Are we as Iowans becoming really forgetful? Are we just procrastinating? Whatever the reason, six lottery prizes of at least $10,000 are unclaimed right now in the state. This is a reminder to double-check your tickets.
The largest amount on the list – a prize of $25,000 a year for life in the Lucky for Life® game – has been unclaimed for nearly six months.
The winner bought the lucky ticket at Casey’s, 641 Edgewood Road NW in Cedar Rapids, for the Lucky for Life drawing on Nov. 4, 2021. The ticket matched the five white balls but missed the yellow Lucky Ball that night to win the game’s second prize level. The winning numbers in the Nov. 4 drawing were: 6-9-12-23-41 and Lucky Ball 8.
The winner has until 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 4, 2022, to claim the prize at Iowa Lottery headquarters.
Here is a list of the other five big unclaimed prizes, and they’re also shown on a map in the video above if it helps to see them visually.
| Game | Prize Drawing | Amount Won | Retailer | Expiration |
| Powerball | July 21, 2021 | $50,000 | Casey's, Council Bluffs | July 21, 2022 |
| Powerball | Oct. 23, 2021 | $50,000 | Kum & Go, Stuart | Oct. 24, 2022 |
| Extreme Green InstaPlay | March 29, 2022 | $37,624 | River Mart, W. Burlington | June 27, 2022 |
| Word Search InstaPlay | April 14, 2022 | $20,000 | Casey's, Waukon | July 13, 2022 |
| Extreme Green InstaPlay | March 12, 2022 | $10,000 | Casey's, Gilbertville | June 10, 2022 |
The lottery currently offers prize claims by appointment at its offices. If you’re one of the winners and you have questions before coming forward to claim the prize, please give us a shout at 515-725-7900.
In the last fiscal year, more than $1.3 million in lotto and InstaPlay prizes expired in Iowa without being claimed.
Time appears to be a factor. The Iowa Lottery reviewed plays from a sampling of recent lotto drawings and found that the vast majority of prize claims occurred within six months of the drawing date. Less than 3 percent of prizes from those drawings were claimed after that point. The Iowa Lottery will continue to review how it can best encourage and remind players to claim their prizes.
The money from lottery prizes that expire in Iowa without being claimed goes into the lottery's prize pools for future games and promotions, so it will be used to pay prizes, just not those prizes that have expired.
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