If you bought your ticket for last Wednesday’s draw at Albany Central Superette, you might just want to dig it out and check it, because there’s a whopping $30.2 million still waiting to be claimed.

It’s the second largest prize won by a single ticket this year and is seventh equal on the list of all time highest Powerball wins.

“We’re encouraging anyone who bought their ticket from Albany Central Superette for the draw on 23 October to check their tickets – someone’s life is about to change in an instant,” says Will Hine, Head of Corporate Communications at Lotto NZ.

Hine says that while most Powerball winners claim within the first few days of winning, it’s not unusual for winners to wait a while.

“We have just had Labour weekend, so potentially our lucky winner may have gone on a trip and forgotten all about their ticket.”

If winners haven’t claimed their prize after a couple of weeks, Lotto NZ will start taking steps to find them.

“We really want our winner to find out themselves and have that winning moment – that’s all part of the dream isn’t it.

“But it’s a balancing act. Finding our winners and ensuring they receive their prize in a reasonable timeframe is an important part of what we do,” says Hine.

“While winners do have 12 months to claim their prize, we want them to have it as soon as possible so they can start making their plans for the future and of course, not miss out on any interest they could be earning.”

It’s not often that Powerball winners don’t claim their prize straight away, but there are many reasons why they might not – they may not know the ticket is unclaimed and are not in a rush to check, they could be on holiday, or they may know but want to let the news sink in before claiming.

Most recently, in June’s $50 million Must Be Won draw, one of the seven winners didn’t check their ticket for over two weeks. The couple didn’t know their local store had sold one of the winning $7.18 million tickets and weren’t in a rush to check.

In 2023, a Christchurch couple took over a week to claim their $33.5 million Powerball prize. The couple knew their ticket was a winner and hid it in a sock drawer while they processed the magnitude of their win before claiming their millions.

In 2020, a $5.5 million Powerball prize went unclaimed for almost a month before Lotto NZ found the Morrinsville winner. The unassuming winner had kept the golden ticket in the glovebox of his car and was completely shocked when two Lotto NZ employees surprised him with the life-changing news.

In 2017, a South Island winner who won $17.1 million from a ticket bought in Twizel took three weeks to come forward to claim their prize. Lotto NZ had begun actively trying to find the winner but, in the end, the winner contacted Lotto NZ directly to claim their prize. The winner delayed coming forward as they were taking time to process their win.

“Whenever the winner chooses to claim their prize, we’ll be here to support them on the first steps of their journey, and of course, help them celebrate their life-changing win,” says Hine.

Notes for editors: 

• The $30.2million prize is made of $30 million from Powerball First Division and $200,000 from Lotto First Division.
• Anyone who bought their ticket from Albany Central Superette in Auckland for the draw on Wednesday 23 October should write their name on the back of the ticket and check their it as soon as possible in-store, on MyLotto, or through the MyLotto App.
• Players can phone Lotto NZ on 0800 695 6886 if they want to enquire about the best way to claim a prize.

Top 10 Powerball wins in Lotto NZ history (won by a single ticket, includes Lotto First Division) 

Powerball wins in 2024:

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