Would you ever correct a dealer mistake in your favor?

[Dschddny]

Yesterday the following happened:

The guy next to me got blackjack and the dealer paid him. The guy left his original bet in the circle. Then, when the dealer busted and paid everyone off, he paid the guy again. The guy immediately told the dealer that he had already been paid, and the dealer corrected his mistake.

When the same exact thing happened to me a few hands later, I didn't say a word. I felt a little guilty, but figured it was the "right" thing to do, to try to win as much as I could.

So my question is, would any of you ever correct a dealer mistake in your favor? If most of us saw someone walking ahead of us drop one of their chips, we would probably give it to them rather than pocket it, so why is it different when it's a dealer giving us something we shouldn't be getting?

 

[phantom007]

I usually do.................

especially if the Dealer is being otherwise courteous, helpful, extra pen., etc. I would not want to see someone fired just because I wanted an "extra unit" or two. And definately would not want any "collusion" accusations against myself.

Also, doing same almost always causes "thanks" from the Dealer....I suspect they get Royal Ass-chewings for mistakes that favour the players.

And, of course, it makes you look like an honest ploppy.

phantom007.

 

[SammyBoy]

Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't it just depends on the situation. If the pitboss is nearby and I think I can get some mileage out of it I will point out the mistake. Other times I will act as though I'm not paying attention and take the money without saying a word. I once had a dealer pay my 17 when he had 18. He realized he made a mistake and under his breath said aw shit, but didn't take the money back. It was a place where dealers keep their tips. I played a few more hands gave him a tip and left pretty quickly. I personally do not believe there is a surveillance person watching every single table/game going on. I would bet that 9 times out of 10 no one ever notices dealer errors.

 

[Radar]

In this Case, I wouldn't follow you...unless...

The dealer's an a*hole. If he's decent, I wouldn't try to get mileage because the boss is looking. I wouldn't say anything to draw attention to it. If you do, it probably will cost him some points, maybe even his job. But...if he's not my kind of dealer, I would do the same as you (but for a different reason) and bring it to the boss's attention, as well.

 

[ZOD]

I usually try to be honest, but greed got the better of me last weekend. The count was high, there was no heat, and the dealer was blazingly fast. With a max bet out, I double my 7,4 against a dealer 8. I catch the dreaded ace and groan. The dealer flips up a ten and then PAYS ME OFF! Before I could blink or stammer out a "whoa nellie", the cards were gone and she was waiting for my bet. The other two players at the table were ready so I just pushed another bet out there. She caught a different mistake a few hands later and remarked that it was lucky her shift was just about over. Not for us!

But even with a 32 unit swing on that hand, I still finished the day 58 units down. Karmic debt, I suppose. Sigh...

Best...

ZOD

 

[wong out]

I must be the odd-man out on this one but....hell no! I never count mistakes in my favor; actually try to induce them if I spot a dealer weakness. I expect, however, that the dealer correct any mispays in his favor that I dont catch. I am sure that we all miss a few. BTW - I figure over the years dealer mispays have been pretty lucrative.

wong out

 

[Mr. X]

I'm with Wongout

I will almost always take the overpay in my favor. Only 2 exceptions in which I won't-
1. If it's obvious I can't get away with it (e.g., once at Ftz in Reno, I bought in for $100, and dealer gave me 4 BLACK chips. No way I could get away with that). Also, if a dealer starts walking to my table with the obvious intent to correct the mistake, I'll beat him to the punch)
2. If, for whatever reason, I think it's not in my own best self-interest to do so.

BTW, you are NOT doing the dealer a favor by pointing out the error. Proper procedure is for the dealer to call a floorperson or boss and point out the error. That is a big demerit, especially in the example where he had just paid a blackjack twice, and he did it again, pointing that out can cause him BIG trouble. Shut up and take the money.

 

[Felix Rue-de-Guerre]

Not unless I thought it would make me look bad. While I don't try to induce dealer errors myself, I do actively look for situations where dealer errors are common. i.e. new casinos etc.

Just this weekend the woman sitting next to me corrected the dealer when he was about to pay my push. I had to thank her instead of chewing her out just to save face. Those people are the worst.

So, whatever one's take on correcting dealer errors is, one should never correct positve mistakes against other players. I, myself, am a nice guy. But, I can honestly see getting in some trouble doing this to the wrong person. Because it does make people mad.