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KIWI CASINO: a "bonus abuser" after just one bet!

A player at Kiwi casino recently made a $100 deposit and received a $100 bonus. He then made a blackjack bet of his entire balance - $200 - and won. With a new balance of $400, he decided to quit for the day and come back later.

However, before getting back into his account to continue playing, he received an email from the casino telling him that his wagering style - one big, full-balance bet - was indicative of "bonus abuse", and, as such, Kiwi Casino would be confiscating his $300 of current winnings and refunding his $100 deposit.

This must qualify as the most extreme reaction ever on the part of an online casino: player makes just one bet, casino accuses him of "abusive" play and revokes his winnings.

The player then complained at Casinomeister, in the Kiwi Casino thread, explaining his situation and requesting help - Kiwi is an "accredited casino" at Casinomeister.

Kiwi came out with the following statement:

"Kiwi Casino has recently been the target of a significant level of player bonus abuse from the launch of its new UK (GBP) casino. In our view Seymor's play on Kiwi Casino UK is an example of this abuse. Betting an entire balance after depositing the exact level of the bonus match on Blackjack Switch is the classic beginning scenario of bonus abuse.

Various factors are considered when banning a player as a bonus seeker beyond their play alone. It is not something Kiwi Casino takes lightly, however in some cases it must be done to protect the casino from players with abusive playing habits who are there to take advantage of the bonus system in place. Bonus abuse is a difficult situation in the online casino industry and sometimes there are situations where we as the casino operator must make a decision, based on the best information available at the time, as to how to proceed."

This confirmed the player's account of events, and is an absolutely extraordinary statement from any casino, let alone an ostensibly reputable one. Just one bet, and the play is abusive; what if he had LOST that one bet? That would be just as "abusive" a strategy; would they have refunded his deposit?

And furthermore: there is nothing whatsoever in the Kiwi Casino terms that restricts any particular wagering style - they state the following:

"Kiwi Casino $100 First Deposit Welcome Bonus
A player must make a successful deposit into their Kiwi Casino Real Money account to qualify for the 100% up to $100 First Deposit Welcome Bonus.

In the interests of fair gaming, Kiwi Casino requires you to have wagered a minimum of 15 (fifteen) times your deposit and bonus for USD ($) accounts, 20 (twenty) times your deposit and bonus for GBP accounts and 25 (twenty-five) times your deposit and bonus for EURO accounts before cashing out any amount higher than your initial deposit amount. Bets placed on Baccarat, Black Jack Switch, Black Jack Surrender, Craps, Roulette and Sic Bo do not count towards this wagering requirement.

This play bonus gives you the chance to play on a much larger variety of games when you are new to Kiwi Casino and is for wagering purposes only. The first deposit play bonus will be removed from your account after a withdrawal request.

These bonuses can not be claimed in conjunction with any other promotion or bonuses from Kiwi Casino.

Due to abuse of promotions by players residing in Denmark, all Danish players are required to wager 25 times the total of their deposit and bonus(es) received in order to cash out any amount exceeding your original deposit."

There is nothing here to suggest that the player's wagering style contravened the casino's terms - no rules were broken.

Eventually, after much outrage from the gambling community, Kiwi Casino came out with the following extraordinary statement:

"After further discussions with the Kiwi Casino Fraud Department it has come to light that there was a miscommunication regarding this player.

Kiwi Casino Management was of the belief there were further fraudulent reasons beyond initial game play which caused this player to be blocked as a bonus abuser. This, it is now known, was not the case.

The players claim to the winnings is, as the people on this forum have suggested, fair. All winnings in the players account will be paid out.

We apologize sincerely for this resulting issue.

Kiwi Casino has worked hard over the years from our opening in late 2000 to maintain the highest standard of player/casino customer service and interaction. In this case we have not met those standards. We will be reviewing our current bonus and fraud restrictions as a result.

Regards

Kiwi Casino Management"

Quite extraordinary.

The casino made a public statement that full-balance betting was "abusive" and as such, the player had his winnings confiscated; they made no mention of any other "fraudulent reasons" - why? Because there were none. Then, in the face of public outrage, they concocted this escape route.

Fortunately, nobody was remotely fooled by this; Kiwi Casino attempted to rob a player after making just ONE BET, and eventually folded to public pressure and paid him, with THE most extraordinarily lame excuse they could come out with.

Read the entire discussion in the Kiwi Casino thread at Casinomeister.

I recommend Kiwi Casino NOT.

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