Online Casinos: Psychology: Reverse Times

Many players who play at online casinos will be familiar with the concept of “reversing” a cashout. This is where you get lucky, cash some money out and a little later decide to reverse it into your account to play with it. The timeframe in which you have this option following a cashout varies from casino to casino and is often referred to as the “Reverse Withdrawal” or “Reverse Pending“.

Not all online casinos implement this feature - it largely depends on the software platform they have licenced as to the policy they adopt. It is not generally a popular feature with players as this poll proves, but there are two sides to every coin and this article examines the psychology behind it, both from the player and the casino’s perspectives.

As a player, ultimately you want to win and while most players realise that this isn’t always possible, you at least want to feel like you had a good experience. The casino is also keen that you should feel positive, but at the same time they need to find a balance that means the player is happy and the casino turns a profit.

The implementation of the Reverse Pending function has three primary benefits for the casino: to protect against fraud, to reduce the overhead of deposit and withdrawal fees they are obligated to pay to banks and eWallet payment processors and from a more cynical viewpoint, to encourage a player to play rather than cash out.

When it comes to fraud, unfortunately there are a lot of “players” who will attempt to flout the rules by opening multiple accounts, using stolen credit cards or engaging in money laundering and it is not unusual to find a first withdrawal by a player is subject to a delay while ID’s and documents are checked. During this time, any funds withdrawn by the new player will often be kept in a “Reversable” state. It’s a pain in the ar$e for legitimate players, but unfortunately it is a necessary evil. Some casinos will actually do a “manual flush” on request from the player in this event, which means they will make the withdrawal funds inaccessible while these checks are carried out, and that is to their credit.

The fees imposed by payment processors can be substantial - up to 12% in some instances - and are payable by the casino on every deposit and withdrawal made by a player. You can see why a casino is keen to keep these to a minimum and low-rolling players are often seen as loss leaders as a result. But it’s the third of our three casino benefits that is the sticking point - the player playing it back - and this is where psychology becomes a key factor. A casino wants a player to stay long term, while a player wants to feel like they are being treated well.

Speaking as a player, the Reverse Pending time at an online casino is one of the single most important aspects that determine whether I become a long term player. It is not uncommon to find a 24 hour Reverse Pending period in place and for me, that just doesn’t work. I have a tendency to chase my losses and unless the casino operates a quick “manual flush” policy, over a 24 hour period I will invariably chase a chunk of my withdrawal back. This leaves me with a very negative feeling towards the casino even though the casino, quite rightly, would argue that it’s my fault. I feel that they are missing the point.

If something gives a player a negative vibe, the casino should be concerned. In this instance they may have avoided paying me a withdrawal thus avoiding a fee and making a profit. But I won’t be sticking around. I have played online casinos for 5 years and in my role as an affiliate I have downloaded and played somewhere in the region of 100 online casinos. Those I like, I keep and play at regularly. I currently have accounts at around half a dozen casinos and it is no coincidence that all of them offer a very low Reverse Pending period (1 hour or less) or they do a very quick manual flush.

Sometimes, at industry conferences, I ask casino representatives why they insist on having long Reverse Pending periods for loyal players who have been through the ID and documentation process and are clearly not fraudulent players. The reduction of processing fees is a factor, but more often than not the principle reason is that they hope the player plays the money back. Psychologically, this strikes me as bad business when you consider how this leaves the player feeling. You won, but you lost it all back before you could withdraw. That isn’t a good feeling and most players will take steps to avoid doing it again and for me, that involves an uninstall. Even for “unknown” players, it seems to me that a sensible practice would be to offer a “manual flush” service at the very minimum.

Of all the casinos I have played, only one offers the player the service of choosing their own Reverse Pending period. While a few online casinos don’t use the Reverse Pending option (mainly because of the software they use I suspect), there are only a handfull more who have a Reverse period of less than 24 hours (source: A-Z of Online Casinos) and only a few offer a manual flush service too.

If I ran an online casino, I would want the player to get as close to a personalised level of service as possible in order to retain them. I’d like to see online casinos re-visit their policy on Reverse Pending periods, think about the psychological effect on players and consider offering a flexible service, if only to VIP’s and loyal players. It just makes sense. If a player is happy, they will keep coming back and long term it’s a win-win.

Author: Online Casino UK

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