While online gambling can be extremely fun and fruitful for lucky players, sometimes you may find yourself in a pickle when your online casino account gets blocked. If you ever have your account blocked, before you start panicking, you should investigate what could have caused your account to be frozen.
There are several reasons why your gaming account may be blocked by an online casino. The sooner you understand why your access to your casino account has been restricted, the more quickly you may be able to find a solution to the issue.
Just because your account has been frozen does not necessarily mean the situation is permanent. If you comply with the requirements of the gaming site, you may be able to restore your online account promptly. Moreover, if you know what to avoid, you might never have your casino account blocked in the first place.
Most Common Reasons to Have Your Account Blocked
Depending on the website on which you place your casino or sportsbook bets, you may be notified in different ways about being banned from making further wagers on that platform. While some websites will notify you as soon as you sign in to your account, others will display the notification message only when you attempt to load a game or place a wager.
Patrons of gaming operators are typically informed via email that their accounts have been banned as well. If the reason for the suspension is not too serious, players may be allowed to resume real-money wagering after a certain period. However, more serious cases can result in the account being permanently banned.
Usually, you can get your account blocked if the online casino believes you have broken its rules. In this article, we will cover some of the most common reasons why you may end up being banned from betting at a virtual casino.
Numerous unsuccessful sign-ins
One reason an online casino account may be blocked is too many unsuccessful attempts to log in to that account. This is done to protect the player’s funds, as the failed logins may come from hackers who are trying to gain access to players’ accounts. In such cases, access can usually be restored by contacting the support team and requesting that your account be reactivated.
If you are ever notified that your account has been suspended due to too many failed log-in attempts, you might want to activate two-factor authentication. This will make your sign-ins more secure and will protect you from hacker attacks.
Not verifying the account
Once you open your online casino account, you will be asked to verify your identity by completing a KYC process. This step requires players to provide a copy of their ID or another document that can help them verify their account. This step is mandatory at licensed UK casinos as one of the licence conditions of the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) is for licensees to verify the accounts of all of their patrons.
Failure to verify your account within a certain period after registering will result in it being banned. If you choose to play at a licensed UK casino, there is no reason to avoid completing the KYC process, as you will not be able to open any game—even in fun mode—until your account is verified.
Underage gambling activity
One of the main reasons new casino players are required to complete verification is to prove they are of legal gambling age. As regulators are extremely strict about preventing underage gambling, if an online casino detects that an account belongs to an underage person, it will be banned immediately. This drastic step is taken because any operator caught providing gambling products to minors may face serious sanctions and other harsh consequences.
Bonus Abuse
Another very common reason your online casino account may be blocked is suspicion of bonus abuse. Usually, new players are eligible to receive some form of a welcome bonus, whether it is a deposit-match offer or free spins. If the same player is caught creating multiple accounts to take advantage of such promotions, all of their accounts will be permanently blocked.
You may also find in the bonus terms and conditions that a particular offer is available only once per individual, household or IP address.
Non-compliance with casino terms and conditions
In addition to breaching bonus terms and conditions, failure to comply with the general rules of the virtual casino may also lead to your gaming account being suspended. To ensure you are using the website in accordance with its terms and conditions, it is important to familiarise yourself with the full rules of the online casino. That way, you can be confident you are not in breach of the website’s terms and conditions and therefore not at risk of having your account blocked.
Suspiciously high winnings
It is also possible to have your account suspended if you record excessively high winnings in succession. As virtual casinos need to maintain a balance between their profit and the payouts they make, some accounts may be restricted if they generate suspiciously high profits. Winning a progressive jackpot will not lead to your account being banned; however, an unusually long winning streak may alert the casino to possible cheating. For instance, the betting pattern of a card counter during live blackjack may tip the casino off to an advantage-play strategy, which could certainly result in your account being suspended.
Hacker attacks
In the event of a malicious attack by hackers, the online casino’s system will restrict access to the accounts of all its users. This preventative measure is taken by the operator to prevent unauthorised third parties from accessing your funds or personal information.
Most virtual casinos implement enterprise-class security technology that can handle any data-breach attempts. In the event of such an attack, it usually takes very little time for the operator to resolve the issue and unlock its patrons’ accounts.
Suspicious betting patterns
One of the reasons an online casino account may be permanently blocked is exhibiting suspicious activity. Since virtual casinos use innovative software systems to track the gambling activity of all active players, unusual betting patterns can easily be detected and become the reason certain accounts are banned.
If the AI implemented by an online casino detects activities such as repeatedly staking the same amount on specific poker hands or placing maximum bets on slots at specific times of the day, it may tip the casino off to the use of bots. The suspected account would then be permanently blocked immediately.
Unusual payments from or to the casino account
All UKGC-licensed casinos are required to comply with licence conditions aimed at preventing money laundering. As virtual casinos are often used by criminal organisations for laundering dirty money, gaming operators take various steps to prevent such activities. In cases of suspiciously high transactions, some operators are required to report them.
If your account is suspected of money laundering, it will be suspended immediately. Another way to have your casino account banned is to use a prohibited payment method. In some cases, players from restricted countries are caught gambling on gaming websites through the bank account details they provide during casino payments.
Instances When You May Be Refused to Get Your Casino Winnings
In addition to blocking accounts, sometimes casinos may also restrict access to your gaming funds. If you have requested a withdrawal and the money never gets to you, there may be a reason for the casino withholding your payout. In most cases, there are several reasons why the casino may fail to pay your winnings.
Cap on withdrawals
If the winnings you have earned at an online casino exceed the operator’s maximum withdrawal limit, you will not be able to cash out the amount that exceeds the cap. Before requesting a payout, we recommend checking the casino’s withdrawal limits so there are no unpleasant surprises.
Bonus Abuse
In addition to being a reason for your account to be blocked, bonus abuse may also result in your funds being confiscated by the casino. While some incentives may seem extremely generous, some players get carried away and end up abusing the promotions on offer.
Misusing bonus funds and creating duplicate accounts to redeem the same offer multiple times are among the forms of bonus abuse that may cost you all of your winnings. Furthermore, as mentioned above, failing to abide by the casino’s bonus rules may result in your account being permanently banned.
Steps to Take If Your Casino Account Gets Blocked
If you believe your online casino account has been wrongfully blocked or that it was disabled purely for security reasons, there are a few steps you can take to reactivate it. While the situation may seem frustrating at first, you should try to stay calm so you can think straight and quickly resolve the issue with your casino profile.
In many cases, casino accounts may be banned because players have not complied with the operator’s terms and conditions without realising they have done something wrong. That is why it can be useful to read the casino’s full terms and conditions when your account gets blocked. Sometimes, something as simple as using an incorrect payment method unknowingly may be the reason your profile was suspended.
Once you have reviewed the operator’s terms and conditions, consider the likely reason your account was blocked. If there is no serious breach, you may be able to reactivate your casino profile quickly.
If you cannot find the reason you have been blocked, then you might seek the casino support team’s help. You can contact the website’s support agents via email and ask them to unlock your account if you believe it has been wrongfully suspended. If there is a particular step you must complete to reactivate your account, the support team will inform you what needs to be done so you can regain access and continue playing.
If your account has been blocked due to too many unsuccessful log-in attempts, you will again need to contact the support team and ask them to reactivate your casino profile. Do not try to open a new account, as it could also be blocked because of the restriction on holding only one account per physical or IP address.
In some cases, you may not be able to solve the issue simply by contacting the casino’s support team. If you feel you are getting nowhere and are certain you do not deserve to have your profile blocked, you can submit a complaint through a service that handles such issues.
There are several platforms that offer casino players help when they want to open a gambling dispute. Such organisations act as mediators between the online casino and players who have had their accounts unfairly blocked. Typically, after you issue a complaint via a third-party platform, it will allow up to 96 hours for the virtual casino and the players to respond. After the time is up, the complaint is closed.
Before you resort to seeking the help of such platforms, make sure that you familiarise yourself with the Complaint Guidelines. To demonstrate that there is no valid reason for your account to be suspended, you will most likely be asked to provide as many details as possible so they can pursue your complaint.
