Despite thousands of people entering the National Lottery ‘Lotto’ and ‘EuroMillions’ game each week, it would seem that some do so without thinking they will win. Maybe some simply forget to check their ticket. The list of unclaimed prizes shows the largest funds waiting to be reunited with winners, with one ‘EuroMillions’ ticket bought in the capital on 11  November 2011 worth £176,177.30.

There is around £10m of unclaimed prizes across the UK, and if a prize is not claimed within 180 days the money goes to the Good Causes fund. In the case of the Edinburgh ticket, the final date to claim will be Wednesday 9th May 2012.

The EuroMillions numbers on the night of the draw were 1,4,18,23 and 30, and the lucky stars were 3 and 7. The ticket bought in Edinburgh correctly predicted all five of the main numbers and one lucky star.

A spokesperson from Camelot, operators of the National Lottery, said:- “There are around 4 million winners on the National Lottery each week across several games, so it is a small minority of prizes that end up on the website as being unclaimed.

“There could be a variety of reasons why people take so long to claim their prize. There have been cases where people have discovered a winning ticket weeks later in jeans that have gone through the wash or they have found the ticket down the back of the sofa. More often than not, players have a routine of checking tickets, perhaps once every month or two months – you can only speculate why some large amounts remain unclaimed.”

Players across the country are being advised to check their tickets as, even though the ticket was bought in Edinburgh, the winner might not necessarily live in the capital. There are unclaimed amounts across Scotland, including £1m in South Lanarkshire, £77,000 in Glasgow and £1m in North Ayrshire.

The spokesperson continued: “Winning the National Lottery could be a scary thing for some people but it is also a fantastic opportunity. We have 14 years of experience of helping winners to deal with their new-found wealth and I would encourage the winner of this and all other prizes to call us on 0845 910 0000 and the money will be yours.”

+ posts