven't even received a confirmation email.

Spoke to a friend who said that he never received a reply 2 years after making a complaint...
 
WH although sure a well known high street brand in the UK - are about the worst place a player can choose to gamble online with. Nothing but trouble and this farce you have faced does not surprise me at all.

They also are notorious for not implementing Self exclusion from the shops when requested to do so. Much of this well documented online. They dont give a toss about the individual player but do give a toss about bad press. And hate it when there name comes up in the tabloid press in the UK. Think on this one you wont see a penny of what they owe you. Vote with your wallet and never deposit again at William Hill.
 
it wasn't Supervisor Joyce by any chance was it -

Oh they have been playing mean with me for a while. - ill expand a bit later as in a rush just now - but william hill are the be all and end all - so they think - and if you dont like it - and want to close your account - so be it - you account will be closed before you even get off live chat - they will not submit to threats .
Their customer service is a disgrace!


Been screwed over by William hill:

They had a double your winnings promotion up to £100. I opted in and all was fine.

I won about £160 and was thus eligible for full bonus.

Hadn't received it when it was due so contacted live chat support.

LC support claim they can deny bonuses retroactively even if I have opted in and risked cash due to their terms and conditions.

I replied saying that they would have to alert me of promotion eligibility prior to taking part in a promotion and not after I had won.

Their reply was that they can and will retroactively deny people bonuses as and when they please due to their terms and conditions.

Its even more funny that the LC operator, agreed it was unfair and not right but they can do as they like because of these terms and conditions.

I asked to escalate it to promotions team but the LC operator said that their word was final and there was no need to escalate such an issue.

Literally a joke off a company and really, I don't just want my bonus, I want to put a stop to this practise. How can one of the biggest names in UK betting be so fraudulent and no one is doing anything to stop it? Is the UK's gambling commission on full time holiday leave or something?

Any help would be appreciated. William hill are not accredited by Casinomeister and I have already had a PAB against a non-accredited casino, so I don't really know what my options are?
 
Just to update. I have received a reference number from IBAS through the post. Nothing else yet but at least i know they have got the complaint.

Might drop an email or two to some emails found on the internet for Ricky's list... just for fun :D

Cheers all
 
Further update:

IBAS emailed me to tell me that William Hill have said that I did not raise the issue to their 'second opinion' team and are therefore stopping the investigation, at least until I do.

That was a complete load of bull crap, because I asked the issue to be raised on live chat and then on email. Both responses were 'conclusive' and they would not raise the issue further.

I emailed their 'second opinion' team and CCed IBAS anyway. After a very long wait for a response, William Hill responded that they can see that I did indeed win on the promotion, but apparently I had not claimed the promotion. Their 'back office team' confirmed that I had not claimed the promotion.

So I sent WH and IBAS the screenshot which has me 'claiming' the promotion and receiving a clear message 'Claim received'.

Is it legal to outright lie? I don't even just want my bonus anymore, I want to cause them as much pain as possible for outright lying to me. There should be an organisation that regulates these companies right? Oh wait, there is... and they don't give a flying 'insert word here'.
 
Caught

IBAS emailed me to tell me that William Hill have said that I did not raise the issue to their 'second opinion' team and are therefore stopping the investigation, at least until I do.

That was a complete load of bull crap, because I asked the issue to be raised on live chat and then on email. Both responses were 'conclusive' and they would not raise the issue further.

I emailed their 'second opinion' team and CCed IBAS anyway. After a very long wait for a response, William Hill responded that they can see that I did indeed win on the promotion, but apparently I had not claimed the promotion. Their 'back office team' confirmed that I had not claimed the promotion.

So I sent WH and IBAS the screenshot which has me 'claiming' the promotion and receiving a clear message 'Claim received'.

Is it legal to outright lie? I don't even just want my bonus anymore, I want to cause them as much pain as possible for outright lying to me. There should be an organisation that regulates these companies right? Oh wait, there is... and they don't give a flying 'insert word here'.

Bahahahahaha, sucks that they are trying to deny your winnings, but this exchange is ridiculously funny. "How do we deny the winnings... let's pretend the player didn't claim the bonus (even though the player was playing on it). What's the chance that the player actually kept a record of the bonus claim?"

1 Response Later...

"Shit."
 
This is one of the things that are the subject of an investigation.

For starters, consumer law REQUIRES that you be "treated fairly", so an unfair term and condition would not count in any case, such as their "can retrospectively cancel the bonus on a whim to anyone they like". The promotion itself could also constitute a "misleading advertisement" if it didn't abide by ASA rules, one of which is that important conditions affecting the applicability of the advertised offer must be shown on the ad itself, not buried in the small print. I would bet they didn't feature this "can deny on a whim" term on the ad itself, so this probably is a violation of the ASA guidelines.

Now, if you can retrieve a copy of this ad, and your claim confirmation, you can make a formal complaint to the ASA that this was a "misleading advertisement" that induced you to deposit and play on a false premise, and that had you known you would never be granted this offer, you would never have deposited and played.

If the ASA uphold your complaint, this will be published for the public to see, and for you to copy and send to WH support.

You could, on a matter of principle, take WH to the small claims court, even for such a relatively small amount. It's probably not worth it for the money alone, but if your aim is to teach them a lesson so that they think twice before doing this to another player, it could be money well spent. It'll cost less than £100 to lodge the claim, but wait until you have exhausted the IBAS procedure, or you have IBAS refuse to take on the complaint.
 
This is one of the things that are the subject of an investigation.

For starters, consumer law REQUIRES that you be "treated fairly", so an unfair term and condition would not count in any case, such as their "can retrospectively cancel the bonus on a whim to anyone they like". The promotion itself could also constitute a "misleading advertisement" if it didn't abide by ASA rules, one of which is that important conditions affecting the applicability of the advertised offer must be shown on the ad itself, not buried in the small print. I would bet they didn't feature this "can deny on a whim" term on the ad itself, so this probably is a violation of the ASA guidelines.

Now, if you can retrieve a copy of this ad, and your claim confirmation, you can make a formal complaint to the ASA that this was a "misleading advertisement" that induced you to deposit and play on a false premise, and that had you known you would never be granted this offer, you would never have deposited and played.

If the ASA uphold your complaint, this will be published for the public to see, and for you to copy and send to WH support.

You could, on a matter of principle, take WH to the small claims court, even for such a relatively small amount. It's probably not worth it for the money alone, but if your aim is to teach them a lesson so that they think twice before doing this to another player, it could be money well spent. It'll cost less than £100 to lodge the claim, but wait until you have exhausted the IBAS procedure, or you have IBAS refuse to take on the complaint.


They gave me the £100 bonus after I sent them the screenshot - didn't even apologise. I really wish I had full details of the promo to send ASA, but I feel the fact that it doesn't show most of the terms will be against me.

Also as much as I hate myself, after receiving the bonus, it does reduce my urge to bother wasting my time with these pricks, I'll just never play there again.
 
They gave me the £100 bonus after I sent them the screenshot - didn't even apologise. I really wish I had full details of the promo to send ASA, but I feel the fact that it doesn't show most of the terms will be against me.

Also as much as I hate myself, after receiving the bonus, it does reduce my urge to bother wasting my time with these pricks, I'll just never play there again.

Actually, that could go against THEM because important terms MUST be on the ad itself, not buried in small print.
 
wow just read this thread, totally disgusted.

but as others said yeah William Hill are a joke of a company I used to play there and i had issues after issue with them too so i asked them to close my account too.

but seriously all those months it taken them to resolve this issue, you should have got a lot more than £100, you should have got compensation too in my opinion. this is just so out of line yet again.
 
wow just read this thread, totally disgusted.

but as others said yeah William Hill are a joke of a company I used to play there and i had issues after issue with them too so i asked them to close my account too.

but seriously all those months it taken them to resolve this issue, you should have got a lot more than £100, you should have got compensation too in my opinion. this is just so out of line yet again.

Same here. i played with them a few years ago one time. I used live chat twice and both times the agents were incredibly arrogant. Like really bad. I cashed out and closed my account. And I made it clear to the last agent why. And his response was rude and arrogant and non caring at all. Basically said "ok you closed your account. We could care less"
 

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