Loto millions go unclaimed

NINE budding Loto millionaires are feared to have thrown away their winning tickets without even checking to see if they had won the new Euro Millions My Million draw.

Since the €1million draw was started in February nine of the 130 winners have gone unclaimed – with the latest unlucky punter having only until midnight on Saturday to claim the cash from the October 7 draw.

And all four winners from the November draws have so far failed to get in touch with organiser Française des Jeux, which says it fears people are not used to the new game.

The My Million competition numbers are set separately from the normal “grille” of Euro Millions numbers and FDJ says people may only have looked at the Euro Millions numbers and then thrown away the ticket.

That seems to be what happened for the October 7 winner, as regulars at the Haute-Savoie bar-tabac where the unclaimed winning ticket was bought say they threw away their entries without spotting the new draw.

Le Parisien spoke to bar staff at the Cani in Loisin, near Thonon-les-Bains, and was told that while they were “crossing their fingers for a winner” their regulars had said their tickets were in the bin.

The My Million draw is exclusive to French players in the twice-weekly Euro Millions and sees one guaranteed €1m winner in each draw, even if the jackpot is not claimed. Occasionally there are 10 winners, each gaining €1m each. The My Million code consists of two letters plus seven numbers

Winners have 60 days to make a claim to FDJ and the missing November winning tickets were bought in Doubs, Aisne, Yvelines and Nord departments.