National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has revealed the first Premium Bond winners of the year in January’s prize draw, and you can check from today (3 January) to see if you won this month.
Although there are only two lucky millionaires, the government-backed savings provider offers prizes worth between £25 and £100,000. And the good news is that recently, the number of Premium Bond prizes on offer has increased, meaning you have a higher chance of winning each month.
According to NS&I, there are now a record number of prizes available, giving bond holders a better chance of winning a prize. Back in September 2023, the prize fund rate rose from 4% to 4.65%, and the odds of winning jumped from 22,000 to 1 to 21,000 to 1- adding more than £65 million to the prize pot.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Those who have become millionaires this month will have already had a visit from Agent Million , but everyone else will have to check themselves.
ERNIE, NS&I's prize draw machine, has so far drawn more than 666 million prizes with a total value of £29 billion since the first draw in June 1957.
How to check what you’ve won in January’s prize draw
NS&I says the easiest way to check your winnings is to ask your Alexa (if you have one). To do this, you will need to set up your Alexa app by activating the NS&I Premium Bonds prize checker skill and entering your NS&I number.
Alexa will inform you of any unclaimed prizes since July 1968, plus details on any upcoming prize draws.
If you don’t own an Alexa, you can check your winnings on the NS&I website using their prize checker tool- you will need your NS&I number to hand.
Or, you can download the NS&I app (available on Android or iOS). Similarly, you will need your Premium Bond number to check your winnings.
Check for unclaimed Premium Bond prizes
In the two winning regions, Warwickshire and Nottingham where Premium Bond holders bagged the £1million jackpot this January, there is nearly an accumulated 33,000 unclaimed Premium Bond prizes.
In Warwickshire, there are 15,928 prizes worth £531,325, with the oldest prize dating back to May 1967, worth £25. The biggest unclaimed prize in Warwickshire back from January 2005 is worth £10,000.
16,967 prizes stand unclaimed in Nottingham worth £568,150. The oldest prize unclaimed is worth £25 from the March 1965 draw. Although the largest unclaimed prize value is only £1,000 in Nottingham, there are eight of these sitting unclaimed.
It’s easy for prizes to go unclaimed without realising, especially if you don’t use NS&I’s online services.
To use the online checker or the app or check your winnings on the NS&I website, you need to be registered for NS&I’s online services. If you’re not, you can either call NS&I for free on 08085 007 007- to call you must be registered for NS&I’s phone services.
Alternatively, you can write to: NS&I, Sunderland, SR43 2SB.
You can include the following information to speed up the process:
- Your Premium Bond holder number
- Your current name
- Any previous names
- Your current address
- Any previous addresses
- Your signature
Any unclaimed prizes that are backdated will be posted directly to your current home address.
January 2024 Premium Bond winners
Here’s a low down on January’s Premium Bond winners.
| Value of prize | Number of prizes |
|---|---|
| £1,000,000 | 2 |
| £100,000 | 91 |
| £50,000 | 182 |
| £25,000 | 365 |
| £10,000 | 912 |
| £5,000 | 1,821 |
| £1,000 | 19,020 |
| £500 | 57,060 |
| £100 | 2,363,105 |
| £50 | 2,363,105 |
| £25 | 1,037,784 |
| Total value of prizes: £475,510,350 | Total: 5,843,447 |
-
Dividend heroes: the investment trusts that have increased their dividends for 20+ yearsInvestment trusts can be a good option for income-focused investors – but which trusts have consistently increased their dividends over the past 20 years?
-
Six reasons not to top up your state pensionA deadline to buy National Insurance credits and top up your state pension is fast approaching. Here’s why it may not be worth it for some people
