Please Note: Use the instructions listed in this article at your own risk.
This article is only for people with an online gambling addiction or poker addiction. People who enjoy recreational gambling should know there are repercussions that will inhibit your ability to play poker or gamble online should you choose to do so in the future. Not to mention, a recreational gambler is able to stop - problem gamblers and compulsive gamblers don't.
Its no secret that I'm not a huge fan of online casinos or casinos in general. I was a problem gambler. I lost tens of thousands of dollars over the last few years to online gambling. Am I bitter about it? Sure! I'd like to see where my bank account would be today had I never started gambling or playing poker online. Sadly, that's just not the case, so hopefully, I can help prevent you making my mistake.
Before we dive in, I want to emphasize there is nothing for sale here. I just don't want you to go through the hell I've gone through for the past 7 years with online casinos, poker rooms, and online gambling. Though, if you want to throw a little cash my way, you can support the sponsors on my page by clicking the links to the right.
So, time to get to what I'm sure everyone is here for. You're a problem gambler like me. No matter how hard you try, you keep getting sucked back into the poker rooms and the online casinos. You play until your hundreds or thousands of dollars in the hole. Your brain finally comes around after the dopamine wears off and says, "Uh, yeah, that $1000 bucks you just lost, how are we gonna pay rent now?"
Online casinos have been taking advantage of compulsive gamblers in the United States for yeaarrrrs. Billions leave our economy every year. Here's how you can get a portion of it back.
You see, there was an Act signed by George W. Bush way back in 2006 called the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, and what this Act did was it made it ILLEGAL for financial institutions to process online gambling transactions. You see, when you swipe your credit card at a gas station, that gas station sends a merchant code signal to the bank you got your credit card through. Let's say its Wachovia.
"Hello?", says Mr. Wachovia.
"Hi! I'm Mr. Gas Station. One of your account holders wants to buy some gas, is that ok?" - says Mr. Gas Station
"Sure, go right ahead! Let our account holder get some gas", says Mr. Wachovia.
-and the card holder is able to pump some gas.
The way that the UIGEA was supposed to be enforced is like this....
"Hello?", says Mr. Wachovia.
"Hi! This is Mr. Online Casino. One of your account holders wants to play some hold em poker at my site OnlineCasino.com . Can they get $1000 worth of chips?"
"HELL NO! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR DAMN MIND!?! THAT'S AGAINST THE UIGEA! DON'T YOU KNOW THAT?!"
Now, let's look at what evil Mr. Online Casino really does.
"Hello?", says Mr. Wachovia.
"Hi, This is Mr. Online Cas....errr...uh...fluffy's pet boutique. One of your account holders wants to buy some ridiculously expensive jewelry for their dog. Can they make the purchase"
"Sure! Go Right Ahead!", Mr. Wachovia replies. *click*
"Moooohahahaha, another bank duped! Mooohahahaha!"
Ok, so my explanation was pretty juvenile - but it get's the point across, no? In order for the evil online casinos to take advantage of problem gamblers and get your money, they have to lie about what your money is for. Unfortunately, lying to big financial institutions is a big no, no because of a little thing called an "Unauthorized Transaction".
Check out your last credit card statement. That $500 in casino chips you bought with your visa credit card from onlinecasino.com probably looks something like this:
Charge Date Transaction Name Charge Amount
1/1/2009 EREVE.NET $499.90
It wouldn't look anything like what it should:
Charge Date Transaction Name Charge Amount
1/1/2009 ONLINECASINO.COM $500.00
Now, wait a second. You don't remember ever doing business with a company EREVE.NET for $499.90? So, you call your bank. "Yes, I'd like to report an unauthorized charge on my credit card! Lord Have Mercy!" "I don't know who this company is, EREVE.NET? Can you look at what merchant code they sent over when they processed this transaction, and tell me what its for?"
The bank rep will probably tell you something like, "It looks like this company is charging you for pet jewelry? Have you purchased anything from this company or know anyone who could have purchased from EREVE.NET recently?"
At this point, you say, "NO, Lord a mercy! Lord a mercy!" - because the truth is, you really haven't authorized anyone at EREVE.NET to charge your card. The company on your credit card statement is representing a completely different company than onlinecasino.com (and probably funneling the money to the casino). The bank will send you an affidavit to sign that states:
1) I have never done business with this company
2) I have no idea who this company is
3) I have no idea why they are charging my card, nor have I received any type of merchandise nor placed any order through this company.
Based on what I've been told by bank call center reps, it is 100% the truth to sign that affidavit saying those three things. The charge afterall isn't for onlinecasino.com. Many times, the charge amount is different, and the merchant description is something COMPLETELY different than an online casino.
Getting back gambling losses from online casinos can be a time consuming process. It took me about 6 weeks to get my funds back, but it was a couple grand. Money the online casino should never have gotten their grubby little paws on to begin with under UIGEA.
The Consequences of Chargebacks to Online Casinos & Poker Rooms
Here's why I recommend this only for problem gamblers - like me! When a chargeback takes place against a casino's account, and that casino is forced to cover the player's losses, the casino adds that player to a universal blacklist. The blacklist is a list of players who have charged back their losses to the casino. For the problem gambler, this is a God send. We can't control our impulsive behaviors as it is, so taking our information, and passing it along to all of the other casinos is a great way to cut off access to online gambling. If I don't have access to it, gambling isn't on my mind, nor on my wants. It's also a great way for the casinos to protect themselves, and know that the majority of the gamblers on their site are recreational gamblers - those who know their limits, rather than compulsive/problem gamblers - those who don't know their limits.
So, if you like playing poker online, chargebacks are NOT for you. If you are a problem gambler, this might be your ticket to getting back some of your money.
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