North Carolina Collects Lottery Winnings
Lottery winners in North Carolina may want to temper their enthusiasm when they find out they have a winning ticket. The State of North Carolina can collect lottery winnings to satisfy any local or state government debts.
For the State of North Carolina to lay claim to an individuals lottery winnings, the lottery prize must be at least of $600.00. A recent state audit showed that over $11 million dollars in lottery winnings became the property of the State of North Carolina. The collected money goes to those whom the money is owed.To sidestep the State of North Carolina, many lottery winners sell their winning ticket, to avoid paying any outstanding debt.
A North Carolina lottery ticket is a bearer instrument. The individual redeeming the lottery ticket can claim the winning prize. A state report concluded that North Carolina loses nearly $1 million of funds from winners selling their tickets to others.
The $1 million estimate, from the North Carolina Fiscal Research Division, used North Carolina Lottery records to make its conclusion of outstanding funds. Critics contend the state agency didn’t collaborate with the North Carolina Lottery Commission to further substantiate its claim.
They believe the North Carolina Fiscal Research Division over dramatized the fraudulent actions of lottery winners. A deeper investigation of the agency’s report uncovered a serious calculation issue and erroneous errors. With the major error discovered, auditors counted winner prize amounts twice and sometimes three times. Auditors misunderstood the calculations of the same winner with multiple wins over a 36 month period.
Combining the misunderstanding with flawed assumptions made things only worse. Auditors assumed all multiple win individuals intended to defraud the State of North Carolina of their debt obligation. The auditors didn’t realize that individuals play more than one time, hoping to win a prize.
As stated by the lottery commission, winning is random. Playing the lottery involves luck. The investigation showed frequent winners, most often played their winning right back into the lottery, by purchasing more tickets. If lottery officials don’t know the frequency of play, it’s difficult to assess if the wins were luck or fraudulent intent.
The miscalculations by the State of North Carolina left a bad taste in the mouths of North Carolina Lottery players. Many are cited for attempting to avoid alleged financial obligations to North Carolina. In their overzealous quest to claim unsubstantiated funds, the State of North Carolina once again showed the incompetence of government officials.
