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N.C. Lottery shifts toward new prize claim safety measures

By Kate Northrop

GREENSBORO, N.C. — James Joyce works as a healthcare driver, delivering medicine to hospitals and clinics. Every day after work, he routinely picks up a Cash 5 ticket with EZ Match on his way home. In the morning following the April 21 draw, he checked his numbers and discovered that he was the winner of the $149,814 Carolina Cash 5 jackpot.

"I almost fainted," Joyce remarked.

He purchased the winning ticket at the Crossroads Exon on West Market Street in Greensboro using his own set of lucky numbers for that night's drawing. The winning numbers were 6, 16, 19, 27, and 39.

Joyce took advantage of the temporary claims process that allowed him to claim his prize from home via mail-in. He received his prize last Wednesday, which totaled $105,994 after federal and state taxes. When asked what he plans on doing with his newfound winnings, he mentioned that he would be knocking out a few small bills, but otherwise does not plan on making any big purchases. The one exception: a brand-new set of golf clubs.

Joyce's win follows the announcement from the North Carolina Education Lottery that claim centers have re-opened as of yesterday.

Our Claim Centers will be open for claims starting Monday, May 11. We've made some changes to the claims process to protect the health and safety of our players and employees. Please read about these changes before your visit. For more info, visit https://t.co/fgIM3I4630. pic.twitter.com/CnR2XuoBTL

— NC Education Lottery (@nclottery) May 8, 2020

The Lottery also released guidelines for players looking to collect winnings in-person while continuing to follow strict safety measures.

• Claim Centers will allow only a few people in the building at a time to create space for proper social distancing during the claims process. Others must wait outside in their vehicles until their group is called.
• Anyone entering a Claim Center is required to wear a mask or facial covering. Lottery employees will also be wearing personal protective equipment, including a mask or facial coverings and gloves.
• Visitors to the Claim Centers must practice social distancing, staying at least six feet apart from others.

To avoid long waits, the Lottery reminded players that the deadline to claim prizes for winning tickets expiring between March 10 and August 1 was extended to November 1. Players may continue to claim prizes of $600 to $99,999 by signing their ticket and mailing it to lottery headquarters.