Pāpāmoa Couple Claim $500k Prize Four Months On
Press Release – Lotto New Zealand
A couple of hours after Lotto NZ issued a media release about an unclaimed $500,000 First Division prize sold in Pāpāmoa, a local woman sat down with a cuppa to catch up on the day's news.
'Reading the news article about the unclaimed prize prompted me to check old tickets I'd saved in a drawer, and that's when I noticed one I hadn't checked…and it was from the New Years Day draw.
'If I hadn't read the article, it would still be unclaimed because I didn't know I had an unchecked ticket,' she said.
The couple, who wish to remain anonymous, usually check their tickets manually, then save a few up and verify them in-store, but on this occasion the ticket had been missed for more than three months.
'I still didn't want to believe I was holding on to the winning ticket, so I didn't get my hopes up,' she laughed.
Grabbing her laptop and pulling up the results from Wednesday 1 January's draw, it was instantly clear to the woman that she had matched six numbers.
'I saw number 8, and then it was like all of the other numbers just lit up – it was so obvious.
'That's when I scrolled down and saw the amount, it was amazing.
'My husband was out and I didn't want to tell him over the phone, so I mowed the lawn to keep busy 'til he got home!'
When the man returned, his wife said she had something to show him and held up the ticket.
'I looked online at the results – the numbers all matched so I scrolled down to see the amount – $500,000 – I just thought 'wow!'' he said.
'It was a struggle to sleep – we kept thinking 'what happens if we lose the ticket, or someone breaks in and steals it.'
'So we popped it inside a book for safekeeping until we could claim it.'
With their prize safely claimed, the couple went out for lunch to celebrate their win.
'We never in a million years thought we would win a big prize like this, and we are so grateful.
'We also want to thank the wonderful staff at Fresh Choice Pāpāmoa – they are always so lovely in the store,' said the woman.
'It was fantastic to hear from our missing winners so soon after issuing our story,' said Lotto NZ's Head of Corporate Communications, Will Hine.
'We always like to unite our winners with their prize as soon as possible, and are thankful to the media for getting the word out so quickly,' he said.
'We're still on the hunt for another winner who bought a ticket at Coastlands Lotto in Paraparaumu but has not yet claimed their $200,000 prize following a draw in August.'
Notes:
In Wednesday 1 January's Lotto draw, two lucky players shared the $1 million First Division jackpot, each taking home $500,000. The winning tickets were sold at Mirrabooka Superette in Auckland, and Fresh Choice Pāpāmoa in Pāpāmoa – both prizes are now claimed.
Winners have 12 months from draw day to claim their prize.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
1News
14 hours ago
- 1News
What happens to Lotto's unclaimed prizes?
With Lotto's Powerball jackpot hitting $12 million in tonight's draw, what happens if you win and forget to check your ticket? Every year 1% of prizes – or about $10 million – goes unclaimed. And Lotto says it first gives the winner time to come forward – usually around two weeks. This is to allow them time to experience their "winning ticket" moment. However, if after two weeks no winner comes forward Lotto begins to track them down, says Will Hine, Lotto's head of corporate communication. When tracking down a winner, a Lotto spokesperson says they "are very careful in the way we go about finding someone, as keeping anonymity for our winners is key'. ADVERTISEMENT For winning tickets bought in-store, Lotto can access specific details such as the exact date, time and payment method used when purchasing the ticket. "This information helps us investigate, and we can also use CCTV footage in accordance with our Privacy Policy," the spokesperson said. Hine recalled a winner from Christchurch who was completely unaware he had a ticket worth $22 million until the CEO at the time flew to Christchurch and knocked on his door. "He said to this person that potentially he should check his Lotto ticket because there was some money waiting for him." Specific ticket information If a ticket has been lost, assuming no one else has found it and claimed its prize, Lotto may still be able to pay out the prize to the rightful owner if they provide specific information. Under the 2003 Gambling Act, winners have up to 12 months from the draw date to claim their prize. ADVERTISEMENT If the prize goes unclaimed after that time, it gets transferred to the funds for future prizes, ensuring all the money is returned to future players. Lotto can't take it for profit. Online ticket winners who earn more than $1000 receive an email asking them to log in to MyLotto to check the value of their prize and fill out a claim form. Lotto can see when a player last logged into their account and has all their details, and if it needs to reach out and advise the winner to check their ticket. After around three months of the prize going unclaimed, Lotto turns to the media for help. This worked for one couple from Pāpāmoa who unknowingly had a winning ticket worth $500,000 in their drawer for nearly four months. "Within 10 minutes of reading the news article, they realised they were in a pretty good position," Hine said. There are two Lotto draws weekly - on Wednesdays and Saturdays. (Source: Not all prize winners are tracked down, with significant prizes prioritised – First Division winners in particular. ADVERTISEMENT In the last five years, two First Division Lotto wins went unclaimed, with the total for each being $500,000. However, Hine said of the $10 million of prizes left unclaimed, the "majority of these are very, very small prizes". "The reason we can't go out seeking all of our winners is that we are a state-owned organisation and all our profits go back to the lottery grants," he explained. "We need to be quite strategic and purposeful about where we spend resources and money trying to find those winners, but we do think it's worth it putting that extra effort into finding those people who have won life-changing amounts." So the bottom line is - check your tickets and keep them safe. And get in there before the 12 months runs out if you're a winner. The Lotto draw is live on TVNZ1 and TVNZ+ at 8pm tonight.
NZ Herald
2 days ago
- NZ Herald
Lotto: Mount Maunganui player wins over $30k in Lotto Second Division
Powerball was not struck on Saturday evening and has rolled over to Wednesday night, when the jackpot will be $17 million. A lucky Lotto player who purchased their winning ticket at Mount Maunganui Bayfair Lotto is amongst 10 Lotto Second Division players who each won $32,989 in Saturday night's live Lotto draw. It's nearly a year ago to the day that a Lotto player in Mount Maunganui won $28,589 with Lotto
Scoop
5 days ago
- Scoop
Napier Lotto Player Wins $1 Million
4 June 2025 A lucky Lotto player from Napier will be toasting a special win after winning $1 million with Lotto First Division in tonight's live Lotto draw. The winning ticket was sold on MyLotto to a player from Napier. Powerball was not struck this evening and has rolled over to Saturday night, where the jackpot will be $15 million. Meanwhile, a lucky Strike player will also be celebrating after winning $200,000 with Strike Four. The winning Strike ticket was sold at Pak N Save Riccarton in Christchurch. Anyone who bought their ticket from any of the above stores should check their ticket as soon as possible in-store, on MyLotto, or through the MyLottoApp. Lotto NZ exists to return 100% of its profits to Kiwi communities through lottery grants programmes run by Te Puna Tahua NZ Lottery Grants Board.
