Premium bonds

I bought £10,000 of PBs 18 months ago, to add to the £232 worth I already had.

I think I got a prize 3 months on the trot, then nothing before another prize around about the time I was thinking "Is it worth it?", plus a 5th prize a couple of months ago. Nothing huge, but the total not too far off what I am getting from the building Society on a similar amount.

There was a time, maybe 25 years ago when I was otherwise broke, with two kids to feed, I had to cash in my Premium Bonds - a block of £1000 - and a £1000 prize crossed in the Post! Fantastic. Proof that I could eat the cake and still have it!

Not quite, crazyh. Each bond has the same chance of winning as any other but if someone has £40,000 they have more chances than the person who has £10,000. Like buying raffle tickets.

www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-bonds/

Try using the MSE probability calculator:

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

£10,000 with (median) average luck might win £300 over one year.

£40,000 with (median) average luck might win £1,250 over one year.

You can ask the calculator to compare with top savings depending on your tax status.

It also shows how much you need to earn in prizes to keep pace with current inflation rates.

However may bonds you hold, you have to have better than median average luck to outdo savings and inflation.

I had £40000 in PB - haven’t won a thing in months and months - so, I decided, because it’s a ‘Luck’ thing, I cashed all but £10000 - and gave it to the children- my theory is that I now have the same chance of winning as I did with £40000

Stella I'm not sure but I think they have a lot.

I do well most months and this it was £125. I don't have the full amount, but any winnings are ploughed back in so I can't be far short of the maximum by now.

My Son is a lucky person, he won £5,000 last month

Only £25 for me this month.Luck has a lot to do with winning.A bond holder from Surrey who had purchased a £25 bond in 2023 won £25000 this month.It was the only bond he had.

I’ve had some in my name but taken out before I was born in 1965, never had a penny.

Kate1949

Someone in my family won £25000 last year.

Do they have maximum holdings?

Lovelock - I also won ££175 this month but my friend won £200 - she ALWAYS gets more than me! my dh won a big prize of £50,000 once, which enabled us to get our grand daughter on the property ladder, I keep my fingers crossed!

Someone in my family won £25000 last year.

Paperbackwriter

So many people say that the bonds would do better elsewhere but where is the fun in that? I love the possibility of a big win (I know two people who have won £5,000 and £10,000 so it does happen). It's like putting money on a horse but knowing your stake is safe! (This month win for me: £100)

Absolutely this, I love the thrill every month too. I have not heard as yet whether I have had a win this month never check until I receive the email.

My four premium bonds date to the 1950's... thank you Granny. I won £25 in 1967 ... ever hopeful!

My dad got £350, my mum got £25 and I got zero, nephew got zero too. All max holders.

We won nothing this month but a friend won £150

roxie39

I haven't had anything for about a year. But I don't have the maximum amount, only £10K. ("only"! Ha ha!) But when I first took them out, maybe 20 years ago, I had something back most months - £25 or very occasionally £50. At the time it was providing a better interest rate than most savings schemes. Now I'm not sure it's really worth havng.

The return on Premium Bonds is at present 3.6% but, of course, some may gain more, others less, some an amount comparable to an ISA.

A safe gamble as you can request your original investment back.

Paperbackwriter

So many people say that the bonds would do better elsewhere but where is the fun in that? I love the possibility of a big win (I know two people who have won £5,000 and £10,000 so it does happen). It's like putting money on a horse but knowing your stake is safe! (This month win for me: £100)

Yes, it does happen; there's always the possibility of an even bigger win.

The best thing to do is keep an eye on winnings and work out the annual return to see how it compares to a cash ISA. The interest rate on cash ISAs is not high at the moment and stocks & shares ISAs are risky, especially when you get older.

I can vouch for the lower amounts being useless. I’ve had my humble amount since I was a child. I’ve only ever had one win (£90) back in the early 1990’s.

Dreadwitch

I wonder why people still bother with premium bonds when the payouts rarely match a good savings interest rate. Even better are isa's or just high interest savings accounts.
To me they're only worthwhile if you're wealthy and have high taxes.

See my other post - an Isa is no fun!

So many people say that the bonds would do better elsewhere but where is the fun in that? I love the possibility of a big win (I know two people who have won £5,000 and £10,000 so it does happen). It's like putting money on a horse but knowing your stake is safe! (This month win for me: £100)

I wonder why people still bother with premium bonds when the payouts rarely match a good savings interest rate. Even better are isa's or just high interest savings accounts.
To me they're only worthwhile if you're wealthy and have high taxes.

Well I've had 1 premium bond since childhood and as far as I know I've never won a penny!

I haven't had anything for about a year. But I don't have the maximum amount, only £10K. ("only"! Ha ha!) But when I first took them out, maybe 20 years ago, I had something back most months - £25 or very occasionally £50. At the time it was providing a better interest rate than most savings schemes. Now I'm not sure it's really worth havng.

I didn’t win this month. However, I have been lucky in the past year so no complaints

From the NS&I site for financial advisers:

It’s a popular myth that holding Premium Bonds in a sequence can improve your chances of winning, but this simply isn’t true. The machine we use to generate the numbers for each prize draw—ERNIE—generates numbers completely at random, which are then matched to our database of eligible Bonds to determine the winners. Since no Bonds are actually entered into ERNIE, it doesn’t ‘know’ anything about the Bonds themselves, such as whether the Bond number is part of a sequence of numbers or not. The only thing that can increase your chances of winning is holding more Premium Bonds – but holding them in sequence won’t make any difference.

What you have described is coincidence.