Dad devastated to find out reality of his 'big' lotto win
A father has spoken of his devastation after wrongly being told his Lotto ticket had raked in a life-changing sum of money.
Nathan Moody, 25, from Billingham, UK, thought he had won thousands when he took his ticket to the cashier at the Low Grange Store where he'd bought the coupon - and it said the amount he'd won was too large to be paid on the spot.
“The machine was telling him it’s a big pay out and I should contact Lottery HQ," he told Gazette Live.
Stunned employees told him to write his name on the back of the ticket and check later to see which jackpot he had won.
“I knew it wasn’t the £1m raffle but I assumed it was one of the 10 prizes of £20,000 ($35,000)," he said.
But after checking online, his short-lived ecstasy quickly descended into deep sorrow after being told he had only won a free draw to the value of $3.50.
Mr Moody had initially scanned his ticket during a “draw break” – a period immediately after a draw where numbers and prizes are being calculated.
“I was absolutely gutted. I couldn’t speak, I was devastated."
He had prematurely dreamt of how he was going to spend the money, revealing he planned to set some cash aside for his parents.
Heroic tradie smashes car window with axe to save man submerged in floodwaters
Heartbreaking story behind dog who waits outside hospital every day
Outrage over man's silent Women's Day protest
“I was talking to my partner about getting everything sorted and paying my bills. We could have got a nice little car, helped my mum and dad out," he said.
A spokesman for Camelot, who run the National Lottery, confirmed the misunderstanding after a member of staff was shown a message which informed them the results were yet to be decided and for the ticket holder to return later.
