Frequently Asked Questions

R. M. Prozessfinanzierung GmbH finances civil law proceedings for consumers, for example to reclaim credit processing fees or losses from online gambling. If successful, a fee from 35 percent of the amount awarded applies, and the remaining amount is paid out to you.

No. R. M. Prozessfinanzierung GmbH is a litigation funder and not a law firm. Legal representation is provided by cooperating lawyers. We do not offer legal advice.

You describe your case to us, by phone, by email or via the form: which providers you played with and roughly how high your loss was. We assess the prospects of success and usually get back to you within a few working days with an assessment. The initial consultation is free of charge and without obligation. The work only begins once you instruct us with the funding, before that you incur no costs.

No. As a player you are not committing an offence in Austria. What is prohibited is the offering of gambling without an Austrian licence, not taking part in it. You therefore do not need to fear any criminal consequences if you reclaim your losses with our support.

No, waiting gains you nothing. There are individual landmark proceedings at European level, but a decision will still take a long time. The Austrian courts already rule in favour of players over casino losses today, entirely independently of this. Those who wait only risk that older losses become harder to prove later.

Yes. Communication can take place entirely by email and telephone. In most cases no in-person appointment is necessary. We treat your details confidentially and use them solely for the assessment of your case.

Yes. Please get in touch even if you no longer know the exact loss amount. We will show you how to obtain your data and bank statements, and the cooperating lawyers will assist in determining the claim.

A case often drags on over several years and several court instances, and with providers based abroad a separate enforcement procedure is added on top. Even with smaller claims, the costs can grow to a considerable amount over the duration. A funder must be able to see this through and carry the case to the end. New or small providers with a thin capital base reach their limits more quickly here. R. M. Prozessfinanzierung GmbH has been established on the Austrian and European market for years, with a focus on the DACH region, and finances cases over long periods as well.

Experience in this specialised field often determines the outcome. Lawyers or funders who are outside their field or new to the sector lack the necessary routine. It is also important how multiple claims are handled. Anyone who only picks out the most promising cases leaves you on your own with the rest. We look after your entire bundle of claims and can spread the risk across several cases rather than shifting it onto you alone.

Be careful when a celebrity or actor tells you that reclaiming money from an illegal casino in another EU country or in the Caribbean is completely risk-free and effortless. It is not that simple. This is a serious set of proceedings, and as a rule you have to appear in court in person, only in exceptional cases you do not. Do not let yourself be fobbed off with false promises. We tell you honestly from the outset what to expect.

We advise caution. Quick claim buyouts are often offered on unfavourable terms before you even know your exact loss amount. Such offers sometimes take advantage of a financial emergency. Also bear in mind that court proceedings later on usually require you as the affected person to appear in person anyway. If you have been offered a buyout, we are happy to assess it free of charge and tell you what your claim is actually worth.

Loan agreements with a separately charged processing fee qualify. Whether the fee can be reclaimed depends on the specific agreement, on the time it was concluded and on the respective clause. We assess this free of charge.

Losses at online casinos that do not hold an Austrian licence may qualify. Whether a reclaim is possible depends on the specific provider and on the individual case. Crypto casinos and online poker can be assessed as well. The assessment is free of charge.

Losses at online casinos that hold no Austrian licence may qualify. In Austria, only a single provider holds a licence for online gambling. The offerings of other operators are deemed unlicensed, which is why losses can be reclaimed from the provider under civil law. We assess free of charge whether your case qualifies.

A reclaim is an option for all forms of online gambling without an Austrian licence, for example slots, roulette, black jack, poker and live games. What matters is not the type of game, but whether the operator was active without an Austrian licence. The assessment is free of charge.

What is reclaimed is the money that you paid in and lost yourself. Pure bonus credit granted additionally by the provider is not included in the claim, because it never came from your own assets. As soon as you have paid in your own money, for example to meet the wagering requirements for a bonus, this real-money loss becomes part of the reclaim. In the preparation, this is separated cleanly.

For the reclaim of casino losses, what matters first and foremost is the provider's missing Austrian licence, not your gambling behaviour. However, if a provider ignores a self-exclusion, fails to enforce limits or overlooks recognisable signs of problematic gambling, it additionally breaches player protection obligations. That can further support the case. Please describe such circumstances in the initial consultation.

Not reclaimable are losses with the Austrian licence holder, which holds a valid licence under the Gambling Act, as well as state lotteries such as Lotto, EuroMillionen or Toto. All other losses in online casinos without an Austrian licence are reclaimable in principle. With providers that offer several products, we separate the losses per product and assess the respective applicable basis.

Winnings from games at providers without an Austrian licence cannot be claimed in court, because these contracts are invalid. The real leverage lies elsewhere: the money you deposited and lost can be reclaimed, including from earlier periods. We assess your case and bundle all reclaimable amounts into a single set of proceedings.

Losses at online casinos that settle in cryptocurrencies can also be reclaimed from the provider under civil law, provided it operates without an Austrian licence. Whether this applies in your case depends on the provider and on the individual case. We assess this free of charge.

Losses from online poker with providers that do not hold an Austrian licence can be reclaimed under civil law. The Austrian Supreme Court (OGH) has confirmed in principle that poker losses can be reclaimed. Whether this applies in your case depends on the provider and on the individual circumstances. We assess this free of charge.

Whether losses from sports betting can be reclaimed depends on the provider and on the individual circumstances. We assess this free of charge. You can find detailed information at sportwettenverluste.at.

Sports betting is regulated differently in Austria than unlicensed online gambling. Cases are therefore assessed selectively. A particular role is played by whether a documented gambling addiction exists. We clarify free of charge whether your case qualifies. You will find detailed information at sportwettenverluste.at.

The proceedings are conducted by cooperating lawyers. R. M. Prozessfinanzierung GmbH is a litigation funder and not a law firm and takes on the financing of the proceedings.

The duration depends on the individual case, on the competent court and on the course of the proceedings. A blanket figure is not possible.

In four steps: after you instruct us, we gather the documents, then we call on the provider in writing to pay. If it does not pay, the cooperating lawyers file the lawsuit at an Austrian court at your place of residence, and after the judgment the amount is collected. Some providers pay as early as after the letter, others let it come to court proceedings. If a provider goes fully to trial, the first instance usually takes six to fifteen months.

Filing a claim is almost always possible. What matters is whether a judgment ultimately turns into a payment, and that depends above all on the operator's registered seat. For operators in the EU, cross-border enforcement is generally provided for. In Malta, where many operators are based, a separate law, Bill 55, currently makes it harder to enforce foreign judgments. The European Commission and the Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union consider this law impermissible. A decision by the Court is still pending, so the outlook is likely to improve again. For operators outside the EU, for example in Curaçao, we examine additional routes, such as the operator's assets in Europe or its payment service providers. Before every claim we assess whether enforcement is economically worthwhile, and we tell you that honestly.

In that case we register your claim in the insolvency proceedings. How much is paid out depends on what can still be recovered from the operator. Smaller operators in particular sometimes disappear, which is why we examine before every claim how economically stable the operator is. With shaky operators, the responsible individuals can additionally be held personally accountable, and this still applies even when the company itself has gone under.

Not necessarily, but it does make the case somewhat more complicated. Providers often react to unilateral chargebacks with reminders or by blocking the account, and they like to argue in court that you have already helped yourself. The route through us is cleaner, because the claim is officially established in the end. If you have already made chargebacks, keep the documents, and we will take them into account.

Do not close it on your own initiative. As long as the account is open, you have access to your game history, transactions and messages from the provider, which makes the preparation easier. If the provider blocks or closes the account on its own, this is no disadvantage for your case. In that situation, simply contact us with the provider concerned and the approximate amount of your losses.

Austria has no class action like the one in the United States. Every case is pursued individually against the respective operator, so your claim remains entirely in your hands. When several affected people proceed against the same operator, we bundle this organisationally, which makes us more effective without you giving anything up. Successes in similar cases help the ones that follow.

Yes, claims can become time-barred. Whether and from when this applies in the individual case depends on your situation. An early assessment is therefore advisable.

The assessment of your case is free of charge. You pay no upfront payment for lawyers. If successful, R. M. Prozessfinanzierung GmbH retains a success fee from 35 percent of the amount awarded, and the remaining amount is paid out to you.

Different costs arise in proceedings depending on the case, among others lawyers' fees, court fees and various cost advances for the court, translation and interpreting costs, service costs for the physical service of the claim, consular fees, bank charges for international transfers and, with providers abroad, the fees for enforcement. R. M. Prozessfinanzierung GmbH bears the pre-financing of these litigation costs. You pay no upfront payment for lawyers and advance no litigation costs out of your own pocket. A fee applies only if successful, from 35 percent of the amount awarded.

Our success fee starts from 35 percent of the amount won. The exact level depends on the effort and complexity of the proceedings. More demanding cases, hard-to-reach providers or proceedings across several instances take more time. For crypto casinos the fee is from 45 percent because of the greater effort involved. If your case can exceptionally be resolved before a lawsuit in a pre-litigation settlement, the fee is 19 percent of the amount achieved. We discuss the specific fee with you in the free initial consultation or after you have described your case to us in writing.

The success fee is only charged in the event of success. If there is no success, you pay no fee. The proceedings are conducted by cooperating lawyers at our cost, and you pay no upfront payment for lawyers.

There is no rigid minimum amount. Whether proceedings are economically worthwhile depends on the individual case, for example on the provider and on the size of the losses. We discuss this openly with you during the free assessment.