I have a very serious conflict with Betfair Company. They always write that they are betting exchange and you can put any money because unlike the bookmaker, on the betting exchange players with opposing views play with each other and betting exchange takes just a commission. I am an experienced player. I am very interested in the First and Second leagues of Ukrainian football championship. I saw that on the betting exchange can put big money in the first league. I thought I earn a lot and if I win, you will pay, because it is market. I registered on 20/10/2012 and immediately made a bet. Everything was normal. Match was calculated. Then I made a bet somewhere else in the six matches. Parallel I bet on the Champions League, but not a big sum of money.
My bets were counted properly and quickly. I was an idiot not order the payment of money. I thought everything would be fine. But on 11/23/2012 I made bet on Olimpik – Arsenal Bila Tserkva on over 2.5 goals. I made bet on 0:0 score in the first half and after half time I also did it. I bet on over 2.5 goals when Olimpik was leading 1:0 and did it when the score was 2:0.
My bet was calculated. I wanted to order the payment of money. On my account was 112851.04 $ U.S.A. Then I watched to my account where the company wrote me that my account was suspended and I should write on info@betfair.com. Right away I received a letter from Russia@betfair.com with this text:
“Hello, Stepan!
We are writing to you from the security department Betfair.
We focus on the betting account stepanko86 match Olimpik Donetsk vs. Arsenal Bila Tserkva Over / Under 2.5 Goals. The odds on over 2.5 goals were lower than they should be in the second half with the score 0:0. All bets placed on your account had been significantly lower than on the market.
We also know about the previous successful bets on matches with Arsenal Bila Tserkva, in particular on market Match Odds and 3.5 goals match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Krymteplytsia on November 3, 2012 and on market 2.5 goals Match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Oleksandria on November 17, 2012. In order for us to fully investigate your bets on the market Olimpik Donetsk vs. Arsenal Bila Tserkva Over / Under 2.5 goals and other markets with Arsenal Bila Tserkva we have decided to suspend your account. This decision was taken in accordance with the rules of Betfair, which you can find in the section About Us> Terms and Conditions.
To speed up the investigation, please write what is the reason to bet on these matches with Arsenal Bila Tserkva.
If you have any questions or problems, please contact us.
Sincerely, Team Betfair.”
Email: russia@betfair.com
I am shocked. It turns out that I put on those coefficients that are objectionable to the betting exchange. It also turns out that my bets were lower than the ratio on the market. This is complete nonsense. Am I an idiot to bet on the ratio that is lower than on the market? Furthermore they took matches on November 3, 2012 and November 17, 2012. I started writing a lot of letters to their manager Mariya Hansen (Mariya.Hansen @ betfair.com). She called me and said that they thought this match and two previous were contractual. I immediately asked why they think so. I did not receive any answer. She said that I had put a big sum of money on these matches and they thought that these games were contractual. I did not understand why I was accused by betting exchange that I put on the game on the contractual basis of a big sum of money. They are advertised by themselves everywhere, put on the betting exchange and that they are the future and that such amounts as they have, not in any bookmaker may put. As a fact betting companies do not deliver or will block the account or do not pay out winnings. Then why do they just block and refuse to make a payment of money? That question was answered that they have rules and I was informed that the money in the account was blocked because I was involved in fraudulent activity. Although in what activities I was accused, I did not understand, and they had not answered me. I bet big sum of money on the matches. This is their superiority to bookmakers and they lure customers by this and their partners say about it in every program and in every country. Okay. If they do not keep their word, this is their business. Then their manager Mariya Hansen (Mariya.Hansen@betfair.com) told me to write to the Department of Investigation on verification@betfair.com. I wrote a lot of letters and on Monday 11/26/2012 I received a letter with the answer:
Dear Mr .....,
I am writing to you from the Integrity Team at Betfair regarding your account, username stepanko86. Further to your recent correspondence please be aware that the investigation in to the betting on your account, specifically bets placed on Arsenal Bila Tserkva v Krymteplytsia M 03.11.12, Arsenal Bila Tserkva v Oleksandria 17.11.12 and Olimpik Donetsk v Arsenal Bila Tserkva 23.11.12, remains on-going. Whilst we appreciate this may be frustrating please be aware that this action has been taken in-line with the Terms and Conditions that govern your use of the Betfair website, these can be found in full on our website. For ease of reference the relevant section has been reproduced below:
• Suspension or termination
Either we or you may suspend or terminate your account at any time upon notice. Following termination or suspension of your account, the Trustee will, in the normal course of events, return any funds in your account to you in accordance with the Trust Deed.
However, we reserve the right to notify the Trustee to withhold the funds in your account from you pending the determination of any investigation (including any relevant external investigation) where:
1. we suspect you have acted in breach of these Terms and Conditions or any other agreement relevant to your activities on our site, including where we suspect the account has been linked with fraudulent or dishonest activity; and/or
2. we have to notify the Trustee to withhold the funds in your account by law or to comply with any advice, request or instruction from any governmental, regulatory or enforcement authority.
Following the determination of any such investigation we reserve the right to seize some or all of the funds in your account (by notifying the Trustee that the funds in your account should be released to us) if we are satisfied that you have acted in breach of these Terms and Conditions or any other agreement relevant to your activities on our site. We will deal with any funds obtained by us in this manner at our sole and absolute discretion and/or in accordance with any advice, request or instruction from any governmental, regulatory or enforcement authority.
In addition, if formally requested by the police, gambling regulators or taxation or other authorities or in the event that you fail to provide us with sufficient information to identify yourself in accordance with our own internal procedures or those imposed on us by regulatory authorities (wherever based) we may suspend your account and all functionality relating to the use of your account (e.g. bet management and withdrawal of funds) and notify the Trustee to withhold from you any funds in your account pending determination of any criminal or other legal proceedings or investigation to which such a request may relate or until you provide the necessary 'know your client' or 'age verification' information as appropriate.
For the avoidance of doubt at no point during any such period will interest accrue to you on any funds in your account.
At this stage we don’t have a definitive timescale as to how long the investigation will take but please note we will endeavour to bring this to a conclusion as quickly as possible. In order to manage your expectations please note that the investigation is likely to be long term, ie. Months rather than weeks. We will of course contact you should the situation change.
Whilst the investigation remains on-going your winnings from the three matches in question, totaling EUR 62,611.82, will remain frozen, Your account will also remain suspended. Your remaining balance totalling EUR 50,239.22 can be withdrawn, please contact the Helpdesk to arrange this.
They write up rules and come up with excuses to confiscate the money. I just wondered, if you are honest, so why do you give such leagues if you think that they corrupt? Probably if you win, they will take the money and if you lose, it will be good. I do not know if there where treaty matches or not. I put a big sum of money almost always. At the time, I was betting the bookmaker bet365.com, but they just cut stake if something they did not like but gave back all the money and the winning. I did not say them anything because this was bookmaker and it was their money. They do not need strong players. It must be so.
Here we have the world famous betting exchange Betfair that behaviors not solid and the players treated like thieves and fraudsters, although their actions say that they are crooks and thieves. There are probably people who simply steal money in this way from players. They write the rules, change them almost every day and then link on them blocking the account and confiscating the money. Rules can be written on the website in a few minutes and all it knows. It can be written to any match as they wrote me. They paid me 50,239.22 $ U.S. A. for the previous game and 62611.82 dollars left on the account and they closed it. Matches Olimpik Donetsk vs. Arsenal Bila Tserkva Over / Under 2.5 goals on November 23, 2012, in particular on market Match Odds and 3.5 goals on Match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Krymteplytsia on November 3, 2012 and on the market 2.5 goals on Match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Oleksandria on November 17, 2012 they took the winning to themselves ( 62,611.82$ U.S.A.).
In connection with this situation I had some questions to betting exchange but I did not receive any answer. I hope they answer you:
1. Why they did not write me anything after the first and second match with the participation of the team Arsenal Bila Tserkva, but waited until on my account appeared a big sum of money and wrote me after the match 23.11.2012?
2. Why they behave themselves as bookmaker office with bad reputation, which just steal money and do not give back winning? They are betting exchange. They must give back money and then conduct investigation.
3. Why they do not say about compensation, if they do not proof that this match was contractual? I need this money, but now I do not know what to do. It is incomprehensible how much time I should wait.
4. Why they do not say how much the investigation will last and who will hold? Maybe they won’t hold it. They will wait 2-4 months then say that the matches were contractual and take the money.
5. Why can’t they say where they will publish the results of the investigation? If these matches were contractual, it should be written on the official websites of Ukraine - Professional Football League and the Football Federation of Ukraine. Players of Arsenal Bila Tserkva should be punished by disqualification. They must give me the video of these matches. Only then they may not pay me my winning, referring to contractual nature of these matches.
At this moment I want they give me all my winning of 62,611.82 dollars back, or at least the first two matches, after the end of which they did not write but calculate easily winning that I did not order the payment. This is winning in the market Match Odds and 3.5 goals on match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Krymteplytsia on November 3, 2012 and on the market 2.5 goals on match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Oleksandria on November 17, 2012. Even if they have the right to hold my money, there is no right to detain the money in the first two matches of Match Odds and 3.5 goals on match Arsenal Bils Tserkva vs. Krymteplytsia on November 3, 2012 and on the market 2.5 goals on match Arsenal Bila Tserkva vs. Oleksandria on November 17, 2012.
My opinion is:
I understand that under the cover of the fact they think about their reputation and say they are struggling with contractual matches, they just take the money. In internet is written that the employees of this company are betting by themselves. And I understand that it is the case that some of their employees lost a lot of money on these games, and they are just protecting them. They did not even answer me about terms and where the results of the investigation would be published. In other words: wait and our staff will decide to give you the money back or not, and we will write the result on email and that is all. And that I told them that it must decide football authorities of Ukraine - Betfair did not react in any way. They said that they know what to do. It is disrespectful to me as a player and as a person. I have rights. And if they took my money, I would have every right to know everything that they do, and not just wait for the letter. And I am very interested in their responsibility, if they do not prove that these games were contractual. If they think so about their reputation, they should give back money as do the bookmakers and investigate, or write to the authorities, which have deal with this. It is just like a deception on their part. That is my conflict with them.
And I would like to ask that even if you cannot influence on them, please,
write where better sue on their actions.
Thank you. I hope for your help.