Michigan Lottery Ready To Dole Out Nearly $20M In Unclaimed Prizes

Big-money lotto winners around the state can rejoice.

The Michigan Lottery offices have been closed around the state since late March, but reopened Monday.

Now, those who held winning tickets for over $50,000, or didn’t want to mail in their tickets for a prize over $600, can schedule an appointment to claim their prize.

Long wait to claim winning lotto tickets is over

The Michigan Lottery closed claims offices back at the end of March in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Anyone who held a winning prize of $600 or less was able to claim that prize at any lottery retailer.

Prizes from $600-$50,000 were redeemable by mail. However, prizes greater than that could only be claimed by appointment with the Michigan Lottery.

The lottery claim centers reopened Monday, after nearly three months of being closed. Prizes still need to be claimed by appointment.

There are regional lottery offices in:

• Lansing
• Livonia
• Sterling Heights
• Detroit
• Grand Rapids
• Saginaw

In northern Michigan, winners can make claims at one of five Secretary of State branch offices. They are located in:

• Escanaba
• Grayling
• Marquette
• Sault Ste. Marie
• Houghton

At the end of May, the Michigan Lottery estimated that 40 players had reached out about a prize claim of $50,001 or more. Nearly $20 million in prize money remained uncollected.

New guidelines for MI Lottery appointments

In order to make an appointment to claim your lottery prize, call 1-844-917-6325.

Each appointment has a 10-ticket maximum for claims. No guests will be allowed except for those needing assistance because of a disability, or those who need an interpreter.

Attendees are required to cover their face unless a medical condition requires alternate forms of protection.

The lottery offices will enforce social distancing policies. Plexiglass partitions have been installed on the counters and are frequently disinfected.

The lottery staff encourages individuals to wait in their vehicle until their appointment time to avoid congregations of groups inside the building.

There are special hours Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7:45-9:45 a.m. specifically for pregnant individuals, individuals over 60, or individuals with disabilities.

Those without an appointment can head to the claim center to drop off completed paperwork and tickets.

As always, any individual who is sick or shows symptoms of COVID-19 should not appear at a claim center.

State accepting online lottery claims as well

Those playing the Michigan online lottery through MichiganLottery.com can still earn instant deposits on prizes of $600 less.

Winners of prizes in the $600-50,000 range can submit an online claim for payout. Winners are directed to click on the “Tax Reported Prizes” tab and follow instructions from there.

Expect to provide copies of your Social Security card and a valid government-issued photo ID, like a driver’s license.

A winner of a prize of over $50,000 will need to submit an online claim in order to set up an appointment at the lottery headquarters in downtown Lansing.

Michigan lands another Powerball winner

Just prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, Waterford native Cristy Davis won the Powerball jackpot on Feb. 12.

Davis purchased the winning ticket in Pontiac and won a $70 million jackpot. She opted for a lump sum payment of $50 million, which works out to around $36 million after taxes.

Davis is the fifth Michigan player to win a Powerball jackpot since the game began 10 years ago. Donald Lawson won the state record, $337 million, back in 2012.