NEWS
SPANISH LOTTERY SCAM

Gwynedd Council’s Trading Standards Unit are warning members of the public to beware of scams that appear to be from lottery companies.

These lottery companies send letters to members of the public informing them that they have won a large amount of money.
click here to view a copy of the letter

John Reynolds, Public Protection Manager (Trading Standards) Gwynedd Council says

“It is highly unlikely that these lotteries are genuine. It is probable that there is no prize money on offer and, by responding to the letter, you could potentially be a victim of a scam”.

Many consumers have reported receiving mail from lottery companies outside the UK, very often from Spain, under the name of “El Gordo de la Primitiva” in Madrid or “Euromillions”. Neither of these companies is connected to the official Spanish lottery, which is the “El Gordo Lottery”, which is only open to Spanish residents.

Here are some warning signs if you are not sure whether you should claim your ‘prize’:

• You may be asked to send a small “administration fee” in return for your prize. If this was a genuine lottery, you would not be asked to send money up front.
• You are told that you only have a short amount of time to claim your money. A genuine lottery would give you an extended period to claim your money.
• You are asked to phone a premium rate telephone number, and asked to provide bank or credit card details. A genuine company would not ask you to do this.