Lottery adviser highlights ‘biggest mistake’ winners make after jackpot

A lottery advisor who has counselled shares the most common financial mistakes people make after winning a jackpot -from being too generous too quickly to how sudden wealth can destroy relationships

For most individuals, scooping the lottery would represent a fantasy realised – but it doesn’t always turn out that way.

The National Lottery has distributed an extraordinary £103billion in prize money since its inception in 1994, creating more than 8,000 millionaires.

Specialists believe that thousands more have achieved millionaire status thanks to the generosity of lottery winners, and Andy Carter, who has counselled winners for over two decades, considers this potentially one of the greatest hazards.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, he stated: “People want to help out. And it must be difficult to get on this rollercoaster when you start off. So if anything, they are too generous too quickly.”

There have been numerous accounts of winners squandering their fortunes. Britain’s youngest winner Callie Rogers and bin man Michael Carroll, notoriously labelled the ‘lotto lout’, both encountered bankruptcy, reports the Daily Mirror.

Roger and Lara Griffiths, alongside Adrian and Gillian Bayford, are amongst those couples who claimed lottery prizes only to see their relationships subsequently crumble.

Andy has imparted his knowledge to over 2,500 people throughout the last 20 years. A crucial aspect of his position involves preventing people from ruining their lives following an unexpected windfall.

He devotes his time to advising fortunate winners after they collect anything from £50,000 to £195,000, and he insists there’s one simple reason why certain marriages break down. Andy revealed that obtaining unexpected riches merely amplifies problems that are already present in a relationship.

He stated: “Sudden wealth will exaggerate how you are. So if you are very happy in your marriage, you’ll have a lovely time. And if you are having a difficult marriage, it gives you something else to be difficult about.”

Adrian and Gillian Bayford featured amongst those whose partnerships disintegrated after a major jackpot victory. Former postal worker Adrian claimed a staggering £148million, marking the second-biggest lottery win in British history when secured in 2012.

The couple split after nine years of marriage, merely 15 months after their life-changing windfall.

Adrian and Gillian constitute one of three couples among Britain’s top 10 jackpot winners who have discussed their experiences publicly – and two of those marriages eventually collapsed.

Colin and Chris Weir, from Largs, North Ayrshire, in Scotland, scooped an incredible £161million in July 2011. They separated eight years later, following nearly four decades together, with Colin dying less than a year after that.

According to Andy, the biggest mistake winners can make in the days and weeks after a payout is “trying to be too generous” with relatives and friends.

It’s natural for individuals to come forward with requests when somebody they know has suddenly come into considerable wealth. National Lottery operator Allwyn currently provides a financial planning service, complete with specialists who help winners map out their financial futures.

Andy explains that while winners may want to hand over a significant sum to a child, a legal adviser might urge them to carefully consider whether this is truly a wise course of action.

He goes on to suggest that many of those whose lives were turned upside down by scooping the jackpot probably didn’t have access to the level of support that is available today.