UKGC Publishes MetroPlay/666Bet Payment Updates in Behalf of Beleaguered Operator

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) published in behalf of Metro Play Limited certain information the latter wished to convey to customers of the MetroPlay and 666Bet dotcom sites, particularly those seeking repayment of money. The UKGC made it clear that the publication of the Metro Play Ltd. missive does not come with a guarantee of the accuracy of the provided information, or when the expected payments will be made to customers; or if indeed, payments will be made at all. As it is, MetroPlay are unable to send emails to their customers, thus the Commission’s agreement to publish a “Statement from Metro Play Ltd.” stating the:

Status of Payment Processing

All withdrawal requests received, since the MetroPlay and 666Bet websites re-opened, are currently being processed, but may take longer than the usual three (3) to five (5) days of processing. Accordingly, this is because each payment has to be approved manually.

As of publication date, the statement conveyed that all 666Bet.com customers with a betting transaction previously pending are already available as balance in their account, for which a withdrawal request is necessary. Metro Play Ltd explained that when its licence was suspended and its websites shut down, transfers of balances to the accounts of withdrawing customers could not be processed due to technical problems. Accordingly, transactions had to be rolled back manually, which took time to complete because only a skeleton crew was available.

All bets placed in advance by MetroPlay and 666Bet customers on events slated to take place after May 08, 2015 has been cancelled. Customers will receive refunds for the cancelled bets accordingly, which they will receive as part of their available account balance.

Moreover, since Metro Play Ltd still has only a skeleton staff in place, they are unable to provide expected updates and could not respond to individual queries. At this point, all efforts of their limited staff are currently focused on enabling and processing the requests for refund.

Deadline for Submission of Withdrawal Requests

MetroPlay and 666Bet customers have up to May 24, 2015 only, to submit their respective withdrawal request. Processing and payment of refunds will continue beyond the date specified but only for requests submitted before or up to May 24, 2015.

The UKGC added further explanation regarding the deadline set by the operator. The Commission commented that the transactions to place bets with Metro Play Ltd are regarded as commercial contracts with consumers. Although it has been conveyed by Metro Play that they are doing their best to honour their obligations, they are still bound by the terms and conditions of the contract even after the May 24, 2015 deadline. After said date, customers can still seek debt recovery by way of the usual legal remedies filed with the courts of law.

Opening a Skrill Account

Inasmuch as online payment processor Skrill has agreed to the actual payment of withdrawal requests, customers seeking payment from Metro Play Ltd must open an account with Skrill. The Skrill account is important, as this is where the money being requested will be returned and become available for withdrawal. MetroPlay and 666Bet customers, who will be opening a Skrill account for the first time, are not required to place a deposit in order to activate their respective account.