Gambling is a chance-based endeavor. That means that when someone goes to a brick-and-mortar locale or pops open an online casino US site to enjoy gaming products, the outcomes generated by their chosen games cannot rely on skill. Instead, they are always 100% random. Hence, anything gamblers do to lower the arbitrariness of the result creation process gets called advantage play, which gets frowned upon by operators looking to protect their interests.
Know that, like any other business, a real money casino also has the right to refuse services to specific individuals. Under federal law, any company in the US has the authority to turn away customers, boasting the legal right to decline the goods and services they deliver.
Therefore, if gamblers do something that physical or safe online casinos do not like, they may find themselves at the end of a ban, rightfully or unjustifiably. That decision is entirely in the hands of operators offering games of chance online and offline, who sometimes can overly harshly punish players who have attempted to bend the rules or those who know how to tilt the odds in their favor to get the most for their gaming buck.
Backed Off is a phrase referring to a casino refusing or limiting their service to specific players.
What Is a Backoff in a Casino?
Getting backed off doesn’t always refer to getting 100% banned from entering the doors of a casmino or stopped from playing casino games at one of the platforms listed on our casino reviews page. Yet, in most cases, it’s the first step in that direction. It also can mean that an operator has put distinct gameplay restrictions in place for players they are suspicious of, believing they are taking advantage of the system. As mentioned, these gamblers get called advantage players.
By definition, getting backed off means that an operator won’t accept a gambler’s action any more. Or, they’ll limit the size of their wagers. They may also place a stipulation upon them, forcing said gamblers to only partake in flat betting, which is wagering the same amount for every hand/round they play.
As a rule of thumb, it is hard to get backed off when gambling via online blackjack, slots, or other internet iterations of classic casino products on the Web. Online operators are far more likely to ban individuals they perceive as offending users. They rarely choose to limit someone’s gameplay.
Who Perdominatly Gets Backed Off?
In the brick-and-mortar gambling sector, without a doubt, casino patrons who are the most at risk of getting backed off are those who engage in card counting. That is the practice of keeping a mental tally of the cards in play to determine whether the dealer or player has an advantage in the upcoming hand. When done successfully, it nullifies the operator’s house edge. Actor Ben Affleck famously got kicked out and banned from the Hard Rock casino in Las Vegas in 2014 for counting cards. Operators don’t like customers who win more often than they lose.
- Casino bonus abusers
- Card counters
Online, the chief cause for gamblers getting their accounts closed or users getting put on ice is casino bonus abuse. That entails the same players claiming one promotion many times over, utilizing different IP addresses to create multiple accounts.
Ben Affleck has been famously gotten backed off from several Las Vegas casinos.
What Happens When You’re Backed Off?
When a gambler gets backed off, first by a pit boss, and then his ban gets officially enforced, his identity goes into a database of players whose gambling privileges have gotten revoked. It is super hard to circumvent this block these days because of casinos implementing facial recognition software paired with their eye-in-the-sky camera systems. Moreover, most blackjack players who count cards, and any other gamblers seeking to tweak the rules to win, likely have player cards to lead to extra perks at their chosen establishment. These have their first and last name and other personal information. Therefore, casino operators know who they are dealing with, as they have their details on file. They can simply identify them the next time they are on their property, trying to bet.
In the digital sphere, companies that run mobile casino sites keep player info on file five years after account closure. That means that it is virtually impossible for an online gambler to make a withdrawal if they have gotten backed off or entirely banned because taking money out of a gambling website’s balance, most often, entails going through a KYC process. In this procedure, users must supply an ID and proof of address to get their winnings.
What to Do if You’re Caught Counting Cards
It is crucial to grasp that casinos are not obligated to allow anyone to continue playing. If someone is winning too much, old-school pit bosses may first send in a casino cooler to see if their luck turns before barring them from the property. Coolers are extremely unlucky individuals whose bad fortune tends to rub off on others. At least, that is the Las Vegas superstition that drives this custom.
Essentially, a gambler cannot do anything if they get caught counting cards except plead with the venue’s management that they did not engage in the practice, asking them to keep letting him play at their locale. They may also inquire about getting to keep playing with specific restrictions in place, such as wagering rules. However, both requests are unlikely to get accepted, as operators usually stand firm on their backed-off decisions.
Wearing disguises to sneak back into an establishment is not a good idea either. Growing a beard and putting on some glasses is also unlikely to fool anyone. Eventually, an operator will catch on to such a ruse.
One thing to remember is that anyone suspected of counting cards will initially get approached by a pit boss or a floor manager and asked to produce an ID. Yet, since casino employees are not officers of the law, players are under no obligation to show them any identification. They can easily walk away from the establishment at such a request.
If a gambler has no player card, it is wise to avoid sharing personal data with the casino staff, as that can lead to this information getting entered into an advantage player database, which can limit their possibility of betting at that operator’s associated properties. Though, video surveillance can provide enough data for casinos to spot known advantage players in the future.
There is no law that bans card counting in any US state. Hence, the practice is 100% legal.
Is it Illegal to Ban Card Counting at Any US Casinos?
Counting cards or any other type of advantage play is not illegal. Players who engage in it are not doing anything wrong. No one will face legal ramifications for trying to gain an edge over a gambling operator. No federal or state US laws state that people cannot count cards in any game, a defense most counters are quick to pull.
Nevertheless, given that casinos are private properties, they can kick anyone they wish out, stating that if these ejected individuals saunter back onto their gaming floors, they will be trespassing, leading to them getting asked to leave again.
Unfortunately, card counting in online casino games for real money is not an option. That applies to both software-powered and streaming picks.
