Austrian Court Orders Bet-at-Home to Refund Player €2.8M

The Supreme Court in Austria ruled in favor of a plaintiff, who filed a lawsuit against bet-at-home subsidiaries over multi-million-dollar losses. The claimant argued that they lost millions while gambling with the operator between August 2018 and July 2020. The complaint named bet-at-home.com Internet and bet-at-home.com Entertainment as defendants. The two aforementioned companies are among bet-at-home.com’s subsidiaries.

However, bet-at-home released a statement on the issue, explaining: “bet-at-home.com Internet Ltd. did not offer online gaming services as a contractual partner to the plaintiff; bet-at-home.com Entertainment Ltd. (in liquidation) was the sole contractual partner.” Moreover, the company wrote: “However, the Supreme Court assumes that bet-at-home.com Internet Ltd. is liable for gambling losses incurred in this case under tort law.”

The legal claim against bet-at-home’s subsidiaries and the recent decision of Austria’s Supreme Court comes despite the operator’s withdrawal from the online gambling market in the country a few years back. The aforementioned withdrawal was completed after a court ruling from October 2021 that recognized online gambling brands offered their services illegally in the country. This ruling reaffirmed the monopoly of the online casino market that is currently in the hands of Win2Day.

Despite the withdrawal from the online casino sector, bet-at-home continues to provide sports betting services. This is in line with Austria’s gambling regulations.

Per the Supreme Court’s latest decision, bet-at-home’s subsidiary, Betclic Everest, was ordered to pay the player a sum of €2.8 million ($3.1 million). The court acknowledged the plaintiff’s issues with gambling, explaining that they were “legally incapacitated” when engaging in online gambling activities.

It is yet to be seen how the payment will impact bet-at-home’s revenue results. Previously, the company confirmed it expects 2024 revenue in the ballpark of €45 million ($50 million) to €53 million ($58.9 million).

Player Was Ordered to Partially Return Winnings to Operator

In other related news for the region, a separate Supreme Couty ruling ordered a player to return partial winnings from unlicensed gambling. While in most cases the court orders the operator to repay losses, in this instance, the court sided with the gambling operator that sought to recover winnings paid to a player.

The Malta-based online gambling operator did not hold a license in Austria. Still, it offered its services to customers in the country. One client who deposited €22,000 ($24,000) and received a sum of nearly €29,100 ($31,800) was ordered to return part of their winnings.

While the gambling operator wanted to recover €7,152 ($7,800) from the player, the court ordered the player to return only €626.60 ($684). The latter sum is the cost for the appeal of the case and in its decision, the court explained that “every contractual partner can invoke the illegality and nullity of the contract” when it comes to illegal gambling offerings.