Premium Bonds Winnings

Have just short of 20k and nothing this month. Nevermind, always next month.

Lovetopaint037

Has anyone had experience of having to deal with premium bonds when a spouse or other family member die. How straight forward is it? Do you have to go to probate if they have been owned by a spouse.

We cashed in my MILs quite easily but she didn't have very many.
Once you have the necessary paperwork they are very easy to deal with.

www.nsandi.com/help/manage-money-for-others/customers-who-have-died

Has anyone had experience of having to deal with premium bonds when a spouse or other family member die. How straight forward is it? Do you have to go to probate if they have been owned by a spouse.

It is totally random Penelopebee Bigger holders are not sure of wins, just that with so many more bonds they have more entries in each draw, so more opportunities to get lucky. This time somebody with just £2 in bonds, each bought as a single £1 bond, won £10,000. They had held them for about 40-50 years if I remember correctly. When you look at the winners list, some people win a big amount with a bond only purchased within the last few months, so it really is just luck of the draw.

Zilch for me for years
I don't think it's fair that bigger holders are sure of wins. It should be totally random. Although I realise the odds are better if you have more numbers

A welcome £100.00 this month from three different numbers!

I thought Martin Lewis was talking rubbish! At the time, interest rates were so low as to be invisible. Putting your £1000 into an accessible savings account would give you enough in interest to buy a Cadbury’s fruit and nut bar.
Investing it in Premium Bonds gave you a feeling of anticipation every month and could net you anything from £25 to a million.
Most people aren’t in a position to tie up money for years with no access. Others don’t want any risk to their investments. The lure of PBs is that your initial investment is safe and there’s a chance of winning.
We started investing monthly back when Noah was a lad - reinvested all prizes and reached the maximum about 3 years ago. I don’t think we’ve had a prize free month in the past 7/8 years.

Yes, tying up money in long-term fixed rate savings accounts requires considerable thought as one gets older. Sometimes interest is not paid out until the end of term, or the interest accumulated is reduced or forfeited if it's cashed in early.

At my age, 85, I cannot tie money up for one year never mind 3.
I did have the maximum holding but have slowly withdrawn some over the last two years, once to help a family member and twice for household reasons, new doors and windows and other bits to make my life more comfortable.
The sense of anticipation is great at the beginning of each month and if I want something I just withdraw it.
It certainly suits me at this stage in my life.

In October 2022, there were 119 billion Premium Bonds.

Premium Bonds represent about 5% of the national debt which was 2437 billion in June 2022 (ONS).

The government have increased the premium bond prize fund rate – the proportion of the total amount invested paid out in prizes from 2.2% to 3% from January 2023. This is in response the increased rates bank are offering on savings.

The odds of winning something are 24000:1.

Sarah Coles, a senior personal finance analyst at the investment company Hargreaves Lansdown, says the shake-up is “a clever move at a time when we know people are searching for a solution to the financial dead end they have found themselves in”.

She adds: “We know prize draws become far more tempting at times like this, so premium bonds are positioning themselves as the ultimate game of chance – with your money back if you lose.”

However, it is important to be aware of the big downside of premium bonds in the current climate: they don’t pay any interest and so are more vulnerable to inflation than other savings.

And while you could strike it lucky and scoop a life-changing sum, there is no guarantee you will win anything at all.

www.theguardian.com/money/2022/dec/16/premium-bonds-big-prizes-chances-odds

£50000 in a fixed rate ISA paying 4.5% p.a. for three years is going to yield at least £6750 tax free, more if you leave the interest in. The same amount at the same rate in a taxable account will yield £4050 net for a higher rate taxpayer - more if they haven’t used up the £1000 tax free savings allowance elsewhere.

I tried the Probability Calculator on Martin Lewis’s Money Supermarket:

www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-bonds-calculator/#result

It says that £50,000 over one year with average luck could win you £1000. Over three years it could would win you £2500.

It’s not clear if the calculator has been updated yet to take into account the 2023 changes.

So whether PBs are a good investment is very much open to debate, personal circumstances, how many bonds you have and how much you win and whether people are willing to trade a guaranteed return for a game of chance especially now that bank rates have risen.

I’m 66 and my holding is £14. I won £250 in 1965…

£175 for me this month. On a roll, as I won £125 last month.

I gave each grandchild £100 in bonds at birth. One grand daughter has just won £100 after fifteen years. Her mother added it to the savings account created by Tony Blair for every baby. That didn’t last long but my daughter kept her children’s accounts going.

Happysexagenarian

My Bonds were a 21st birthday present over 50 years ago, but I've never won a penny. I don't even have any paperwork about them now (lost over the years) and don't know how to check them. My mum always checked hers and mine, a sort of monthly ritual, but I never bothered, so I may have won something without knowing. I rather thought PBs had died out replaced by lottery tickets and scratch cards.

Definitely not 'died out' the number of bonds has increased tremendously over recent years.

I'm still waiting for my winnings from £2 worth of PB's bought with my savings as a kid!!
As a GP don't think it's very likely now lol!

Leanetta

If you had the maximum amount, could you still reinvest the winnings? As that would take you over?

No the maximum amount of Bonds is £50,000 if you have reached the limit any winis payed into your bank account.

If you had the maximum amount, could you still reinvest the winnings? As that would take you over?

£100 this month, and £250 in total over the past year. Happy with that - I don't have many.

Gave some to Grandaughter for Birthday in May and won £25 in November not bad for a £50 stake

MaizieD

Did you know that your Premium Bonds are part of the National Debt, government borrowings, that the PM is promising to pay down?

How will you feel about having all your invested money returned to you?

Well, I was hoping he might want to borrow more, especially since I got £225 in interest winnings this month!
(Having not won for ages.)

MaizieD

Did you know that your Premium Bonds are part of the National Debt, government borrowings, that the PM is promising to pay down?

How will you feel about having all your invested money returned to you?

Yes I knew

Did you know that your Premium Bonds are part of the National Debt, government borrowings, that the PM is promising to pay down?

How will you feel about having all your invested money returned to you?

£300 between us this month. I think overall we are slightly above the ‘interest’ rate but that could easily change!

I won £25 each month in the two months following my mother's death, my first winnings for years and it seemed like a gift from her!

FloraDora9 That’s a silly and rather bitchy attitude. Do you begrudge people their winnings? The only reason I have a lot of premium bonds is because my mother died and I received some money, otherwise I would be skint, as I only have a basic state pension and live on my own. I was made redundant three times. I have have never had a high earning job, even though I was a secretary.