mcc3504,
I cannot believe that a functioning human genuinely representing PokerStars told you that they have taken your remaining balance and claimed to have no record of doing so. I encourage you to post the full and unedited emails to/from PokerStars on this issue, because I have more faith in my fellow humans than this. I cannot believe any human adult believes that the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation allows taking money from people, that's not reasonable, that's not how any of this works.
In the unlikely event that your whole story is true, it sounds to me that you need to escalate the situation.
It is not obvious to me which Terms of Service apply to you and your account.
At the time that the relevant transactions allegedly took place, it appears likely that PokerStars' global operations were regulated under rules laid down by the Isle of Man Government. However, PokerStars claims to now be regulated by the incredibly low-end Maltese Gaming Authority. In addition, PokerStars made various commitments to the Government of the United States of America about enabling US players to cash out their funds.
While we have not heard a full explanation from PokerStars, allegedly taking your entire remaining balance AND CLAIMING THAT THEY HAVE NO RECORD OF YOUR BALANCE might be a breach of the rules that applied under the IOM rules, might be a breach of the rules that apply under the Maltese regulatory framework and might be a violation of their commitment to the US Government (I don't know if there was a time limit that applied here for PokerStars players, I assume not, but I might well be wrong).
Thus, I suggest physically writing an actual written letter to the relevant authorities:
1) Write to PokerStars. Some previous advice is provided below which I provided in another case.
2) Write to the regulators in Malta (MGA) and the Isle of Man (IOM GSC) - and ensure you provide enough documentation so that a stranger can understand the case and take action. Get a friend (ideally a parent or uncle or aunt who will criticise you honestly) to review the document. Write in a factual and professional manner, and ensure that your claims are accurate and well documented where possible. In your letter to the IOM GSC, you should highlight that your account was regulated by them at the time that the relevant alleged activity took place.
3) Before sending all these documents, make sure you retain copies.
4) The relatively-recent Maltese Terms of Service online here describe an alternate dispute resolution service:
https://www.pokerstars.com/tos/ Be wary about any requirements that this organisation imposes on you, especially around submitting to their jurisdiction and/or keeping silent. It is not obvious to me that this case should be subject to the jurisdiction of the MGA and their ADR service.
5) Write to the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit in the Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and complain that PokerStars aren't giving you your money back. Some combination of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Olga Zverovich, Sarah Lai, and Jason Cowley are probably the best people to address, but I do not know for sure. If you can't easily identify someone specifically, just ask one of them to pass your request along to the relevant people as needed.
Your goal here is to get your money back. Ideally, course you would avoid having to deal with any legal/court processes. The goal is to get you your money back, not to go to court. If the money is truthfully owed to you, the company is likely to give you your money back once a human looks at the situation, understands the situation, and reviews it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Josem
K2AA72,
Sorry, you're just going to have to wait if you want that money back. If you believe they're being unreasonable and you want to escalate your demands, then you have the option to formally demand the return of your money.
If you wanted to pursue this, you could write (physically, on paper) to
TSG Interactive Gaming Europe Limited (C54266)
Villa Seminia,
8, Sir Temi Zammit Avenue,
Ta' Xbiex XBX1011 Malta
You can verify that the above address is legitimate by checking their Terms of Service here: https://www.pokerstars.com/tos/
I suggest writing in both your native language and English.
-Include the date you are sending your letter
-Request the return of your money within a specified period (7/14/30) days as you deem appropriate
-Include your real name and home address
-Include your User ID
-Inform the company that if they do not return your account balance, you will contact the Maltese Small Claims Court (balances up to €5,000)
-Photocopy the letter after you have signed it and before you post it, and send a scanned copy of the letter to support@starsaccount.com
Ideally, they will return your money.
If not, if you live in Germany, then may be able to use the Maltese Small Claims tribunal to demand the return of your money.
The procedure is detailed online here:
https://www.gov.mt/en/Life%20Events/...ll-Claims.aspx
You will need a copy of the letter from above.
The goal of course is to avoid the court process. The goal is to get you your money back, not to go to court. If the money is truthfully owed to you, the company is likely to give you your money back to avoid the risk of dealing with this in the small claims court.
This is not expert advice. If you want expert tax or legal advice, see an accountant or lawyer and don't rely on free online sources in anonymous internet forums
