The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Lotto couple rip it up and start again
Shop worker accidentally threw winning £58m ticket in bin
A down-to-earth couple who landed a £58 million lottery jackpot bought another ticket the very next week – and scooped £25.
Fred and Lesley Higgins from Laurencekirk yesterday went public after winning one of the biggest prizes ever handed out in the UK.
Despite looking at properties in Barbados – and buying a top-end car – the pair have been keeping their feet firmly on the ground.
Fred said he was even relaxed when a teenage shop worker mistakenly ripped up the winning ticket and tossed it in a bin.
“I felt really calm as I knew it was an honest mistake,” the retired administrator explained.
Wife Lesley has now handed in her notice from her role as an account manager at the Montrose Port Authority and the pair, who have been married for 35 years, intend to do some travelling.
The winners of a £57.9 million Euromillions jackpot were initially told they did not have a winning ticket – and it was ripped in half and put in the bin.
However, a message on a lottery terminal in Fred and Lesley Higgins’ local Aberdeenshire shop told them to keep hold of the ripped ticket and call operator Camelot.
They were given the torn ticket back, went home and checked the numbers to find they did indeed match and they were the winners of the July 10 jackpot.
However, even then, they misread the size of the jackpot and thought they were ‘only’ £5.7m richer.
The retired couple from Laurencekirk were told that because the ticket had been torn, processing the claim would need to be investigated.
A security team spoke to them about what had happened and checked CCTV footage.
The couple bought their winning ticket at Scotmid on Laurencekirk High Street and the winning Euromillions numbers were 3, 8, 26, 33, 45 and the two Lucky Stars were 7 and 10.
Regular player Mr Higgins, 67, said: “I handed the ticket over and the young man put it through the machine, telling me it wasn’t a winner.
“He ripped the ticket in two and threw it into the bin, as they would with all non-winning tickets.
“But this time, the terminal produced a chitty which said I needed to retain my ticket and call Camelot. The retailer immediately grabbed it out of the bin and handed it to me.
“The ticket had been torn in two but all the numbers were still clear, so I took it back home to make the call.
“Lesley was snoozing so I thought I would look at the website to doublecheck the numbers and sure enough, the first matched, then the second matched, match, match – we had them all.
“When Lesley woke, I explained we had a winning ticket and what had happened.
“I showed her the numbers, asked her to check and she misread them, thinking we were £5.7m richer rather than an amazing £57m.
“I felt really calm at that point – I think it was just sinking in – so I then called Camelot and explained what had happened.”
Mr Higgins, a retired Audi administrator, added: “I wasn’t ever concerned that we wouldn’t get the money as I knew it was an honest mistake – it just had to be looked at to make sure everything was correct.”
Once the money was in their account, Mrs Higgins, 57, handed in her notice from her role as account manager at the Montrose Port Authority.
The couple, who have been married for 35 years, have already bought a brand new Audi cabriolet and are considering visiting India and China as well as looking at second homes in Barbados.
Mr Higgins continues to play the lottery and won £25 the week after scooping the jackpot.
A spokesperson from Camelot said: “When validating any major prize, Camelot has to ensure that the winner is the rightful ticket-holder. As the ticket was ripped in two, a range of security checks had to take place.
“We are so glad to be able to pay Fred and Lesley this amazing sum.
“It is essential that we ensure we are paying the rightful ticket-holder and in situations like this, it can take a little time for these investigations to be completed.”
Fred Higgins insists he wasn’t concerned when his £58 million winning lottery ticket was ripped up.
“I felt really calm... i knew it was an honest mistake,” he told reporters yesterday.
It is fair to conclude not everybody would be quite so relaxed if faced with a similar situation.
Meanwhile, despite quickly snapping up a new car and looking at properties in Barbados, Fred continued to buy lotto tickets – and scooped a rather more modest £25 just a week later.
It is just as well he and wife Lesley are apparently so prepared to keep their feet on the ground.
Not even the most level-headed punter could describe scooping such a jackpot as anything less than life-changing.
And there are countless examples of people for whom such a huge cash windfall has brought anything but happiness.
However, having spent much of their lives working, the signs are that Fred and Lesley are well and truly ready to enjoy their good fortune.
Mr Higgins has already retired from his job, while Lesley wasted no time in handing in her notice from her role as account manager at Montrose Port Authority.
The couple will now have plenty of time on their hands deciding how to spend what is one of the biggest jackpots ever claimed.
Enjoy!