Settling disputes Australian style

[Bob]

As some of you may recall I had a dispute with the Australian sportbook Centrebet early in June. I was adament that they should pay me on a wager and they were adament that they should not.

Eventually, I submitted the dispute to the state government body that regulates sport wagering in that part of Australia - the Northern Territory Racing and Gaming Authority and today....55 days after the wager was placed...I was informed that it would be paid.

The process was slow to be sure, but I was impressed with how seriously the dispute was taken.

In my mind, this is the big advantage Australia has over every other offshore jurisdiction...a credible watchdog running the show.

[sportshobby]

Bob, thanks for the info. We would also like to hear if your relationship with Centrebet changes. Will you continue to do business with them? Will they treat you differently, knowing that you had a dispute with them?

[AussieVamp2]

Thanks Bob.

General situation or class of dispute would be interesting for general reference.

[Bob]

The dispute was over a major league baseball game. I made the wager about 20 minutes before game time, but Centrebet didn't get around to reviewing it until about an hour after the game started. By then my team was well ahead but they rejected the wager as being too late.

Centrebet blamed the problem on a computer software malfunction that hid my wager inside their system.

The Racing Authority looked into it and prior to formerly ruling on the matter suggested to Centrebet that they might want to settle, since the problem had been their fault.

Centrebet called me yesterday and apologized and credited my account. I continued to wager with them during the dispute and have had no problems at all.

I never felt Centrebet was trying to cheat me. They just get very bureaucratic sometimes with their rules. In this case their rules state that they will not approve wagers past post and they stuck to that position, no matter how much I tried to explain my side.

[Fatui Atata]

I have been meaning to write something about internet betting at Centrebet for a long time, but have never got around to it until reading your post.

I think your experience is not an isolated incident, and is the reason I will not bet with Centrebet over the internet. Myself and people I know who bet sports alot have had many problems with Centrebet's decisions over whether to accept or reject a bet made on the internet. Not only do they reject bets made before the event has started, but then look like winning, they will also accept the same bet if the odds have improved in their favour. In one test to see how far they would go, they even accepted a past post bet on a loser, but rejected a similar bet made on a winner.

The second time that the same thing happened to me as what happened to you, I had an argument with one of their head managers for over 20 minutes. The first time it happened I gave them the benefit of the doubt, but I was steaming the second time. All I got told is that they have the right to accept or reject any bet they please and the call ended with me threatening to go to the government. I am now sorry that I never got around to doing it, as I thought it would be a waste of time. Instead I just stopped betting with them over the internet and have had no trouble betting on the phone. Hopefully your winning the dispute will encourage centrebet to improve their approval practices on the internet.

Fatui