Can you trust online casinos? Win disputes, get your money
We had the pleasure to video interview Katerina Shepetenko, the Managing Partner of Legal Pilot. The video is also available on YouTube.
We had the pleasure to video interview Katerina Shepetenko, the Managing Partner of Legal Pilot. The video is also available on YouTube.
Many players ask a simple question: how do I know if I can trust an online casino? In the interview, Katerina Shepetenko explains that your first check should always be the casino website itself, especially the footer.
Her first advice is to scroll all the way down and look at the details in the footer. Here you should see:
The license is crucial because it tells you which regulator controls the casino and who is responsible for the actions of the operator.
The regulator is your best friend. This is the body you can approach with questions and complaints, and it works like the highest court for your case.
When you see the license mentioned in the footer, you should look for a small validator link, often shown as a shield icon or a badge. When you click this seal, it should open a new page on the website of the regulator.
On this page you can usually see:
This page often shows a green seal or similar confirmation that the license is valid and active. This is an extra layer of proof that the website is really licensed and that the regulator recognises the operator.
Katerina also recommends checking the public register of operators on the regulator website. In many jurisdictions you can search by company name and confirm that the entity from the casino footer is indeed listed as a licensed operator.
Not all licenses offer the same level of protection. Katerina explains that there are two big groups of licenses:
Offshore jurisdictions usually welcome many operators and make it easier to get a license. However, they often have weaker rules for player protection and responsible gaming compared to strong local regulators.
She gives a simple example. Imagine you are an Estonian player and you see two casinos:
From a legal and protection point of view, it is much safer to play at the website that holds the local license.
The local regulator takes care of the players to the highest possible extent. They also regulate the payment providers and technical suppliers that the casino uses, so your whole experience is better protected.
So when you have a choice between an offshore license and a strong local license, Katerina clearly recommends using the locally licensed casino.
Most players do not want to read long terms and conditions, but Katerina explains that this section hides many of the tools that protect you. To save time, she suggests focusing on a few key clauses instead of reading every line.
The most important parts are:
These pages may look boring, but they contain all the instruments and steps that help you defend yourself when something goes wrong.
It is also important to know that in regulated markets, the main terms and conditions are not just invented by the casino. They are usually reviewed and validated by the regulator, so the procedures for complaints, verification and dispute handling that you see there are part of an approved framework, not random rules added after the fact.
The license is only one part of the picture. To get a license, the operator must set up a legal company, and this company is usually listed in a public register.
Katerina suggests a simple three step process:
If the company is active and has no public issues, this is a good sign. If you see that the company is in liquidation, in bankruptcy or involved in heavy court procedures, Katerina strongly recommends avoiding that website.
Sometimes the registry also shows extra contact details or the name of local agents or lawyers who registered the company. In extreme cases where the casino ignores you, these contacts can provide another way to raise a complaint.
In the second part of the interview, Katerina talks about one of the most painful situations for players. Imagine you play, win a moderate amount purely by luck, and then the casino accuses you of cheating and closes your account.
She explains that this is not the end of the story. There are several escalation steps you can take to try to recover your rightful winnings.
Even if you already contacted support, Katerina advises sending a clear and structured complaint based on the casino complaint policy.
Give the operator a clear and documented chance to solve the issue. This will be important evidence if you need to escalate later.
If the casino ignores you or gives an unsatisfactory answer, the next step is to contact the ADR provider that works with that regulator. ADR bodies are independent companies that mediate disputes between players and casinos.
You can usually find the name and contact of the ADR provider in the casino terms and conditions or on the regulator website. When you contact ADR:
ADR then contacts the casino and asks for their side of the story. Licensed operators are obligated to respond to ADR requests. If they do not, they risk serious consequences, including possible license termination.
ADR cannot ignore your letter. They must look into the case and they will push the casino to reply and to follow the rules of the license.
In many jurisdictions, regulators used to handle all player complaints directly, but because of the growing number of cases, they now delegate this role to ADR institutions. These ADR bodies are not owned by the casino and are not part of its group structure. They work as independent mediators under the supervision of the regulator, which is why casinos cannot simply ignore them without risking serious consequences for their license.
If the problem is still not resolved after ADR, the last and strongest tool is court proceedings. At this stage, Katerina clearly recommends working with a law firm that has experience in gambling and player disputes.
Casinos are usually large businesses with strong legal teams, so it is not a good idea to go to court without support. A specialised law firm can:
In some situations, when several players are affected in a similar way, it may even be possible to organise a group claim. Group actions can be very powerful and create strong pressure on the operator.
Court is the last step, but also the most serious one. If you carefully document every step before, you significantly increase your chances to restore your rights and recover your funds.
Later in the interview, Katerina talks about ranking licenses from the point of view of player protection and responsible gaming. She again divides them into two groups: offshore licenses and strong local licenses.
For offshore licenses, player protection is often weaker and the framework for responsible gaming is less developed. This does not automatically mean that every casino with an offshore license is bad, but it means that your tools as a player are more limited.
For strong local licenses, most of the top examples come from Europe. According to Katerina, regulators in countries such as:
have built a reputation for strict rules and professional supervision. Operators must follow very detailed requirements and face large fines if they break the rules. Penalties can reach into millions of euros for serious violations.
For players outside the European Union, she highlights the United Kingdom as another example of a strong and strict regulator. The process to get a UK license is long, often taking around two years. The regulator checks the technical setup, key staff, their education and experience, and puts personal responsibility on them.
She also mentions a positive trend in Latin America. Countries like Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Argentina are now building their own regulations and often take inspiration from European standards, while adapting the rules to local realities. This is good news for players because it brings more structure and more tools to defend their rights.
In the final part of the interview, Katerina turns to advice for operators. Trust is now a central factor for long term success in iGaming. Players look beyond colourful marketing and ask if a brand is really safe and fair.
Her main recommendations for operators are:
If a player checks your website and cannot find information about the license or how to complain, this is a strong signal that something is wrong. They will leave and tell others.
If a player cannot find clear limits, self exclusion tools or responsible gaming options on your website, two serious risks appear. First, you lose the trust of the player, who will share that experience with others in chats and forums. Second, you risk investigations, fines or even license termination from the regulator. Once news about a license being revoked spreads, the reputation of the brand can collapse almost instantly, and no marketing budget or traffic source can repair that damage if players no longer believe that your casino is safe and fair.
She also reminds operators that ignoring players is the worst possible strategy. Complaints do not disappear; they move to public channels and damage the brand. Instead of hiding, operators can rely on the ADR system and regulators to show that they handle disputes in a fair and structured way.
Throughout the interview, Katerina returns to the same core idea. For players, protection starts with simple checks of the website, the license seal, the company registry and the terms and conditions. For operators, long term success depends on transparency, compliance and real respect for responsible gaming.
Legal Pilot works with gambling, crypto and forex businesses on all of these topics, from company incorporation and licensing to daily compliance, banking and dispute handling. The message to players is clear: you are not powerless. If you know how to read the signals and how to use the legal tools that exist, you can protect yourself and your winnings much better when you play online.