International operators face combined court claim of €40m in Austria
Litigation financing company takes action against alleged illegal gambling for 2,000 clients as some firms settle outside of court
Online casino operators targeting Austria have been hit by legal claims totalling more than €40m (£34.5m) relating to alleged illegal gambling in the country.
Austrian litigation financing company Advofin, in cooperation with local law firms, has processed claims from more than 2,000 clients over the last 18 months relating to gambling on international sites operating from jurisdictions including Malta.
Players are alleged to have gambled on more than 60 different webpages belonging to 71 operators.
Operators implicated include some of the industry’s biggest names in bet365, Betfair, Bwin, LeoVegas, 888, Interwetten, PokerStars and William Hill.
Claims are being processed on net game losses (deposits minus withdrawals) of more than €3,000 (£2,500) with an individual operator, with payments and losses from 1 January 2000 liable for redress.
EGR understands that all cases to date have been won by players either through out-of-court settlements with operators or through verdicts being issued in court or via a court of appeal.
The legal claims centre around Austria’s gambling laws, which state that only licensed operators may offer online casino gaming. Only Casinos Austria is currently licensed to do so. Austrian law deems any other firm directly targeting Austrian players to have done so illegally.
Additionally, any player gambling while in based in Austria is automatically deemed to be signing a contract under Austrian law, making them liable for any claims.
Historically, international operators have used the protection of article 56 of the Treaty for the Functioning of the EU, which provides for the freedom to promote and deliver goods and services throughout the EU without restrictions as a way of operating in grey markets where gambling is illegal.
However, that law can be overridden where there is a public health imperative, which Advofin alleges exists due to the potential for problem gambling among players targeted by these firms. This has already been confirmed by the Austrian supreme court (Oberster Gerichtshof) and the European Court of Justice on multiple occasions, according to Advofin.
Speaking to EGR, Advofin board member Stefan Bohar said: “We are very happy to help a big number of Austrian and German clients recover their losses at online casino providers, which not only operate illegally (without the necessary licences) in Austria or Germany, but also get the clients to overspend on their gambling drastically by exploiting their gaming activity with questionable practices.”
Expanding on these alleged unethical practices, Bohar cited an overuse of marketing by operators, including the offering of repeated bonuses and gifts, as well as private messaging through WhatsApp to encourage gambling.
Bohar also claimed that mandatory limits on online casino gameplay were not being observed by operators.
EGR has learned the practice widened its claims to the German market in January 2021 and is currently pursuing claims on behalf of 100 clients, with 50 of those currently going through German courts.
It is understood the potential for claims from Germany could be even more substantial, with Advofin estimating as many as 4,000 potential cases worth more than €50m (£25.9m).