What can you do when a gambling business will not pay out your winnings or rejects your complaint? Start with the business itself, in writing, so there is a record. A licensed operator in Great Britain has eight weeks from receiving the complaint to resolve it. After that, or after a ‘deadlock letter’, the complaint can go to a free, independent Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) provider.

This guide shows how to complain about a gambling company in the UK, step by step, with the facts checked on 9 October 2026. The Gambling Commission does not decide individual complaints. A site with no licence has no complaints route under the commission’s rules.

Where to turn, in order

Most disputes follow the same four places.

  1. The gambling business, in writing, through its complaints process.
  2. An ADR provider, after eight weeks or a deadlock letter.
  3. Your bank, if the problem involves a payment from your account.
  4. Report Fraud (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Police Scotland on 101, if you think it is a scam.

If a dispute is part of a wider worry about gambling, the National Gambling Helpline offers free and confidential support on 0808 8020 133.

First question: is the business licensed in Great Britain?

The answer decides whether a complaint has anywhere to go. A complaints process and access to ADR are conditions of a Gambling Commission licence. They sit in condition 6.1.1 of the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). The rules belong to licence holders. A site without a licence is not bound by them.

A bet with a licensed business is also a contract. The commission says that placing a bet creates a legally enforceable contract with that business, on a page last updated on 21 June 2023. Section 335 of the Gambling Act 2005 adds that a contract is not unenforceable merely because it relates to gambling.

Checking takes a few minutes. The commission keeps a public register of the businesses it licenses, and the guide on how to check whether a gambling business is licensed walks through it. For a list of businesses that hold a licence, see the overview of online casinos licensed by the Gambling Commission.

The table sets out three common situations and where each complaint goes.

Your situationWhere it goesWho decides
Business holds a commission licenceThe business, within eight weeksThen a free ADR provider
No commission licenceThe site’s own process onlyNo independent body named
Suspected scam or unknown paymentYour bank and the policeBank first, then the ombudsman

The commission’s rules cover Great Britain only, and this guide does not cover Northern Ireland.

Step 1: how to complain about a gambling company in the UK

The commission’s guide to complaints, last updated on 20 September 2023, sets a clear order. Start with the business, not the regulator. The steps below follow that guide.

  1. Check the terms and conditions linked to your account or to the bet or transaction in dispute.
  2. Find the complaints procedure on the business’s website, or ask for a copy of the policy at its premises.
  3. Write to the business with every detail: dates, times, amounts of money and the account name.
  4. Attach evidence such as screenshots, emails and payment receipts, and keep a copy of everything sent.
  5. Wait for the response. The business has eight weeks from the day it receives the complaint.

Dates matter. A complaint without dates is hard to follow up. If the first reply does not settle the matter, use any escalation step the complaints procedure describes before moving to ADR, and keep the date of every request and reply.

The eight weeks come from the licence conditions. Condition 6.1.1 requires a licensed business to make sure that an unresolved dispute can go to ADR once eight weeks have passed, provided the customer cooperates in good time. The same condition tells licensees to keep records of complaints and disputes and to share them with the commission on request. The complaint therefore leaves a record. It does not start an investigation of the case.

If the dispute is about a withdrawal

The commission’s guidance for players, last updated on 11 June 2021, says a customer can withdraw money at any time without unreasonable delay or restriction. It adds that a business cannot confiscate money just because a customer has not logged in or has not proved their identity within a set time. The same page accepts that a withdrawal can be held when unusual activity has been spotted in an account.

The commission says online gambling businesses must ask a customer to prove their age and identity before they gamble (page updated on 13 April 2022). If a withdrawal stalls, ask the business, in writing, which check is outstanding and what it needs.

Step 2: take it to an ADR provider

An ADR provider is an independent body that examines a dispute between a customer and a business. The commission describes the service as free and independent, on a page last updated on 15 May 2026. A customer must go through the business’s own complaints process first. ADR then opens after eight weeks, or earlier if the business issues a deadlock letter.

A ‘deadlock letter’ is a letter that closes the business’s own process. The commission says businesses usually issue it when they conclude a complaint. It is the signal that ADR is the next step.

  1. Read the business’s final response and check which ADR provider it names.
  2. Check the provider’s own time limit as soon as the final response arrives. The commission’s pages do not set one.
  3. Follow the provider’s instructions for sending the complaint and the evidence.
  4. Look for a confirmation of receipt. If none arrives, check junk mail and contact the provider.

The commission says the business should be able to tell you which ADR provider to use and give its contact details.

ADR providers do not take complaints about customer service, or about a refusal to accept a bet or a customer. A refusal of that kind sits outside ADR.

Who approves ADR providers now

The approval system changed in April 2026. Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) became the competent authority for approving ADR providers in gambling. The commission says it is no longer the authority for accrediting and monitoring them and remains the regulator for the gambling sector, on a page last updated on 5 March 2026. Older lists of commission-approved providers are therefore out of date.

The CTSI list, read on 9 October 2026, includes IBAS and eCOGRA among its gambling bodies. The page carries no date, and lists change, so the provider the business names is the one to use.

IBAS, the Independent Betting Adjudication Service, says that any company registered with it agrees to be bound by its decisions up to a total value of £10,000. That is IBAS’s own rule for its registered companies. It is not a limit that applies to every ADR provider.

After the decision

The commission says an ADR decision is usually the end of the complaint process and that it cannot get involved in the provider’s decision or ask it to reconsider (page updated on 19 May 2026). Some providers allow an appeal under their own rules.

A customer who stays unhappy after the final adjudication or an appeal may decide to go to the small claims court. The commission advises seeking independent legal advice before that decision. This guide does not cover court limits, fees or procedure. An ADR decision is not a promise of a refund either.

What the commission actually checks – and what it does not decide

The commission licenses gambling businesses and keeps the public register. It sets the licence conditions that require a complaints process and ADR. It states that it does not resolve or make decisions on complaints about gambling-related transactions. The statement appears in its guide to complaints, updated on 20 September 2023.

A breach of a licence condition can lead the commission to act against the licensee. That is a regulatory route. It does not turn one player’s complaint into a refund.

A separate channel exists for information. ‘Tell us something in confidence’ takes reports online about suspicious activity or criminality in the gambling industry, including unlicensed gambling. The page, updated on 8 October 2026, says complaints sent through it will not be processed. The commission gives no feedback on what it receives. A report helps the regulator. It does not recover a balance.

What you lose without a Gambling Commission licence

The complaints rules sit in the licence conditions, so they belong to licence holders. For a site with no licence, each earlier step changes.

  • No eight-week deadline set by licence conditions applies to the site.
  • No licence condition obliges the site to offer ADR.
  • No complaints record exists that the commission can ask to see.
  • The commission’s guidance on withdrawals is written for licensed businesses.

What remains is short. The site’s own process comes with no licence-based deadline and no outside check. The bank may help with a card payment. A report to the commission through ‘Tell us something in confidence’ concerns how the site operates, not the return of money. A site’s own terms may name a regulator or dispute service in another country. That process sits outside the British system.

Offers to recover lost money for an upfront fee deserve extra caution. The Financial Conduct Authority warns about recovery room scams of this kind (page updated on 19 January 2026). The wider picture is in the guide to unlicensed gambling sites and how to protect yourself.

If it is about a payment or looks like a scam

Not every problem is a dispute with an operator. A dispute is a disagreement with a real business that replies to you. A scam involves a site that pretends to be someone else, or a payment you did not make.

Contact your bank as soon as possible and ask whether the payment can be disputed through the card scheme, a process called a chargeback. The Financial Ombudsman Service describes chargeback as a way of disputing a transaction through the card scheme, so the scheme’s rules and any time limits apply. Its guidance does not say whether a chargeback is available for gambling payments, so a result is not guaranteed.

A complaint about the bank itself goes to the bank first. The Financial Ombudsman Service says a business has up to eight weeks for most complaints and only 15 days for complaints about fraud, scams and payment services. The ombudsman accepts a complaint within six months of the final response, and the service is free.

Report Fraud, which replaced Action Fraud in December 2025, takes reports from England, Wales and Northern Ireland on 0300 123 2040 or online. People in Scotland report through Police Scotland on 101. The guide to how to report a gambling scam and what to ask your bank covers the detail.

Questions people ask about gambling complaints

How do you complain about a gambling company in the UK?

Write to the business first, with dates, amounts and evidence, and follow its complaints process. A licensed business has eight weeks from the day it receives the complaint. After that, or after a deadlock letter, the complaint can go to a free ADR provider. A customer cannot go straight to ADR.

Is ADR free?

Yes. The commission describes an ADR provider as a free, independent service, and licence condition 6.1.1 says ADR services must be free of charge to the customer.

How do you know which ADR provider to use?

The business should be able to tell you which provider to use and give its contact details. IBAS and eCOGRA are two providers on the Chartered Trading Standards Institute list read on 9 October 2026. Lists change, so the provider the business names is the one to contact.

Will the Gambling Commission sort out your complaint?

No. The commission says it does not resolve or make decisions on complaints about gambling-related transactions, and it cannot ask an ADR provider to reconsider a decision. It accepts information about suspicious activity through ‘Tell us something in confidence’, but gives no feedback on what is sent.

What can you do if an online casino will not pay out your winnings?

The commission says withdrawals should happen without unreasonable delay or restriction. After eight weeks, or a deadlock letter, the complaint can go to an ADR provider. If the site has no licence, the options are narrower.

What can you do if the gambling site is not licensed in Great Britain?

The licence-based route does not apply, so the options are narrower. Use the site’s own complaints process if it has one, ask your bank about a card payment and report the site to the commission through ‘Tell us something in confidence’. None of these is a promise that money will be returned.

Where to complain, and where to get help if gambling is a worry

How to complain about a gambling company in the UK follows one order: the business first, then an ADR provider after eight weeks or a deadlock letter. The bank handles payments, and scams go to Report Fraud or to Police Scotland on 101. A site with no commission licence has no such route.

A dispute over money is often the moment someone adds up how much has been spent. If gambling is causing harm to you or someone close to you, the National Gambling Helpline offers free and confidential support on 0808 8020 133. This guide gives general information and is not legal advice.

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