Alberta unclaimed lottery tickets amount to over $2.4 million in prizes.
Did you ever imagine the feeling that would come with the news that you’d won the lottery? Not just a few hundred dollars, or even a few thousand, but a massive prize worth 6- or 7-figures? Most of us never experience this feeling, but just day-dreaming about it can set off our endorphins.
Now, imagine what it would feel like to know that you should have won the lottery, but never claimed your prize. Maybe you lost the ticket. Maybe you never watched the drawing, and accidentally threw it away, assuming it a loser. Oh, the pangs of regret that would be awful!
The sad reality is that this situation befalls lottery players all the time. The only saving grace is that they rarely ever know it happened. In that regard, at least they’re spared the emotional calamity that would certainly befall the aware.
In Alberta, Canada alone, there are currently 8 unclaimed tickets floating around. Their total value amounts to a staggering $2,437,037; ranging from the lowest $10,000 prize, up to a pair of $1,000,000 prizes. Losing out on either would be worth shedding a few—if not a waterfall—of tears.
Alberta Unclaimed Lottery Tickets Expiring in 2019
Every time a lottery drawing takes place, and a winner results, regardless of the value of the prize, that player has exactly 1 year to claim their winnings. Fail to do so, and the money is absorbed back into the lottery system.
In this case, it’s the Western Canada Lottery Corp (WCLC) that determines the rightful owner. The WCLC is responsible for operating the lottery across nearly half of the nation; including the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan, plus the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon.
Anyone from one of these western regions of Canada who wants to see if they’re the hopeful owner of an unclaimed prize can visit the corresponding section of the WCLC website. If you believe there’s any chance you’re among them, don’t hesitate. The existing unclaimed prizes will expire anywhere from June 1 to September 29, 2019.
They include:
| Game | Draw Date | Location | Prize | Winning Numbers |
| MAXMILLIONS | 06/01/18 | Calgary | $1,000,000.00 | 7, 8, 14, 20, 23, 27, 37 |
| MAXMILLIONS | 06/08/18 | Alberta | $1,000,000.00 | 10, 13, 14, 27, 32, 39, 40 |
| Lotto 6/49 GTD | 06/16/18 | Edmonton | $10,000.00 | 36889389-02 |
| Lotto Max | 07/13/18 | Alberta | $175,009.30 | 1, 4, 5, 22, 25, 32, 34- B27 |
| Lotto Max | 08/24/18 | Alberta | $95,696.20 | 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 20, 29 – B30 |
| Lotto Max | 09/14/18 | Alberta | $522,440.00 | 1, 3, 5, 10, 16, 27, 43 – B14 |
| EXTRA | 09/15/18 | Alberta | $100,000.00 | 4639052 |
| Lotto 6/49 | 09/29/18 | Edmonton | $55,809.70 | 1, 6, 7, 10, 31, 49 – B39 |
Two Unclaimed Tickets in Saskatchewan Worth $1.1M
In Saskatchewan, a pair of unclaimed lottery tickets have yet to expire, but they will very soon. In fact, there’s a $1,000,000 guaranteed Lotto Max prize destined to return to the jackpot just days from now if its rightful owner does not turn up by Wednesday, January 16. The other ticket is worth $100,000, and would make a delightful Valentine’s Day surprise if it happened to be claimed on the final eligible day.
| Game | Draw Date | Location | Prize | Winning Numbers |
| Lotto 6/49 GTD | 01/16/18 | Saskatchewan | $1,000,000.00 | 32947118-02 |
| Lotto 6/49 GTD | 02/14/18 | Saskatchewan | $100,000.00 | 36810921-01 |
What Happens to Unclaimed Prize Money?
Where all that unclaimed money ends up depends on the lottery drawing it came from. If it’s a national lottery, like the Lotto 6/49, the money is deposited back into the overall jackpot for that game. If it’s a provincial lottery, however, the money becomes the property of the lottery regulator, amounting to additional revenue for the province.
