There is discretion to turn down consideration of a dispute for one or more of the following five reasons related to the nature of the dispute:
Failure by the complainant to seek redress at the time the incident occurred, by raising the matter with an appropriate member of staff and, if still dissatisfied, with the Duty manager. Where there is still dissatisfaction, the complainant fails to put the complaint in writing to an appropriate director of the company for consideration.
Gambling businesses are generally required as a condition of their licence to resolve the complaint, or conclude that no satisfactory resolution can be reached, within a maximum time of 8 weeks from receiving the complaint. If the complaint remains unresolved at this stage, the company should issue a ‘deadlock letter’ to the complainant that the company has unsuccessfully attempted to resolve the matter with the complainant and that the complainant may now escalate the matter to ADR.
Because the complaint is frivolous or vexatious. A complaint made in such a manner can be characterised in a number of ways including, but not limited to, the following:
Complaints which are obsessive, persistent, harassing, prolific, repetitious.
Insistence upon pursuing unmeritorious complaints and/or unrealistic outcomes beyond all reason and/or pursuing meritorious complaints in an unreasonable manner.
Complaints which are designed to cause disruption or annoyance.
Demands for redress which lack any serious purpose or value.
It should be noted, however, that ADR service will not be refused because of the amount of money being disputed; there is no minimum amount.
If the dispute is currently being, or has in the past been, considered by a court or another ADR entity.
Because the consumer did not submit the dispute within the deadline for the submission of disputes. The deadline cannot be shorter than one year from the date on which the consumer submitted the initial complaint to the Company.
Because dealing with such a type of dispute would otherwise seriously impair the effective operation of Pegasus ADR service, for example where a dispute is too complex and should therefore be best resolved by the courts.