February brings joy for premium bond winners

February is off to a flying start for the dozens of people who have won big or small in this month’s National Savings and Investments (NS&I) premium bond draw, but most especially for two lucky people who have landed the top prize of £1 million each.

The first winner, from Nottingham, has garnered quite a return. Having purchased their winning premium bond number 350ZA848545 in January 2019, they are now walking away scarcely a year later with the top prize of £1 million. The second new millionaire lives in Surrey and bought their winning premium bond number 50RE855967 back in October 2002. Many congratulations to both lucky savers on winning £1 million each – free of both income and capital gains tax. 

While there are only two £1 million top prizes, there’s still plenty of reason to celebrate for hundreds of people who have won additional prizes ranging from £100,000 to £1,000.

Six lucky individuals have landed £100,000 in this month’s draw. These are premium bond numbers 292FA349762, 367FD893428, 358WY099044, 59MA227109, 209HN282290 and 339AQ158962 living in East Cheshire, Northern Ireland, Greater Manchester, York, West Sussex and Outer London respectively. Of these, one win came from just a £200 bond and another was claimed for an investment taken out way back October 2001.

A dozen more people are £50,000 better off, while a further 23 people will be celebrating £25,000 wins. 61 people are £10,000 better off, 119 people walk away with a £5,000 prize and an amazing 1,990 people can celebrate a £1,000 windfall.

Of note in these runner-up prizes are two people who won £50,000 and £25,000 with just a £50 investment – now that’s a great return!

NS&I is currently sitting on over £63 million worth of unclaimed prizes. This can happen when the premium bond holders forget to keep NS&I advised if they move or the bonds are passed on. Could you be one of the lucky winners but not even know it?

Happily, there’s a quick and easy way to check using NS&I’s free online Premium Bond Prize Checker. Alternatively, smartphone users can download the same app from the App Store or Google play.

Keep your address and contact details up to date by visiting NS&I and registering for its online service.

While a £1 million win on the Premium bonds would be nice, you’d be foolish to rely on this as your only route to financial security. Those looking for a guaranteed way to get a better return on their savings can find out the very latest deals and offers currently on the market for a range of savings products, including fixed rate bonds, easy access accounts, tax-free ISAs, notice accounts and much more here on Moneyfacts.co.uk.

In addition, you can stay on top of the latest savings and consumer finance news by subscribing to our free Weekend Moneyfacts and Savers Friend e-newsletters.