Two fortunate Premium Bond holders, one in Liverpool and the other in Bedfordshire, have recently won £1 million each, as confirmed by the National Savings & Investments (NS&I).
The winning bond number for the £1 million prize in Bedfordshire is 489TB013219, held by an individual from Central Bedfordshire who purchased the bond in February 2022, reaching the maximum allowable limit of £50,000 per person under NS&I regulations.
In Liverpool, another lucky individual holds the bond number 040QJ919368, also winning £1 million. They purchased their bond in October 2004, maxing out their holdings at £50,000.
These winners are part of the over 6.1 million prizes totaling £408 million awarded by ERNIE this month to Premium Bond holders.
ERNIE, the Electronic Random Number Indicator Equipment, utilizes advanced technology to generate random numbers for the monthly prize draws. The total amount won by Premium Bond holders now stands at £40 billion since the inaugural draw in 1957, resulting in 815 million prizes.
While the £1 million prizes are noteworthy, most prizes are of smaller denominations. This month, 78 bond holders secured £100,000 each, and 154 received £50,000 each. Additionally, there were 2,643,007 prizes of £25 each.
Andrew Westhead, NS&I retail director, extended his congratulations to the jackpot winners from Central Bedfordshire and Liverpool, highlighting the festive timing of the wins ahead of Valentine’s Day.
Aside from the jackpot wins, this month’s prize pool included over 6.1 million prizes amounting to more than £408 million, pushing the total winnings for Premium Bond holders to £40 billion since the scheme’s inception.
Premium Bonds offer a tax-free chance for savers to set money aside while being backed by the Treasury. Bonds must be held for a full calendar month after purchase to qualify for the prize draw, with each bond holder allowed up to £50,000 in holdings.
The jackpot prize was raised to £1 million from the April 1994 draw, with two £1 million prizes now awarded monthly.
Bond holders can verify their winnings the day after the first working day of each month using the Premium Bonds prize checker app or visiting the NS&I website, with the next verification for this month scheduled for Tuesday, February 3.
Winners of Premium Bond prizes receive notifications via email or text each month if they have provided their contact details. However, NS&I cautioned that failing to update contact or bank details could lead to missing out on prizes, resulting in over 2.7 million unclaimed prizes worth nearly £114.8 million currently awaiting claim.