UKGC Grants Accreditation to eCOGRA as Online Gambling ADR Provider
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has recently approved the accreditation of the eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA), as a provider of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) services available to British online gaming customers, and UK-licensed online gambling facility operators.
The accreditation is in line with the new UK gambling licensing and advertising policy of requiring remote gambling operators to indicate in their Terms and Conditions, a designated and free to use ADR facility. Such a service could best serve online players in elevating complaints that could not be resolved by the online management of a remote gambling facility. During the past 12 years, eCOGRA has been acting as an independent intermediary to unresolved issues that came between customers and eCOGRA certified online gaming operators. The performance of the service is actually carried out as part of the compliance monitoring work rendered by the company.
Last week’s approval of the accreditation merely cements eCOGRA’s status in the UK gambling market as a legally recognised ADR facility, which is in addition to being a world-renowned independent international testing agency and player-protection overseer. After all, the ADR guidelines established and documented by eCOGRA in settling customer disputes with Internet-based real money gaming operators have been used in settling previous customer issues, raised against the latter group. The London-based independent gaming regulator and testing agency has set up standards for customer treatment throughout the course of its operations.
Andrew Beveridge, the CEO of eCOGRA disclosed that around 355 UK-licensed remote gambling sites have already signed-up with the company for the use of the eCOGRA free ADR services. He cited leading online gambling websites such as Bet-at-Home, BetClic Everest, Betway, Bwin.Party, Casino Rewards, Paf, 32Red and Unibet as examples.
CEO Beveridge also mentioned the state-of-the-art software they developed and currently use to assist in administrating and in facilitating the resolution of disagreements between online players and UK-licensed operators. The technology as well as the considerable experience in the field of online gambling arbitration of the eCOGRA ADR team, helps in resolving many disputes in a matter of 72 hours, according to the eCOGRA CEO.
The dispute resolution and arbitration assistance is a service offered without charge to online players of British-facing online casinos and betting websites, certified by eCOGRA as Safe and Fair gaming facilities. Ms. Tex Rees, who received her appointment as Fair Gaming Advocate from the eCOGRA Board of Directors in 2004, heads the ADR service. She said that since 2003, she has been involved in the resolution of over eight thousand disputes originating from many of eCOGRA’s Safe and Fair accredited sites.
Ms. Rees explained that they have included the ADR as part of the services rendered to many international operators who use their approved test house, and their annual security audits as means of complying with the UKGC requirement. She added that her company is aware of how players regard it as significant to have an unbiased arbiter to turn to, when seeking solutions to any disagreements that arise between them and the operators of online gambling websites. Ms. Rees also shared the operator’s point of view, stating that the latter considers it important to provide their customers, a full-suite of services, including those provided by independent third-party providers.
