Legal Question in Entertainment Law in Netherlands

Dear sir/madam,

Last night (08-09-13) I played a pokertournament on the website www.pkr.com. This company advertised this tournament as follows (this is important):

"SPREAD OVER TWO DAYS, the Main Event kicks off on the second Sunday of every month before reconvening for the later stages the FOLLOWING night.

PERFECT FOR THOSE WHO HAVE WORK ... , the tournament starts at 18:00 GMT and pauses at 23:30 GMT and is then restarted at 17:00 GMT � giving players the opportunity to freshen up and get ready for the crucial final countdown."

The problem is, the tournament did NOT pause at 23:30 GMT. People contacted the PKR servicedesk, which said they were UNABLE to stop the tournament at the moment. I played till 00:30 GMT, hoping the tournament would still be paused. Then I left, because I needed to get up early for work. When I did so, I was placed 3rd, with 57 players left.

This morning, 09-09-13, I woke up to see the tournament was STILL running. There were 5 players left, and during my sleep my chips had diminished until I ended at place 16. For this I received 117$, paying 35$ to enter the tournament. But this result is besides the point.

The point is that the company did not deliver on their ADVERTISED promises. It forced me, and a lot of other players, to play longer than we should and would have. Because of this negligence, my night AND my workday have been ruined. ALSO, this situation has probably cost me winnings, since I left in 3rd place, which would have amounted to 1365$ in winnings. Ofcourse, a lot could have happened on day 2 of the tournament, but at least I would have had the CHANCE to try and keep, or better, my position.

In my opinion the company can be accused of negligence, and maybe deception. Either way, I feel wronged by the way this company has handled things.

I would be very grateful to hear if you believe the above reasons are proper grounds for suing the company for damages.

Sincerely yours,

Ramon Mosterd


Asked on 9/09/13, 3:00 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Arent Lievens Advocates Lievens & Lievens

Yes

You have grounds for claiming your winnings.

But the cost of claiming can be more that your winnings.

At least you can contact them with your claim, and mention that you will notify the

"Ministerie van Economische Zaken" which is responsible for consumer matters.

Read more
Answered on 9/09/13, 8:03 am


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