WHAT HAPPENED? 
Xavier J. placed some sports bets with Play Alberta, the province’s only regulated gambling website, which is administered by the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC). One of the bets was on a hockey game—even though Xavier picked the winning team, Play Alberta called it a loss when the game went into overtime. Another bet was on a baseball game. Again, Xavier’s team won, but he lost the bet when the game was rained out. Frustrated with the missing payouts and having trouble resolving the issue himself, Xavier complained to the Ombudsman.
WHAT DID THE OMBUDSMAN’S OFFICE DO?
Xavier’s complaint was one of the first our office received about Play Alberta. We reached out to the AGLC to learn about the processes Play Alberta used for determining outcomes for bets on sporting events. After asking questions and reviewing the rules, it was evident that there was some confusion about how different outcomes affected different types of bets.
WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME?
The AGLC worked with Play Alberta to make changes, both to the internal policy and to relevant public-facing information. The different types of tickets and possible outcomes are now more clearly defined. The AGLC also decided to compensate Xavier for the tickets that appeared to be wins.
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Clarity can be a critical ingredient for a fair process. Our questions can uncover and resolve areas of ambiguity, which improves fairness not just for an individual complainant but for everyone else.
