Found lottery tickets

Question

today I found 2 tickets side by side, one is for tonight and one is for tomorrow. there is no signature on the back and they were on the road for an hour before i picked them up and realized what they were....if they turn out to be winners is there any way to prove that i dint purchase them? could the right-full owner prove there his/hers, if so how. could i turn them in to the lottery corp or is that just plain foolish

Answer 1

Most lottery tickets are what they call a 'bearer instrument.'  So they belong to the person who has them in their possession.  Once they are signed, this gives the purchaser a few more rights.

It would have to be a pretty freaky set of circumstances in which the purchaser could prove that they were his.  You'd probably have to win a major prize (which is unlikely in itself), and then the purchaser would have to prove that he bought the tickets at that specific time from that store, perhaps with the use of security cameras.  But even then, I think for the most part it would be a very weak case.

Finders keepers, losers weepers.  Just enjoy your tickets and good luck.

Answer 2

if you were to win a large amount and when they question you about where you bought the ticket and what time and stuff like that you would be caught cuz they do look back at cameras and they can tell when it was bought.  i saw it on tv before where they caught the cashier taking the ticket and saying the guy on got a couple of buck when he really won a lot of money.  when they questioned him about where and when the ticket was purchased he did not know the answers.  

Answer 3

According to the lottery, the ticket owner is whoever is holding it until it is signed. Once you sign it, you can let your Brother hold it, but you are still the owner.

Now let's say the guy who lost the ticket went to the lottery office to claim that he lost some tickets and he also told the lottery office what the numbers on the tickets were BEFORE the official drawing. If the security cameras in the store where the tickets were sold showed the guy buying some tickets, AND he had the BEST lawyers in the country, then maybe he might be able to get half of whatever they won, since you have already admitted that you did not buy them.  I'd keep the tickets, sign them, and see if they come up winners. If they do, wait 4-6 weeks before claiming the money to give this person time to file a complaint. If they could PROVE that he was the original owner and it would allow you to have half guilt-free, would you share the pot?

Answer 4

And how would the rightful owner know *THOSE* tickets won? Is there a name on them? Anything that would connect the tickets to the owner?

I'm just asking, you know there are so many lotteries around the world, each with its own rules and stuff.

I wouldn't bet on a lottery win anyway...