TGP partners call for bonus abuse rethink

TGP Holdings, which operates the 12BET, TLCBET and FUN88 brands, has promised an immediate review of all bets placed on the Cheltenham Festival following widespread criticism of its decision to withhold customer funds for suspected bonus abuse.

A number of punters contacted mainstream media last week to complain they had been refused payment of winnings and also had their accounts closed after taking advantage of selected Cheltenham offers promoted by the trio of brands.

Following discussions with the operators over the weekend, Isle of Man-based TGP this morning said it would conduct a full review of all accounts and examine the terms and conditions of its offers to remove any confusion moving forward.

“This review will be carried out as fast as we can possibly do with the aim of concluding this during the coming week,” Garth Kimber, CEO of TGP Holdings, told eGaming Review.

“TGP Holdings realises that bonuses and the conditions around them are a complex area and has decided the TGP Europe [subsidiary] should take a more pragmatic view across all brands and the associated bets.

“TGP Europe will also carry out a review of the relevant terms and conditions to ensure customers are not disadvantaged in the future and any confusion and misunderstanding is removed from their terms,” he added.

Customers affected were told they had been placed under suspicion of “abusing or attempting to abuse a bonus or other promotion” and as such the operator had the right to “block, deny, suspend, withhold or cancel the account”.

This weekend 12BET responded to mounting outrage by writing to punters to explain its position and apologised for any disruption to payments experienced by “valued customers”.

“During the festival period we received unprecedented traffic, the majority of which was from genuine customers such as yourself,” a 12BET email read. “However we also received a high volume of multiple accounts and bonus abuse, contrary to our terms and conditions.

“The process we took resulted in accounts that were deemed in contradiction of our terms and conditions had their accounts suspended and subsequently closed and all their transactions reversed both for winners and losers,” the email added.

However, this morning a spokesperson for 12BET said it the operator had called upon TGP to conduct a review and promised to fully reimburse all customers who had placed their bets in good faith.

“12BET management have requested a full report from TGP Europe on 12BET members who have had their accounts closed due to suspected bonus abuse,” the spokesperson said.

“We will review all data and in cases where we believe 12BET members have been treated unfairly, we will ensure they are paid.”

Similarly, Nathan Walker, a director at FUN88 and TLCBET owner Welton Play, told EGR it was working with TGP to review “all circumstances” and where bets had been incorrectly voided would also pay customers in full.

“It is hoped this process will be completed sooner rather than later and both FUN88 and TLCBET appreciates the patience of UK customers in this regard,” Walker said.

The Gambling Commission said it was “monitoring the situation very, very carefully” and advised disgruntled punters to contact third-party betting dispute resolution service IBAS.

Asian-bookie 138 was also reported to have withheld payments and closed accounts for suspected bonus abuse during the Festival.