So, you've won the Powerball! Great news, right? Well, hold your horses — because lottery jackpots aren't quite as simple as they might seem.
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00So, you've won the Powerball! Great news, right? Well, hold your horses, because lottery
00:05jackpots aren't quite as simple as they might seem.
00:10Powerball is just about as iconic as lottery games get, but as is so often the case with
00:15games of chance, winning it is far from simple. Even if you do somehow get your hands on a
00:20winning ticket, there are multiple downsides to take into account.
00:23For one thing, winning doesn't necessarily make you happy. On the contrary, it can outright
00:28suck to win the lottery, and a sudden influx of wealth can put such a big target on a person's
00:33back. Notably, many lottery winners have been murdered for their money.
00:38There are also several steps between winning the lottery and getting that cash, and a fair
00:42few rules you need to follow.
00:44I finally sat down, I thought, what do I do next?
00:48For the overwhelming majority of people, winning the Powerball lottery is something they're
00:53aware can technically happen, even though they never get to actually experience it themselves.
00:58Because of this, not many people know what happens after the initial endorphin rush of
01:02holding a winning ticket subsides.
01:04As it turns out, there are a whole lot of rules that a winner has to pay attention to,
01:08and some of them are extremely counterintuitive.
01:11When a person unexpectedly wins millions, or even billions, keeping their name out of
01:15the news can be an important safety measure, considering the many pitfalls that a known
01:20lottery winner can face.
01:21Unfortunately, however, this isn't always possible.
01:25Powerball requires jackpot winners to make their identities public, and the organizers
01:29often release their names on the official website.
01:32That said, sometimes they don't.
01:34Powerball anonymity rules are complex, and releasing the winners' names is far from a
01:39universal approach.
01:40The winner has to present their ticket in the same state they bought it, and, as such,
01:45they're subject to said state's laws when it comes to protecting their anonymity.
01:48Some jurisdictions do allow the winners to remain anonymous, too.
01:52States such as West Virginia, Virginia, and Texas require the win to be a seven- or even
01:57eight-digit sum to allow for this, but other states allow the winners to stay anonymous
02:03no matter how small their win might be.
02:05As such, a winner who prefers to stay private may want to check whether they purchased their
02:10ticket in one of the 18 states that allow for some form of anonymity.
02:15There's also another, somewhat more labour-intensive way to remain anonymous if you win the lottery.
02:21All winners have been known to set up a trust or a limited liability company, in which case
02:26the company name is publicized instead of the winner's own name.
02:30Putting aside the issue of anonymity, there's one other issue you might encounter if you
02:34ever win the lottery.
02:35In case you hadn't figured it out, I quit!
02:40After the initial screaming and excitement dies down, it's tempting to think that the
02:45lottery's representatives will turn up at your door with a trumpet fanfare and the key
02:50to the city on a velvet cushion.
02:52Sadly, this couldn't be further from the truth.
02:54In fact, it's entirely on you to take the ticket to the appropriate Powerball authorities
02:59and claim your prize before its expiration date.
03:03When will that ticket expire?
03:04Well, that depends too.
03:06Powerball tickets famously have an expiration date, which is why many jackpot wins listed
03:10on their website have UNCLAIMED in place of the victor's name.
03:15What's more, the expiration time changes from area to area.
03:19At worst, you only have 90 days to claim your ticket, so you don't really have all
03:23that much time to grab that prize.
03:25In some other jurisdictions, the winner will have a full year to present the ticket, which
03:30provides more time to get a handle on things.
03:32Provided they don't lose the ticket before then, of course.