Pay Out Delay Outrage and What the PPA Can Do About It
It has been over two months since I first requested two payouts ($300 & $400) from Sportsbook.com
I understand that many sites have problems with financial institutions willing and able to process such transactions.
The thing that most bothers me is the excuses that I have received from the site for the delay. The first month was because they were changing processing companies. The second month they made me jump through hoops, faxing, e-mailing and telephone verifying all sorts of information. Most of the information they already had and some of the information I am unsure why they needed to process a payment. This third month they notified me via e-mail (according to them "as a courtesy") that the transactions were still pending and if I have any questions to contact their customer service department.
I am a strong supporter of Internet Poker and hope to see it legally available to players in the United States. I do not feel that the industry as a whole is corrupt, but I do feel that an organization such as the PPA needs to become the "watch dog" of poorly run sites.
It is in our best interest (I am a member of the PPA) to see that players are not disillusioned or dissatisfied with the poker sites because these are the people who may keep online poker from ever becoming legal and or regulated in the United States.
I find it very odd that I do not see a lot of outrage from other Sportsbook.com customers about slow payouts. My payouts are for relatively small amounts and I have already prepared myself for the day that may come when I finally realize they are never going to send the money.
Playing illegally, US players run the risk of a site basically saying “we ain’t paying, so what are you going to do about it?”
Maybe there is no outrage because like me, other players figure the only real loss is one’s initial deposit and any money beyond that never really belonged to you. If Sportsbook.com decided not to pay me or it goes on so long that I actually forget they do owe me, I will be out a hundred bucks. No big loss to me and I will move on to another site. Is Sportsbook.com banking on the notion that most will react like myself and just take their business elsewhere?
A more sinister scenario would be that there is no outrage from other players because I am one of the few who actually have requested a payout. If a site does not have a lot of players cashing out, then there is something definitely wrong with the game they are running.
The PPA should consider devising an “ebay” type rating system for online poker sites so that potential customers (players) can make informed decisions as to where to play. It would be nice to see how many transactions take place and whether there is positive or negative feedback.
At a minimum, it would be nice if the PPA website could devote a page to members who want to review the different sites allowing other members to see what they are getting into before deciding to play at a new site.
Legal internet poker in the US will never become a reality until we can prove that we are able to police ourselves. Without legalized internet poker in the US, players are left vulnerable to all sorts of bad things in cyber space.