Lottery Tips

Buying Tickets

  • Don't ask store employees to verify tickets because they may steal them. In mid-2009, Pankaj Joshi, a 25-year-old convenience store clerk was suspected of stealing and cashing a customer’s $1 million winning lottery ticket before leaving the country. Joshi, a University of Texas at Arlington student, soon quit his job at a Grand Prairie convenience store, according to court documents. He received $750,000 after taxes, but police have seized more than $365,000 deposited in banks. The 67-year-old customer had the convenience store check the tickets because he had not been able to locate the winning numbers.

    Some people may advise that it is OK to have an employee verify the ticket, since players can ask for a receipt during a ticket validation transaction. But I still think it is a bad idea because a store clerk may still try to swindle you if a million dollars is on the line.

  • Don't play in a lottery pool. In mid-2009, two once-inseparable sisters (both more than 80 years old), went to court over a $500,000 winning lottery ticket. If you do play in a pool, put the agreement in writing.

  • Don't let someone else buy your ticket. If you win, sign your ticket. In 2007, two Florida men, who were once good friends and partners at work, went to court to fight over a $30 million winning lottery ticket. One of the men, Michael Ford, said that he paid for the ticket but that he had asked the other man, Abraham Shakespeare, to buy it for him. Shakespeare, in his defense, said that Ford just got jealous when he won.

Winning the Lottery

  • If you win, get a lawyer and financial advisor. A lawyer can help you create a trust so you can create a plan for your money after you die. You will also want someone to help you with the taxes, which could end up being about one-third of a bulk payout. A lawyer may be able to help you with this. If he can't then a tax accountant will. You will also want to get a financial advisor to make a plan as to what to actually do with the money.

  • Don't go out and spend money right away. Everyone has that laundry list of things that they would buy if they won the lottery and they think that they will be OK if they go out and buy just a few things right after winning. But doing this may set you off on a slippery slope of uncontrolled spending that you may regret.

  • After you win a large amount, don't loan money to friends. Everyone will come around asking for money. Not only will they want it, but some of them will actually act like they are entitled to it. Some nice (or naive) people may think that they are helping other people by giving them money, but you are simply contributing to an unhealthy relationship where everyone may get hurt.

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Lottery Tips

HPG ADMIN on February 27, 2013