2023’s Guide to casinos and sportsbooks to avoid

Clunky games that freeze without warning are entirely unacceptable in today’s market, and sites reported for issues such as these appear on our list of sites to avoid. Games must be fast, reliable and safe to meet our standards.

Fairness is of the utmost importance for online casinos, which is why the best casinos publish RTP rates for all of their games. Casinos offering games with unfair RTP rates should be avoided, and sites can be added to our list of sites to avoid as a result of this. Likewise, rigged software can also land a site on the list.

Even the best online casinos are subject to player complaints from time to time. It’s the amount of complaints and the ways in which they are addressed that really matters. A complete failure to address complaints often leads to a casino being added to our list of sites to avoid.

Almost all casinos have a dedicated customer support team on hand to deal with any problems or queries players may have. However, casinos on our list of those to avoid often fail to provide this service. If a casino does not list contact information for its team, this should immediately be regarded as a red flag. An unresponsive customer support team can also cause a casino to be added to our list.

Online casinos must operate under a license from an authority such as MGA, and the details of this license should be clearly displayed on the website. You’ll often see it listed on the about page, and in the footer of the homepage. If the casino doesn’t hold a valid licence it will be added to our list of sites to avoid.

Security is hugely important for online casinos, and good sites go to extreme lengths to protect their players’ details. Rogue casinos do not provide adequate security features or encrypted connections, leaving players vulnerable to significant risks such as identity theft and fraud.

If a casino’s withdrawal process feels more like an obstacle course, or we hear reports of an online casino not paying out, it can quickly find itself on our list of sites to avoid. Once a player requests a withdrawal, funds should appear in their chosen account or digital wallet within the timeframe stated.

Most casinos offer a good selection of different payment and withdrawal methods, making life easy for players. However, if a casino offers just a handful of withdrawal methods that aren’t widely supported, this can cause it to be added to our list of sites to avoid. Look out for sites offering withdrawals to popular payment methods.

Some bonuses come with incredibly complex terms and conditions, designed to make it difficult for players to understand the details of the offer. In other cases, bonuses are presented without a complete list of terms, so players are in the dark about playthrough requirements. We recommend players avoid sites offering unclear promotions.