| "You've got to be in it to win it." That's New York | | | | to the prize claims office. |
| State's lottery slogan. Unfortunately, many people | | | | Unfortunately, people think their odds of wining are |
| aren't really in it when they buy a ticket. They buy it | | | | low. The odds of winning the Mega Millions Jackpot |
| on a whim when the prize looks inviting, and then | | | | are 1 in 175,711,536, and the odds of winning the |
| they never check back to see if they've won. | | | | $250,000 second prize are 1 in 3,904,701. As a result, |
| Many people, with the exception of expert lottery | | | | they give their ticket low priority on keeping up with |
| players, buy tickets praying for a payout. However, | | | | and checking to see if they've won. |
| they have no real system for keeping up with things. | | | | What is saddening about these statistics is that |
| Life intervenes when they get home, kids are | | | | people put down their hard earned cash for a chance |
| screaming, the spouse needs dinner, they have to | | | | at a dream, and then through bad memory and bad |
| work late, and the ticket goes on the back burner. | | | | luck, they win and never realize it. |
| The back burner turns into the forgotten ticket and | | | | In New York winners are given 12 months to claim |
| an unclaimed prize sitting in the junk drawer or in a | | | | their prizes; after that, the money goes back to the |
| pants pocket is now their new reality. | | | | Ny Lottery to create new games. For some, like the |
| The current statistics of Ny lottery winners who | | | | unlucky winner who bought a Mega Millions jackpot |
| have failed to claim their prizes to date in 2007 is in | | | | ticket worth $31 million at Astoria Smokeshop & |
| the millions. Winners missed a total 4.84 million in | | | | Convenience in Queens on Aug. 1, 2006, their ticket is |
| prizes that expired between April 1 and May 31st of | | | | now worthless. Can you imagine that poor person |
| 2007, and that statistic is just for prizes that were | | | | when they realize they had $31 million dollars at their |
| more than $10,000 each. This fact is according to | | | | disposal for 12 months and never acted to receive it. |
| John Charleson, a New York lottery spokesman. | | | | Connecticut has a story that is food for thought |
| Tracking is less available for smaller prizes, but if this | | | | about the perils of being late turning in your ticket. It |
| is any indicator, then lottery money is being | | | | concerns this poor guy named Clarence Jackson Jr. |
| reabsorbed into the Ny state coffers at record | | | | He won a jackpot in the amount of $5.8 million dollars |
| levels, due to unchecked ny lottery results. | | | | in 1996 and turned it in three days late. He spent |
| In Westchester alone there have been 11 unclaimed | | | | subsequent years trying to lobby the state legislature |
| prizes of more than $10,000 from various lotto | | | | to make an exception in his case so that he could |
| games, Rockland has two unclaimed prizes so far this | | | | get his prize. To date he has never received a penny. |
| year, and Putnam has two. All these tickets were | | | | That means that all those tickets unclaimed in |
| bought in the last year were and Lower Hudson | | | | Westchester, Rockland and Lower Hudson have |
| Valley has the largest unclaimed prize about to expire | | | | people facing a similar fate. The above statistics only |
| in the amount of $250,000. The lottery ticket was | | | | cover a two month period. While it might not be $5.8 |
| sold in Mount Kisco, and if the winner knows about it, | | | | million, money won is still somebody's money. |
| how long do you think it would take for them to get | | | | |