The win process, step by step, so you know what to expect
Did you know that there is an entire process for playing, winning, and collecting your money on a lottery draw? First you go to a retailer or go online to the operator’s website and purchase your ticket. You can either use your own numbers or have the system randomly generate the numbers for you. You then have to pay for your purchase, either with cash, credit or debit card, or money transfer from your bank.
Ticket in Hand
Once you have your ticket in hand or applied to your online lottery account, you are entered into the draw. You don’t have to do anything with your online ticket, but if you have a physical ticket, make sure you sign it immediately and put it in a safe place, and don’t forget where you put it. The only thing you have to do now is to wait for the draw.
On the night of the draw, you can either watch it live at the operator’s website for an exciting anticipation, wait to see the results of the draw on the nightly news, or wait to read about the draw results online or in the newspaper. With an online ticket, the operator should forward the results to your email and automatically notify you if you have a winning ticket. If you haven’t won anything, then there is nothing for you to do with the ticket. You just chuck it into the garbage and get ready for the next draw.
However, if you have won something, the process continues. If you have online ticket winner, any prize up to a certain amount will automatically be applied to your gaming account and you can withdraw those winnings if you wish, or leave them in the account to purchase further tickets. With a physical ticket, the first thing you should do is take it to a retailer and have it verified. You will get some kind of receipt that shows the ticket was just verified at the retailer and the winning ticket is flagged as verified in the system.
You will receive your prize as cash directly from the retailer up to a certain amount. Beyond that amount and up to another certain amount, you may be able to claim your prize at any casino or gaming establishment due to the ability of the venue to pay out the larger amount. However, if you win one of the top prizes, you usually have to go into the operator’s main prize office to make your claim. In this case, the process continues further.
Collecting the Cheque
At this stage, it is going to take some time to get your prize money. First, you will be required to fill out a claim form that will ask for your name, address, and phone number, whether any immediate family members are employees of the operator, and basic information about your winning ticket such as where and when you purchased the ticket. You'll want to stay calm and collected for this bit.
You will then have to participate in an interview which basically tries to establish the validity of your claim. The purpose of this interview is to establish that you are indeed the purchaser of the ticket, and it isn’t stolen, copied, or the ticket or the draw having been produced or conducted fraudulently. If you have no family members and the interview goes well, you could have your money that same day or within a week or two. You will have to have your picture taken and your first name and city used for both advertising and to show that real people in the community win prizes.
And if you have a family member who works for the operator, then you will need to fill out another form and go through another interview. This is to establish that the relative has nothing to do with causing you to win the draw through influence, fraud, coercion, or any other avenue of a non-legitimate win. They will use both your and your relatives' information and company files to investigate that relative to ensure they were not involved in any way with your win.
Once all that investigation is done, you will probably have to pose for a publicity picture holding a huge prop cheque showing how much you have won. Depending on the size of the prize, you could receive it in a couple of days, or it may take a couple of weeks to get deposited into your bank account.
So it’s not just buy your ticket, check your ticket, and claim your prize. There is a process involved to ensure that the prize was won fairly and you are the actual holder of that winning ticket.