Perhaps this could have been posted under another thread (Online bookies are not up to scratch), but I didn't want my gripe to get tossed in with the others. I also think it's a bit different as in this instance the organisation has done nothing to soothe or placate the aggrieved which is what surprises me most of all. It appears from the other thread that the other bookmakers in question have done their best to provide at least some degree of service to the customer.
I know the amounts in question are very small; but keep in mind it's all relative. To many the figures quoted would be chicken feed but to others it may be something more important. And my main beef is with the pathetic or should I say non-existent customer service from a seemingly professional outfit.
On Friday night I placed a $5 wager @ $10 on Corey Jones to be leading goalscorer with Sportsbet Australia. As we now know, Jones kicked 3 goals on the night however was trumped by John Anthony with 4. I therefore assumed it was a losing bet, although I held out a small amount of hope as I couldn't recall whether Anthony was named, or whether there was an 'any unlisted player' option. I am aware that there usually is, but I wasn't certain as different agencies sometimes offer different options.
Therefore it was a pleasant surprise when I checked my account the next morning to find that Corey Jones was declared the winner and I had been paid my winnings of $50. I checked my betting history and the results listed by Sportsbet and found that I had indeed been successful. I then proceeded to place a number of bets throughout the afternoon on the races, and by the end of the day had basically broken even, having about $60 remaining. I then logged out for about an hour before hopping back in to place a few bets on the footy that night.
To my astonishment, my balance was now around $10. I couldn't work out what had happened at first. I thought maybe I had mucked up a bet and put more than I meant to put on, and even for a very brief moment thought maybe I'd been the victim of an upheld protest, but of course this was ridiculous as they had 'paid out'. I then went back through my betting history and found that the + $45.00 against Jones's name, had been changed to - $5.00. I then checked Sportsbet's results and found that the winner was now 'any unlisted player'. My betting plans for the night were out the window.
I have no idea about the legalities of this situation. I can only assume that a professional organisation would only take this action if they are legally entitled. But then a professional organisation would not pay out a bet, do nothing for close to 24 hours, and then change the result and withdraw funds from your account with NO WARNING OR EXPLANATION whatsoever.
That's right. No email, no nothing. I assume I am not the only one who was affected by THEIR mistake, and yet they have not even had the decency to apologise or even explain what occurred. To make matters worse I emailed them on their 'customer service' line and two days later have not received any kind of response at all. Clearly they don't believe their customer's are worthy of such courtesy.
Whilst I placed my bet online, Sportsbet are still a traditional bookmaker as far as I'm concerned. Just because they can access my account does that mean they should? If I had placed a bet on-course and they incorrectly paid me out; how would they recoup their funds? Would they chase me around the racecourse? Would they make an announcement asking all the punters who had been mistakenly paid to please return to them to repay their winnings? Would they write me a letter asking really, really nicely if they could please have their money back? What if I hadn't had any funds left in my account? Would I have received an invoice asking me to remedy my 'overdrawn' account? I can't tell you how incredibly keen I would have been to make my next deposit if that had been the situation.
I've no doubt some who've bothered to read this far would say, "So what, your bet didn't win, they've got their right to nab it back off you (without explanation!!!), you'd be asking for the winnings if it was the other way around...." And yes, you bet I'd want my winnings if it was the other way around, but remember - it was their mistake. Punters have no claim when they stuff up their bets. I was fortunate (or unfortunate depending on how you look at it) enough to have the funds in my account to be stolen back, but if I can put another scenario out there perhaps the issue becomes more meaningful.
Imagine if those winnings had been a significant amount of say $1000. Let's then say you went out and paid off that loan, bought that TV, the kids Xmas pressies etc. based on the knowledge your winnings were sitting in your account waiting to be withdrawn, only to find them gone with no explanation and seemingly no recourse. Sorry kids, no soup (or anything else for that matter) for you this fortnight.
It was their mistake, they wear it in my eyes. Get the work experience kid off the job of finalising the results, and take it as a lesson learned. But most of all, show some common decency and when you decide to dip your fingers into people's accounts, give them an explanation or better still, an apology.
I know the amounts in question are very small; but keep in mind it's all relative. To many the figures quoted would be chicken feed but to others it may be something more important. And my main beef is with the pathetic or should I say non-existent customer service from a seemingly professional outfit.
On Friday night I placed a $5 wager @ $10 on Corey Jones to be leading goalscorer with Sportsbet Australia. As we now know, Jones kicked 3 goals on the night however was trumped by John Anthony with 4. I therefore assumed it was a losing bet, although I held out a small amount of hope as I couldn't recall whether Anthony was named, or whether there was an 'any unlisted player' option. I am aware that there usually is, but I wasn't certain as different agencies sometimes offer different options.
Therefore it was a pleasant surprise when I checked my account the next morning to find that Corey Jones was declared the winner and I had been paid my winnings of $50. I checked my betting history and the results listed by Sportsbet and found that I had indeed been successful. I then proceeded to place a number of bets throughout the afternoon on the races, and by the end of the day had basically broken even, having about $60 remaining. I then logged out for about an hour before hopping back in to place a few bets on the footy that night.
To my astonishment, my balance was now around $10. I couldn't work out what had happened at first. I thought maybe I had mucked up a bet and put more than I meant to put on, and even for a very brief moment thought maybe I'd been the victim of an upheld protest, but of course this was ridiculous as they had 'paid out'. I then went back through my betting history and found that the + $45.00 against Jones's name, had been changed to - $5.00. I then checked Sportsbet's results and found that the winner was now 'any unlisted player'. My betting plans for the night were out the window.
I have no idea about the legalities of this situation. I can only assume that a professional organisation would only take this action if they are legally entitled. But then a professional organisation would not pay out a bet, do nothing for close to 24 hours, and then change the result and withdraw funds from your account with NO WARNING OR EXPLANATION whatsoever.
That's right. No email, no nothing. I assume I am not the only one who was affected by THEIR mistake, and yet they have not even had the decency to apologise or even explain what occurred. To make matters worse I emailed them on their 'customer service' line and two days later have not received any kind of response at all. Clearly they don't believe their customer's are worthy of such courtesy.
Whilst I placed my bet online, Sportsbet are still a traditional bookmaker as far as I'm concerned. Just because they can access my account does that mean they should? If I had placed a bet on-course and they incorrectly paid me out; how would they recoup their funds? Would they chase me around the racecourse? Would they make an announcement asking all the punters who had been mistakenly paid to please return to them to repay their winnings? Would they write me a letter asking really, really nicely if they could please have their money back? What if I hadn't had any funds left in my account? Would I have received an invoice asking me to remedy my 'overdrawn' account? I can't tell you how incredibly keen I would have been to make my next deposit if that had been the situation.
I've no doubt some who've bothered to read this far would say, "So what, your bet didn't win, they've got their right to nab it back off you (without explanation!!!), you'd be asking for the winnings if it was the other way around...." And yes, you bet I'd want my winnings if it was the other way around, but remember - it was their mistake. Punters have no claim when they stuff up their bets. I was fortunate (or unfortunate depending on how you look at it) enough to have the funds in my account to be stolen back, but if I can put another scenario out there perhaps the issue becomes more meaningful.
Imagine if those winnings had been a significant amount of say $1000. Let's then say you went out and paid off that loan, bought that TV, the kids Xmas pressies etc. based on the knowledge your winnings were sitting in your account waiting to be withdrawn, only to find them gone with no explanation and seemingly no recourse. Sorry kids, no soup (or anything else for that matter) for you this fortnight.
It was their mistake, they wear it in my eyes. Get the work experience kid off the job of finalising the results, and take it as a lesson learned. But most of all, show some common decency and when you decide to dip your fingers into people's accounts, give them an explanation or better still, an apology.
. I can think of about 1 person I know SOR and they dont barely have a TV never mind a computer with broadband. 
