On Friday, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission released a summary of complaints it received in 2011. Of the 1,340 complaints in total, including 17 outstanding from 2010, the KGC reports that 1,178 were deemed valid under the commission’s guidelines. No information was provided as to which operators the complaints were filed against.
To be considered valid, complaints are required to be in writing, include “clear and unequivocal information” identifying the complainant, detail the efforts taken to resolve the situation with the operator, and be submitted within six months of the issue occurring.
Of the 1,178 considered valid, the KGC claims to have “resolved” 705 (81%), with 304 complaints remaining unresolved as of December 31, 2011. For a complaint to be resolved it only needs to be “upheld in whole or part in favor of the complainant.”
Over eighty percent of the complaints pertained to “late, delayed, or non-payment” to players, according to the report. The data provided was not granular enough to decipher how many cases in this category were resolved, and full reimbursement is not required to consider a complaint resolved.
Under the resolution guidelines, the Commission, at its sole discretion, “may” direct an operator to take actions that it finds necessary or appropriate. Specifically noted is the inclusion of the operator paying “the costs incurred by the Commission in its investigation,” but there is no mention of a requirement to reimburse the complainant in order for the complaint to be closed. The report provided does not include any input from the complainant as to whether they concur with the classification of an issue being resolved.
Since the report does not categorize complaints by operator, no information has been made available as to how many complaints were logged pertaining its most infamous client, the Cereus Network. The troubled network hosts Absolute Poker and UB where the superuser scandal is now the basis for a law suit filed by players.
The KGC previously announced that, as part of a plan to repay players unable to withdraw account balances since the Black Friday, Blanca – parent company of Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet – has been working on a proposal that would liquidate the company assets in an effort to distribute funds back to US and non-US players owed money.
In total over 150 online poker rooms, casinos and sportsbooks are licensed by the KGC. Notable operators include Bodog – now renamed as Bovada in the US – that has made significant changes to its client in 2011, and recently relaunched America’s Cardroom.
