Online casino pays out millions in winnings - and receives a fine

A topsy-turvy world in Norway: Because an online casino paid out too high a prize to a player, the operator has now been sentenced to a hefty fine. So should the online casino have refused to pay out to the player and been in a better financial position as a result?

The Norwegian Gambling Authority Lotteri- og stiftelsestilsynet (Lottery and Gaming Board) has imposed a fine of NOK 4.5 million on the gambling provider Norsk Tipping. This corresponds to around 380,000 euros. The reason for the hefty fine is the fact that the gambling provider allegedly paid out too high a prize to a player in the online casino.

Player won around 2 million euros - and the online casino paid out

A Norwegian player had initially won NOK 25 million in the online casino ‘KongKasino’. This is the equivalent of around 2.1 million euros. The casino player then requested a payout, which was authorised and consequently executed by the online casino operated by Norsk Tipping.

The problem: By paying out the millions in winnings, the online casino violated the applicable Norwegian gambling laws. According to the Gambling Act in Norway, the maximum win may not exceed NOK 100,000 (approx. 8,500 euros). In exceptional cases, a prize limit of NOK 5 million (approx. 420,000 euros) is permitted for progressive jackpots.

The Norwegian Gambling Authority considers the act to be a serious violation of the Gambling Act. In particular, it criticises the fact that the online casino did not take any safety precautions to prevent the winnings limit from being exceeded in this way. For this reason, the Gambling Authority has now imposed a fine of NOK 4.5 million (approx. 380,000 euros) on the operator Norsk Tipping.

Could the online casino have refused to pay out better?

According to the current legal situation, it would probably have been more advisable for the online casino not to pay out the winnings totalling the equivalent of over two million euros. However, as the ‘KongKasino’ paid out the money to the player, the gambling laws were violated and the penalty has now been imposed. The online casino itself did not even notice the error. It was only when the player contacted ‘KongKasino’ that the error became known.

According to the Norwegian authority, the win limit was set in order to fully guarantee player protection. As, according to the gambling authority, there are a large number of problem gamblers, especially with online providers such as ‘KongKasino’, it is argued that the risk of such a high prize being paid out to a problem gambler is above average. In such a case, it is highly likely that the winnings would be gambled away again in an uncontrolled manner, which is not what the ‘gambling watchdogs’ want.

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