Archive for the ‘Online Casinos’ Category

We received the following email this morning purporting to come from Playtech Casino Grandwild.com The email which appeared to be written in very poor English simply stated:

Soon GrandWild Casino will incure some changes, so it will not be able for indefinite period of time.
We ask You to take down all our promotions and don’t post new ones, untill You’ll get any further info from our staff.
We will contact You if there will be any usefull information for You.
Thank You for Your attention!

A quick look at the website showed that everything appeared to be functioning normally and they are still offering a 50 bonus no deposit necessary. The affiliate program also looks to be functioning normally and there are no messages warning affiliates of impending changes.

So what is happening with Grand Wild? Are they genuinely closing, is this a disgruntled employee or even a competitor trying to get Grand Wild taken down. The truth is that right now we don’t know but we are currently trying to get some information for our players. The vague time scale and lack of professional information makes us think that it could be a hoax, but until we find out more we urge any players to proceed with caution, not to deposit any further funds and withdraw any existing funds as soon as possible.

From 1st January 2016, internet provider Sky will automatically be blocking access to “adult” sites prior to 9pm at night. This ban will include access to gambling sites including casino, poker and bingo and will apply to all subscribers who have joined Sky since November 2013. The changes are being made to Sky’s Broadband Shield Service which will now automatically restrict access to over 18 sites until 9pm at night unless changes are made by the account holder. After 9pm adult sites will be able to access.

The Broadband Shield has been applied to all new accounts since its introduction in late 2013. It allows subscribers to restrict access to content and websites based on a number of filters - PG, 13, 18 or custom. To change your Broadband Shield setting log into your Sky Account and go to Settings. By default this value is now set to Watershed which allows adult access only after 9pm at night.

Whilst this move is designed to protect children from accessing adult material, it has been criticised by some as yet another manifestation of the “nanny state”. Most parents who have children who can access the internet already take advantage of “parental controls” to screen the content that their children can view so Sky’s new policy has been viewed as an over-reaction by many.

Affiliates, love us or hate us we are there for our players when things go wrong. Here at Casino Vamp if any of our players has a problem with one of our casinos, rest assured we will go into battle on their behalf, negotiating with the casino, trying to solve their problem or if the matter can’t be solved internally advising them on the next step such as alternate dispute resolution. Players come to our site knowing they will not only get information on the latest great deals and bonuses available, but also we will go above and beyond if they have any problems with any of the gaming companies listed on our site. We will even try to help if we don’t work with the brands concerned because we think this industry should be one of fairness, honesty and transparency. As gamblers ourselves, when something goes very badly wrong in our industry we know it hurts us all.

Last week something did go very badly wrong when former Bettson affiliate manager Christiaan Alexander Van Dalen was accused of stealing 153,000 Euros from Bettson by “retagging” high value players so he could personally earn commissions from them. For anyone who doesn’t understand “tagging”, when a player signs up through a certain website or link, the owner of that website or link will have that player “tagged” to them. By “retagging” players, Van Dalen had these players assigned to him, rather than the affiliate or person who originally signed them up. Van Dalen is accused of seven charges including money laundering, fraud and computer offences. Most of Van Dalen’s assets have now been frozen pending an investigation.

This case has sent shockwaves through the industry for casinos, players and affiliate alike. For years the industry has policed itself quite effectively, and whilst occasional rumours of detagging surface, never before has anyone been arrested or charged with the offence. Affiliates are wondering whether they can truly trust their managers, casinos are wondering whether they can trust their staff and players are wondering who on earth they can trust. Whilst this particular issue doesn’t affect players directly, alleged dishonesty such as this tarnishes our industry and damages relations between all parties.

Van Dalen has currently been refused bail and has been refused access to computer or other devices in case he tampers with evidence.

I used to be a huge fan of Neteller. Having been with them nearly from the start I was at one time a Gold VIP, thus was the amount of money I put through them. I enjoyed good service, easy transactions and recommended them to a lot of people. So it annoys me more than a little bit when they decide that they are going to police the internet, and even more when they decide that they are not going to tell anyone they are doing it.

Just recently my Neteller transactions started to get turned down at the gaming sites I regularly use. No reason given just transaction declined, and these were at sites I have played at for years, well known gaming sites such as Inetbet. After doing a little digging it also appears that this was happening to other UK players. So after getting my investigating head on I took a closer look and it appears that since the introduction of complusory UK licenses for gambling sites which wanted to accept wagers from players resident in the UK, it appears that Neteller are automatically declining GBP or UK transactions to sites which don’t hold a UK license.

I have no doubt that this new policy is hidden somewhere in their TOS but I have no intention of ploughing through reams of legal speak in order to find it. A simple communication from Neteller outlining this new policy would have been nice, and if they did send one, it didn’t reach me or the other UK players who were left scratching our heads as to what exactly what going on.

Now after their trial in 2007 in relation to their allegedly facilitating “illegal” gambling transactions in the USA it is not surprising that Neteller want to cover their backsides in relation to the UK gambling situation. However as I understand the situation, if I (a UK resident) want to send my own hard earned cash to a site which doesn’t yet hold a UK license even if I have been playing at that said casino for over ten years with no problems, Neteller will decide that I am not allowed to do that.

Now some people may argue that not being able to play at unlicensed gaming sites is a good thing. However in my opinion the new UK licensing regulations are more of a revenue gathering exercise for the treasury than providing genuine protection for players. Due to the restrictions and resources required to obtain a UK gaming license some really good casinos have already pulled out of the market place. Now we have Neteller acting as a playground monitor to make sure none of our money goes to the bad men….

If that didn’t annoy me enough, last week something really infuriating happened. I was contacted by one of the affiliate managers I work with who was trying to send me some earnings via Neteller but NETELLER WERE DECLINING THE TRANSACTIONS. Yes read that again. Neteller are now deciding whether or not I can receive my hard earned cash, but not a word to me about it - in fact if the lady concerned hadn’t have contacted me to ask for different payment details I would not have known a thing about it. Now IMO Neteller are starting to take the piss. Luckily Starpartner.com are a thoroughly reputable affiliate program who were honest enough to tell me what was going on.

I contacted Neteller immediately and they said someone would get back to me in 24 hours - I am still waiting for someone to deal with this. It is now nearly a week and not a damn thing from Neteller. Oh actually I lie - I received something from them saying my Neteller affiliate account had been deactivated, as if I would want to refer people to them anyhow.

About the only good thing which has come out of the whole affair is that I have switched to using Skrill (well I still call it Moneybookers but I’m behind the times) and have realised how much better it is. No randomly demanding I jump through a set of extra verification hoops from time to time like Neteller, no annoying secure ID to remember which again gets randomly changed at Netellers whim, great customer service, easy transactions and like every other 21st century payment processor (apart from Neteller) there is an App. Neither do they decide where I can spend my money or who I can receive money from.

A fairly disturbing case came to light recently, and one which sets a frightening precedent for the privacy of online gamblers. This case involves a player at William Hill who apparently had been gambling with them for some time and was a reasonably big player there. The player was contacted by support at William Hill who asked them to “justify their level of play” by providing financial records to prove that he or she was able to afford their gambling habit. The casino apparently wanted financial papers regarded the players income, including bank statements for 3 years and utility bills.

A quick scan of their terms and condition reveals that they are actually entitled to ask for these. This is listed under the money laundering section of their T & C’s.

In certain circumstances we may have to contact You and ask You to provide further information to us directly in order to complete the Checks. For this purpose, we will be entitled, at our sole discretion, to require that You provide us with a notarised ID or any equivalent certified ID according to the applicable law of Your jurisdiction or otherwise, proof of address, utility bills, bank details, bank statements and bank references. Until such information has been supplied to our satisfaction we may prevent any activity to be undertaken by You in relation to the Account or we may, where we reasonably believe that deliberately incorrect information has been provided by You, keep any amount deposited on the Account following the closure of the Account by us.

Now obviously all casinos need to ensure that they are not party to money laundering but 3 years bank statements seems a bit excessive by any standards. They also wanted the players proof of income and the player reported that they asked for other detailed information such as property records, savings. family savings and more.

Quite what prompted this level of intrusion is not clear, however William Hill have not responded to questions put to them by prominent members of the gambling industry on the question. Whether this is prompted by the new UK gambling laws but it does seem an excessive amount of scrutiny for one player to endure. One would think that William Hill would value large players such as this rather than interrogating them to this level.

It also begs debate as to where due diligence ends and intrusion starts. Over the many years I have been playing at online casinos I have never been asked to undergo this level of scrutiny. Of course I provide documents as requested to prevent money laundering but these are generally only a copy of ID, a faxback form, a utility bill, copies of any credit/debit cards used and perhaps a bank statement. Casinos have always accepted my decision to black out all financial information on my bank statements and my documents have always been accepted without quibble. If a casino asked me to provide three years financial information I would politely tell them where to get off and go and find a new casino who values my custom.

It will be interesting to see how this case develops and William Hill’s justification for all of this. Unfortunately, at the moment the silence seems to be deafening.

#gambling #onlinecasinos #williamhill

“There’s no such thing as a smart gambler” said my partner sagely over breakfast one day. I beg to disagree. In fact smart play is what differentiates the big winners from the big losers, whatever the size of your bank roll. So what is playing smart? Isn’t gambling nothing more than a game of chance? Well, although lady luck certainly has a hand in your chances of hitting a big win, by playing smart you can increase the odds in your favour.

1. The Golden Rule - never gamble with what you can’t afford to lose.
Yes it’s probably a no brainer but never gamble with money you can’t afford to lose. That includes the mortgage and rent money, bill money and anything else you may need for your day to day living expenses. Gambling is meant to be fun and its no fun if you are constantly worrying that you are about to lose the roof over your head or that your utilities are about to be cut off. Yes you may strike it lucky and hit that big one, but the chances are also that you won’t. This also applies to borrowing money to gamble - just don’t. Luckily many banks now routinely decline credit cards for gambling transactions so the temptation isn’t as high as it used to be but if you are borrowing money to gamble then it is likely that you are a problem gambler. If you suspect this may apply to you, seek help from one of the many organisations which help with gambling addiction.

2. Don’t chase losses.
Almost everyone who has ever gambled is probably guilty of this at one point or another. The temptation to give it one more spin or one more turn of the cards is overwhelming at times, often with the mistaken belief that a win is “overdue”. This ability to imbue the slot reels or cards with some sort of “memory” is unique to the unsavvy gambler, each spin or turn of the cards is a random event and it makes no difference what has happened before to the outcome of each hand. An often quoted example is if you flip a coin ten times and heads turns up each time then most people will bet on tails believing it to be overdue. In actual fact, the odds of the next flip turning up heads is just as equal as it always was - the coin has no memory. To take this example further, some people would actually bet on heads believing the coin to be weighted or some sort of sleight of hand going on. This is probably more logical than actually believing tails to be due!

3. Understand Variance
Following on from the coin flip example earlier, variance explains how likely you are to deviate from the house edge. In a random coin game over the long term you would probably expect tails to come up approximately 50% of the time and heads to come up 50% of the time. In this game the variance would be very low as there are only two possible outcomes and each of these are expected to turn up 50% of the time. If however you were to take a high variance game such as the lottery with a 14 million to one chance of winning the big prize and a 1 in 32 chance of winning any prize, your chances of busting your bankroll before getting any sort of return on your money are very high indeed. You can use this same principle to choose the games which you play in the casino. Low variance games include table games, whereas slots, video poker, keno and bingo are all high variance. To complicate matters further, slot games all have difference variances, but often casinos will indicate the variance of the slot - RTG casinos for example do this. A high variance slot will hit less often for bigger amounts, but you will need a reasonably big bankroll in order to take advantage of this. Jackpot slots are all high variance. Lower variance slots will hit more regularly for smaller amounts.

4. Maximise your bankroll by choosing bonuses carefully.
The gambling industry is a competitive one and like any competitive industry casinos need to offer attractive bonuses and promotions in order to stand out. For the gambler, this is generally a good thing, but be ever mindful of the saying there is no such thing as a free lunch. Always, but always read the small print on any bonus or promotion you accept - be aware of the wagering requirements, any excluded games and worst of all any maximum cash out restrictions which may apply. Promotions run hand in hand with game variance - slots player usually get the most generous bonuses because the house edge is highest, whereas table game players will receive lower bonuses. Bonuses and promotions can be a minefield and some players choose not to accept them at all, however they can and do boost your bankroll nicely. Take a screenshot of the terms and conditions of any bonus you accept in case of a dispute later on.

5. Shop Around
If a supermarket consistently offered lower prices and better products than your regular store then you would switch, right? So why stick with a casino which isn’t offering you great value for money and a winning experience. Casinos all too often get complacent with regular players and fail to offer them the rewards and incentives offered to new players. The old adage “it is easier to keep an existing customer than find a new one” seems to miss the marketing departments of some casinos. Whereas comp programs are there to build loyalty, most casinos do not offer attractive enough comps in order to keep a players loyalty. Check out Casinovamp.com for the newest and best online casinos, the latest bonus offers and promotions, and gambling industry news. Smart play starts here!

From 16th February 2015, the maximum value of an individual Ukash code issued by shops in the UK will be £180. This is to bring it into line with the terms of their e-money licensed issued by the Financial Conduct Authority which allows the maximum value of an emoney transaction to be restricted to 25o Euros. At current exchange rates £18o is

On 16th February 2015 the maximum value of a single Ukash code issued from shops in the UK was changed to £180.00. This change reflects the weaker value of the Euro against the Pound. Ukash operates under an emoney licence from the Financial Conduct Authority and this sets out the maximum value of a single emoney transaction to be 250,00 euros. At current exchange rates this is closer to the new L180 maximum.

The new maximum value applies only to Ukash issued in shops in the UK from 16th February 2015 onwards. Codes over L180 issued before this date will be processed as normal. Revised Ukash Terms and Conditions can be seen here: www.ukash.com/terms

We trust that this change does not cause you any inconvenience but you can comment via social media, at Facebook.com/paywithukash or on Twitter @paywithukash or by email to [email protected]

Yours sincerely

The Ukash team

There’s no doubt that casinos these days seem to be getting tighter. As players we are always looking for the best value for money casinos and the most play time for our deposits. When I first started gambling online back in the late 1990’s, a $20 deposit provided hours of fun but it seems now that at many sites, that deposit is gone in just a couple of spins of the slots. Those of us who don’t have huge bankrolls or who prefer penny play seem to have been left behind by ever increasing stakes (yes Microgaming I am talking about you!) or end up relying on bonuses (minefield) in order to maximise our bank rolls.

So it was a refreshing change to discover Casino Dukes - a good old fashioned honest online casino powered by Genii/Saucify and licensed in Malta. What did I like so much about it? Well for a start, my initial deposit had me playing for over four hours, the games are fun and innovative offering generous bonus rounds and free spins, plus they have in my opinion the best player loyalty/comp program currently available. Add to this customer service who are genuinely interested in players experiences and will do everything they can to make your gaming experience pleasant and enjoyable and you have the formula for a really outstanding casino.

Asking a casino reviewer which casinos they play with in their own time, is a bit like asking a restaurant reviewer where they prefer to eat. I have a handful (perhaps five) casinos in which I play regularly and Casino Dukes is now one of them. So why exactly does Casino Dukes stand out from the rest? Well for a start it is different. Anyone who has been around the gambling industry for a while is probably familiar with the offerings of the “big” providers - Microgaming, IGT, Net Entertainment, RTG, Playtech etc. There is a good mix of new and different games - from generous and funky slots, several hard to find versions of video poker, a good selection of table games, plus a few progressives, keno and scratch card games. The slots bonus games are generous, they often offer excellent prizes far in excess of what you would usually find for your chosen stake. If you are used to tedious bonus games which generally return 2 - 5 times your stake then you are going to love Casino Dukes.

I briefly mentioned the player loyalty program which in my opinion is the best comp program around at the moment. Forget boring cash exchange for your loyalty points, this one not only offers cash bonuses, but also free spins, ipads, jewellery, TV’s. holidays and even a Vegas Experience. The system is called Player Quest and as you play, you progress through the ranks of the player nobility where eventually you will reach the fabled royalty level. In addition to earning comp points at an increased level the higher your rank, you will also receive generous extra bonuses including a free birthday present, weekly insurance, tier bonuses and entrance into special tournaments.

Nows its time to mention the B word - by this I mean bonuses. Whether or not you are a fan of bonuses there is no doubt that Casino Dukes offer great value for money bonuses. Every day you can claim an offer and on Sundays there is a special no deposit bonus available to everyone. Unlike other casinos, Dukes do not quibble on bonuses - once your playthrough is met the money is yours - there are no aggressive terms or nasty clauses designed to part your from your money. Check your current bonus and playthru requirements in the cashier at any time, and once your bonus is converted the money is all yours. The first time you play at Casino Dukes you qualify for a welcome bonus of 250% of your deposit up to $250/€250/£250 free using coupon code HELLODUKE, plus you can also use the no deposit coupon code FSDUKE for 20 free spins whether you decide to purchase or not.

A special mention has to go to the fabulous support staff at Dukes who will do their utmost to ensure you have a magical gaming experience. Unlike some other casinos, I was made to feel that Casino Dukes actually valued my custom - I may not be the biggest gamer in the world or a high roller but their support staff genuinely made me feel that I count - and that alone is priceless.

Play now and claim £25 free

#casinodukes #casino #nodepositbonus #gambling #casinovamp

If you have a complaint about an online casino, poker room, bingo hall or sports book, in the first instance you need to contact the operator. In many cases, customer services will be able to resolve your complaint quickly and to your satisfaction. But what happens when you are not happy with their response or if they are simply ignoring your complaint?

Luckily there are a number of dispute resolution services who can help when a player has a dispute with an online casino or gambling operator. The first thing to take note of is where the casino is licensed. Most licensing jurisdictions have their own casino complaint mediation service although they will want to ensure you have firstly attempted to resolve your problem with the gambling site itself. If the casino is licensed in the UK, under the rules of the Gambling Commission they must have an effective complaints and dispute service. Any casino which advertises to or accepts UK players must from October 2014 hold a license awarded by the UK Gambling Commission.

You can check whether a casino holds a UK licence by looking at the home page. All UK license holders should have a Gambling Commission logo displayed at the bottom of the page. You can also check for a UK license here : http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/Find-licensees.aspx

Firstly, ask for a copy of the gambling sites official complaints procedure. They are duty bound to provide this to you. Next take your complaint through their disputes procedure and await the response from the operator. If you are unhappy with their resolution of your complaint, then the operator should provide you with the details of their Alternative Disputes Resolution service. The ADR is an independent third party to whom your complaint can be referred for investigation. The ADR may request further information or documentation regarding your dispute.

There are a number of ADR’s and which one your complaint will be referred to depends on the terms of the license issued.

If your complaint does not concern a casino or gambling operator which is licensed in the UK, then there may be other entities who can help. Make note of two key pieces of information - where the casino is licensed and what software it uses. All the big casino software providers have their own dispute resolution services - however these may be over ridden by the licensing jurisdiction. For example Microgaming software have their own disputes mediation service but if you are dealing with a Microgaming casino which holds a UK license then you will need to go through the ADR entity of that particular casino.

You can find more information on the software providers dispute services and those belonging to the main licensing jurisdictions here - http://www.casinovamp.com/articles/casino-complaints-and-dispute-resolution.html

Don’t forget too that if you saw the casino advertised on a casino site such as casinovamp.com you can enlist the help of the webmaster to solve your complaint. We will always assist with complaints about casinos who are listed on our pages and if we are not able to solve it for you then we can usually point you in the right direction of where to go next.

Unless you have been living in a time capsule for the past few years, you will no doubt be familiar with the name Bitcoin, even if not entirely sure how it works. Bitcoin is a virtual currency and works in true peer to peer fashion with no central bank or authority controlling it. Bitcoin can be mined, transferred between individuals and now used as a virtual currency at online casinos. In fact Bitcoin is destined to be one of major innovations in casino banking methods for many years.
The great thing about Bitcoin is that anyone can earn it, use it and tranfer it. All you need is a bit coin wallet – such as Coinbase or Xapo and you are ready to start using Bitcoin.

There are two different ways to use Bitcoin at online casinos. The first is to use an e-wallet payment system such as OkPay to purchase Bitcoin to use at casinos that accept Bitcoin along side other payment methods. Alternatively you can use a specialist Bitcoin casino that processes all deposits and withdrawal in Bitcoins.

Specialist Bitcoin Casinos include :

Satoshibet: This dedicated Bitcoin casino actually gives you free bitcoins to play for real. Every 20 minutes if your balance is 0 you can claim 0.005mBTC. Satoshibet accepts Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Litecoin and unlike most online casinos you can play totally anonymously. All transactions are instant and the casino uses the Provably Fair system of randomness.

https://bitcasino.io?ref=casinovamp is the first licensed Bitcoin casino. BitCasino.io offers casino games, live casino games and poker plus a generous signup bonus of 100% up to 1 BTC. Every subsequent deposit qualifies for a reload bonus of 25% plus you can gain entry to their excellent VIP program, which includes a shop in which you can exchange your VIP points for laptops, and other goodies.

You can purchase Bitcoin through a currency exchange site, you can earn it by doing tasks and visiting websites or through many of the open Bitcoin faucets that exist on the network. At present 1 Bitcoin is worth around $220 so most sites work in bits and satoshis. A satoshi is 0.00000001 of a Bitcoin.

At the moment most Bitcoin casinos are quite basic and the games whilst fair have none of the technological bells and whilsts that exist as a normal online casino. If you want excellent graphics whilst being able to deposit in Bitcoin then try Inetbet which accepts Bitcoin deposits through OK Pay.