A man from Ontario, Canada, bought a lottery ticket in April last year and won a large sum of money. However, as CTV News reports, the Canadian is having problems claiming his winnings with the relevant authorities.
The man only realized he had won months after buying the ticket and in the meantime forgot where he had bought the ticket.
The Canadian tried to claim his winnings of $1,186 (around €1,109) from the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) last October, but he has not received his money to date. “I tried to contact them several times. I called and was told the cheque was on its way, but I didn’t receive anything,” the man described his situation to CTV News.
The man’s girlfriend is helping him process the winnings and finds the process grueling. “They said you should receive your check within six to eight weeks if your winnings are over $1,000. Now we’ve been waiting for over a year,” she told the news channel and demands: “I want justice for my friend.”
The Canadian’s main problem is that the OLG wanted to know where he bought the winning ticket. However, he could no longer remember, reports “CTV News”.
After CTV News contacted the OLG, a spokesperson for the authority stated: “The OLG always pays the correct price to the legitimate owner of a winning ticket. We have detailed information on all lottery tickets sold, such as the exact time and place of purchase.” The Canadian must now prove that he bought the winning ticket at a location.
“What we are missing is the name of the purchaser, especially if the ticket was purchased at a licensed retail location. When a customer purchases on OLG.ca, they are registered in our system and we notify them directly of a win,” the spokesperson adds.
“When a winning ticket valued at over $1,000 is submitted, the OLG Prize Centre must determine the rightful owner. As part of the normal verification process, questions will be asked about the ownership of the ticket, such as where and when the ticket was purchased or whether other lottery products were purchased at the same time,” the authority told CTV News.
If the answers provided do not match the information provided by the authority, if false statements are made or information is missing, the claim to the prize will be subject to further review, the OLG further explains.
The Canadian is visibly dissatisfied with the OLG’s approach: “I expect an explanation from OLG. Why is it taking so long when they have specialists for such cases?” After “CTV News” inquired, he was finally informed that his check had been processed and would be sent to him shortly – a message that gives the Canadian hope.
In Germany, the process is different in the case of a lottery win and depends on the amount of the winnings, emphasises “Lotto-Welt”. In the case of a win, the money must be collected in the same federal state in which the lottery was played. “Every lottery sales outlet in the relevant federal state is obliged to pay out lottery winnings. To do this, players only have to present their game receipt and their ID to the sales outlet,” the website continues.
The upper limits for cash payouts of lottery winnings also vary in each federal state. For example, in Bavaria cash payouts of up to 2,500 euros are possible, and in Hesse even up to 5,000 euros. In other federal states such as Lower Saxony, Berlin and Brandenburg the upper limit is 500 euros.
After the winning numbers are announced, players in Germany have 13 weeks to claim their win, according to “Lotto-Welt”. This can be done either in person at a lottery sales outlet or in writing or by telephone to the state lottery company. If this deadline is not met, however, the lottery winnings are lost forever and go into a pot for non-cash prizes and special drawings at the lottery companies.
A woman from the USA recently experienced a similar case in a casino – but the American woman was not paid out her winnings for other reasons. The 72-year-old pensioner claimed to have won the jackpot of 2.5 million US dollars on a slot machine in Bally’s Casino in Atlantic City. The casino, however, refused to pay her out, citing a technical error in the machine.
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