Randolph and Sandra Whitehead planned to get out of their small house, buy a car they could depend on and pay their bills. After all, they had just won $250,000 in the North Carolina lottery.
But those dreams came crashing down when their road to riches took a sudden U-turn.
On May 1, Randolph Whitehead bought a scratch-off ticket at the Rocky Mount BP station on Centura Highway. They had the surprise of their lives.
"Me and her looked at it together," Randolph said. "I put on my glasses. She said, 'That's it, Randolph!'"
The matching numbers of the Lucky Times 7 ticket showed they won $250,000.
"And I held it and I held it and I held it and I held it," Sandra said. "I held the card so tight, I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my head."
Afraid to rely on their old car, they took a cab to Raleigh. While at the Lottery Commission on May 2, the ticket was put through a computerized validation process. Nobody told the couple about the validation, Randolph said.
The husband-wife duo had their pictures made with the larger-than-life check. Before the third photo, they got the jolting news: The numbers didn't match.
"I said, 'Why did you take the ticket out of the room? Why didn't you let me know," Randolph said. "When you go to one of these stores, they validate the ticket right in your face."
According to Jerry Carter, director of security for the Lottery Commission, it was "an unfortunate misinterpretation and misunderstanding on the part of the player."
"A validation process takes several minutes," he said.
That's done after the winners fill out all their claims. But the computer scanner detected a discrepancy and did a secondary screening.
"We were able to determine that there was a microscopic piece of latex still on the lucky number area, and our prize analyst scraped that area and we were able to determine that the number 48 is in fact a 46," Carter said.
Cases like this are very rare, he said.
The commission sent the couple a letter: Verifying winning numbers "does not rely on eyesight," it said. The Whiteheads say the commission should have validated the tickets first, before all the photos and festivities.
"It was just snatched," Sandra said.
The lottery commission did agree to pay for the couple's $200 taxi fare.
The Whiteheads have tried to contact the Attorney General to help them in this case.
Wow that would really suck. Get all the pictures and claim forms filled out thinking you won a pretty good amount of money and a little scratch material remained on the number to make you think you won. Ouch!
I really don't know what to say, except "huh?" This is not like the other story where the couple didn't even submit the ticket for validation. The Whiteheads were already congratulated and pictures were taken!
"We were able to determine that there was a microscopic piece of latex still on the lucky number area, and our prize analyst scraped that area and we were able to determine that the number 48 is in fact a 46," Carter said.
Does this mean that nobody can rely on a winning scratch ticket unlesshe owns a microsope?
After having had several close calls myself, when ever I think I've won a prize that's unusually large I recheck everything twice. For scratch-offs that means totally cleaning off the latex and checking both the numbers and the text under each number to make sure they both agree. Since I mostly play jackpot games that means also rechecking the drawing results too. I've checked my tickets with the wrong drawing results and thought the clerk was pulling a fast one when told my $150 ticket was only worth $5.
The one time I won $1500, I even checked the lottery website so I knew what the retailer had to do and the retailer also knew before having my ticket verified. I didn't want one of those "this is the first time for me so I will call the lottery to find out what to do"
These stories are occuring very frequently if you ask me. Something is amiss!
Scratch-off tickets are designed to tease, lots of losing tickets are off by just one digit to encourage players to buy more tickets. If every player who was off by just one digit was awarded $200 taxi fare, the lottery would go broke, this couple got lucky.
Both the couple in Florida who hired a lawyer and this couple who's trying to contract the Attorney General want "close" to count as a win and it ain't going to happen.
But there was no cheating, they just got hasty and didn't stratch off the entire ticket. I feel bad, but it wasn't the lotteries fault. They shouldn't have given them the big check before it was validated though, duh!
But there was no cheating, they just got hasty and didn't stratch off the entire ticket. I feel bad, but it wasn't the lotteries fault. They shouldn't have given them the big check before it was validated though, duh!
wellcum the WORLD of SHO business!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wellcum to the WORLD of LOTTO business!!!!!!!!!!
welcome 2 USofA
IF and only IF YOU R a CITIZEN of the USA.........let D LEADER's
KNOW>>>>>>>>WE DON't NEED ..........BOARDER PROTECTION!
THE more people THEY let into the USA increases D ODD$$$$$$
The couple did get hasty....BUT....the lottery office should have validated and checked the ticket before all the photos and congratulations..Heck I would have thought I won too...lol
It seems stories like this are happening more often.
Sends a real bad message to the playersand doesn't put the lottery in a good light, not much better than carnival game operators bending the sites on the pellet guns so you can't shoot all of the 3 of Diamonds out.
Wow that would really suck. Get all the pictures and claim forms filled out thinking you won a pretty good amount of money and a little scratch material remained on the number to make you think you won. Ouch!
B-rad
I really don't know what to say, except "huh?"
This is not like the other story where the couple didn't even submit the ticket for validation. The Whiteheads were already congratulated and pictures were taken!
"We were able to determine that there was a microscopic piece of latex still on the lucky number area, and our prize analyst scraped that area and we were able to determine that the number 48 is in fact a 46," Carter said.
Does this mean that nobody can rely on a winning scratch ticket unlesshe owns a microsope?
Moral of this story is- "SCRATCH THE ENTIRE SCRATCH TICKET!"-weshar75
After having had several close calls myself, when ever I think I've won a prize that's unusually large I recheck everything twice. For scratch-offs that means totally cleaning off the latex and checking both the numbers and the text under each number to make sure they both agree. Since I mostly play jackpot games that means also rechecking the drawing results too. I've checked my tickets with the wrong drawing results and thought the clerk was pulling a fast one when told my $150 ticket was only worth $5.
The one time I won $1500, I even checked the lottery website so I knew what the retailer had to do and the retailer also knew before having my ticket verified. I didn't want one of those "this is the first time for me so I will call the lottery to find out what to do"
That is why I don't play scratch-offs very often..there is always that "room" for error and cheating..
oooo thats so sad. At least they paid the taxi cab bill
These stories are occuring very frequently if you ask me. Something is amiss!
another (1) bites dee dust
LOL
PSYKOMO
Scratch-off tickets are designed to tease, lots of losing tickets are off by just one digit to encourage players to buy more tickets. If every player who was off by just one digit was awarded $200 taxi fare, the lottery would go broke, this couple got lucky.
Both the couple in Florida who hired a lawyer and this couple who's trying to contract the Attorney General want "close" to count as a win and it ain't going to happen.
But there was no cheating, they just got hasty and didn't stratch off the entire ticket. I feel bad, but it wasn't the lotteries fault. They shouldn't have given them the big check before it was validated though, duh!
wellcum the WORLD of SHO business!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
welcome 2 USofA
IF and only IF YOU R a CITIZEN of the USA.........let D LEADER's
KNOW>>>>>>>>WE DON't NEED ..........BOARDER PROTECTION!
THE more people THEY let into the USA increases D ODD$$$$$$
PSYKOMO will win >>>>JACKPOT$
LOL
PSYKOMO
The couple did get hasty....BUT....the lottery office should have validated and checked the ticket before all the photos and congratulations..Heck I would have thought I won too...lol
It seems stories like this are happening more often.
Sends a real bad message to the playersand doesn't put the lottery in a good light, not much better than carnival game operators bending the sites on the pellet guns so you can't shoot all of the 3 of Diamonds out.
yep, I totally agree. I never play scratch-offs.