Someone could soon claim the largest OLG Lotto Max jackpot in Canadian history. A whooping $90 million is up for grabs in the Friday, Oct. 16 draw. “If you have that $90 million ticket, the best thing to do is check it very quickly, put it in a secure location and then contact OLG,” Tony Bitonti, OLG’s director of media relations, said. People can check their tickets using the OLG app, and if they bought their ticket through the app, Bitonti said OLG will automatically know who the winner is. But, anyone who bought a physical ticket will need to reach out to the OLG themselves. “We have all the information about that ticket,” Bitonti said. “We know where it was sold, what time it was sold, what other products – like was there an ENCORE, did you buy a 6/49 ticket? We have all that information about that ticket except one important piece: who that actual person is.” Bitonti said it’s important to get the win on the record with OLG. But some people decide to wait a little and get their thoughts together because once the winner steps forward, plans are put in motion for a large novelty cheque presentation. “It’s good that they do take a few weeks, maybe even a month or two months before they come forward to really think about what they’re going to do,” Bitonti explained. Due to OLG’s transparency obligations, the winner’s first name, last initial and home city are published. The winners are asked to come to the downtown Toronto OLG office for the big moment. “We’ll do a little video, we’ll ask you some fun questions and we’ll share that story with the public,” Bitonti said. “You’ll get some instant recognition out there. Then our winners do go on and live private lives, wonderful lives, and do wonderful things with their money,” he said. In recent years, Bitonti said they have seen more people come forward with a plan already in place. “Sometimes they set up an endowment or some sort of fund for the community as well too.” Legal and financial advice Many lawyers encourage winners to keep the win private for as long as possible. “You have to understand that once that information is out there, it’s going to spread like wildfire,” Shahriar Jahanshahi, principal lawyer with Jahanshahi Law Firm, said. “The next thing I would recommend is not to make any immediate financial commitments.” He said one of the first things a winner should do is find an extremely safe place for the ticket. Then, experts said the winner should assemble a team including lawyers, accountants, estate planners and insurance and financial advisors. “Interview several individuals, because it’s about trust and the relationship you have with that individual,” Kate Childerhose, a financial advisor with financial services firm Edward Jones, said. “Ask people that you know and love and trust, ‘Who do you work with?’” If someone wins Friday’s jackpot, that kind of money can change their life almost overnight. But it can also draw some unwanted attention. “I think a lot of us, if we just win $90 million, all of a sudden, we need to be cognizant of our security,” Jahanshahi said. “So that includes your online security and making sure that your home is protected.” Jahanshahi said winners should also be on the lookout for fraudsters who want to take those winnings away. Common disputes The OLG often hears from winners who received their tickets as a gift. In that case, the OLG will take steps to ensure the person who bought the ticket signs a document acknowledging the person they gave the ticket to actually owns the winnings. When it comes to large lottery pools, such as a group of coworkers who buy tickets together, the OLG will make sure everyone who comes forward actually bought into the pool. “We need to ensure that there is a group captain that takes care of the tickets and make sure the players have put in their money,” Bitonti said. The OLG offers a lottery group play form through its website. “We can’t control all of these office pools, but we want to make sure that they are organized, that all the players know if they’re in the group, what tickets they have, what the numbers are, and we do interview all of the members of that group to ensure that they are members of the group,” Bitonti said.
