ERNIE MARCHES INTO SPRING WITH JACKPOT WINNERS IN NORWICH AND CAMBRIDGESHIRE

Two lucky people in Norwich and Cambridgeshire will be waking up with a spring in their step this morning following a visit from Agent Million informing them that they have won £1 million each.

The first eligible Bond number drawn this month - 250KD320334 – belongs to a woman based in Norwich. She has a total holding of £50,000 and purchased her winning Bond in July 2015. She is just the third jackpot winner from the East Anglian city.

This month’s second millionaire, a man based in Cambridgeshire, has a total holding of £15,700. His winning Bond number 334AX125846 is part of a Bond worth just £25 that was reinvested from a prize win in July 2018. The jackpot win makes the man the fourth jackpot millionaire from the area.

In just one year since NS&I reduced the minimum Premium Bonds investment from £100 to £25, more than 165,000 customers have purchased £25 worth of Bonds.

Jill Waters, NS&I’s Retail Director, said:

“Spring is well and truly here for these two jackpot millionaires, as well as the more than three million other people that have received tax-free prizes this month.

“Our millionaire from Cambridgeshire won with a Bond that was worth just £25 following a reinvestment from a previous prize win they’d had. With £25 being the minimum amount that people can invest, this shows that any holding, whether small or large, has a chance to win the magic £1 million jackpot.

“The £25 minimum investment is just one of the ways that Premium Bonds have become more accessible. We’ve recently launched text message notifications to inform people of wins, as well as enabling child winners to have their prizes paid directly into the bank account of their nominated responsible parent or guardian, ensuring that children get their prizes more quickly.”

New beginnings

Use the start of spring as an opportunity to check whether you are owed one of the more than 1.7 million prizes worth over £65 million that are still waiting to be claimed by Premium Bond holders. Keep NS&I up to date with any changes to addresses or contact details. Premium Bonds bought for children can also often be forgotten, so be sure to check with NS&I to ensure that you haven’t missed out on any prizes.

Customers can also choose to receive their prize winnings faster by opting to have winnings paid directly into their bank account. Customers can register at www.nsandi.com/register to manage their Premium Bonds and other savings online, as well as those of a child that they are responsible for.

Customers can also check their Bonds by going to our online website www.nsandi.com, or via the Prize Checker app available on iOS and Android, and through their Alexa-enabled devices. They can also choose to be notified via email and now text message.

Blooming good reasons to check

Cambridgeshire has 15,042 unclaimed prizes worth a total of £510,125. There are six prizes worth £1,000 won between September 1986 and September 2014. The oldest unclaimed prize in the county is £25 and was won in October 1966 with a total holding of just £1.

There are 8,117 unclaimed prizes in Norwich worth a total of £284,500. The largest unclaimed prizes is £1,000, with seven unsuspecting Premium Bond holders having won this amount between October 1996 and March 2017. The oldest unclaimed prize in Norwich is worth £25, with Bond number CW056200 winning in December 1971 as part of a holding worth £3.

March 2020 prize draw breakdown
In the March prize draw, a total of 3,516,240 prizes worth £100,505,875 will be paid out. There were 86,147,886,134 eligible Bonds for the draw.

Since the first draw in June 1957, ERNIE has drawn 473 million prizes with a total value of £20.4 billion.

Notes to Editors

1. NS&I has spokespeople available for interview, including Agent Million, as well as a wealth of facts and figures (including regional) about Premium Bonds. If you require any further details, please contact the NS&I media team on the contact details below or tweet your question to @nsandi
2. All Premium Bonds prizes are free of UK Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax.
3. NS&I is one of the largest savings organisations in the UK, offering a range of savings and investments to 25 million customers. All products offer 100% capital security, because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury.
4. The annual Premium Bonds prize fund rate is currently 1.40% and the odds of each individual Bond number winning any prize are currently 24,500 to 1. From 1 May 2020, the prize fund rate will change to 1.3%, with the odds of any single Bond winning a prize changing to 26,000 to 1.
5. Pictures of ERNIE 5, the previous ERNIEs and Premium Bonds, including the Premium Bonds app are available in high-resolution jpeg format from the NS&I media team.
6. Customers can buy Premium Bonds online at nsandi.com and over the phone by calling 08085 007 007. This is a free phone number and calls to it from the UK are free from both landlines and mobiles. Calls may be recorded. Customers can also buy by post. Existing customers can also buy by bank transfer and standing order. Each investment must be at least £25.
7. Further information on NS&I, including press releases and product information, is available on the website at nsandi.com. Follow us on Twitter: @nsandi or join the conversation on Facebook: NS&I.