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Customer says he was promised cash-back

If I won £1.5 million, I’d be over the moon. But if I thought I should have had another quarter million, well, there is a chance I’d feel a bit perturbed. Such is the case with Croatian businessman Juste Puharic, who wagered £27,057,621 at The Park Lane Club in London from May 26 to May 30, 2016. He came away from the roulette table £1.5 million richer, but is now suing the casino for £243,518 that he says was promised to him as a promotion.

Puharic says that The Park Lane Club, located in the ritzy Mayfair area of London, offered him a 0.9% cash-back deal in order to convince him to play at the casino. The fraction of a percent on the stakes he gambled would have come out to the £243,518 to which he believes he is entitled.

Christopher Bamford, Puharic’s attorney, told London’s High Court that a member of the casino’s staff approached his client on the street and took him out for coffee and dinner. During the “wine and dine” session, the staff member said The Park Lane Club would match or beat any offer that Mayfair’s other casinos might offer.

Puharic said he was getting 0.9% of his stakes at other clubs, win or lose, so that is allegedly what the casino offered him and hence why he played there.

Casino says no such offer was made

Of course, the casino begs to differ. Guy Olliff-Cooper, attorney for Silverboard Enterprises, The Park Lane Club’s owner, said that the casino was not as committal on its alleged offer as Puharic remembers: “It may have said that the club would do its best to be competitive and would therefore consider matching terms that Mr. Puharic received elsewhere.”

It appears that “consider” is the key word there. Olliff-Cooper said the casino made “no formal offer.”

He also said that the staff member who spoke with Puharic was “not particularly interested” in attracting Puharic as a customer as was “simply trying to be polite.”

He readily admitted that various offers and incentives could be made to attract customers – we of course know this – but nothing like the 0.9% cash-back offer was put forth. In fact, Olliff-Cooper noted, if something resembling that was ever offered, it would only be a discount on losses, not if the player wins.

So what do we think?

It certainly seems like one of the sides is lying or there was simply a miscommunication. Puharic does have a very specific recollection of his meeting with the staff member and an exact cash-back percentage.

Considering how wealthy he apparently is and that he had played at Mayfair-area casinos since 2002, it is likely The Park Lane Club knew him. That he was taken out to dinner just because a staffer was being nice seems odd. If this writer were to guess, if we’re going to give the casino the benefit of the doubt and say they aren’t straight-up lying, it seems like the casino is downplaying the meeting at the very least. I am going to guess that (again, assuming the casino isn’t flat inventing a story) a deal was discussed, never confirmed, and Puharic just misunderstood. If there was a cash-back offer made on losses, the casino would have said so in court.

Despite casinos being included in Stage 3 of the province's reopening plan, Gateway Casinos London won't be opening its doors Monday.

Rob Mitchell, director of communications and public affairs with Gateway Casinos & Entertainment Ltd., confirmed in an email that they currently have no set time for reopening any Gateway locations.

On Monday, Premier Doug Ford unveiled plans for Stage 3, which would see gathering limits increase to 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors starting this Friday.

Read more: Ontario reopening Stage 3: Gathering limit increasing as indoor dining, gyms permitted to reopen

Under Phase 3 of Ontario's reopening plan, casinos will be allowed to reopen with some restrictions. Both table games and buffets will not be permitted.

“We have developed extensive health and safety plans for each site, which includes two metres physical distancing, rigorous cleaning and sanitation measures and the mandatory use of masks or face coverings for all individuals entering our gaming sites,” Mitchell said in an email.

Before the casino can reopen, Mitchell said the plans need to be independently reviewed by a health and safety expert and submitted to the regulator, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).

Read more: Coronavirus: London gyms and theatres ready for Stage 3 reopening

“We’re moving forward as a province, but we can’t stop. We won’t stop until we get every person in Ontario — until we get every worker in Ontario back to work and back on their feet. But today’s news is an important step forward,” Premier Doug Ford said during the announcement Monday.

Ford said the government will provide an update every Monday on regional reopenings.

Also reopening in Stage 3 are gyms, movie theatres, and playgrounds. Restaurants and bars are also allowed to open up inside in addition to the patios they were allowed to open in Stage 2.

Casinos In England

Attractions like galleries, zoos, museums, performing arts venues will be able to reopen — again, with public health measures in place.

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— With files from Ryan Rocca, Global News