Posted on: February 20, 2024, 05:58h.
Last updated on: February 20, 2024, 05:58h.
Oxford Casino didn’t violate state rules when it sent out an accidental promotional email to more than 60K customers, according to Maine officials.
The Maine Gambling Control Board (MGCB) recently said the Oxford, Maine gaming property’s January 10 email mistakenly told recipients they won $250 worth of complementary slot play.
That was followed in an hour by a second email, which corrected the initial message. The follow-up email explained that almost none of the recipients were getting free play.
The initial email was supposed to be sent to only five random customers, according to Maine TV station WGME. Each week, the casino chooses five patrons for the promotional drawing.
Later, Oxford Casino General Manager Matt Gallagher said the mistake “was the result of a human error.” Casino officials quickly notified the MGCB about the error.
But even though the first email was retracted, close to 200 recipients of the message complained to the MGCB, according to WGME.
Staff at the MGCB read the complaints but are not going to take further action against the casino.
MGCB Rules
The email offer accidentally sent to the 60,000 plus recipients and then promptly retracted does not violate Gambling Control Board laws or rules, because the original email was sent accidentally,” the MGCB ruling stated.
MGCB Executive Director Milton Champion further said he read each of complaints, considered the casino’s explanation, and looked at rules for the email promotion, WGME reported.
In addition, Maine’s commercial gaming law allows the casino to reward patrons with free slot play.
For slot promotional credits, the complementary play “must be issued in the form of free play credits on a ticket, voucher, or player card to be used solely to play a slot machine.”
The casino also must file a monthly report detailing the daily allotments of slot promos for patrons totaling $250 or more.
The regulations are found in Chapter 29 of the Maine Gambling Control Board Rules. The section is titled, “Promotional Credits and Other Player Incentives.”
Oxford Casino, owned and operated by Churchill Downs, has almost 1,000 slot machines and 28 table games.
Unhappy Customer
Still, not everyone was happy about the outcome.
One poster on WGME’s website, Dotherightthing65, said he “never got a retraction email. I reached out to the casino the next day and then they replied saying I didn’t win. I filed a complaint and my complaint was ignored.”
