Illinois Lottery Extends Prize Claim Period for all Lottery Prizes
The Illinois Lottery today announced it is extending the timeframe in which winners can claim prizes during the COVID-19 crisis.
For players with prizes that were set to expire between March 16 and May 31, 2020 the Lottery is extending the time allowed for players to claim those winning tickets through June 30, 2020.
“Players usually have 12 months to claim their prize. During this difficult time, we wanted to extend the prize expiration date to provide players an extra opportunity to claim a prize that has been forgotten or misplaced,” said Illinois Lottery Acting Director Harold Mays.
This extension includes a $2 million Mega Millions prize that was due to expire last weekend. The ticket was bought from the Mobile station located in Joliet at 1600 New Lenox Road for the April 5, 2019, Mega Millions draw. The winning numbers for that drawing were 8 – 22 – 24 – 38 – 64 with a Mega Ball of 21.
“Considering many of us are spending a lot of time at home right now, if you bought a Mega Millions ticket in Joliet around this time last year – now is the time to check under your couch cushions, in your desk drawers or in your glovebox to see if you’ve got the winning lottery ticket tucked away somewhere,” said Mays.
Before the extension of the prize claim window, players who won an Illinois Lottery draw-based game had 12-months from the date of the drawing to claim their prize. Players can check to see if their draw-based game ticket is a winner on the Lottery website results hub by selecting “View all results” for their game then finding the date of the applicable draw. (https://www.illinoislottery.com/results-hub). Players can also contact the player contact center at 1-800-252-1775, to check their numbers by date.
For instant tickets, players had 12-months from the game expiration date to claim prizes. To look up an instant game expiration date, players can visit www.illinoislottery.com/games-hub/instant-tickets.
The prize claim extension applies to all prize levels for all Illinois Lottery games. Currently, Lottery prize claim centers are closed to support Illinois Department of Public Health guidelines for social distancing. As a result, players who wish to claim an expired prize during this time should fill out a claim form and follow the instructions for mail-in claims found at www.illinoislottery.com/winning/when-you-win.
