Sunbet an ********* Player in the Gambling Industry/WCGRB Weak (no) Regulations

If I could give minus stars I would for both. Sunbet because they are ********* and treat customers poorly and the WCGRB as they choose to ignore complaints. I also reported the incudent to the National Gambling Board who redirected it directly to a person at the WCGRB who chose to igore them as well.

Anyway after getting the run around for a number of weeks by Sunbet I was then stone walled and so I chose to go to the BGB and the WCGRB. The email is copied below.

"I apologise for having to involve you in this but, to be honest, Sunbet are showing zero interest in resolving the query despite all their promises. I know that all they want to do is wait until I eventually give up on the query but this will only happen once it is satisfactorily resolved. The details are included in the various attachments but to sum up: I took a bet on a horse and the odds quoted to me were 66/1 which was quite surprising as I assumed it would be a fancied horse. As a result I placed a smaller bet than I would have taken. I also took a double with the same horse and, to cover myself, I took a winning bet on the stablemate which had far worse form (in my opinion) but was at much shorter odds. The obvious assumption is that the stable thought more of the ‘second string’ than the horse with the better form. Was it a ploy by the bookmakers to deter punters from the better horse? This was my thought process. Anyway I played a round of golf and then settled in to watch the races. It was then that I checked my sunbet account and noted that the bet had been voided with the vague answer ‘an obvious mistake’ but the money was not refunded so I could not take any other bets with the money they had already debited from my betting account. Also the double I had taken was not voided – rather the bet stood as wins on the second leg only of the double (something I did not want). That horse lost so the bet was lost. I wonder how many other times Sunbet have used the excuse of ‘an obvious mistake’ to get out of other bets they should have paid? The horse duly obliged at 66/1 and the stablemate which I had taken cover bets on ran a promising race into 4th after leading for some way. The end result is that I basically lost everything but was eventually refunded, well after the running of the race, for the small winning bet which I had placed on the winner. This refund was due to it being ‘an obvious mistake’ – which begs the question when a punter places a winning bet do they always assume it was an obvious mistake? What I find strange is that when the potential winning amount is large the bets are referred and only confirmed after referral. This happened in the case of the double taken (definitely) and I am sure also for the winning bet but unfortunately I can’t actually recall if it was for the win bet. I have also pointed out that I had also made ‘an obvious mistake’ when betting on the PGA (golf) a couple of weeks earlier. I took bets on Day 1 Leader for a number of players, winner overall for the same players and top ten overall for the same players. Winner day 1 I lost and the bet was forfeited – I accepted this. Top 10 overall I had two placing and those paid out – happy with that. Winner overall included the winner at odds of 19/1 (Koepka) but that was not paid out. I queried it with Sunbet who, in their usual manner did not bother to respond. I then checked the bet again and saw that it was still standing as open – well over a day after the tournament ended. I then noticed that for some reason of the three sets of bets I had taken, one bet (the only winning one) was taken on a tournament for next year (Augusta 2019!!) Who in their right mind would take a bet a year in advance??? Clearly an obvious mistake? Of course it was but, unlike Sunbet, I am a person of honour and will accept that my mistake cost me money – and so should they. I honestly do not believe that this organisation is conducting itself in an ethical manner and in my opinion is not fit and proper to hold a gambling license. I would appreciate your guidance as regulator of the industry on what I need to do. I have not placed a bet with the company since then and will not do so until the issue is resolved. I look forward to hearing from you.'

The NRB referred the matter to someone directly at the WCGRB who chose to ignore it.