Suffolk resident wins £1m jackpot in National Savings and Investments Premium Bond draw

A Suffolk resident is one of two people to win the £1 million jackpot in this month's Premium Bond draw.

Beating odds estimated at 24,000:1, they bagged the highest prize from a pool of over £216 million.

This win sees Suffolk gain its ninth millionaire from the scheme.

Bond number drawn was 226HV323415, with the winner owning the maximum £50,000 in bonds, the winner of which was purchased in 2014.

The other millionaire came from Outer London, who also owned £50,000 in Premium Bonds, with the winning one being purchased in 2018.

Over 4.9 million prizes were handed out this month, ranging from £25 all the way up to the million-pound jackpot.

In total, 18 people won £100,000, while 36 won £50,000.

Well over 119 billion bonds were eligible to win.

National Savings and Investments (NS&I), which runs the lottery, increased its Premium Bond rate from 1.4 to 2.2 per cent for the October draw, which slightly increased the odds of hitting it big.

They also added £79 million to the prize pool for this month.

The firm said that there were currently 22,656 unclaimed prizes in Suffolk, totalling £725,300.

The highest unclaimed prize in the county is £1,000.

There is even an unclaimed prize in Suffolk dating back to 1967, it added.

NS&I has urged winners to ensure the money is paid directly into their bank accounts to prevent this from happening.

Premium Bonds were first launched in the 1950s.

Jill Waters, NS&I Retail Director, said: “Congratulations to our two winners from Outer London and Suffolk. £1 million is a truly life changing sum of money and we wish them all the best for their future.

"From this month, we’ve increased the prize fund rate and added a massive £79 million to the prize pot, meaning people up and down the country will have more chances to win prizes ranging from £50 up to £100,000, as well as our two jackpot prizes.”