Fears over losing out on £1million Lotto jackpot due to little-known mistake after hidden rule in smallprint is revealed
YOU could lose out on a £1million Lotto jackpot due to a hidden rule in the small-print.
Sub-postmaster Gerald Lowery, 67, has warned scratchcard players over the little-known mistake.
Gerald sells National Lottery scratchcards at his Post Office branch in the Cumbrian village of Millom.
Earlier this year a customer came in to claim a £5 prize on their scratchcard.
But Gerald spotted the scratchcard had been accidentally sold after its expiry date.
A baffled Gerald refunded the customer himself – saying it was lucky they hadn’t won the £1million jackpot.
If you scratched off the maximum £1million Scratchcard prize, you could lose out if your winning ticket expired before sale.
Gerald was puzzled why the out-of-date ticket had slipped through and flagged the problem with lotto operator Allywn.
The firm told him that he had missed the deadline to sell the scratchcard pack – and could not get a refund for unsold cards.
Gerald told The Sun: “I haven’t done anything wrong, but I’m out of pocket.”
He put the pack on sale in September 1 last year, two months before the deadline for “activating” them.
The last day where he could officially sell the cards was January 29 this year, and the deadline for players to claim their prizes was July 27.
Gerald kept the cards on sale on the understanding Allwyn would not send a new pack until the old one had sold out.
He said he must have accidentally sold a scratchcard after the January 29 deadline, but is confused how it could have happened.
The sub-postmaster said he was used to the old system where Post Office middlemen dealt with longtime Lotto operator Camelot.
Under the old system, Post Office officials would refund shopkeepers for any unsold cards.
But new operator Allwyn deals with shopkeepers directly – and Gerald likely fell foul of the small print while adjusting.
He said the rule changes have left him out of pocket even though he has done nothing wrong.
Gerald said: ” I am just disappointed in Allywn and very wary of them.
“They’ve had people come to visit my shop and they were of no help whatsoever. It’s gone on long enough now.”
Allwyn said it will send someone to Gerald’s shop to help him figure out any issues and get used to the system.
The operator said Gerald doesn’t owe any money – but isn’t due a refund for unsold scratchcards either.
UK's biggest lottery winners
By Ethan Singh
- Anonymous winner – £195,707,000
A UK ticket-holder scooped the record EuroMillions jackpot of £195 million on July 19 2022 – the biggest National Lottery win of all time.
The holder, who remains anonymous to this day, amassed the fortune with just one lucky ticket.
- Joe and Jess Thwaite – £184,262,899.10
Britain’s previous EuroMillions record holders were Joe and Jess Thwaite.
The couple won a record-breaking £184million jackpot in May 2022 and shared hopes of a Hawaiian holiday and a new horse box for their children’s ponies.
Joe bought his winning ticket online on May 10, 2022, and the following morning received an email with good news.
As he learnt of the huge win, he was in disbelief and initially kept it for himself as he did not want to disturb his wife, who was sleeping.
Joe, a communications sales engineer, and Jess, who runs a hairdressing salon with her sister, have been married for 11 years and have two children.
- Colin and Chris Weir, £161,653,000
Colin and Christine Weir landed the colossal prize money in 2011 and were Europe’s second-biggest winners until someone in Italy won a jackpot worth £193m in 2019.
They splashed the cash at an astounding rate of £100,000 a week before tragedy struck.
But at the time of Colin’s death in December 2019 his share of the prize money had dwindled by around £40m.
He spent the millions living a life of luxury, forking out for sports cars, property and the football club he supported.
Colin and Christine divorced shortly before his death after being married for 38 years.
He left money for their children Carly and Jamie.
- Adrian and Gillian Brayford – £148,600,000
Adrian and Gillian won 190 million euros in a EuroMillions draw in August 2012, which came to just over £148 million.
But Adrian split from Gillian the following year because of the stress of the win.
The couple bought a Grade II listed estate in Cambridgeshire, complete with cinema and billiards room, but it was sold in 2021.
After divorcing in 2013, he failed to woo ex-sausage factory worker Marta Jarosz — but fell for stable girl Sam Burbidge.
She left him in 2017, taking 30 prize horses Adrian bought.
It might have worked out in the end for Adrian though as the former postman was seen smiling with ambulance worker Tracey Biles last year.
- Frances and Patrick Connolly – £114,969,775
Former social worker and teacher Frances set up two charitable foundations after she and her husband hit the jackpot.
They scooped almost £115 million on New Year’s Day 2019.
She estimates that she has already given away £60 million to charitable causes, as well as friends and family.
- Richard and Debbie Nuttall – £61,000,000
The couple from Colne, Lancashire, took home £61 million on January 30 2024.
Both 54, they were enjoying a holiday in Fuerteventura, celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary.
But they then discovered the big EuroMillions win.
Richard revealed they originally thought they had won £2.60, but then received another email telling the pair to check their account.
Other eye-watering anonymous winners:
- 2019 – £123million
Another anonymous winner scooped up a prize of £123,458,008 in the June Superdraw rollover.
- 2021 – £122million
Following nine rollovers, one ticketholder bagged the £122,550,350 jackpot last April.
The successful participant chose to remain anonymous.
- 2018 – £121million
Another anonymous winner found their fortune during the Superdraw jackpot rollover in April 2018, securing £121,328,187.
An Allwyn spokesperson said: “This pack of 60 Scratchcards was activated for sale on September 1 last year.
“The game closed for sale on 29 January 2024 – over four months later.
“Once the pack was activated, the Scratchcards became the retailer’s property.
“To be clear, Mr Lowery doesn’t owe anything, and he isn’t due anything either.
“We don’t offer refunds for activated partial packs, nor did the previous National Lottery operator.
“This is because retailers are given plenty of time to sell through the packs.
“Full, unactivated Scratchcard packs should be returned, free of charge.
“The retailer would’ve previously contracted directly with Post Office Limited in relation to his National Lottery account.”
Allwyn added: “Post Office Limited may have had different processes to follow.
“We’ll get a member of our team to arrange a visit with Mr Lowery to offer him further support.”
What are my chances of winning the lottery?
EVERYONE wants to know how to beat the odds and win the lottery.
But unfortunately, the lottery is a game of luck and there are no tips or tricks that can guarantee you’ll take home a top prize.
The odds show how likely you are to win any particular prize – the lower the number, the better the odds.
For example, odds of 1 in 10 are better than odds of 1 in 100 or 1 in 1,000.
There are several major lottery games in the UK including Lotto by the National Lottery, Camelot’s EuroMillions and Thunderball.
Chances of winning the Lotto
Lotto by the National Lottery is a game where you pick six numbers from 1 to 59. You can play up to seven lines of numbers on each slip.
The game costs £2 to play per slip.
The odds of winning any prize on the Lotto are 1 in 9.3.
But to win the jackpot on the Lotto, the odds are considerably slimmer.
To bag the top prize, you need to have six matching balls. The odds of doing this and scooping the jackpot are currently 1 in 45,057,474.
The next highest prize of £1,000,000 is for getting five main matching balls plus the bonus ball.
The odds of taking home the million pound prize are 1 in 7,509,579 – far higher than the jackpot, but still unlikely.
The odds of taking home £1,750 for getting five main numbers without the bonus ball are 1 in 2,180, while you have a 1 in 97 chance of bagging £140 for getting four main numbers.
Your chances of taking home £30 for getting 3 main numbers are much better at 1 in 97.
And you have a roughly 1 in 10 chance of getting a free lucky dip for 2 matching numbers.
Chances of winning the EuroMillions
The EuroMillions costs £2.50 to play and is open on Tuesdays and Fridays.
To play, you must pick five numbers from 1-50 and two “Lucky Stars” from 1-12. Players with the most matching numbers win the top prizes.
Your chance of bagging the EuroMillions jackpot is even slimmer than winning the top Lotto prize.
This is because it generally has higher jackpots on offer, meaning it attracts more attention.
Currently, the odds of matching five numbers and two lucky stars – the top win – stand at 1 in 139,838,160.
The average jackpot prize is £57,923,499, according to EuroMillions.
The odds of winning the second top prize for matching 5 balls and a lucky star, which is typically around £262,346, are 1 in 6,991,908.
The chances of taking home the third prize for five matching balls, with an average payout of £26,277, are 1 in 3,107,515.
For four matching balls with two lucky stars, it’s 1 in 621,503, and for four balls with one lucky star, it’s 1 in 31,076. These come with an average prize of £1,489 and £95, respectively.
Chances of winning the Thunderball
Thunderball is another game run by National Lottery where you pick five numbers and one “Thunderball”. It costs just £1 to play and you can enter up to four times a week.
The jackpot of £500,000 for matching five balls plus the Thunderball is 1 in 8,060,598.
Your odds of bagging the next highest prize of £5,000 for matching five balls is currently 1 in 620,046, while the chances of winning £250 for four balls plus the Thunderball is 1 in 47,416.
You have the best chance of winning £3 for matching the Thunderball, with odds of 1 in 29.