Brit OAP posts winning £1m lotto ticket instead of calling lottery office!

London, Nov 30 (ANI): A British pensioner, who won 1 million pounds, posted his winning lotto ticket to Camelot as a way of claiming the prize.

Bernard McHugh, 77, of Blackburn, Lancs, only realised he was one of 10 EuroMillions millionaires from a draw on November 12 when he checked unclaimed numbers.

Instead of phoning to register his claim, he wrote his name and address on the back of his ticket, popped it in an envelope and asked his sister Pat to post it for him.

"I thought that is what you were supposed to do. I saw the address on the back of the ticket and it said winners should contact them so that's what I did," the Sun quoted him as saying.

"My family couldn't believe it when I told them I'd won. When they asked where the ticket was and I told them I'd posted it they were shocked.

"It will get there. I'm not worried yet," he added.

A relative of his said that he is very old-fashioned and doesn't have a mobile phone or Internet, and posting the winning lottery ticket would not seem a very bizarre thing to do for McHugh.

"He just saw the address on the back of the ticket and thought that was how he claimed his money. He doesn't like speaking to people on the phone so thought notifying Camelot by post was the best thing to do," the relative stated.

A spokesman for Camelot Group, who run the lotteries, said staff at the company's Watford HQ were on the alert to find McHugh's posted ticket.

"Anyone who has lost a ticket needs to give as much information as possible about where and when they bought it and we can check it against our systems," the spokesman added.

Even if the ticket is lost, McHugh could still scoop his 1 million pounds. Camelot can pay winners who lose their tickets if the prize is unclaimed 180 days after the draw date. (ANI)