More than $21 million in unclaimed lottery prizes across Australia – could you be a winner?
You might want to check your pocket, as dozens of unclaimed major lottery prizes worth over $21.42 million are waiting to be discovered across Australia.
The Lott announced on Tuesday that 24 major lottery prizes, ranging from $74,000 to $4.8 million, are currently unclaimed.
Among them, 12 are from NSW, five from Queensland, two each from the ACT, Victoria, and Western Australia, and one from South Australia.
Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“Whether it’s tucked in a drawer, stuck on the fridge or hidden in your wallet, that forgotten lottery ticket could hold the ultimate post-Christmas surprise – a major win!” The Lott spokesperson Matt Hart said.
Lottery officials couldn’t reach these winners as their tickets were not registered to a player card or online account.
“You can check your ticket in-store, online at thelott.com or via The Lott app,” Hart said.
The oldest unclaimed jackpot – a Saturday Gold Lotto prize worth more than $671,000 – has remained unclaimed since August 2018 and was purchased in Helensvale, Queensland.
The most recent and largest unclaimed prize was won in Kiama last month, a Set for Life prize worth $4.8 million.
Another $4.8 million prize has remained unclaimed since April 2021, purchased in Woden, ACT.
Four prizes drawn last Saturday are also unclaimed, each worth more than $1.3 million.
Hart said some winners don’t discover their good fortune until months, or even years, after the winning numbers are drawn.
“They often tell us that their winning ticket was hiding in plain sight the whole time and just waiting to be checked.”
Hart also mentioned that the time allowed to claim prizes varies by state.
“For example, in Queensland, people have seven years to claim their lottery prizes, it’s six years in New South Wales and the ACT, and in Victoria, people have only 12 months to claim their prizes directly from us – after which time they can claim from the Victorian Government,” he said.
The Lott advises Aussies to register their lottery tickets so they can be notified as soon as they win a prize.
Originally published on 7NEWS
