Beware - People's Postcode Lottery!

redpete

NickRobinson wrote: »

The postcode lottery is a scam. It's not fair. They select (yes randomly) the postcodes but it's only from the postcodes people have bought tickets for. So Birmingham and London are the hotspots because more immigrants have bought tickets in those areas when you look at the heat map for the sales. More prizes are therfore won in those areas. They should randomly select postcodes from all areas to make it fair and keep going until an area is picked where a ticket has been bought. Otherwise it's like a big bunch of raffle tickets in a tub and as you know the person with the most tickets is far more likely to win. Hence Birmingham and London and Glasgow.

Why do you think it fair for someone who spends £10 on tickets to have exactly the same chance of winning as someone who only buys £1 worth?

Why is it fair if someone's chance of winning an amount is less because of the number of their neighbours who have also bought tickets?

Robisere

I have won quite a few smaller prizes on the National Lottery. At least we know that the NL supports many different causes: they are reported on the website.

As for charity, I support Guide dogs for the blind by sponsoring a puppy and will do so for as long as I can. I also support McMillan Nurses. Both receive a monthly DD from me and I also contribute goods to the BHF. I do get a small mount of Tax relief and so does the BHF from their sales in charity shops of any stuff I can collect. But the main reason is that I have had struggles in my life and I have severe health problems. That's why I like to help where I can. If everyone who could afford to do that with one charity, there would be less pain in the world.

Golfguy

Hi everyone after coming across this post regarding ( postcode lottery) I subscribe x2 £10 ie £20 per month to postcode lottery and not sounding like sour grapes in one thread one guy describes after research that 80/ per cent of winners are from Scotland ? So being curious I done my own research and it's the exact opposite with most winners coming from WALES but when I started to ask countless dozens of people at my golf club nobody it seems have won so much as £10 ? Some in over a year of subscribing ? So my point is with all the bad publicity in the press lately I think that all organisations that give to charity should have a a far larger capacity for transparency to let us the customers no where? How? And where exactly our danations are going and how the prize money is distributed !!!9749;!!!65039;!!!127948;

Golfguy

Hi I'm just replying to the person who thinks its a scam ? Ie( postcode lottery) many many people decide themselves how and when they like to spend there own money ? And what to spend it on beacause we all are living in a world of poverty and holding on to a slight dream that one day we will win enough money to get by in life? But what I would say is that with all the bad press on tv, newspapers,ect ect on certain scandals in the way our donations are being spent I really think that all company's who campaign for donations ie ( postcode lottery) should always be transparent and show people how, what, and in which way our hard earned millions are being spent and possibly to show all us all how indeed the draw is made ect ect in that way people will and should be slightly more relaxed in the knowledge we are really helping out somewhere

PhylPho

@golfguy: Postcode Lottery is not a company "campaigning for donations" but a Netherlands-based commercial outfit in the business of selling lottery tickets on a global scale so as to profit massively from the income received. "Donations" has nothing to do with it; "transparency", even less.

Providing direct support to a charity or charities is entirely different. Have a look at Robisere's lovely post that appears just before yours to see why.

I happily provide direct support to a particular animal welfare charity by monthly Direct Debit contribution. I also provide indirect support to other charities via my Amazon UK customer account, which I changed to this:

https://smile.amazon.co.uk

because Amazon has an astronomically high retail sales turnover and if all its customers allowed it to donate, as Amazon wishes to do, just a fraction of that turnover to charity, then that fraction will be substantial.

If you seriously want to help a charity or charities, then do as Robisere and so many others of us do: provide monthly support in the form of a Direct Debit, because even if it's only a couple of quid a month, that counts.

If you can't afford to do that, then you're unlikely to have an Amazon UK online account which in the blink of an eye can be changed to a SMILE Amazon UK account. (All that happens is a change of log-in page.)

On which basis, stick with whatever lottery outfit you like. Just don't dress up in a counterfeit piety a perfectly natural desire for personal profit. No-one has ever said to me, "I'm heartbroken about not making a contribution to charity on Saturday because I forgot to buy a Lottery ticket". I doubt they ever will.

sheramber

My sister and my nephew recently won £2000 each. They had the first part of the postcode selected. The big prizes go to those who live in the full postcode area

A few years ago one local family won 6 figure sum when they were the only people with the full postcode

Karwen

About a year ago I joined the People's Postcode Lottery - low and behold I won £10! Never won anything since. Last week I contacted them to cancel my subscription and Yes once again I won £10!! I feel like it's a bit of a swizz, you win when you join to give you the 'feel good factor' and then when you want to leave, they give you another win to try and keep you.
I will not be continuing with them, I think it's a con!!!

Pollycat

Where's Mrs Clara to brighten up a dull afternoon?
I want to know if Dr Omowele is still weaving his magic...

For anyone who doesn't know what I'm on about, read post #160.

matt1987

I work in Coventry and on Easter Sunday was going about my business when I drove down a Road.... and low and behold all the Postcode Lottery team were out in force with their cameras and car..... with local residents walking around with golden envelopes. Stayed around and watched and they had won £214k each! I bet they dont think its a con.

I dont play it but I am tempted to give it a bash.

ScorpiondeRooftrouser

This thread makes me despair.

Of course some people win, and of course the vast majority of people don't. That's the point.

Lots of people give them money and they give some of it back to a few of those people. That's it. The norm is to lose. If the norm wasn't to lose, there wouldn't be a business.

They are not cheating. It is not worth the risk. They would be caught, and when your business is as simple as this there is no point in cheating.