Zodiac Casino Refuse $20,000 payout.

Over four weeks ago, I successfully won $20,000 while playing pokies online at Zodiac Casino. However, the process of withdrawing my winnings has been riddled with obstacles and challenges. Initially, it appeared that the withdrawal would be a straightforward procedure. I had already verified my identity and deposited funds into the online platform using both a Visa card and a Neteller account, which was a preferred option suggested by the site. However, when it came time to withdraw, neither of these deposit options were available for withdrawal.

Consequently, I opted for a bank transfer to my personal bank account and followed the necessary steps to verify this account by providing the requested documentation. I believed that everything was in order and the withdrawal would proceed smoothly. To my disappointment, days later, I received an email stating that the account details I had provided were entered incorrectly on my end, resulting in their inability to process my withdrawal. In response, I promptly resubmitted the details informing them that for some reason the suffix section had been deleted and that it was entered in my original submission. I resubmitted the account again as my preferred withdrawal option.

Then, another unexpected hurdle emerged. I received an email requesting statements from both my personal bank account and Neteller account. Although I found this request somewhat unusual, I complied in order to expedite the process. However, as you might have anticipated, they once again informed me that they were unable to transfer the funds to my account. Frustratingly, it was only after I informed them that my bank account was now protected by an activity alert that they revealed the true reason for withholding payment: the deposits I made from my Neteller account did not align with the transaction history on their platform.

Consequently, they refused to release the funds and instead urged me to utilize the winnings by playing more games and redepositing the funds back into my players account.

Furthermore, the fact that they are using their own preferred supplier as a reason to withhold my winnings is highly questionable. It is concerning that they are using this as a genuine reason to deny my payout. From my transaction history, it should be evident that the funds I deposited came from legitimate sources, and there was sufficient money to play. Instead of exploring other options or taking the currency exchange into account, they seem to be grasping at different deposit amounts as a means to challenge my identity verification.

I have followed their instructions to the letter, including abiding by the terms and conditions. Yet, they still find ways to avoid paying out winnings. In total I have spent (excluding winning funds) less than $2,000 and I understand that I may have to take reduced withdrawal amounts of £4000 per week until paid out, yet this is not been accepted either.

Hi, based of what you described here, you sound like a reasonable person. I believe there's not much we can do here on the forum and I suggest you to submit a complaint straight away. You can basically copy/paste what you described here. I just didn't fully understand the part where you say:

Frustratingly, it was only after I informed them that my bank account was now protected by an activity alert that they revealed the true reason for withholding payment: the deposits I made from my Neteller account did not align with the transaction history on their platform.

Consequently, they refused to release the funds and instead urged me to utilize the winnings by playing more games and redepositing the funds back into my players account.

Who urged you to utilize the winnings by playing more and what was the exact issue with your Neteller deposits?

Hi Daniel

I appreciate your response and would like to provide more details on the two points you mention.

Initially, when I attempted my first withdrawal, Zodiac Casino required ID verification and proof of ownership for the account I intended to transfer the winnings into (I had authenticated myself on sign up also). This was a different method than what I had used for deposits. Consequently, I was asked to complete their online form, providing details such as the bank's SWIFT code, branch, account number, and so on, which I did.

However, Zodiac Casino replied, claiming that I had incorrectly entered my bank account details. According to them, they had tried to process the payment, but my account number was incorrect, which was not the case. The suffix of the bank account number I had submitted in the form was deleted, so I filled it in again, providing the correct three digits, and resubmitted the form.

Following this, Zodiac Casino requested the submission of my bank account statements and the most recent statement from my deposit account (NETELLER), even though they claimed to have attempted the transfer just a few days earlier. To expedite the process, I complied and provided this information. For clarity, I submitted PDF versions of these statements, sourced directly from the banks and not mere images.

I then receive this response from Zodiac.

"Unfortunately, we were unable to process your recent withdrawal to your nominated payment account/paymentmethod, so the funds have been returned to your casino account: 

Your Payments: 

Account Currency Amount Paid Type Delivery Time HZCRM0702622780NZD20000.00Casino AccountPlease contact us for further informationThe reason for this may be due to invalid account details provided and/or as a result of current limitations with our payment processor. 

We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may cause you and in the interest of providing you full visibility and access to your funds, we have returned them to your casino account balance. You are free to re-request your withdrawal, taking special care when entering your details or by choosing a different withdrawal method/account. 

Alternatively, you can speak to one of our friendly customer service team members for further information concerning your recent withdrawal attempt. "

To which I reply

"I requested that my bank alert me when an attempt to deposit the funds was made to the BNZ branch and account. Even if once again you did not use the suffix 000 as instructed I would be alerted to say an attempt was made. But I received no such message. So it is confirmed that this new email is merely a smoke screen, a way you thought I had no way to verify."

This is when Zodiac informed me that it was now my NETELLER account that was the issue, and that the deposits I made into their account did not match the money from my NETELLER account deposit payments.

Lastly, I was urged by the Casino Rewards Support team member Gina who was responding to an email I sent to Zodiac asking how this is a valid reason. She then redirected me to the risk management team to answer that question but but not before offering me further incentive deals with links to those games and bonus specials.

I hope that clears up any confusion and I will be submitting a complaint also. I found this site and thought I would find some similar stories or advice that would help me in my endeavour.

Honestly, I assume your case might be quite a simple one. I still have a feeling that their payments department still has some issue with filling the bank details correctly and that's why it eventually fails. I'm not sure if it's really that complicated, but you mentioned that you'll be withdrawing using another payment method that was used for the deposits, you're from New Zealand, which has some specifics as well. For example, when you send payments in Europe, you just need IBAN (a long code that already includes info about your bank, country, account number etc.) and that's it. There's not such a thing like branch, swift codes etc. even though I know exactly what you're talking about.

I suppose they need to keep trying until they figure out how to send it correctly or they possibly need to use another bank for sending the money to you. Anyway, submitting the complaint could potentially accelerate the process.

Question: if you have 13 cents of bonus funds still remaining in your account unused and you deposit new funds in to your players account after the bonus funds were utilised, can Zodiac Casino hold that new deposit stating that I haven’t met the minimum play through requirement? So the money cannot be withdrawn? Rather than the one lump sum and as recommended by their own terms and conditions I tried to simplify the process of getting my money out by doing smaller withdrawals, over 3-4 transactions. To do this I needed to redeposit my money into my players account and and then begin the withdrawal process again. However once deposited and I went to make the first withdrawal attempt that message popped up. Now I understand the bonus minimum play through requirement, but what I don’t get is how can they hold new money that is deposited in after the fact. It was withdrawn before the bonus funds offer was take up 2-days ago and then used as new money as a deposit. That’s fairly low from any stand point.

Hi, I think the best thing to do would be to ask support or live chat this question as they will know the best answer. Of course, it's also always a good idea to take a screenshot in case there are problems. Would that be possible ? 🙂

Yes for sure, I took a screen shot the moment I saw it. I’ve got everything on file pretty much. No stone left unturned you might say.

Of course it's great that you took screenshots of everything that was needed because that can help a lot of times. Anyway, has support given you an answer to your question ? 🤔

Support on the Zodiac Platform or Casino Guru platform? The answer is no to Zodiac as they have not responded to my attempts on this subject. and no to Casino Guru as I have not made contact with support or live chat at this stage. I was trying to get a resolution myself, but as I’ve had no response from Zodiac after 72 hours I can only assume they are not interested in helping me navigate this.

I meant the answer from the Zodiac Casino. As far as we are concerned, I noticed that you opened a complaint and so if the casino ignores you, I think it is a good move, since you won quite a large sum. 

I saw that Petronella has already replied to you and will wait for you to answer her questions again. Would it be possible for you to answer her ? 

However, for the time being we will have to wait and see how the situation develops, since you have not got any answers. I wish you good nerves and good luck. When you learn something new don't hesitate to let us know. 

Thanks for the response. I will have a read of the question now. I did leave a review on trust pilot. Trust pilot then contacted me saying that Zodiac would like more information on myself eg user name etc to help aide them in understanding the situation more. I provided this nearly 2-weeks ago and have not received a single response or confirmation of receipt for that information still. It’s a rigmarole alright.

Well, it's certainly not pleasant since you didn't get any answer. So you've had no contact with the casino, have you?

However, it will be important for us to wait and see where the complaint goes, because we have no more information yet. If you find out anything new, would it be possible to let us know ?

No, not at all. They avoid me completely.

About four weeks ago, NETELLER stated that they would investigate the issue. I believe that because Zodiac used their platform, NETELLER didn't want to get involved in the dispute and thought they could find a resolution. However, yesterday I received a brief email stating:

"Thank you for contacting us. 

Please note that we were informed by the merchant directly, and you should contact them at payments@casinorewards.com for further assistance regarding the matter.

Best regards,

Aleksandar S.

NETELLER Team"

But I never contacted NETELLER about the issue. My interaction with them was solely for obtaining the account statement required by Zodiac as part of their repeated verification process (yes, three times). Then, NETELLER sent me an email requesting a review of their service and whether the statement I received was helpful. I responded with a summarized version of events, and they replied:

"Thank you for reaching out.

We have received your message and will reply within the next 24 hours."

It has been nearly four weeks since NETELLER's initial email. Although I wasn't optimistic when NETELLER intervened, as they are a preferred supplier for Zodiac and the revenue generated by Zodiac would be a much more enticing prospect than what I could offer.

Despite my lack of optimism, I did expect more resistance from them. They provide a service, they should back their service, no matter the merchant. Especially in a case where there is no wrong doing from the customer on either platform. It all comes down to the money in the end and NETELLER couldn’t be unbiased, but then i would see that as being accountable.

Well, this is actually quite an interesting situation, I agree!

But I also feel that, for now, it is very important to pass this information through the complaint. I mean, Petronela needs to be familiar with the last events. Best to resend the aforementioned email to her directly.

Can you do that, please?

In general, I understand and agree with you when you said: They provided a service, they should back their service, no matter the merchant. 

On the other hand, when, let's say, an uncommon approach helps solve the issue, I would not actually hesitate much. I mean, we all hope this situation turns into a solution asap.

What could you possibly lose if you contact this email (payments@casinorewards.com), I wonder?