William Hill won't allow me to withdraw winnings

bradders1983

espritlibre87 said:

As discussed above, I signed up because I saw an advert for the free bets and thought it seemed like a good offer. Is the problem that I didn't bet on a European game? In the past I've also placed bets on the MFL, A-league, I had no idea this would be an issue? I didn't bet on multiple results as suggested earlier in the thread (surely that would just result in an overall loss?) I find it strange that several posters are questioning which match I bet on - maybe I'm misunderstanding but it sounds as though there is something suspicious or 'wrong' with betting on certain games? I'm not clear on what the problem is but I guess my question is, if certain matches aren't acceptable to bet on, why does the company allow customers to do so? Similarly, if there was an issue with that particular game meaning that everyone's accounts had been frozen, why would WH not just come out and say this rather than couching their responses in vague terms like "trading review" and "security investigation"? There are countless reviews on Trustpilot from users with the same issue, so presumably this isn't linked to a specific match?

I've now received an email from William Hill claiming that it is standard security procedure for them to request additional documents, and a link to a help page on their site stating reasons that they would ask for additional documents upon withdrawal. None of those reasons (withdrawing to a different card, making a large withdrawal, inactive account) apply to me. Furthermore the page they directed me to lists the forms of ID they would request in this instance - most are ID I've already provided, and the others are completely different to what's been requested in the e-mails. This also seems to be in direct contradiction to the information from the Gambling Commission (provided by bradders1983 above) which states that bookmakers cannot make additional ID checks a condition of withdrawal, nor can they withhold money on the basis of ID not being provided.

Not that you did this given you only bet a tenner, but you clearly misunderstood my explanation. Lets say under 2.5 goals in a game was evens, and another bookie has over 2.5 goals up priced wrong at 6/4.
You could bet £200 on the evens (which would return £400) and £160 on the 6/4 (which would also return £400), which would mean you have bet a total of £360 to cover all outcomes but would win £400. That is a simplistic explanation of what i was on about, but irrelevant to your case anyway.

As for asking if it was a problem that you didnt bet on a European game, well no, but look at it from their point of view. New user joins up and immediately (I presume it was immediate) places a bet on a relatively obscure Japanese football game. I suspect they have taken the hump for this reason.  Now if I go onto my account and place the same bet they likely dont bat an eyelid given things I have bet on in the past.  This doesnt excuse them asking for photos of you holding documents though, as that is beyond absurd.

Lets have some full disclosure here anyway. What game was it, and what was the bet? I should be able to tell you if the odds were significantly higher than the rest of the market.

espritlibre87

Thanks for explaining further, I think I (sort of!) understand what you mean. I do have an account with bet365 which I have had for years, could this be the issue? I haven't placed any bets with them in months though.

It was the Sendai Tokyo game (J1 league) and I bet on a draw. It was a day or so after signing up and creating the account, as I had to wait for my documents to be verified before I could deposit money or place bets. I still feel they should only make the sign-up offer available for certain games if the choice of bet/game arouses suspicion in this way!

vekma

why has matched betting not re opened , seems they use covid as a excuse to close it

Paxi

I’m late to this forum and have arrived here out of desperation... I’ve had a William Hill account for some years but have never made any withdrawals, until late last year when I wanted to withdraw £358.  The requested money didn’t arrive back on my card. When I enquired why, I was told my account needed to be verified. Funny it was ok all the time I was betting but not making any withdrawals! 

I have now sent JPEG’s of all the documents asked for by William Hill THREE times. Each time, I’ve got an email in reply asking me to send the same documents. 

When I started this process last year, I gave up and thought I would keep the account. I subsequently made two bets which would have won me £500 but when I checked online, the bets had been suspended.
So I can’t bet but I can’t have my money... and it IS my money, not William Hill’s.  My account is showing the money I requested taken from my balance but it has not been credited to my card.
 WH have just seized my money and I
am helpless to get it. Has anyone had any success with the Gambling Commission? It surely can’t be right and I feel like I have just been mugged by big business. 

gettingtheresometime

vekma said:

why has matched betting not re opened , seems they use covid as a excuse to close it

I would imagine with people being on furlough & having a lot more free time, there was a danger that people could gamble far more than was wise 

dinglebert

gettingtheresometime said:

vekma said:

why has matched betting not re opened , seems they use covid as a excuse to close it

I would imagine with people being on furlough & having a lot more free time, there was a danger that people could gamble far more than was wise 

That doesn't make sense.  Either match betting is allowed or not allowed.   Some people spend their lives on a virtual furlough anyway.