Player Question: Am I supposed to get a receipt when I buy tickets?

Here’s a question we haven’t seen before, and the answer to it involves an interesting twist. A player reached out to ask if he is supposed to get a receipt when he buys lottery tickets.

The answer to that part is no. The purchase price is clearly marked on the front of each ticket you buy, so you can easily determine if the tickets you’re buying add up to the total you’re asked to pay.

But receipts are involved when you check a ticket on a lottery terminal or self-service kiosk. The receipts are a security feature to help verify that you’ve been
paid the correct prize amount. If you ever have a question about the outcome of a ticket you've checked, remember to ask for your receipt.

In the case of a winning ticket, two receipts are automatically generated – one for the player and the other for the retailer. Both show the amount of the prize won on that ticket. In the case of a nonwinning ticket, only a player receipt is available.

How You Know The Receipt Matches Up With The Ticket

There are identifying numbers on the receipt and ticket that match up so you can check that the receipt you receive really is for the ticket you checked.

If the receipt is for a scratch or InstaPlay ticket, information on the receipt shows the game, pack and ticket number for the ticket involved. Those same numbers are printed on the back of each scratch ticket and at the top of each InstaPlay ticket, so you can check the receipt against the ticket to be sure they match.

If the receipt is for a lotto ticket in a game like Powerball® or Mega Millions®, the identifying serial number for your ticket is printed in the upper left of the receipt. That same serial number is printed in the middle of your ticket itself. So again, you can check the receipt against the ticket to be sure they match.

Receipts are not involved for the Iowa Lottery’s pull-tab tickets because they already include “built-in receipts.” Any prize won on a pull-tab is already printed under the tabs on the ticket so the amount involved is very clear.

Comments

[Mary Neubauer]

Hi, Eric. We're transitioning away from the ticket paper with numbers printed on the back. We're using up the remaining supply to ticket paper, so some may have printed numbers on the back, and some may not. Either way, it's perfectly fine! The pre-printed numbers on ticket paper used to be a security feature used in the prize-claim process at lottery offices. But with advances in technology, there now are two serial numbers printed on the front of lotto tickets in Iowa. On the front of your ticket, you'll see two long strings of numbers at the top and bottom of the paper. Those new codes have supplanted the need for pre-printed numbers on the back of the paper. Thank you for paying close attention and being a vigilant consumer. That's important!

[Eric Tomlinson]

Why is it for the last few months the powerball and mega tickets at hyvee gas station in spencer iowa DO NOT HAVE ANY SERIAL NUMBER ON THE BACK SIDE OF THE TICKETS ?
Are these tickets good if jackpot is won ?
When i buy the tickets elsewhere theres a serial number on back side but not on spencer iowa hyvee gas station bought tickets theres none ?????