This week, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is taking Bet365 to court over the wording of an online casino bonus. The online sportsbook has been accused of misleading customers by stating that they can claim a bonus worth up to $200 in free wagers.

The case is quite interesting in the online gambling market, so the Slots Temple team wanted to take a closer look.

The Claim

The ACCC claims that Bet365 made ‘misleading representations’ while offering players a deposit bonus. Players were offered up to $200. The promotion was advertised as ‘free bets’, so we can certainly see why players would think that they could receive bonus cash without having to spend any of their own money – however, this is rarely ever the case in the online casino market.

Any bonus offered is usually tied to a wager requirement – but that is beside the point, as the ACCC has taken issue with the way in which the promotion was worded.

The ‘free bets’ could only be obtained if the player deposited and gambled with their own money first. For example, a player must deposit $200 in order to obtain $200 worth of free bets. Then, in order to withdraw any winnings, they player would have to wager their deposit three times. As such, players would have to spend $1200 in order to claim their ‘free bets’.

A report from the ACCC reads: “To meet the ‘free bet’ or ‘deposit bonus’ terms and conditions, consumers were required to bet at odds of no less than 1.5, meaning that they were required to bet on higher risk transactions”.

The Damages

The ACCC wants Bet365 to reconcile the issue in a number of ways. Even though Bet365 changed its website shortly after the complaint was launched, the commission still wants declarations, injunctions, financial penalties and corrective advertising from the bookmaker.

An exact monetary figure has not been named, but we imagine it will be quite substantial.

The Defense

Bet365 has yet to respond to the allegations. All we have heard so far is that the company wants the ACCC to clarify its accusations. It seems that the bookmaker is not entirely sure what it has done wrong – and this is likely due to the fact that deposit bonuses are quite standard in the online casino market.

We believe that Bet365 will attempt to defend against the claims by stating that the terms of free bet bonuses are very common, and that the operator took corrective action by changing the website after the ACCC first got in contact.

The Moral

When signing up for an online casino bonus, always read the fine print. You can be sure that there will be some kind of wagering requirement – but make sure that they are within your means before you make a deposit.