Full Tilt: Withdrawal fiasco

I'm having a lot of trouble with Full Tilt as well (I'm in the US). I made a withdrawal from Stars a couple of months ago, got my ACH credit in my bank account in 3 days. I requested an ACH withdrawal from Full Tilt on October 25, and still don't have it. Here's the saga:

10/25: I request withdrawl from FTP.

11/1: I get an email saying my account has been "suspended" pending ID verification. They need a copy of my drivers license, bank statement and utility bill. Fine. Annoying as hell that they want this now, when they had no trouble taking money OUT of my account without any proof of who I was. I send them the documents imediately.

11/3: I get another email saying my fund request has been "declined". I send more email asking very politely basically "wtf?"

11/6: After much back and forth with the "cashier" support, where they claim to be "experiencing high volume" and they need to "research" the issue, the money mysteriously shows up back in my FTP account. I send more mail to support, and initiate another withdrawal.

11/8: Receive email that my withdrawal request has been "approved". Yay, progress?

11/16: Receive email saying that due to an "issue" with one of their "third party poker processors" the withdrawal cannot be processed at this time, and that I should try again. To FTP's credit, they actually deposit another $25 in my FTP account for the inconvenience here. I'm appeased for the moment and initiate another withdrawal.

11/18: Receive email saying my withdrawal request has been "approved" (again). Sounds good but I decide not to hold my breath.

12/3: No sign of any deposit in my bank account, and no further communication from FTP. I send mail to cashier again, no response as of yet.

I like the software and the games at FTP, but this is ridiculous. I don't think I can recommend playing there (possibly just in the US if that's the issue) until they get this stuff worked out. Crazy.

Anyone have any suggestions on how to make this better, or is this common?

Not sure man I think there is some things behind the scenes that FTP has to deal with that we don't know about due to the US standards and all. But In the last 4 or 5 months Ive done many withdrawals from 1k to 5k and have had no problems. Just got unlucky in all the mix it seems. I think it will all turn out ok man.

Thanks KC - not terribly worried about it, particularly since we're talking about all of $150 or so. Just annoying as hell mostly. Thanks for reading my rant anyhow.

There, I removed all FTP advertising from my blog and nixed my recommendation. Not that anyone reads my blog, but hey it made me feel better!

http://free-poker-strategy.info/2010...drawal-fiasco/

Yea they are having problems, when they tell you you can't cashout because of the problems I would tend to believe them. Why keep cashing out right away everytime you get the money back? If you've looked here you will have noticed a lot of problems currently, first with checks, and now it seems with other withdrawals. I would have to guess this is because of the US government probably hassling their processors. Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is one definition of insanity. I would wait until it seems things are fixed before trying to cash out.

Well, I wouldn't say trying again in response to an email saying "it didn't work, please try again" is insanity, but I appreciate the insight anyhow.

Then again I guess if you keep pressing "retry" on the "abort, retry, fail?" dialog, maybe you are insane...

Yea i kid about the insanity part, i just like that definition. I have moved my play to other sites, don't see a point playing on FT until the money is "real".

Haha, yeah I agree.

Questions to ask:
Does Full Tilt have any payment processors in US?
Will the US government close down all EWallets from US Customers?
Will US Banks stop wire transfers from poker sites to US banks?

One question is already answered: Does the US government have the ability to shut down internet poker in the US? Most definitely.

Wow, that sucks... I have never taken out money from Full Tilt, but something like this is kind of scary to know... in case I have a big win and would like my money...

I think, perhaps Congress needs to pass legislation to protect players from sites like this... as well as make the payment processing and withdrawal better and safer...

Yeah I think you're just unlucky and that things do seem to be kicking off in the US atm. You're going about it in exactly the right way though so just keep doing what you're doing.

I've made a few withdrawals anywhere from $50 to $300 with no problems but I suppose that's the perks of being a brit.

Ah, but the thing is, Congress (well maybe not congress per se, but government lawmakers and regulators) is the body that is creating the problems for the third-party processors that the sites use for withdrawls and the sites themselves. Your government just needs to get out of the way and allow sites like FTP and their payment processors to do their business properly. It's a shame that FTP is getting such a bad rap in this forum due to actions and regulations that are completely out of their control. In short, it's not FTP, it's Big Brother.

Well my personal sample size is obviously quite small, but PokerStars doesn't seem to have any trouble getting me my money when I withdraw.

Not saying FTP is evil, or that they are actually interested in scamming anyone out of a measly $150. Maybe they just don't try as hard, or something. Who knows.

Mayhaps. Or perhaps they are based from different places with different money laws govenrning them, use different processors, are going through management/streamlining/coporate overhaul changes, ect.

I guess nobody can say for sure at this point. But I can reasonably say, as somebody who has made numerous withdrawls from FTP between $100 and $2K and had never had a problem, is that I'm sure they are trying their best.

This situation is somewhat akin to a rush on the banks during a recession. Not in the sense that the banks (FTP) will run out of money or anything, but because when everyone is trying to withdraw at once, things slow down. There are only so many personnel to handle these things, and with many thousands of players wanting their money, things may get hectic. Add that to the fact of panic in the forums over FTP not paying out immediately and you get an even bigger rush exasberating the problem.

You see! I never thought I'd be saying this but I cant wait till the US Gov
gets off its ass and legalizes & regulates this industry. Maybe then
we'll see an end to all this "redtape jump through hoops" withdrawal BS because they'll all be constantly under the watchfull eye of Uncle Sam! On second thought, it could turn out to be a double sided sword! We'll see.

Yeah - I agree once this is regulated and they don't have to fight with payment processors, this will probably be better. Hoping that gets pushed through. Not looking forward to the 15 month blackout though.

just sent home a significant amount last friday night/saturday morning....got it that monday...this is using the bank wire option.

Nice. Yeah I'm thinking maybe I should see if they'll let me try that, even though my balance is less that $250. I imagine the funds are stuck in financial limbo right now though since the bank transfer is probably still in process.

Sigh.

Glad to hear there's hope though.

You can read the thread I started called *fulltilt cashouts*,to see my very recent withdraw adventure,and several others too.

Thanks nightmoves. Glad to hear you and others are having some luck with wire transfers, even if the banks are charging fees. They haven't offered to wire me my money yet, but I did end up asking them earlier today based on KC's reply above. Hopefully they'll let me do that.

hey, just read your post as i googled "problems with withdrawals at full tilt" and this thread came up. anyway, i too am experiencing problems. about a month ago i won a pretty decent sized tourney and starting withdrawing the max from the bank transfer opion ($950). the first withdrawal hit within days of the request. however, i requested a 2nd withdrawal a month ago and have yet to receive anything. i received a confirmation email from full tilt that the withdrawal was approved way back on nov. 15th, but still no money in my account...last night i was at my local casino playing poker and the discussion came up and i found out that a few other guys were also having issues getting their money from ft. there was a guy who even had his checking account frozen. needless to say, i'm a bit concerned on seeing my money. i still have a few thousand in my account and i'm really hoping i see that money....

You might try the wire transfer option ttaggart. Sounds like some people have had more success with that than bank transfers. Not free, but hey if you can't get your money out any other way...

thanks for the advice. at this point, i'd take any method to get my money...i want to give ft the benefit of the doubt on this, but who knows. i know that being a u.s. resident, there's a chance the bank could deny the wire due to the ridiculous laws here....anyway, it's so frustrating that there's no customer service # to contact ft. (at least not one i'm aware of). i really wish they would offer a customer service phone #. i emailed ft on the issue but god knows how long it will take to get it a response, let alone a resolution....it sucks b/c i think ft has far and away the best site and i've tried them all pretty much...obviously if i can't get my money out of there, i won't be using ft any more. but i guess we'll see...hopefully it's just a delay due to volume....i'll let you know how it works out. hopefully we both get our money soon....

FT payouts have historically been very reliable. By all recent accounts, they are having processor problems right now due to recent heat being applied (again) by US authorities. In the past when this has occurred, FT and Stars have both been very good about working through these things, and very often compensate those inconvenienced with some bonus money.

FWIW my own history with FT cashouts has been stellar -- I've cashed out probably $7k or so in both checks and direct bank transfers over the past couple of years with not a single issue or delay, other than the initial withdrawal requiring the usual identity documents. But occasionally they do run into brief periods of trouble. Just be patient and I'm sure it will get sorted, as it always has.

thanks dmorris, i hope you're right. i've been using ft for many years now and have never had any issues so that's why i'm giving them the benefit of the doubt. i'm assuming it has more to do with the us govt meddling than it does with ft being that behind in getting payments out...i know ft really works hard on keeping the players happy. imo adding a phone # for people to call so they could get answers and a resolution in a few minutes would be FAR superior to the current method of trying to answers from ft by exchanging multiple emails over the course of a few days....just a bit frustrating waiting for hours or days just to get an email response....

what's the minimum/maximum cashout amount for bank wires at FTP?

not sure if it varies for different players, but for me the min/max for a bank transfer are $100/$950

Last I looked at bank wire fees, it wasn't cost-effective to wire a small amount. For the minimum it was like 30-40% of your withdrawal. When you transfer thousands, then it's a much smaller slice and probably the safest way to go.

well an update if anybody cares. got an email back (finally). not only did it take a day and a half to get a response, the response i got was as generic as possible. it just stated "we're experiencing delays, your money should hit your account soon". i waited about 36 hrs to get a response that really didn't tell me one thing i didn't already know. how about how far behind they are in getting out payments? an actual or at least an approximate date i can expect the money to be deposited? the specifics of why things are being held up for so long?....so frustrating. i realize they are dealing with tons of emails but to me if your goal is to be the number 1 poker site in the world, your customer service should be significantly better than what it currently is. it just truly baffles me that they spend so much money, time and effort to make ft a great site to play but then they have a truly horrible customer service setup....i also use bodog occasionally (which imo is far inferior to ft in every aspect besides customer service). with bodog i've had a few minor issues and each time i was able to call a number, speak with an actual human within a couple of minutes and get my issue resolved immediately....i just don't get how ft can have such a fantastic site in every aspect yet have such an antiquated, ineffective set up to deal with their customers questions/concerns...i mean as much as i love playing on ft, i'd much rather play on a site that makes customer service a priority and is proactive about getting withdrawals out asap (or at least having a direct and timely method of informing their customers if there are any delays or issues with getting out payments)

Requested an EFT on Nov 28th. Hit my bank account today. Little slower than usual but within reason.

Good to know, because I may need pull a few hundo myself shortly.

geez. my request (also eft) was approved on nov. 20th and still nothing. i wonder if it's just random or maybe it depends on your bank?? on nov. 4th i requested a withdrawal and received it in less than a week (same amt. and same method)....i just wish i knew why this particular time is taking so long....

I wouldn't be surprised if you get it in the next few days. Looking at 2+2 there seem to be a lot of people getting them today.

In other news I requested a check from Bodog on Tuesday and it arrived via USPS today!

Seriously? They tilt me so bad. When I signed up with Bodog I initially deposited via MyPayLinQ, because they didn't offer direct bank to me for some reason. So they *required* me to use MyPayLinQ for my withdrawal. Withdrew $200 on Nov 14th, tried to request a check anyway but they shot me down and sent it through MyPayLinQ. Which btw is the ghetto of online payment processors, and their fees are stupid. The cheapest way for me to get it was a money order for $5, which I'm a little leery of but wtf. I'm used to prompt cashouts, and when a week or so went by with no status update, I chatted them up and they told me rather brusquely that they wait 15 days before processing withdrawals. Then on Dec 5th they tell me oops, they need more paperwork, but they will waive the $5 fee for my inconvenience. Finally they tell me they mailed it yesterday (12/9). So it will have taken a month to get it (assuming they're not lying about mailing it) and I hope it's not a rubber M.O., lol.

Not impressed. To top it off, when I deposited at Bodog I setup both MyPayLinQ and eWalletXpress. I thought MyPayLinQ looked shady so I tried eWX first. I dropped $50 on them, but it took a couple of days for the micro-transaction they use for verification to hit my bank, so I couldn't access the funds. I was anxious so I went with MyPayLinQ instead. Totally forgot about the $50 on eWX until the other day. Now they're in trouble with the DOJ who seized all their funds, lol. I chatted them up today and they're still acting like they're having "technical difficulties" but I will receive my funds "soon." LOL, I didn't even bother mentioning that I was well aware of what their "technical difficulties" were.

If Bodog won't let me do EFT's like Stars & FT, I think I'll just donk off the rest of my funds there and give up on them. Pity, because the games are *really* soft. But if the legislation passes and the US licenses online rooms post-blackout, I don't think there's any way in hell Bodog will be allowed back in given their history with the US authorities, so there's probably no point in running up a BR there. No player transfers makes it too damn hard to move money.

I know it's frustrating for US players, but the blame for stuff like this is squarely on the shoulders of the US Gov. When you consider the fact that other payment processors have been arrested as soon as they have set foot on US soil, and basically blackmailed into paying millions of dollars in 'fines' to the US Gov without ever going to court. They tend to be a tad carefull as to the identity of the person they are paying out to. Ask the guys at Neteller. Funny though that they do f'all regarding bank mortgage fraud the screwed the whole planet.