Capital gains: A look back at Agent Million’s trips to the big city

The 49^th and 50^th Premium Bonds jackpot winners from London were announced in August 2018 – the first time that the capital had been home to both top prizes in a single month.

There were a number of other statistics that caught our eye, so here’s an overview of some interesting numbers from the last 24 years of jackpot joy for the capital.

August’s double win for London means that:

• The average holding value of London-based winners when they won the jackpot is £17,291 – a little less than the £20,045 national average
• On average, the winning Bond for the winners based in London has been held for just over six years – about 13 months more than the national average

More money still to be paid to Londoners

London is well-known for its high proportion of people who move regularly, so it’s unsurprising that holders registered as living in the capital also collectively have a huge number of unclaimed Premium Bonds prizes.

Over 170,000 prizes worth just under £7 million are still owed to people registered in Outer London, with one prize of £100,000 from February 2007 due to a woman who has just £25 invested in Premium Bonds. Four £10,000 prizes are yet to be collected by their rightful owners, while there are a further seven £5,000 prizes waiting for their winners to claim them.

The two winners from August already opt for paperless prizes; having registered their bank details, the first winner also has her prizes reinvested into Premium Bonds, while the second has his paid direct to his bank account.

The simple process only takes a few minutes via the NS&I website, and will prevent any future prizes from going unclaimed.

Sign up to have prizes paid directly to your bank account

Agent Million isn’t the only way to find out if you’re a winner

While the jackpot winners get the special treatment each month, the NS&I prize checker page on the website and the free-to-download app can provide your winning news as soon as the full prizes are revealed.

There were 198 other prizes for Bond holders in the capital worth £1,000 or more, including:

• £100,000 prize for someone who invested £3,000 in October 2017 (total holding: £17,500)
• Two people who won £5,000 prizes following a reinvested £25 win from a previous month
• Four winners who ‘doubled their money’, winning a prize this month that matched their total overall holding – two who won £1,000 based in Barnet and Croydon, one who won £10,000 registered to Inner London, and another Inner Londoner who scooped £50,000 in August.