3 Free Spins Scams to Avoid

Know the Facts

As a slots fan, one of the most exciting bonuses you can claim is a free spins offer – guaranteed to add some extra fun to your experience.

These are a staple of most online casinos' promotions, promising players spins on the most popular slot games for a small upfront cost, or sometimes no cost at all.

However, it's crucial that players approach with caution, and always look out for the signs that these offers may not be as generous as they first seem.

Let's take a look at three common free spins scams that players are likely to come across, and find out which bonuses are worth the hype, and which you should avoid.

1. Maximum Cashouts

One of the most common examples to look out for is the maximum cashout.

These limits mean that players can only cash out up to a certain amount, and any money they win from their free spins beyond that amount is forfeited.

Understandably, many players find this the most frustrating term of all, but there are a few ways in which this is acceptable:

• Deposit-to-win ratio – if the amount you are able to withdraw is at least 10 times the minimum deposit to claim the offer (e.g. you can deposit £10 and withdraw up to £100), it's usually worthwhile.
• No deposit required – if there’s no deposit required to claim the offer, meaning it’s entirely free money, then the limit will understandably be low, and this is acceptable.

Ultimately, these limits are only really acceptable if they help casinos manage the risks of offering free or large free spins offers, not if they just exist as a way for casinos to stop punters winning.

Where this becomes a scam is if a casino expects players to deposit £20 to claim the bonus, but the maximum withdrawal is £25.

Although this would still see players potentially leave with a profit, the ratio just isn’t good enough – and there are plenty of bonuses that offer far more lucrative rewards just a few clicks away.

2. High Wagering Requirements

With the exception of no wagering free spins, players can always expect to find wagering requirements attached to any bonus they claim.

However, just because there will be a requirement, doesn’t mean it’s acceptable for the requirement to be sky-high.

Fair wagering requirements are anything in the region of 30-40x, with anything lower than this being considered extremely fair, or at least better than average.

If it’s a higher requirement than 40x, it’s probably not worth your time or money to claim the bonus – even though this may be sometimes acceptable for particularly large cash bonuses, that just isn’t the case for free spins.

3. Huge Minimum Deposits

Like we mentioned above, there are a number of no deposit free spins bonuses on offer to online casino players.

However, these are both very small in value, and increasingly rare to find.

This means that to claim a free spins bonus, you’ll probably have to make a deposit.

The minimum deposit attached to fair free spins bonuses should never be more than £20 – the lower the better. If a casino expects you to deposit more than this, it’s probably not worth it.

In particular, take a look at the value of the free spins you’re claiming relative to the cost to claim them.

In an ideal world you’re at least doubling the value of your deposit, meaning if you deposit £10, you should be getting £20 worth of free spins.

If this isn’t the case, make sure that you’re at least not having to spend much to claim.