The Casino Rules That Get on Everyone’s Nerves

Some casino rules get on everyone’s nerves. They get on YOUR nerves, they get on MY nerves, and they get on the CASINO’S nerves. Although, when I say they get on the casino’s nerves, usually it’s the customer service staff that get most annoyed because they’re the ones who deal with the grumpy customers.

In this blog, I’m going to walk you through the casino rules that I find the most annoying. I’ll also give some tips about how to avoid some of them. Unfortunately, you can’t always dodge these rules – some of them are part of the statutory laws that all UK-based online casinos must follow.

The Casino Rule I Hate the Most: Forced Bonuses

Are you a seasoned online gambler? If you are, then you already know the frustrations of the rules around bonuses. Some are excellent (check out our bonuses section for some good ones), and make gambling more fun and last longer, but other bonuses are garbage, e.g., it only applies to a game you don’t like.

It’s OK if you’re allowed to opt-out, but some casinos force you to use bonuses before you can play properly. When casinos force garbage bonuses on me, that makes me want to Hulk smash my computer through the nearest window. Usually, I just settle with playing at a different casino, though.

The Second Worst Casino Rule: High Playthrough Requirements

Grrrrrr, high playthrough requirements!

Playthrough means that you have to wager a certain amount of money before you can withdraw any winnings. The amount you have to wager varies from casino to casino and/or from bonus to bonus. Usually, you have to wager a certain amount of money, which is often either a multiple of your deposit or of your bonus amount, before you can withdraw your money. E.g., if their wagering requirement is 10x a bonus of £10, you need to wager £100 before you can withdraw any winnings.

Casinos would lose money if they offered bonuses without playthrough requirements, so the idea of playthroughs are fair – it’s a good thing for all of us. It becomes a problem when the playthrough requirements are high (e.g., 100x a £10 deposit you’d have to wager £1000) AND there’s no option to reject the bonus. The play feels monotonous, and any wins feel like hollow victories because you know you aren’t getting anything back for a long time, and probably not at all. High playthrough requirements can be a good thing if you’re looking to extend playtime, but if you want to get to the nitty-gritty of gambling, they’re irritating.

Max Bet Rules Are the Worst!

Max bet rules trip a lot of gamblers up. Some casinos only let you withdraw cash that you’ve won from a bonus only if you bet below a certain amount for each bet. E.g., if their max bet policy is £100, but you place a bet for £200 and then win some money, that money isn’t yours because you broke the rules.

As with playthrough requirements, the casinos have to have max bet rules. Otherwise, they’d end up losing money and ultimately going out of business. That’s fair enough. What isn’t fair is when they make it hard for customers to find this information. A lot of new gamblers get caught out with max bet rules.

To avoid getting caught out, make sure that you read the casino’s terms and conditions.

More Irritating Than Anger-Inducing: Withdrawal Times

With some online casinos, the lack of rules can be a problem, especially when it comes to withdrawing money. Some of the UK’s best casinos have issues with giving out money. Sometimes you get your money out within 3-hrs, other times it takes up to 3-days. There’s no rhyme or reason to it, either. You could win £1000 and get your winnings the same day, or you could win £10 and not get your winnings for a week!

The only way to avoid this is to use a casino that tells you in their T&Cs how long they take to payout. Then, if they’re consistently late, you have the option of complaining to the Gambling Commission or another regulatory body.

More Anger-Inducing: Withdrawal Limits

You might think that once you win a large amount of money that it’s yours. You’re technically correct…

…but in this case, it’s NOT the best kind of correct because, although the money’s yours, you can’t necessarily get your hands on it. All online casinos have withdrawal limits. These limit the amount of money the casino will payout to individual players during a set period – usually daily or monthly. E.g., one casino may have a daily withdrawal limit of £5000, another may have a monthly withdrawal limit of £10000.

It can be incredibly annoying to win big and not be able to cash out straight away. You could win £100K but wait an entire year to get it all out. You must always find out withdrawal limits before you start playing if you want to avoid this disappointment.

Check out our review section to see the limits for some of the UK’s most popular online casinos.

Harvey Dickenson

Safe Gambling Specialist

Harvey Dickenson is our safe gambling specialist. Harvey is a recreational poker player and an expert in online casino safety, cons, and scams.

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