I won £540k lottery jackpot but only got to keep £30k because of ‘smallprint’ rules – it’s unbelievable
A MUM thought her life had changed forever after hitting the jackpot, but her £540,000 win was slashed down to a measly £30,000 thanks to a small print rule.
Emma from Darwen, Lancashire was over the moon when she found out her street had won the Postcode Lottery.
The mum-of-two was one of the lucky 18 neighbours on the Lancashire street to hit the £540,000 jackpot.
Expecting to take home a life-changing sum, Emma was stunned to find out she’d only be pocketing £30,000.
The jaw-dropping win, part of a Street Prize draw, meant every resident who entered with the winning postcode split the total amount.
Trying to stay upbeat, the mum-of-two said: “It’s amazing to win with our neighbours.
“But it’s not every day someone gives you £30,000.”
Not everyone would feel the same, especially when expecting nearly half a million pounds, only to have the news dampened by a rule buried deep in the small print.
Their £30,000 win comes after Emma and her husband Chris had returned from their honeymoon in Greece, having just tied the knot just last month.
The couple are now planning to use their share of the winnings to spruce up their end-terrace home.
Chris, a self-employed dryliner, said they’ll be putting the cash towards doing up the garden and driveway, with a bit set aside for a rainy day.
Despite having to split the big win, neighbours are still thrilled to take home their piece of the pie.
The entire street joined in the celebrations, with winners even halting traffic as they turned the street into a party zone.
Emma added: “It’s a really good neighbourhood, and everyone looks out for each other, so it is incredible to share this win.”
Meanwhile, other winners on the street had their own ideas on how to spend the unexpected windfall.
Mark, a surface repair technician with a love for gaming tattoos, plans to add Sonic the Hedgehog to his collection to please his two-year-old son.
He’s even considering incorporating the Postcode Lottery logo into the design.
Mark said: “This is unbelievable. It’s all I’ve been thinking about
“I like gaming tattoos. I might get Sonic this time. My little boy loves that. Off the top of my head, I might also get the lottery logo in there. I’ll tell the tattooist what I want, and he’ll do a good job.”
Bubbly Denise, another lucky winner, revealed that her grandson has simple demands—he just wants her to spend her new fortune on a bottle of Prime WWE juice.
But Denise has bigger plans, hoping to take her family on a holiday to Florida.
Stunned Julie and her husband Carl also landed £30,000 each and are already planning to extend their home to make room for their seven grandchildren and three dogs.
Julie said: “We got an extension, but we still need more rooms.
“We’ll probably go up the way.”
Despite the shared winnings, the neighbours’ spirits weren’t dampened.
They all embraced the moment, with Denise cuddling up to Emma and Chris, celebrating their collective good fortune.
Meanwhile, a Cambridge mum revealed how she couldn’t claim her entire £1million lottery jackpot because of a “pact” made 30 years ago.
It comes as another couple boasted they had won a hefty £182million on the EuroMillions.
But the excitement was short-lived once they were “disqualified” for a devastating reason.
People's Postcode Lottery: how to play
To enter, you’ll need to subscribe to People’s Postcode Lottery for £12 per month.
You’ll then be automatically entered into all draws with your chosen postcode.
If your postcode is drawn and you hold the right ticket, you win.
A third of winnings automatically goes to charity, with the organisation saying it has led to £1.3bn raised so far.