May 2018 Premium Bonds winning numbers – have you won £1million cash prize?
Two lucky savers took the top £1million prize — with a total of almost £87million paid out for May
TWO lucky Premium Bond holders have received a May Day windfall this year by scooping the top £1million prize in this month's prize draw.
Here's what we know.
Who were the May 2018 Premium Bonds winners?
The winning numbers, drawn in Wiltshire and Barnet, were just two of more than 3million drawn — with almost £87million paid out in prizes.
The female winner from Wiltshire is the third winner of the top prize from the county this year.
She has currently has £50,000 invested in Premium Bonds after upgrading her initial £1,100 investment to the maximum amount in 2016 – her winning bond is number 269AV661906.
A woman also took the top prize in Barnet, making her the first jackpot winner based in the London borough in almost eight years.
Jill Waters explains: "Premium Bond prizes often become unclaimed as a result of people moving house and not telling NS&I, or not keeping their details held with us up to date.
It proves that at every value someone with typical luck will earn less than the quoted prize rate.
NS&I lists the chance of one bond winning a prize in a month (one in 30,000) on its website.
What size return will I get?
On average, premium bonds pay out an investment return equivalent to about 1.4 per cent.
In theory this means you would win just over a penny a year for each pound of bonds owned.
But because of the randomness of the process, you may win less – or you may win a great deal more.
Where does the prize money come from?
The prize money is not funded by the sale of new bonds.
Instead, the money represents the amount that would be paid in interest if premium bonds were regular government bonds.
The prize fund interest rate, prize values and odds of winning are all subject to change.