Lost or Damaged Tickets
Irish Lottery tickets can get lost or damaged if you buy them from a retailer and do not keep them safe. Find out the National Lottery’s policy if your entry has gone missing or is no longer intact, including whether or not you can still claim a prize.
Lost and Stolen Tickets
You must have a valid ticket to claim a prize. If your entry has been lost or stolen, the National Lottery is not obligated to pay out any prizes that your ticket might have won.
Tickets are regarded as bearer instruments, meaning that if you are in possession of a ticket, you are considered to be the owner when you present it to the National Lottery. Without a winning ticket, there is no proof that you are a winner. If you cannot find your ticket, check anywhere it could have been mislaid – including clothing, bags, wallets or around the home. You will need to find it and come forward within the claim period. If it remains missing, you won’t be able to collect any winnings.
Even if you notify the lottery that your ticket has been lost or stolen, the prize from that ticket could be paid to someone else if they come forward with it. If you believe that your ticket has been lost you should contact the National Lottery as soon as possible and they will advise you on the next steps to take.
It is also a good idea to sign the back of your ticket. If it does go missing, this increases the chances of it being returned to you so that you may be able to claim any prizes it is due.
Damaged Tickets
For a ticket to be deemed valid, it must be able to be processed by a representative of the lottery, whether this is a store employee scanning it at a retail terminal or someone at a prize centre checking that you are a winner.
You may still be able to claim prizes with a damaged ticket if the information on that ticket can be read by a scanner and matches up with the records on the lottery’s central computer system. If this is not possible, the lottery does not have to pay any prize.
If there are no apparent signs of damage to your ticket and it cannot be processed, it is a good idea to check there are no issues with the lottery terminal. Ask if any error messages have been produced or try another local lottery retailer. If your ticket cannot be scanned at a retailer’s terminal, contact the National Lottery directly using the details below. If you believe it is a winning entry, you can post it to the lottery for validation. Be aware that claims made by post are made entirely at your own risk.
If your ticket is found to be invalid, it will be deemed void and will not be eligible for any prize. However, the lottery may refund you the price of your ticket or provide a replacement for a future draw at its discretion.
Claim Period for Lost and Damaged Tickets
The time period for claiming prizes is 90 days from the date of a draw and there are no exceptions if your ticket has been lost or damaged. You will not be able to claim prizes without a valid ticket, but you can contact the National Lottery if you have a complaint or if you have found a ticket that does not belong to you.
Contact the Customer Care team on (01) 836 4444 or write to Customer Care Team, National Lottery 1GQ, George's Quay, Dublin 2, D02 Y098. You can also get in touch with the Regulator of the National Lottery at 5 George's Dock, International Financial Services Centre, Dublin 1, D01 X8N7.
Go to the Claiming Prizes page for information about how to claim awards, based on the amount you won and whether you played online or through a retailer.
Keeping Your Numbers Safe
If you buy a paper ticket from a retailer, you need to keep it safe before the draw takes place, then check the results. If you win a prize, you then need to come forward with the ticket.
Signing the back of your ticket also helps because if someone else finds your lost entry there is a better chance that you will be reunited with it.
A more secure option is to take part online. Your numbers are stored digitally so they can never be lost, stolen or damaged. You will be automatically emailed if you win.
