Bitcoin casinos — response times measured in New Zealand, 2026

Bitcoin casinos in New Zealand: what this guide covers, updated September 2026.

Best Online Casino Sites at a Glance for New Zealand Players

  • Betninja Betninja
    Our Rating8.6

    150% First-Deposit Bonus up to NZ$300

    Wagering: 20x. Availability and terms may change. Verify the current offer, eligibility and wagering rules before claiming. 18+.

  • Royal Panda Royal Panda
    Our Rating7.8

    150% Match up to NZ$400 + 50 Free Spins

    Wagering: 25x. Offer availability varies. Review the current T&Cs, eligibility and wagering requirements before claiming. 18+.

  • PlayOJO PlayOJO
    Our Rating8.3

    40 Free Spins for New Players

    Wagering: No wagering. Offer availability varies. Review the current T&Cs, eligibility and wagering requirements before claiming. 18+.

  • Wildz Wildz
    Our Rating8.9

    Free Spins Welcome: 100 Spins on Sign-Up

    Wagering: 30x. Subject to availability. T&Cs apply. Check current eligibility and terms before claiming. 18+.

  • Casino Days Casino Days
    Our Rating7.2

    Free Spins Welcome: 100 Spins on Sign-Up

    Wagering: No wagering. Availability and terms may change. Verify the current offer, eligibility and wagering rules before claiming. 18+.

Best Online Casino Sites Side by Side: Hours, First reply, Verification

Hours, First reply, Verification and 2fa for the 10 operators covered here, compared for New Zealand.

CasinoHoursFirst replyVerification2FA
Betninja08:00–00:002 min24 hoursYes
Royal Panda24/734 min24 hoursYes
PlayOJO24/740 min24 hoursYes
Wildz24/736 min2 hoursYes
Casino Days24/738 min24 hoursEmail code only
JackpotCity08:00–00:0022 min2 daysYes
Jonny Jackpot08:00–00:0022 min2 daysYes
Ruby Fortune08:00–00:0026 min4 hoursYes
Spin Casino08:00–00:0016 min24 hoursYes
SkyCity24/738 min24 hoursYes

Values shown are indicative and compiled for comparison — treat them as a starting point and verify the current terms with the operator. 18+.

How Fast Support Answers: The Realistic Picture

When something goes wrong at a New Zealand online casino, the difference between a five-minute fix and a week of frustration usually comes down to how quickly a human reads your message and what power they have to resolve it. This page sets out the support channels the major operators serving Kiwi players run, the response windows they advertise, the issues players actually raise, and the escalation route that works when the first reply is an obvious template. Licensing and account protection are compared in safe online casino NZ. The same operators are compared from a different angle in our online poker rundown.

Every operator on this page — Betninja, SkyCity, JackpotCity, Spin Casino, Ruby Fortune, Jonny Jackpot, Royal Panda, Wildz, PlayOJO and Casino Days — supports New Zealand accounts, and each publishes support details in its footer or help centre. The figures below describe typical advertised windows and standard industry behaviour; they are an editorial comparison, not the result of a testing programme run by us. Always check the live help section of your account, because hours and channels shift with staff levels and regulatory review periods. Getting the money back out is a subject of its own — our best online casino NZ fast withdrawal comparison covers withdrawal speed and limits. This is picked up again in the leovegas NZ page.

What happens when something goes wrong at Best Online Casino sites in New Zealand?

  • 24 hoursQuickest verification — Betninja
  • 9/10Sites offering full 2FA
  • 5/10Sites with round-the-clock support

Figures in this table are an editorial estimate compiled for this comparison, not an operator quote — limits and timings change. Confirm in the cashier before you deposit. 18+.

Support Channels and How Each One Behaves

Support Channels and How Each One Behaves for players in New Zealand

Live Chat

Live chat is the default channel across the industry, and it is where the shortest wait times sit. Most operators serving New Zealand advertise chat that opens within one to three minutes during peak evening hours, though the first agent is frequently a scripted assistant before a human joins. Because New Zealand sits in a timezone ahead of Europe, chat queues at 9pm NZT often route to night-shift staff, which is why some players report longer waits on small operators after midnight local time. The same operators are compared on payout speed in the best online casino payouts guide. Wagering is what decides an offer's real value — our best online casino bonus NZ comparison compares the terms side by side.

Email

Email remains the channel of record for anything involving documents, complaints or account history. Typical first-response windows run from a few hours to 24 hours, and complex verification or payment cases can take two to three working days to move to a substantive reply. Email is also the channel that produces the paper trail you will need if a dispute escalates. Who runs these sites is covered in the NZ betting sites page. What happens when something goes wrong is covered in the spinz guide.

Phone and Callback

Few international operators still run inbound phone lines, and several of the brands listed here handle telephone contact through scheduled callbacks instead. Where a phone line exists, expect business-hours coverage in the operator's licensing timezone rather than New Zealand hours. Recently launched sites are assessed separately in the new online casinos NZ guide. What a fixed deposit buys at each operator is compared in the cosmo casino guide.

Help Centres and Self-Service

Every operator listed maintains a searchable help centre covering deposit rules, bonus terms, withdrawal processing and account controls. Well over half of routine queries — where is my withdrawal, why did a bonus not credit, how do I set a deposit limit — can be answered there without opening a ticket at all. Response times and escalation routes are measured in wildz casino. What happens when something goes wrong is covered in the video poker guide.

  • Live chat: fastest channel; typically opens in one to three minutes, scripted first tier common
  • Email: first reply usually within 24 hours; complex cases take two to three working days
  • Callback or phone: limited hours; not universal across the ten operators
  • Help centre: instant answers for routine questions; available around the clock
  • Social media: increasingly monitored, but never use it to share account details

Step by step, with timings

Timings are the working values for this comparison; the stage that varies most between operators is marked in the table above.

  1. 1

    Open the ticket in the right channelunder 1 min

    Live chat for anything blocking play, email for anything needing an attachment. Betninja runs support 08:00–00:00.

  2. 2

    First response2 min

    A first reply is not a resolution. Note the ticket reference — without it, a second contact starts the queue over.

  3. 3

    Provide documents once24 hours

    Verification requests are the most common ticket. Sending all documents in one message shortens the round trip more than any other action.

  4. 4

    Escalation24–72 hours

    Ask explicitly for the complaint to be escalated and for the reference. Template replies repeat until the word 'complaint' appears.

  5. 5

    External routeup to 8 weeks

    If the operator's internal process is exhausted, the licence holder's dispute service is the next step — which is why the licence matters.

Response Windows by Operator, As Advertised

The table above lists the current contact windows for each operator, so this section sticks to what the ranges mean in practice rather than repeating the numbers row by row. Larger, longer-established brands such as JackpotCity, Spin Casino and Royal Panda tend to staff chat across more hours because their support teams predate the modern crypto-first wave. Newer operators such as Betninja and Casino Days often lean harder on chat and email with smaller teams, which shows at New Zealand midnight. Wildz and PlayOJO built their reputations partly on streamlined support and publish clear help documentation, while SkyCity carries the extra weight of being a household name in New Zealand itself, so its online arm is expected to match that standard. If the entry cost matters more than the offer size, the $1 deposit casino NZ guide ranks the same sites by it. What happens when something goes wrong is covered in the royal Vegas guide.

A practical rule: judge an operator on its slowest channel, not its fastest. A brand that answers chat in 60 seconds but leaves an emailed complaint unanswered for five days is telling you where it would rather you not look.

Issues Players Actually Raise

Bonus and Free Spins Disputes

The single most common support category concerns bonuses: a Welcome Package not crediting, free spins expiring before use, or winnings voided for exceeding a maximum bet while wagering. These disputes turn entirely on the published bonus rules, so the agent's first question will be whether you read the terms before opting in. Screenshot the promotion page when you claim an offer — it settles arguments about what was advertised. For what is available before funding an account, see our best online casino NZ free spins no deposit comparison. What a fixed deposit buys at each operator is compared in our skycity online casino rundown.

Withdrawal Delays and Pending Periods

Withdrawal queries are the second pillar. A pending period of 0 to 48 hours before a payout leaves the cashier is normal industry behaviour, and additional verification can extend that for larger sums. Players in New Zealand also need to remember that bank processing on top of the pending window adds one to three business days, which is not the operator's fault but regularly generates complaints. The smallest workable deposits are compared in our minimum deposit $1 get $20 NZ comparison. The cost of play is broken down in the PayPal casino NZ page.

Account and Login Problems

Locked accounts, forgotten credentials and repeated password reset failures round out the top three. These are usually resolved fastest in chat, where identity can be checked conversationally before a reset link is issued.

Technical and Game Faults

Sometimes a round of pokies crashes mid-spin, reels freeze during a bonus feature, or a jackpot round disconnects. Agents cannot see your screen, so the resolution depends on the game provider's server record of the interrupted spin — which is why providers, not support agents, make the final call on these cases. What a fixed deposit buys at each operator is compared in the skycity casino Auckland guide. The cost of play is broken down in play free pokies.

  • Bonus not credited or credited at the wrong amount
  • Free spins expiring before they are used
  • Withdrawal sitting in pending longer than expected
  • Identity documents rejected for image quality
  • Password resets and two-factor failures
  • A crashed spin or a disconnected jackpot round
  • Currency conversion questions on NZD deposits

Who Resolves Which Issue Fastest

Matching the problem to the channel is the highest-leverage move a player can make. Money queries that need documents belong in email; anything conversational belongs in chat. As a general pattern, the mainstream brands with the biggest support departments — JackpotCity, Spin Casino and Ruby Fortune among them — turn login issues around fastest because their first-line agents hold reset authority. Bonus disputes take longer everywhere, since agents must quote terms rather than improvise. Withdrawal holds involving verification are the slowest category of all, typically because a second team reviews the file after the first agent collects it. Offers that need no deposit at all are compared in our king billy casino no deposit bonus comparison. Response times and escalation routes are measured in our wheelz casino comparison.

Players comparing operators on our main guide to the best online casino NZ often look first at games and bonuses, yet support depth is the factor that separates a good experience from a bad one once real money is involved. Whether you prefer a site such as Wildz for its streamlined lobby or SkyCity for its local profile, ask the same question before you deposit: how quickly does this operator answer, and who can actually fix things?

Check these before you commit

  • Confirm the numbers in the cashier

    Everything on this page is a comparison estimate; the cashier is the authority. Start with the minimum (NZ$30) and the fee (NZ$2 flat).

  • Complete verification early

    Documents clear in about 24 hours. Doing it before the first withdrawal removes the single most common delay.

  • Set deposit and session limits first

    Tools available: deposit limits, session timer, reality check, cool-off, self-exclusion. They are easier to set before a session than during one.

  • Match the account names

    The bank account name and the casino profile name must be identical or transfers reverse.

  • Keep the payment route consistent

    Depositing with one method and withdrawing to another triggers a manual review at most operators.

Verification Handled as a Support Process

What Triggers Verification

Verification is not an insult aimed at you; it is a regulatory obligation. Most operators trigger it at first withdrawal, at random intervals, or once cumulative deposits and withdrawals cross an internal threshold. Some players first meet it after a winning streak on high-volatility games; others after a straightforward first withdrawal of NZ$50. The full cost of playing for real money is set out in online pokies real money NZ. Response times and escalation routes are measured in Apple Pay.

Typical Timings

Once acceptable documents are uploaded, review commonly completes within 24 to 72 hours across the industry, with the majority of files cleared inside 24 hours. Uploads of unclear images restart the clock, which is why document quality — not operator slowness — is the usual cause of multi-day delays. Whether a newer operator is worth the risk is covered in the best new online casino NZ guide. What happens when something goes wrong is covered in the online slots NZ guide.

How to Keep It Moving

  • Photograph documents flat, in focus, with all four corners visible
  • Use a document that has not expired and shows your full name
  • For address proof, supply a utility bill or bank statement dated within the last three months
  • If a card was used, cover the middle digits but leave the name, expiry and last four digits visible
  • Reply to follow-up requests within the same day to keep your file in one queue

Treat the checks as a normal part of online gambling NZ rather than a hurdle to work around. Completing verification early — ideally before your first withdrawal request — removes the most common source of support friction entirely, and it is a defining feature of any genuinely safe online casino NZ players can trust.

How to Write a Ticket That Gets a Real Answer

How to Write a Ticket That Gets a Real Answer: bitcoin casinos guide for players in New Zealand

Support teams triage hundreds of messages a day, and vague tickets sink to the bottom of the pile. A message that can be answered without a follow-up question moves through the queue in a fraction of the time. The structure below applies equally to chat and email at all ten operators on this page. Welcome packages across these operators are compared in the best casino bonus NZ page. What a fixed deposit buys at each operator is compared in our jackpot city NZ comparison.

  • Use a subject line that names the issue: "Withdrawal pending since 3 June" beats "Help"
  • State your account identifier exactly as the operator requests — never share your password
  • Give dates, amounts in NZD and transaction references where they exist
  • Describe what you expected to happen and what happened instead, in two sentences
  • Attach evidence up front: screenshots of the promotion, the cashier screen or the error message
  • Ask one clear question, so the reply can close the ticket rather than open a thread

Consider the difference. "My bonus didn't work" invites a template. "I deposited NZ$100 on 3 June, entered the promo code shown on your promotions page, and no free spins credited; the cashier shows the deposit as completed. Could you confirm whether the offer was applied to my account?" invites an agent to check a specific record and reply with a specific answer — often the same day. The cost of play is broken down in our online pokies NZ rundown. What a fixed deposit buys at each operator is compared in Trustpilot NZ.

Escalation When the First Reply Is a Template

Step One: Ask for the Agent's Name and a Ticket Reference

Opening a formal record changes how an operator treats the case. Politely request a reference number and the handling agent's name or team. Any operator that refuses to identify a ticket is waving a red flag worth noting for later.

Step Two: Reply Once, Restating the Facts

Templates often arrive because the first message lacked a detail the triage system needed. Reply once, calmly, restating dates, amounts and your original question. Most template loops break at this point, because the case is now tied to a written record an agent must close. The related figures are collected in our no deposit bonus casino rundown. The cost of play is broken down in the Christchurch casino online guide.

Step Three: Request a Supervisor or Complaints Review

Every operator licensed in a recognised jurisdiction runs a formal complaints process with response times set by its regulator, typically measured in days rather than hours. Ask for the complaint to be escalated in writing. If the operator is licensed offshore and unresponsive, your practical options narrow — which is precisely why the licence question belongs on your checklist before you deposit, not after a dispute. See the Christchurch casino online pokies page for background on this topic.

Step Four: External Dispute Routes

Where an operator holds a recognised licence, the regulator's dispute page explains how to lodge a complaint free of charge. Note that regulators generally expect you to exhaust the operator's internal process first, so keep every email.

  • Confirm the ticket reference and agent name in writing
  • Restate facts once, with dates and amounts, and ask one question
  • Request supervisor escalation through the official complaints process
  • Approach the licensing regulator only after the internal route is exhausted
  • Keep a full copy of the correspondence before doing anything else

Answered directly

What does it cost to start?

NZ$30 at Betninja, with None in operator fees. Withdrawals return 10–100 min once approved.

What are the limits?

NZ$2,000 a day and NZ$18,000 a month here, with a NZ$30 minimum on the way out.

Is verification required?

Yes, once — usually triggered around NZ$2,000 in cumulative withdrawals. It takes about 24 hours.

What is in the game library?

4200 titles at Betninja, including 2950 pokies and 80 live tables, from 38 studios.

How responsive is support?

08:00–00:00, first reply around 2 min, via whatsapp, phone, telegram.

This is an editorial comparison, not an operator statement. Timings, limits and fees are indicative and should be checked before you commit money. 18+.

Genuine Signals in a Support Setup

How an operator answers questions before you have deposited is the cheapest due diligence available to a New Zealand player. Open chat with a factual question — "what is your pending period on withdrawals to NZD bank accounts?" — and read the reply critically. A specific answer with a range and conditions suggests a trained team; a generic promise of "instant payouts" suggests a script. What happens when something goes wrong is covered in the galactic wins casino page.

Signs of a well-run operation include named licensing information in the footer, published complaint procedures, deposit and loss limits available directly from account settings, and help documentation that matches the actual cashier. Red flags include chat that exists only to sell deposit bonuses, support staff who cannot name the licence under which they operate, and withdrawal policies that appear nowhere in writing. Judged this way, established names such as Royal Panda, PlayOJO and Jonny Jackpot have historically published clearer self-service documentation than many smaller entrants, though any player should verify the current setup on the live site before committing funds.

What Good Looks Like

A good support setup publishes its hours, answers chat with a named human quickly, confirms every escalation in writing, and offers self-service limits without requiring you to ask. You can typically reach a person in under five minutes and a written answer on a dispute inside a working day. For more context, see our spin city casino comparison.

What Should Worry You

Worry when the only fast thing is the deposit button: slow email replies, chat agents who vanish mid-conversation, and bonus terms that the agent cannot quote. In combination, these behaviours predict how a withdrawal dispute will go.

Common Support Queries About Slots and Pokies

Game-related questions are a distinct support category, and they behave differently from money queries. A player asking why a wild symbol did not substitute on a particular payline, why a scatter failed to trigger free spins, or how the volatility of a pokie affects how often the reels pay will usually receive a pointer to the game's paytable rather than a direct answer, because outcomes are governed by the provider's certified rules. Support agents at operators such as Wildz and Casino Days can confirm the round result from the provider's server log, which settles whether a spin completed, paid or voided — but they cannot and will not overturn a certified random result. When a crash occurs mid-spin, the standard remedy is that the interrupted round is replayed or settled from the server record within a day. Deposit limits decide what the withdrawal minimums mean in practice: 5 dollar deposit casino.

Readers wondering what NZ online casino is best for slots? will find that question answered in depth on our dedicated games page; for support purposes, the relevant point is that the wider the pokie library, the more fault reports route to third-party providers, adding a day to resolution times compared with a smaller, single-studio catalogue of casino games.

Bonus Queries and Where They Get Stuck

Bonus disputes are the category where reading the rules before claiming matters most. Wagering requirements, game weighting, maximum bet while wagering and expiry windows are all published terms, and support agents apply them literally. A free spins offer with a 48-hour expiry is a frequent source of avoidable tickets: the spins were credited, the player returned three days later, and the offer had lapsed. Similarly, wagering NZ$10 per spin on a bonus capped at NZ$5 per spin voids the winnings under every operator's standard terms, no matter how sympathetic the agent may be. If you are chasing the best online casino NZ real money experience, remember that the fastest route to smooth bonus support is claiming fewer offers and reading each one fully — most disputes at every operator on this list trace back to a term the player had not opened.

Hours: the table

Ordered by Hours, best first. These are the working values used across this site, so the same operator shows the same numbers on every page here.

#SiteHoursChannelsID check fromWithdrawal
1Betninja08:00–00:00WhatsApp, Phone, TelegramNZ$2,00010–100 min
2Spin Casino08:00–00:00Email, WhatsAppNZ$2,00025–70 min
3JackpotCity08:00–00:00WhatsApp, TelegramNZ$2,5005–50 min
4Jonny Jackpot08:00–00:00Email, Phone, TelegramNZ$2,00040–85 min
5Ruby Fortune08:00–00:00Live chat, Email, WhatsAppNZ$2,00015–75 min
6Royal Panda24/7Live chat, TelegramNZ$2,50035–65 min
7Wildz24/7Email, WhatsAppNZ$2,50030–75 min
8Casino Days24/7Phone, TelegramNZ$1,00030–45 min
9SkyCity24/7Email, WhatsApp, PhoneNZ$2,50020–110 min
10PlayOJO24/7Email, WhatsAppNZ$1,0005–35 min

Betninja takes the top slot on fastest first response (08:00–00:00). At the other end of the table PlayOJO sits at 24/7 — the spread is the reason this page exists.

Figures in this table are an editorial estimate compiled for this comparison, not an operator quote — limits and timings change. Confirm in the cashier before you deposit. 18+.

New Accounts Versus Established Accounts

New Accounts Versus Established Accounts — bitcoin casinos in New Zealand

Support behaves differently depending on account age. During the first days, expect more friction: identity checks, source-of-funds questions on larger deposits, and longer pending periods on early withdrawals. This is normal and applies across Betninja, Casino Days, PlayOJO and every other operator listed here. Established accounts with a clean history typically move through the cashier faster, qualify for higher transaction limits, and attract fewer ad-hoc checks. The practical implication for a new player is to complete verification proactively, start with modest deposit amounts while the account matures, and avoid requesting a withdrawal in the same hour as a first deposit, which almost always triggers a manual review. Anyone comparing top online casinos NZ on speed alone should weigh this: the same operator can feel sluggish on day one and efficient by month three.

When Larger Amounts Are Involved

Transaction size changes the support equation. Withdrawals above common internal thresholds — frequently in the NZ$2,000 to NZ$5,000 band depending on the operator and payment method — are routinely split for security review, may be paid in instalments over several days, and almost always involve a senior payments officer rather than a first-line agent. High rollers should also expect source-of-funds documentation for cumulative withdrawals in the tens of thousands of dollars. This is not delay for its own sake: anti-money-laundering obligations require it, and an operator that skips these checks is one you should distrust. Our page on what NZ online casino is best for high rollers? covers the limit structures in detail, but the support takeaway is simple: agree the payout plan with support in writing before requesting a large sum, so the schedule and any document requests are on the record. Players chasing the best online casino payouts should treat transparent handling of big withdrawals as a stronger signal than any advertised headline rate.

Support While You Keep Playing

A question that comes up regularly: can you keep playing while a complaint is open? Technically, yes, unless the operator has frozen the account pending review — which it may do when a dispute involves the balance itself. Practical caution is wiser. If a withdrawal dispute is running, avoid depositing again mid-complaint, because it muddies the transaction trail that the review depends on. If the dispute concerns a bonus, stop wagering bonus funds until the terms have been clarified in writing; further play under contested terms weakens your position. And whatever the dispute, keep your tone factual — agents escalate aggressive messages to a different queue, and not a faster one. For the neighbouring question, see the best online casino NZ reviews guide.

Problems, causes and what actually resolves them

What actually goes wrong, what causes it and what resolves it — with the time each fix realistically takes.

SymptomCauseFixTypical time
Template reply that answers nothingFirst-line agent working from a scriptAsk a single, specific question with the ticket reference; multi-part tickets get multi-part templates2 min
Ticket reference lostChat session closed before the transcript was sentRequest the transcript by email at the end of every chatImmediate
Verification stuck in reviewDocuments unreadable or names mismatchedRe-upload flat, uncropped scans with all corners visible24 hours
Withdrawal query bounced between departmentsPayments team handles cashier issues, not first lineAsk for the payments team by name in the first message24 hours
No response outside business hoursSupport runs 08:00–00:00Time the request to the start of the support window, not the end

Responsible Gambling Requests Through Support

Limit and self-exclusion requests are the one support category where speed is a duty, not a courtesy. Every reputable operator must apply a deposit or loss limit immediately when requested, and process self-exclusion without attempting to retain the player. Delays on these requests are a serious red flag. If you are reviewing your own play, you can set limits directly through account settings at Wildz, PlayOJO, Royal Panda and the other operators listed, and support can apply stronger restrictions — such as a cooling-off period or full exclusion — on request, typically effective within 24 hours. Free, confidential help is also available in New Zealand through the national gambling helpline on 0800 654 655, around the clock, and support teams will point you there if asked. There is more on this in our casumo casino comparison.

Support on Mobile Devices

Most New Zealand players now contact support from a phone rather than a desktop, and the mobile experience varies more than the desktop one. Chat windows generally work identically across devices, but document upload through a phone camera can produce oversized or poorly cropped images — the leading cause of rejected verification files. Before uploading from a phone, check the image in your gallery: all four corners visible, text legible, no glare. Players researching the best mobile online casino NZ should add one support-specific test: open the help centre and the chat from the mobile browser or app, and confirm both load and function properly. A site whose chat widget breaks on mobile will be an unhappy companion on withdrawal day, whatever the game performance looks like.

Choosing With Support in Mind

Speed of support should sit beside licence, payment range and game catalogue in any decision about where to open an account. For readers weighing up an online casino bitcoin payment option, add one more check: confirm in chat which currencies and networks the cashier actually accepts, and how crypto withdrawals are handled for verification purposes, before transferring funds. Support teams at forward-looking operators answer these questions precisely; evasive answers tell you what later disputes would look like. The same conversation is a good moment to ask about NZD conversion fees on deposits made through a bitcoin casino NZ, so the true cost of playing is on the record from the start. A separate page, casino games, goes into this in detail.

However you reach your shortlist — through this page's operator cards, the ranked table above, or our directory of live casino and table game specialists — the closing test is the same. Ask a real question in chat, measure how long the first useful answer takes, and file the response. Operators such as SkyCity, Jackpot City, Spin Casino, Ruby Fortune, Jonny Jackpot, Royal Panda, Wildz, PlayOJO, Betninja and Casino Days all pass a basic courtesy test most days; the ones that also answer a hard question precisely, in writing, within a working day, are the ones where your money will be safest when something goes wrong.