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We have been betting online and participating as active members of the online betting community for several years. During this time, we have noticed that most betting portals and forums use as a key criteria to review online bookmakers money they collect in advertising fees. Bookmakers that pay the most end up being recommended. The encouragement we received from fellow punters gave us the cue to develop a review policy to perform fair and unbiased reviews of internet bookmakers.
The following are the requirements reputable bookmakers should meet and the criteria we consider when we evaluate online betting sites and their operations.
Guide to our review policy
COMPANY
License
A reputable bookmaker must maintain a license issued by an authorized gambling commission and provide evidence of it upon request. Bookmakers must abide to the laws and regulations of the licensing jurisdiction. During our reviews of online betting sites, we also consider how stringent each jurisdiction is when evaluating a company applying for a betting license. To learn which betting jurisdictions provide the safest environment to online bookmakers and their customers, please visit our section about online gambling jurisdictions.
Financials
Respectable bookmakers must be able to pay any and all players' balances on demand. They must conduct their banking activities with internationally recognized institutions and payment processors. If the gambling jurisdiction requires the use of ringfenced accounts, a respectable bookmaker must keep all customers' funds segregated from the funds used to run the betting business. If the bookmaker reviewed is a public company, we rely on published financial information to rate the company's financial solidity and stability. Private companies do not disclose their financials, thus when we review private betting operators, we consider other factors such as who are the owners, previous experiences of the management team, size of the betting operation and year they have been in business.
Owners and management
Owners must have a good reputation within the whole betting industry. The management team must be efficient, experienced and knowledgeable in this particular industry. Management should also be promptly available to establish open channels of communication to assist customers. Reputable betting operators must be willing to identify, upon request, sister sites or other operations within the same ownership.
Size and years of operation
Bigger or older does not always mean better, but the size of the betting operation and the years the bookmaker has been in business are major considerations. During the time a bookmaker has been operating online, it must have had a clean history of fairness towards its customers. Reputable bookmakers must have no affiliation with "fake" player’s advocacy sites.
SERVICE
Customer service
Respectable bookmakers should offer 24/7 customer assistance, accessible via e-mail, telephone (possibly toll-free) or live chat. During normal business hours, we expect a reputable betting site to send accurate and detailed replies to customers e-mail requests within 2 hours. Phone and live chat representatives should be courteous, professional and prompt when responding to customer queries. Customer service representatives should not share players' sensitive information via e-mail or chat.
Payouts
Customers' funds must be available 24/7. Winnings must be paid promptly on demand without any type of negotiation. Realistic descriptions of fees and payout timelines should be posted on the bookmaker's website and payments should be made adhering to posted schedules. Bookmakers should inform players immediately of any genuine delay. Given the different payment methods, we consider acceptable any payment received by the customer in 5 working days or less. To learn how the different payment methods work, please visit our section dedicated to betting payment options.
Willingness to assist customers
Reputable bookmakers should be willing to handle complaints and properly assist players when disputes arise. They should make every effort to resolve all disputes by negotiation. If unable to reach a resolution by negotiation, they should be willing to accept independent arbitration or mediation. Reputable bookmakers should not impose retroactive or after the fact rules changes to players.
WEBSITE
Hardware and software capabilities
Respectable bookmakers must be committed to the latest technology and provide efficient and quick to load betting websites as well as adequate telephone systems.
Sports and bets offered
For each internet bookmaker, we review the quantity of sports and events on offer alongside with the variety of betting options, and the quality and timing of betting odds. We also consider the accuracy of the betting lines in relation to the application of the palpable error rule by the bookmaker.
Websites features
The website of a respectable bookmaker should be easy to navigate, use and read. It should not contain any material in breach of intellectual property rights and provide the following features:
About us section including company's history and description, a physical address, a statement identifying the jurisdiction from which the bookmaker operates, information about the type of betting license it holds, preferably information or a link to the jurisdiction licensing authority.
Contact us section showing e-mail addresses and telephone/fax numbers to contact the customer service.
Terms and conditions section with information regulating the services offered to players. It should be in full and in a clear format that a potential player can easily understand. The terms of service should include a clear statement that minors are not permitted to register or to participate in online betting alongside with information and links to problem gambling resources and assistance.
Regulations and rules section with simple and straight-forward information for every sport and type of bet offered. The section should include instructions and links to dispute resolution services.
Privacy policy statement with information about the level and type of security used on the website for dealing with customer data.
My account section giving each customer the ability to review his account balance and statement listing all his transactions and bets.
Payment options section with information about the different methods for deposit and withdraw, including associated fees and payout timelines.
Bonus section with comprehensive and unambiguous information about each and any promotion, including requirements and restrictions.
Help section including assistance on opening and managing a betting account, how to use the website and a list of commonly asked questions with relevant answers.
SECURITY
Players’ data and privacy protection
Reputable bookmakers must manage players' accounts in a safe environment, taking all practicable measures to protect players' personal and financial data from external and internal breaches. They should process transactions using secure servers and encryption technology. Players' information, submitted at any point in time, should be protected from unauthorized disclosure and should not be sold, traded or divulged to anyone outside the betting site. If the bookmaker uses a third party service to fulfill financial transactions, it must ensure the payment provider maintains similar levels of security.
Accountability
Reputable bookmakers must archive complete records for each customer transaction and bet. They should also agree to make these records available to any legitimate gambling commission or governmental authority, or to be auditable by an independent third party, in accordance with generally accepted methods to protect proprietary information.
Controlled and limited access
Reputable bookmakers should maintain adequate controls to prevent minors from accessing and using their sites. The registration procedure should require customers to affirm their age and the betting operator should have the ability to verify that registrants are of legal age for betting online. Reputable bookmakers should also implement reasonable procedures to identify and curtail compulsive gambling, including refusal to allow betting on credit and the option for players to set deposit and loss limits.
MARKETING
Advertising
Reputable bookmakers must be truthful in all their promotional activities. They should publish accurate information based entirely on facts of their operations and avoid deceptive, false and misleading information. Reputable bookmakers cannot misrepresent other businesses and they should not engage in distribution of unsolicited advertising (SPAM), either directly or through third parties.
PUBLIC INFORMATION AND FEEDBACK
To our first hand experience and research, we add all forms of public information and feedback from our readers.
Please note that when we review an online betting site, we do not look for perfection. We look for consistency, honest efforts and integrity as we want to make sure that online bookmakers live up to their promises and online betting does not turn into a nightmare experience for punters.
Since online bettors do not usually have the means and time to be as stringent as we are, we make sure the internet bookmakers listed in the Green list are trustworthy, while betting sites that show signs out of the ordinary are placed in the Orange list and those that fall short of our standards are placed in the Red list.
We invite players and industry experts to provide us with feedback about online betting sites as well as suggestions as to enhance this review policy. We also suggest punters, which have disputes with online bookmakers, to submit a complaint. We will look into the issue and try to help getting it resolved.
All internet bookmakers are encouraged to contact us for a review or to comment on our service.
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