I won £8xx.xx at Vernons Casino on 15th March and asked to withdraw my winnings. I then received two emails from Vernons support on 16th March. The first email requested that I send, by courier, notarised photo ID to the following address:
Vernons Casino Customer Services
Walton House
55 Charnock Road
Liverpool
L67 1AA
The second email from Vernons support (which was received 1 minute after the first email) stated they had received my ID, but it showed a different address to that registered on my account. I replied to this email stating that I had not even sent them ID yet, far less ID with a different address, and I asked for clarification on what I needed to do, if anything.
I received another email from Vernons support on 16th March stating that the previous email was sent in error and they require me to send notarised photo ID and proof of address to the following address:
ID Verification
14/F Yuchengco Tower 1,
RCBC Plaza, 6819 Ayala,
Makati City 1200,
Philippines
Now, I was surprised that they required notarised ID as I have accounts with other gaming companies and have never been asked for notarised ID before. I emailed Vernons support for clarification on this matter and received a response saying that the documents should be notarised by a Notary Public.
I then sent a email on 17th March stating that I would be happy to have my ID notarised and send this to Vernons, but I was not happy about having to send it through unsecured mail to the Philippines, as they are not on the 'safe' list of European Economic Area (EEA) countries, with regards to the transfer of personal data.
Also, they wanted me to write 'ID Verification' in the address on the envelope, thus highlighting what was inside the envelope. I wrote that I do not agree that Vernons were taking reasonable steps to keep my information secure, (as per their terms and conditions) given how and where they wanted me to send my documentation.
I asked if I could send my documentation to the Liverpool address that I was provided with in the first email from Vernons support. I received a response later that day, stating that the email with the Philippines address had been sent in error and I should, in fact, send my documentation to the Liverpool address.
Given that I have, by this stage, received a lot of misinformation from Vernons support, and I wanted final clarification before I spend in the region of £100 to have my ID notarised, I sent another email this morning asking for final clarification of the following:
1. If a notarised copy of my driving licence would be acceptable.
2. If I have to send my documentation to Liverpool by courier.
3. If I have to provide proof of address, would a council tax statement be acceptable.
4. What happens to my ID when received at the Liverpool address. Is it sent to this address in the Phiippines?
5. If my documentation is approved, how will I receive my winnings.
I have now received a further email from Vernons support stating that I should send my notarised ID to the Philippines address (!) and that I can email them a copy of my proof of address.
Please can you help resolve this matter? I have been given so much misinformation and I do not what I should do now. Under no circumstances, would I be happy at having to send my documentation to this address in the Philippines, but they cannot seem to make their mind up where I should send it. It is becoming rather infuriating.
Vernons Casino would like to take care of unresolved complaints, with an apology for not doing it before! Is this problem still active?
Vernons Casino would like to take care of unresolved complaints, with an apology for not doing it before! Is this problem still active?
Firstly, Vernons have been far from clear in their responses to me. I have received many conflicting responses, such as:
1. An email requesting that I send my notarised documentation to an address in Liverpool.
2. An email confirming that they had received my ID, but it did not match the address on my account and a request that I send further ID - I had not even sent ID at this point!
3. An email requesting that I send my notarised documentation to an address in the Philippines.
4. An email confirming that the notarised documentation should, in fact, be sent to the Liverpool address.
5. An email confirming that the notarised documentation should, in fact, be sent to the Philippines address.
6. An email stating that my winnings had been voided as ‘bets on excluded games do not count toward wagering requirements’ - I played through the wagering requirements (40x bonus) on slots, which, according to the terms and conditions count toward 100% of the wagering requirements.
7. An email stating that my winnings had been removed from my account as ‘it appears that You are participating in strategies that we in our sole discretion deem to be abusive, misuse our systems or are in breach of any of the terms and conditions that apply to such Bonus (including, without limitation, minimal risk wagering)’ - How is that even possible? Vernons sent me an email offering a no-deposit bonus, which I accepted. I played through the no deposit bonus and, by chance, happened to win; does this constitute abuse? I followed the terms and conditions regarding the wagering requirements; in what way did I misuse their systems or breach their terms and conditions?
Secondly: multiple no deposit bonuses? Really? I suppose that depends on how you define multiple. To this date, I have accepted two no deposit bonuses. The second no deposit bonus (the matter of this dispute) Vernons invited me, by email, to participate in. Why try to entice a customer with a no deposit bonus and then cite some convoluted excuse as a reason to deny their winnings? It is bad business practice and I really would expect better from a company of Vernons size and reputation. They are not some fly by night organisation, so why behave like one?
Thirdly, I take the accusation that I have acted fraudulently very seriously. I do hope that Vernons have evidence to back up this claim? I expect I shall be hearing from the authorities, if, as Vernons say, I have acted fraudulently. How completely and utterly ridiculous! Without evidence to substantiate this claim, you cannot go bandying this term around. It is lucky for Vernons that this forum does not identify me, otherwise their response would be defamatory AND libellous.
I repeat, all I have done is accepted a no deposit bonus (which I was invited to participate in), played through the wagering requirements (as per the terms and conditions) and tried to withdraw my winnings!
If anything, I could claim it is Vernons who are acting fraudulently, as this whole episode smacks of ‘bait and switch’.
Hi,
Vernons have been clear with the responses to tabby_cat and they have all been based on our monitoring of the player's gameplay since signup with multiple No deposit bonuses. After initial analysis of this gameplay with our bonuses and his withdrawal request our fraud team firstly requested notarised documentation to be sent to our Liverpool office and the account was further investigated. This is only required in situations where we feel there is abuse of our promotional bonuses. Our investigation into the account revealed fraudulent use of bonus activity that meant we reversed any winnings and refunded the player's deposit as per our general bonus Ts&Cs - Section 8.4. As mentioned Vernons is an AGCC regulated site and our CS team deals with all players issues accordingly.
Kind Regards,
Vernons Support
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