I know that this is technically not a lottery question, it's about PCH Sweepstakes bankruptcy .Prev Topic Next Topic

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Lotto Motto

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May 25, 2026, 10:05 pm

So, Publisher's Clearinghouse had a Sweepstakes where if you win you were supposed to win millions of dollars for life through an annuity program. They even had an annuity program where when you die someone you chose as your heir," gets millions of dollars until they die. Recently and suddenly, PCH went bankrupt, leaving winners suddenly in financial ruin. One winner won the annuity Sweepstakes roughly 10 years ago and quit his job since he was promised millions of dollars until his death. He was suddenly informed that he wouldn't be getting anymore Annuity payments from PCH as they went bankrupt.

He said this left him financially ruined and he can't find a job as he hasn't worked in roughly 10 years and is an older man. He said he blew his PCH Annuity payments frivolously assuming he would always have the annuity payments until he died as that's what was supposed to happen. He is now broke and in trouble. What do the wronged PCH Annuity winners do since they aren't getting anymore Annuity payments since PCH went bankrupt? Do they sue PCH? Do they contact JG Wentworth for their annuity payments? I'm generally confused on what the wronged annuity Sweepstakes winners can do now that the PCH went bankrupt and they are still owed their annuity payments.
Brock Lee

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May 25, 2026, 10:48 pm

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/business/pch-sweepstakes-bankruptcy-winners-unpaid.html

"don't believe everything you read on the internet." -- abraham lincoln

"abraham lincoln is a liar." -- william shakespeare
KY Floyd

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May 26, 2026, 12:18 am

"He said this left him financially ruined and he can't find a job as he hasn't worked in roughly 10 years and is an older man. He said he blew his PCH Annuity payments frivolously "

Poor decisions can lead to all sorts of problems. If he's lucky some of that "frivolous" spending resulted in assets that can be sold, such as more house than a guy with a modest fixed income (he probably qualifies for social security) needs, and Walmart might give him a job as a greeter.

"What do the wronged PCH Annuity winners do since they aren't getting anymore Annuity payments since PCH went bankrupt? Do they sue PCH? "

You've heard the saying "you can't get blood from a stone"? They can get in line with all the other creditors who were owed money when PCH filed for bankruptcy, but it's not unusual for creditors to get pennies on the dollar when a company goes under. Google's AI summary (as far as I care to bother, and not necessarily very accurate) says PCH reported liabilities of $50 to $100 million and assets of $1 to $10 million. That suggests a best case scenario of creditors getting 20 cents on the dollar, but not all creditors are equal. I'd guess past winners are pretty much SOL.
Tucker Black

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May 26, 2026, 12:53 am

Quote: Originally posted by Brock Lee on May 25, 2026
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/business/pch-sweepstakes-bankruptcy-winners-unpaid.html

This guy got $260,000 every year for the past ten years. He bought a house using a mortgage -- moron!
Lotto Motto

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May 26, 2026, 9:18 am

Quote: Originally posted by Brock Lee on May 25, 2026
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/business/pch-sweepstakes-bankruptcy-winners-unpaid.html

Thank you for that indepth detailed link to the PCH Annuity Sweepstakes Bankruptcy. :) I was mistaken when I said he was supposed to get millions until his death, turns out he was getting $260,000 a year before taxes. That's still a very nice chunk of change to live off. There are people who work for 10 years and accumulate around $260,000 minus taxes and he was getting that every year for 10 years and not having to work. He shouldn't have blown his money frivolously.
LottoBux

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May 27, 2026, 7:41 am

Quote: Originally posted by Lotto Motto on May 26, 2026
Thank you for that indepth detailed link to the PCH Annuity Sweepstakes Bankruptcy. :) I was mistaken when I said he was supposed to get millions until his death, turns out he was getting $260,000 a year before taxes. That's still a very nice chunk of change to live off. There are people who work for 10 years and accumulate around $260,000 minus taxes and he was getting that every year for 10 years and not having to work. He shouldn't have blown his money frivolously.

Easy to say that after the fact,

How was the guy supposed to know that PCH would claim bankruptcy?
AllenB

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May 27, 2026, 9:05 am

I remember The Publishers Clearing House package that came in the mail back when I was a kid. Remember they had a couple of pages with stamps of every magazine available. I bet you could get some bucks for one of those packages on “Antique Road Show”

They said you did not have to buy a magazine to win. They used to knock on the winner’s door and surprise them. Some of the reactions were priceless.

I blame the Interweb for the demise of PCH. Also surprised that PCH lasted as long as it did.
Tucker Black

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May 27, 2026, 9:54 am

Quote: Originally posted by LottoBux on May 27, 2026
Easy to say that after the fact,

How was the guy supposed to know that PCH would claim bankruptcy?

Nobody can tell the future, but a smart person doesn't blow all their money the minute it arrives. Same some for a rainy day.

This guy could have bought a decent house with a five year mortgage. The interest rate is less, and more importantly, it would have been paid off five years ago, and he would have a place to live.
Coin Toss

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May 27, 2026, 3:02 pm

Tucker Black, On a previous post you said "he bought a house using a mortgage - moron", now you suggest a 5 year mortgage". WT2?
Brock Lee

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May 27, 2026, 9:11 pm

Quote: Originally posted by Lotto Motto on May 26, 2026
Thank you for that indepth detailed link to the PCH Annuity Sweepstakes Bankruptcy. :) I was mistaken when I said he was supposed to get millions until his death, turns out he was getting $260,000 a year before taxes. That's still a very nice chunk of change to live off. There are people who work for 10 years and accumulate around $260,000 minus taxes and he was getting that every year for 10 years and not having to work. He shouldn't have blown his money frivolously.

if you're worried about a state lottery not being able to pay an annuity, choose the lump sum.

"don't believe everything you read on the internet." -- abraham lincoln

"abraham lincoln is a liar." -- william shakespeare
Artist77

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May 27, 2026, 9:33 pm

I believe there were a couple of FTC cases where PCH had to send checks to people who ordered magazines. Pch had told people they had to order to be in the sweepstakes. They were always engaged in deceptive practices. More than a few elderly people thought they had won.

DO NOT BE AFRAID.

How Great Thou Art. God has blessed America.
Tucker Black

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May 28, 2026, 12:43 am

Quote: Originally posted by Coin Toss on May 27, 2026
Tucker Black, On a previous post you said "he bought a house using a mortgage - moron", now you suggest a 5 year mortgage". WT2?

He bought a house on six acres, presumably with a 30 year mortgage. $260k a year minus taxes minus reasonable living expenses and a 5 year mortgage would pay for a decent house.

Of course, he could save up the money for a few years and then pay cash, but that would cost a lot more if he was renting.

It's not so much the mortgage itself but being mortgaged to the hilt. Borrowing as much as possible and spending every penny is a really bad idea.
KY Floyd

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May 28, 2026, 1:27 am

"He bought a house using a mortgage -- moron! "

I've got a suspicion he's not the best decision maker out there, but a 30 year mortgage at 2016ish rates may be a very sensible decision, especially if you're borrowing about 500k. Most of the 30k in annual payments would be deductible interest for the first few years. That turns a rate of 3.5% into an actual cost of perhaps 2.6%, and it frees up a bunch of money for investing if you're smart enough to do it. A 30 year mortgage also lets you buy more house, and the house will probably gain value. If a 30 year mortgage lets you but 200k more house and it appreciates at a modest 6% you're earning an extra 12k with deferred taxes that will eventually be paid at capital gains rates. Depending on the interest rate, 10 years in he'd probably still owe perhaps 400k, and have 400 to 500k in equity.

Quoting myself: "If he's lucky some of that "frivolous" spending resulted in assets that can be sold, "

He should have taken home at least $2 million, and spent perhaps 250k or so on the mortgage. That leaves about $1.75 million, which is a lot to squander for somebody taking home about 200k per year. It's possible to spend that kind of money and have almost nothing to show for it, but he could have put away 50k every year and still been able to spend over 2k per week.

If he spent a lot more on the house it changes the cash flow, but it also increases his equity. Maybe he can no longer afford the mortgage but he should have no problem downsizing and getting rid of the mortgage. And there's a chance he wasn't renting and living hand to mouth when the payments started rolling in. It sucks to have less than you used to, but even if he actually managed to squander every penny that didn't go into the house he can probably still live more comfortably than a substantial portion of people in the US. I can't manage to feel too bad for him.
Lotto Motto

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May 28, 2026, 11:12 pm

Quote: Originally posted by Tucker Black on May 27, 2026
Nobody can tell the future, but a smart person doesn't blow all their money the minute it arrives. Same some for a rainy day.

This guy could have bought a decent house with a five year mortgage. The interest rate is less, and more importantly, it would have been paid off five years ago, and he would have a place to live.

I also would have saved some money for a rainy day. There are companies that have existed for over 100 years that just went bankrupt recently. If I were a PCH winner I would have thought,"If PCH ever goes bankrupt will I be in financial ruin?" And saved some money.