July 2018 Premium Bonds winning numbers – find out if you won the £1million cash prize
Two lucky savers took the top prize, sharing £1million
TWO lucky Premium Bond holders have received a July windfall this year by scooping the top prizes in this month's draw.
Here's what we know.
Who were the July 2018 Premium Bonds winners?
A man from Suffolk who bought his winning bond in June 2017 and a man from south west Wales will share the top £1million prize.
The man from South West Wales becomes the fifth jackpot winner from the region since the £1 million prize was introduced in 1994. His winning Bond was purchased in March 2010 (Bond number: 166LV246433).
They are the 389th and 390th winners of the £1million prize.
How many people won in July's Premium Bonds draw?
Premium Bonds is also paying out over three million other prizes to Premium Bond holders, ranging from £25 to £100,000.
Jill Waters, Retail Director at NS&I, said: “I’m delighted for our two jackpot winners and all of our customers who are receiving a boost this month. Whatever you have won, get in touch through our Facebook page and share the winning feeling.
“We want to make sure that all those winning prizes get to experience that special moment, but Premium Bonds prizes may go unclaimed as a result of not informing NS&I of changes to customers’ personal circumstances. This can be change in contact or address details or if Premium Bonds were bought as a child and the customer has subsequently lost track of them, so it’s important to keep us up to date of any changes.
“Each month we stress the importance of customers keeping their details up to date, and it’s reassuring to see that more and more people are signing up to have their prizes received electronically.”
Could I be owed money in Premium Bonds?
There are now around 1.4million unclaimed prizes in total, worth in excess of £58.6million.
To check whether you have any unclaimed Premium Bonds prizes, customers can visit the NS&I website at , or write to NS&I, Glasgow, G58 1SB.
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.
"Agent Million would not be able to deliver the good news if you were lucky enough to win the £1million jackpot.
"Last month one of our jackpot winners not only received £1million but also received outstanding prizes won prior to notifying us of their change of address."
How do Premium Bonds work?
Premium Bonds are a savings account you can put money into (and take out when you want), where the interest paid is decided by a monthly prize draw.
You buy £1 bonds and each has an equal chance of winning, so the more you buy, the more your chances improve.
Premium Bonds can be bought via standing order for as little as £50 per month once an account has been opened.
- Minimum purchase amount: £100 (or £50 for monthly standing orders).
- Maximum amount you can hold: £50,000.
- Age limit: Over 16 to buy them; under that age they may be held in the name of under-16s by parents or guardians. Grandparents or great-grandparents can buy then nominate the child’s parent or guardian to hold them.
The winners are picked by a random number generating computer called Ernie (Electronic Random Number Indicator Equipment).
Will I be a winner and where can I buy Premium Bonds?
A good way to find out if you will win is to use the the unique Premium Bond Probability Calculator (courtesy of ).
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.
You can apply to buy premium bonds over the phone, online or by post.
Once you own some you can buy more via direct debit on the .
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.
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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.