New South Wales couple knew about their win since last year
By Kate Northrop
A man and a woman from Australia purposefully waited eight months to collect their $100,000 prize and kept their winning ticket hidden away in a safe before making the claim.
The anonymous pair won the lottery last year when they scooped up the $100,000 first prize for the Lucky Lotteries Super Jackpot drawing on Mon., Aug. 10, 2020. It's a wonder they were able to wait so long to claim it, but according to them, it was all the time they needed.
"We've actually known we won this prize the entire time," the man laughed. "We checked it straight after the draw, and we couldn't believe it! I remember thinking, 'oh yeah, baby!'"
When the results for the drawing came in, the couple checked their ticket over and over again, trembling. While the big prize played with their nerves, they said it simultaneously gave them a complete sense of relief.
"We've kept it in a safe ever since that day!" they told the Lott. "We planned to just let the news sink in before we claimed the prize. For us, it's like a million dollars, so we wanted to be sensible with our prize and make sure we use it wisely."
The winners didn't hesitate when the Lott asked them about their plans. They had plenty of time to mull it over.
"We have a few bills we want to pay first," the woman said. "Then we both want to help our families, and there are a few things the kids need. The rest we want to keep in the bank for a rainy day."
The winning ticket was purchased at the Maclean Newsagency on River Street in Maclean. Employees at the retailer were thrilled that the winners finally claimed their prize and wished them the best.
"All of our money stress has completely disappeared, which is amazing for us," the lucky woman concluded.
Thanks to dannyct for the tip.
I thought Australian Lottery winners could remain anonymous and paid no taxes on the winnings.
"We have a few bills we want to pay first"
But they still waited eight months to collect?
Some of the multi-million U.S. winners collected on the first day they could, their identity was made known, and 24% was deducted in federal taxes along with any state tax. Is it just me or am I missing the obvious reason they waited so long to collect.
Yes, I too wonder why they waited 8 months. It was only 100,000 and that's easy for a family of four or so to spend.
Anyhow congratulations folks!
Australian Lottery winners can remain anonymous. Note how they aren't named. They also don't pay tax on lottery winnings (I checked the relevant Australian tax department page :)).
However, the lottery people do ask them a few questions to give them a story... The news release would have been 'approved" by the couple (I imagine.. pretty sure that there is no obligation to say anything, but a story that can grab attention.. I mean. "Couple win $100,000 claim it immediately. Plan to pay off debts." doesn't have the same "reach" as this story.).
And yeah. I agree.. Why wait 8 months.. Income from interest wouldn't have amounted to much .. but if you have debts.. they attract higher interest rates.
It is "only" $100,000.... claim it, put it into a bank or other investment for 6 months to a year... and "forget about it"... but collect the interest yourself, don't "give" it to the lottery :)
I tend to believe that they waited 8 months precisely because it was not millions of dollars. When you win millions there are no lingering after effects, but with 100k if you are not careful it could quickly disappear. Apparently this couple had a lot of decisions to make. For example; exactly which relatives do you really want to help? Which creditors do you want to completely pay off and which accounts do you want to keep open for credit purposes?. Thank goodness they did not have relationship problems during that 8 months where one of them would have been tempted to clean out the safe and leave town, especially if the ticket was not signed, or just signed by one person. If you ask me they showed a trmendous amount of discipline, not everyone could have done that.
"We have a few bills we want to pay first"
They had bills to pay but still waited. And whether or not $100,000 is considered life changing, it's still a lot of money and obviously enough to pay their bills.
Still can't think a logical reason to wait 8 months to collect.
Tie me lotto ticket down, sport
Tie me lotto ticket down.........
"Apparently this couple had a lot of decisions to make."
If I win millions I'll have decisions and stuff to do that will take a while before I claim, but it won't take 8 months. If I win 100 and have the option of claiming the money without forming a new trust or LLC while still being able to remain anonymous I won't have any decisions that can't be made while th mney is already in my possession.