Maltese court won’t enforce refunds to players of unlicensed gambling sites
The Maltese Civil Court says it will not enforce the rulings of an Austrian court.
Malta.- The Maltese Civil Court has said that it will not enforce judgments by Austrian courts that awarded refunds to players who had gambled on sites that were not licensed in the country. The court sided with Maltese operators, ruling that the judgments went against Maltese policy.
The court ruled that Article 56 in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) allows the provision of services across EU states and that Austrian gambling legislation, which retains an online gaming monopoly for Casinos Austria’s Win2Day, is incompatible with the European Union legislation.
As in Germany, many players have brought lawsuits in Austria to try to claim back losses incurred before the local regulation of online gambling. Many of the operators involved are Malta-based, and court rulings have gone both ways. While Austrian and German courts have ruled that players can recoup losses, there have also been cases where it was deemed that players must return winnings.
The specific case addressed by the Malta Civil Court involved a player who lost €38,325 with European Lotto and Betting Limited, trading as Lottoland, in 2020. The Malta Gambling Authority (MGA) brought the case to local courts.
Davinia Cutajar of WH Partners, which represented the MGA, said the ruling “reinforces the autonomy of Maltese regulatory authorities and the jurisdiction of Maltese courts over gambling-related matters”.
