Premier Lotteries Ireland breached licence with technical glitch
Regulator of the National Lottery withholds €23,000 in funding as it confirms error has been rectified following six-week period of failings
Premier Lotteries Ireland has been reprimanded by the Regulator of the National Lottery for a technical glitch which meant winning players prizes went unclaimed.
Premier Lotteries Ireland, which is owned by French giant La Française des Jeux (FDJ), has had €23,000 (£19,200) in funding from the regulator withheld as a result.
The five-figure sum was instead transferred directly to the country’s Exchequer to be redistributed to good causes.
The software glitch occurred during a six-week period in 2022 which was self-identified by Premier Lotteries Ireland and reported to the regulator.
The error meant that the ‘Check My Numbers’ section of Ireland’s National Lottery website went live when draw results were still being verified.
In turn, some players received a ‘Ticket not a winner’ message when in actual fact their numbers were winning numbers.
The regulator said the error may have contributed to up to 394 prizes, worth a total of €2,229, going unclaimed.
The most valuable individual prize was €250, with all other payouts ranging from €2 to €24.
The regulator confirmed a permanent fix has been put in place to ensure such an error does not occur again.
Additionally, the €2,229 in unclaimed prizes was subsequently returned to players as prizes in other National Lottery games.
Independent external IT experts were also drafted in to confirm Premier Lotteries Ireland’s prize-checking tools and facilities were all operating correctly.
Carol Boate, the National Lottery regulator, said: “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 online, which did not yet have details of the latest draw to check against the numbers entered by players.
“Every breach is a serious matter for my office as reflected in my decision to withhold €23,000 in funds from the operator and ensure a permanent technical solution to my full satisfaction.
“I do not underestimate the potential impact that this technical error could have had on a larger prize winner,” she added.
Premier Lotteries Ireland currently holds a 20-year licence to run the National Lottery in Ireland, which the business was granted in 2014.
FDJ acquired the company for €350m last year to expand its footprint outside of its native France.