We wanted to share with you our experience getting a FanDuel Sportsbook account set up in Pennslyvania. PA passed the bill to allow a sports bettor(YOU) from PA to bet on their site.
There are a few other sportsbooks in PA that allow this as well. We will continue to discuss all of the different sportsbooks in PA as time goes on.
The growth of this industry will most likely continue all over the country. One State at a Time is How We See it.
Sports betting in PA is new to both brick and mortar casinos and online. At the casino themselves, you walk up to a little kiosk and put in your bets. You don’t have to fumble around telling the bookie behind the counter some bad decision. Sometimes making bets can be personal. In the case of the kiosk, you’ll have it all to yourself.
The online sportsbooks in PA work a bit differently.
Here is a look at getting an account set up and dealing with FanDuel support for PA.
Was it Easy? Yes and No
Live Chat Transcript – New Account Set-Up
This is the actual chat transcript from setting up our first account in PA. Creating an account from a PC should be pretty straightforward, Right?
Although there were about 50 people in the queue it only took us about 10 minutes to get a hold of someone on their system. We weren’t in any real rush but no one has time to wait on hold. Overall it was a decent chat experience. Below is the transcript of what happened. We were having issues because our location wasn’t getting verified. We’ll discuss this below.
(02:32:53) *** Perky joined the chat ***
(02:32:53) Perky: It’s saying I’m not verified in PA. I’m sitting in PA right now.
(02:32:55) Customer Service: Thank you for contacting us! The first available representative will be with you shortly.
(02:32:55) Customer Service: To help us get a quicker resolution to your question, please now provide your full Date of Birth and Zip Code so that we can verify your account.
(02:33:55) Customer Service: We apologize for keeping you waiting. Our agents are still assisting other customers at the moment. Have you been to our help center? You can ask your question here https://fanduelsportsbook.zendesk.com/hc/en-us about sports rules, funding, logging in, and promotions.
(02:41:33) *** Dionne joined the chat ***
(02:41:56) Dionne: What device are you using?
(02:42:24) Perky: hi
(02:42:25) Perky: PC
(02:43:01) Dionne: Is the PC hardwired or wireless?
(02:43:13) Perky: hard
(02:43:24) Perky: I have the plugin
(02:43:32) Perky: logged out several times
(02:43:36) Perky: cleared cookies
(02:44:24) Dionne: Unfortunately, since the PC is hardwired, it’s not compatible with our Location software.
(02:44:36) Dionne: You will need to use a different device.
(02:44:57) Perky: Ummm
(02:45:36) Dionne: If the PC is hardwired, it will not work
(02:46:21) Perky: really?
(02:47:14) Dionne: The device must be wireless. I am sorry for any inconvenience.
(02:47:41) Dionne: Is there anything else I can assist you with?
(02:48:28) Perky: Will this change in the future
(02:49:05) Dionne: Unfortunately, no.
(02:51:20) Perky: If I get it up on my other mac how will I get the free refund bet?
(02:52:57) Dionne: If the first wager is settled as a loss, you will get a refund via site credit within 72 hours
(02:53:53) Perky: Is it just automatic or do I have to click a link or click an offer button?
(02:54:44) Dionne: It’s automatic on the first wager placed on the account. It must settle as a loss.
(02:55:21) Perky: Okay
(02:55:23) Perky: thanks.
(02:56:10) Dionne: You’re welcome
(02:57:04) Dionne: Have a Great Day and thank you for Choosing FanDuel Sportsbook
What Did We Learn?
We knew things would be strict but we didn’t know how strict. The mention of a location plugin seemed fair but we didn’t think it would be that tricky. It was very easy to download the 1.2MB of software. It installed on our PC and we were trying to login to the FD sportsbook site. We kept getting the location verification errors. This is why we contacted support. You can see based on the support representatives chat that we can only use a wireless device. This includes anything that is wireless. Had our PC been on wifi it would have been fine.
We all have wireless devices these days but sometimes you just want to do things on a big screen. Since my PC was hard-wired it didn’t work with their location verification plugin. Once I learned this was the problem I pulled up my MacBook and installed the plugin. I went to the site and everything worked perfectly. It took 10 seconds to verify but then it worked. I also installed the app on my iPhone which is pretty decent. I was able to place bets immediately without much hassle since the wireless device automatically uses location services.
Things to Consider
If you plan to leave the state this will be of concern. The only way to actually place the bet is to be in the state of PA. A bit strange but rules are rules. When we opened the account the promo they were offering was a full refund on your first bet if you lost. Turns out we lost our first bet and they fully refunded our account 24 hours later.
Here is a look at what happens when you cross the border into another state. We live close to the Ohio border and had to travel into Ohio. We decided to test the verification process. Within 2 miles of the Ohio state border, we tried logging into FanDuel. It worked and our location was verified.
We then logged out of our account and waited until we got to the actual border. We tried logging into our account once again right at or just past the borderline and you can see in the image what happened. It couldn’t verify that we were in PA anymore. In this case, we were not in PA. We were not able to make a wager once we were in Ohio. Lesson – If you plan on traveling be sure to get all of your bets in before leaving the state. Strict GPS guidelines are in place.
FanDuel is making strides in the US market, at least in NJ, PA, and WV. They will most likely get bigger as more states add sports betting. We had a good first run with the support and getting set up. Hopefully, they will make some of these things a little more clear for people who are new.
Good luck and remember to read our FanDuel PA review before you open your new account.
