PlatKat.com: Dear Kat

In Real Life, Don't Bluff a Poker Player

Preface: This is a series of emails depicting a very long, drawn-out argument with Full Tilt Poker. The short story is that I initiated a chargeback after depositing $600 in my Full Tilt account. I mistakenly jumped the gun when Gus asked me if I got him a PS3 for his birthday upon seeing the "info@ps3-shop.biz" charge in our checking account. I realized the mistake when I tried to log in and they had locked my account without notifying me. Awesome, right? The next month and a half provided me with a nice uphill battle with absolutely no legal backing whatsoever... because, if you want to get technical about it, online gambling is illegal in the US.

If you choose to read this whole thing (heaven help you), notice that several different people handled this (ridiculous) and that I have all this assumed knowledge of how their processes work. It's a wonder I haven't stabbed myself repeatedly in the eye by now. But the story has a happy ending, and proves that no decision is ever final.

Hello Kat,

Full Tilt Poker has received notification from Visa informing us that there was a chargeback made on the credit card you have used ending in # XXXXXXXXXXXX6286. The deposit was made on 08/08/2007 for $600.00

Due to these chargebacks, we are unable to reopen your Full Tilt Poker account at this time. That being said, due to recent changes with our credit card processors we realize that you may have inadvertently disputed legitimate charges on our site. If you would like more information on how to rectify this situation please e-mail us back at your earliest convenience. We would also appreciate any details you could provide regarding any chargebacks recently initiated on your part. Thank you for your cooperation.

Regards,

Tim V
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

I did not authorize a chargeback on that card. Please let me know what I need to do to reopen my Full Tilt account. Thanks.

Hello Kat,

Thank you for contacting Full Tilt Poker Support. As previously stated, we received notification of a $600.00 chargeback made to your account. If you did not dispute a charge to your credit card, then we strongly advise you to contact your issuing bank or credit institution for more information. Please realize that we are unable to reinstate your FTP account unless the chargeback is repaid. Thank you for your understanding of this matter.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Hello,

I called my bank and they said there was no chargeback made. And as I can see from my statement (and the bank has verified), the $600 was not put back into my account, meaning they never actually removed it from my Full Tilt account. Please review your records and find the specific dates/times of each activity in my account. If you cannot find proof that this $600 was never removed, we need to have a conference call with my bank so we can figure out what happened. Also, please feel free to call me as soon as you can -- we might have an easier time discussing this over the phone.

Thank you,
Kat
(xxx) xxx-xxxx

Hello Kat,

Thank you for contacting Full Tilt Poker Support. Firstly, we do not provide telephone support at this time, thus we will be unable to contact you over the phone about this matter. I have attached a copy of your transaction history and highlighted the deposit in question in yellow. Of the only successful deposit on our site using a credit card, we can confirm that this $600.00 deposit made on August 8, 2006 has received a chargeback on September 2, 2007. This has been verified with our processor, and we have indisputably been charged for this $600.00. This charge would've appeared as "cityfield: "info@ps3-shop.biz". The bottom line is a chargeback was initiated along the way. We strongly recommend you once again contact your financial institution regarding this matter.

Furthermore, I'm unsure as to why you think the $600.00 in your Full Tilt Poker account could be accessed by your bank - this is not possible. When someone successfully disputes a charge on their statement, they should be reimbursed by their bank (the funds would be credited back to your bank account/credit card). Full Tilt Poker is then charged, leaving us to shoulder the responsibility of the deposit made to your account, which is why we cannot reopen your account until this has been repaid. Thank you for your understanding of this matter.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Hello,

The spreadsheet you attached does not show that $600 was removed from the account as the result of a chargeback, or any other transaction. The only transactions made on September 2nd (the date you suggest the chargeback was made) were two bonus payments of $20 each. This is not a matter of not finding it on my statement. I spoke with my bank (as I said in my previous email) and the chargeback was never made. If what you say in your last paragraph is true, you should be able to produce proof that you paid my bank $600 if they indeed charged you. So far, even your spreadsheet of my transaction history does not show that $600 was ever removed. You also make some assumptions in your last paragraph that I find rude and unsettling. I believe this situation has escalated far enough where a phone call is necessary to set things right. So far, I am disappointed in the amount of concern you giving this matter. I plan to pursue this matter until it is resolved.

Kat

Hello Kat,

As previously stated, we do not provide telephone support and there are no exceptions to this matter. The spreadsheet that was attached was a copy of your transaction history on our site. It would not be showing any funds removed from your account due to this chargeback, but was simply included to reference the deposit that incurred a chargeback.

With that said, I get the feeling you do not understand the chargeback process on our site. Please realize that Full Tilt Poker in no way deals with your financial institution directly, thus why there is no documentation of us paying your bank. When you make a successful deposit from your credit or debit card, your bank sends the funds to our processor, a third-party merchant. Our processor transmits the funds to Full Tilt Poker, which reach your account. In this case, the deposit was disputed, which should have resulted in an investigation by the bank. If the bank deemed the transaction fraudulent, they would contact our third-party processor and charge them. Once the bank receives reimbursement from our processor, a chargeback would be initiated on the disputed transaction and you would be reimbursed for this amount. In turn, our processor notifies us of the chargeback, making us the final merchant responsible for payment of this chargedback deposit. We then take appropriate actions against any accounts that incur chargebacks, as chargebacks constitute as fraudulent activity on our site.

We have once again verified with our processor that a chargeback was received on this $600.00 deposit. As a result, this chargeback on your account will stand, as we are certain our processor has not erred in this situation. Because we are at an impasse, a final decision has been made about your account. Due to this chargeback, your account will remain closed. The $600.00 out of the remaining balance in your account, $907.39, will be withheld under the order of Full Tilt Poker. As you are already pre-approved for checks, we can send you a check for the remaining balance in your account of $307.39. Please confirm that you would like a check sent to the address on file and we will initiate your final withdrawal and close out your account. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Give me the name of your third-party processor so I can discuss this with them. You may not remove anything from my account until I have tangible proof of the transaction you suggest.

Thank you,
Kat

Hello Kat,

Unfortunately, we will be unable to release this information. You may want to have your bank attempt to contact them directly, as we cannot provide you with any contact details.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

How is my bank supposed to be able to contact them if I can't give them information with which to do it?

Hello again Kat,

Simply provide your bank with the transaction details, you should have received a confirmation email after the deposit (successful or not) with all the pertinent details.

Thanks again.

Regards,

Dave H
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

My bank has no record of a chargeback taking place, which is why I have to go through you in the first place.

Hello Kat,

Either way, a charge was disputed on your credit card which was a charge from our site. It would have shown up on your statement as:

ps3shop" + cityfield: "info@ps3-shop.biz

I hope this information helps.

Regards,

Dave H
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Actually, that doesn't help at all. I can read my bank statement perfectly fine. What I don't understand is why your support team is so unhelpful regarding this matter. If you say you're not responsible for removing the money from my full tilt account as the result of a chargeback that was never actually made, I need to find out who is. Again, the money was never refunded to my bank account, therefore this matter is still unsettled.

Hello Kat,

Thank you for contacting Full Tilt Poker Support.

According to our records, we have sent an inquiry regarding this chargeback to our third-party processor. Once we hear back from them, we will update you on the situation. Unfortunately, we cannot provide a timeframe for this. With that said, please be advised that our processor does not mistakenly notify us of chargebacks.

Thank you for your cooperation and your continued patience.

Regards,

Raymond
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Dear Raymond,

Thanks for your response. While I'm sure your processor is completely incapable of making any mistakes at all whatsoever, I do appreciate you contacting me as soon as you receive a response to your inquiry. I have documentation from my bank citing that no chargeback occurred.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Kat

Hello,

We have already contacted our processor and they have verified that a chargeback was received on this $600.00 deposit. Your bank should be able to contact our processor based on the charge on your statement. The matter of whether or not a chargeback was received on our end is no longer up for discussion, as it has been confirmed previously. Any documentation from your bank will be unacceptable. Unless our processor is able to confirm that no chargeback was received, the $600.00 will be withheld by Full Tilt Poker.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Hello [Full Tilt and Third Party Processor],

As you can see from the email thread below, I have been in communication with Full Tilt Poker regarding a chargeback that was denied. They have repeatedly told me that they relinquished $600 to you, and my bank has informed me that they were never able to complete the chargeback because "merchant [you] verified customer's [my] name and address, and the cvv2 security code".

I have a document from my bank stating that they never recovered the $600. Full Tilt claims to have been unable to reopen my account because their third-party processor, which I must assume is you, have been holding the $600. Please give it back to Full Tilt so they can reopen my account. If you have any questions, please contact me at the number below.

Kat
(xxx) xxx-xxxx

[A week or two later] I am writing to follow up on the email below, for which I received no response. Where are we on this issue?

Hello,

Our processor maintains that a chargeback was received on the deposit in question. As previously iterated, unless our processor confirms that no chargeback was received, the $600.00 will be withheld by Full Tilt Poker.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

Hello,

I have been attempting to contact your processor (cc'ed above) and I am receiving no response. I have documentation from my bank showing they were unable to recover the funds. Neither of you have been able to produce documentation that shows no chargeback was made. When you put a stop on an monetary account, you need to show proof that you had a reason to do so. The only documentation you've provided so far was proof to the contrary. You need to work with your processor to find out what happened to my money, and reopen my account.

Kat

Hello Kat,

I'm happy to inform you that our processor confirmed that they received a reversal of $600.00 on October 16, 2007 due the chargeback. As a result, your Full Tilt Poker account has been reinstated and is available for access at this time. Please find all account balances intact.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. Full Tilt Poker is dedicated to providing our players with thorough customer service. If you have any other questions, please feel free to email us.

Regards,

Heather
Security and Fraud
Full Tilt Poker

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