Resolved - Tickmill

[perpetual]

The minimum lot size for the symbol XAUUSD suddenly increased from 0.01 to 0.1 last Friday 12/08/2016, did anyone else experience this issue? My EA tried to open 0.01 lot but the server change caused it open 0.1 lot instead, thereby magnifying the loss on my accounts. Tickmill are acknowledging the server error but are denying any responsibility for the loss.

Here is a transcript of my communication with Tickmill on this issue. I am curious to know what others think about it. Should Tickmill be liable for any compensation in this case?

Me:
It appears the minimum lot size and lot step for the symbol XAUUSD has suddenly been increased from 0.01 to 0.1 on the following accounts (...). This error has caused a greater loss than expected on XAUUSD positions today on these accounts. Your prompt response is greatly appreciated.

Tickmill:
Thank you for contacting us. Please restart your MT4 again and check now.

Me:
OK it looks like the problem has been resolved now, could you please advise what caused it and how it will be prevented from occurring again? The following positions were affected because of this error (...). These positions should have been opened with 0.01 lot but were forced to open as 0.1 lot because of your server error. Can these positions be annulled or the difference compensated back onto the accounts please.

Tickmill:
Unfortunately we cannot cancel any trade. You decided to open 0.1 lot and we executed it. In a future, if you will have any issues with trading, please contact us immediately and do not open any unwanted trades.

Me:
You did not respond to my query; could you please advise what caused the issue and how it will be prevented from occurring again? Furthermore, I did not 'decide to open 0.1 lot', the EA uses strict rules and depends on a reliable feed which was not the case last Friday. What occurred is that the EA tried to open 0.01 lot but your server change caused it open 0.1 lot instead, thereby magnifying the loss on the affected accounts, do you understand this?

Tickmill:
The issue happened on the bridge and it was fixed. However if your EA decided to open 0.1 lot it's on your EA side. We cannot control how your EA works. In such case, if you did not want to open 0.1 lot, your EA should just stop working.

Me:
The EA depends on a reliable feed and you have acknowledged there was an error at the bridge last Friday. This error caused the EA to malfunction and subsequently caused a loss. I am distressed at this loss and am losing confidence in the way Tickmill is handling this issue.

 

[danielsoy]

if you did not want to open 0.1 lot, your EA should just stop working.

May be u r using a money maker EA, n they want u out n start playing tricks...

Another stain on the forex´s tiger !

 

[Pharaoh]

This is a difficult one. The question would be was it the broker incorrectly interpreting the EA's simple order for 0.01 or did the EA send something which could be misinterpreted by the broker (like open the minimum)?

 

[perpetual]

The EA sent an explicit request to open the order with a fixed lot size of 0.01 but MT4 ignores it if it's smaller than the minimum. It will open the minimum allowed lot size instead, which was 0.1 in this case. It seems to be the default behavior and MetaQuotes should look to change this to return an error instead. It's only applicable when using the OrderSend() function, not when submitting orders manually, in which case the buttons are disabled in the order panel until the user chooses a lot size greater than the minimum. I've added code in the EA to check the order LotSize >= MinLot before using OrderSend() to prevent this scenario in the future.

 

[Pharaoh]

Ouch. I think I'd be asking the EA seller if there's a way to code it to prevent that. It's also worth sending a complaint to MetaQuotes.

 

[perpetual]

For the record: after much complaining and escalation, Tickmill have turned around and provided partial compensation. I trade a decent amount of volume which might have helped resolve the issue amicably.

They are actually one of the better brokers out there and this was my first incident with them in a while, so kudos to Tickmill.