The National Lottery regulator has identified a breach of license by Premier Lotteries Ireland (PLI) related to a technical issue that may have prevented hundreds of players from claiming their prizes. The incident, which occurred in 2022, potentially left up to 394 prizes, with a maximum total value of €2,299, unclaimed. Among these prizes was a notable €250 win, while others ranged between €2 and €24.
The breach stemmed from a third-party software update implemented between September and October 2022. This update inadvertently caused the “Check My Numbers” feature on the National Lottery website to be accessible when it should not have been, as the results of the corresponding draw were still under verification. Consequently, some players received erroneous messages indicating their tickets were not winners, despite the numbers actually matching winning results from that draw.
According to the regulator, the issue affected only the website and the “Check My Numbers” feature. All other ticket checking systems, including the app’s ticket scanner and in-store ticket checking machines, functioned normally during the incident.
As a consequence of the breach, the regulator initiated enforcement action, withholding €23,000 from payments owed to PLI. “While unclaimed prizes are a feature of all lotteries, it may be that some 394 ticket holders relied on a ‘not a winner’ message from the Check My Number Facility,” said Carol Boate, the Regulator of the National Lottery. She emphasized that every breach is taken seriously and highlighted the need for a permanent technical solution.
The issue was self-identified by PLI, which reported it to the regulator. The operator clarified that it did not profit from the situation and has since resolved the technical problem permanently. Additionally, the €2,299 in unclaimed prize money has been returned to players.
Independent IT experts from Grant Thornton were commissioned to evaluate PLI’s prize-checking systems and found no significant concerns. However, PLI announced it would phase out the “Check My Numbers” feature as part of enhancements to its online facilities, citing low player usage.
PLI acknowledged the regulator’s decision and stated that it self-reported the issue, noting, “We did not receive any customer complaints related to this isolated incident, nor were unclaimed prize rates above normal levels.” The company confirmed it contributed to a top-up prize fund to cover all potentially impacted unclaimed prizes and assured that the issue has not recurred.
This breach is detailed in the regulator’s annual report for 2023, which also indicated a 6.2% decline in National Lottery sales, marking the first drop since the current license was initiated. The report highlighted improvements to the National Lottery’s self-exclusion features and introduced a new system allowing verified players to electronically transfer their winnings to bank accounts.
In November 2022, PLI was sold to La Francaise des Jeux by its previous owners, including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and An Post. PLI operates under a 20-year license granted in 2014, with the National Lottery remaining under the ownership of the Irish State.