$57 Million Slot Machine Win Blamed on Software Error, Casino Won't Pay

[Andy Chalk]

$57 Million Slot Machine Win Blamed on Software Error, Casino Won't Pay

A man who won $57 million from a slot machine is taking the casino to court after it told him it was a software error and refused to pay up.

It was a very good day for Behar Merlaku of Switzerland when a slot machine at an Austrian casino went bells-and-whistles bananas, telling him he'd won the grand prize of $57 million. But it quickly turned into a very bad day when he attempted to claim his prize and was told by the casino owners that a software error had triggered the machine and that they weren't going to pay up. They offered him $100 and a free meal instead, and he, quite naturally, told them to get bent.

In the casino's defense, the top prize is meant for a five-slot match and Merlaku apparently only matched four slots, but the machine said he won and in his mind, that's all there is to it. So he's taking the casino to court in what is considered the largest claim of its kind ever and one to which casino operators around the world are paying very close attention.

"The jackpot came up loud and clear. There was music and the sum I had won - nearly €43 million - was displayed on the screen," Merlaku said in an interview on Austrian television. "I was so overjoyed and in my head I began calculating what I could do with all this money."

Merlaku and his lawyers are holding a press conference tomorrow to outline their case against the casino, which is slated to begin next month. But he may have shot himself in the foot: evidence that only four of the five slots were matched came from Merlaku himself, who recorded a video of his big win on his cell phone.

Source: Digital Trends [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2072802/Man-wins-37m-fruit-machine-jackpot--offered-60-free-meal-instead.html]

(photo [http://www.flickr.com/photos/tedmurphy/2875826798/])


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[TimeLord]

They should pay up. It told him he won, so he should win. Whether only 4 of the 5 slots came up is kinda irrelevant in my opinion when the machine is blaring noises and victory music at you and you are stuck dumb with a sum of ?43 million that you think should be yours!

 

[Agow95]

If it was a computing error, which not actually getting all five slots but "winning" indicates, then he shouldn't get the money, because he actually didn't win, the machine said he did, but machines can be wrong, and the casino shouldn't suffer for it.

 

[Felgy76]

The 'Software Error' clause is in every casino. The one I used to work at had it written on every slot machine, "Malfunction voids prize wins".

 

[Something Amyss]

Up next: We're sorry, you did match all five slots, but it was only due to a mechanical error.

 

[Davih]

I want him to get the money, but should he get it? No idea, because I've no idea what I am meant to be looking at in that photo.

 

[Formica Archonis]

Here's a question: If it had pulled up 5 reels and NOT screamed he won, would the casino have gleefully paid out anyway?

 

[Scarim Coral]

I wonder if he took a printscreen when he supposely claim his prize?
Honestly I would properly done the same thing or at least settle it for more than $100 and a meal.

 

[omega 616]

If it was a computing error, which not actually getting all five slots but "winning" indicates, then he shouldn't get the money, because he actually didn't win, the machine said he did, but machines can be wrong, and the casino shouldn't suffer for it.

What about if it was mechanical error that the wheel never spun all the way, so it looked like he only got 4 but the computer read it as getting 5 ... like a wheel got jammed, so couldn't spin but the computer still read it as being correct.

 

[OniaPL]

I want him to get the money. If it tells the dude that he won, they better pay up in my mind. Fuck software errors.

 

[DiMono]

It is the casino's job to make sure their machines are in working order, and if one is not then it's their responsibility to unplug it and show it as out of service. He gambled his money in good faith, and the machine told him he won. The casino should pony up.

 

[teebeeohh]

so basically a casino could just only have machines with software errors and use that to just decline any big winnings. Because they sure as hell wouldn't have done anything if a software error resulted in the guy winning 100$

 

[CrystalShadow]

It is the casino's job to make sure their machines are in working order, and if one is not then it's their responsibility to unplug it and show it as out of service. He gambled his money in good faith, and the machine told him he won. The casino should pony up.

Exactly. And if they can't cope with this happening, well...

1. Check your software more carefully in future.
2. Don't set prizes at that kind of level if you can't afford the consequences of someone actually winning it. (I mean, 43 million Euros? That must be one hell of a wealthy casino...)

 

[iniudan]

If it was a computing error, which not actually getting all five slots but "winning" indicates, then he shouldn't get the money, because he actually didn't win, the machine said he did, but machines can be wrong, and the casino shouldn't suffer for it.

A machine is never wrong, only those who programmed, build and maintain it, at least outside of true AI research field.


EDIT: had forgot maintenance

 

[Notthatbright]

He's wrong, and he should have taken the $100. At least that is the case with Casinos in the US. Casinos take that stuff very seriously and even settling out of court would just attract other people looking to game the system.

I know people are saying "The casinos can just claim all winnings as software glitches" but let me tell you why that's not the case. In Nevada if a Casino claims an error then the company technicians have to prove it and the Gaming Commission does an investigation on all of the machines of that game.

And secondly, you WANT to pay out winnings occasionally at a casino. But it's already carefully set up to only pay out once per # of plays (like 10,000 or more) so the casino makes its cut.

The Casinos in the US make billions per year. They don't need help from random malfunctions.

 

[weirdee]

So, it's like, they don't have to pay up if they can say it's a software error (which you hear coming up every now and again when somebody kind of wins a big prize), but they don't acknowledge the fact that many people were feeding money into a supposedly defective machine, and that those people were never compensated for playing a zero odds game. By law, all machines have to list their odds and payouts, and if this list does not accurately represent the machine's real odds or they can't guarantee consistency, then it might constitute some sort of fraud.

Hence why they have to drag all these people out for verification.

However, it's difficult to say if the system doesn't already heavily lean towards the casinos, and that the ones who do operate the machines have enough inside knowledge that they can manipulate the results in their favor. And how would you even rule in this case? The machine may simply be rigged so that such a win appears to be an error unless they need somebody to win for publicity, and a broken machine and a machine built to be broken is hard to differentiate.

Ideally he should have taken the settlement, because it would be a very tough and long case which probably won't win, but who even knows what he's after now?...

 

[Pandabearparade]

Yeah, I hope he sues them for the 57 million -and- a few million extra just for being dickheads.

 

[JaceArveduin]

He's wrong, and he should have taken the $100. At least that is the case with Casinos in the US. Casinos take that stuff very seriously and even settling out of court would just attract other people looking to game the system.

I know people are saying "The casinos can just claim all winnings as software glitches" but let me tell you why that's not the case. In Nevada if a Casino claims an error then the company technicians have to prove it and the Gaming Commission does an investigation on all of the machines of that game.

And secondly, you WANT to pay out winnings occasionally at a casino. But it's already carefully set up to only pay out once per # of plays (like 10,000 or more) so the casino makes its cut.

The Casinos in the US make billions per year. They don't need help from random malfunctions.

Isn't it that they have to pay out roughly 80% of what they take in? Can't remember exactly how that nugget got in my head, but meh.