Ladbible X Whatsapp
  • iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Man who won £4 million on lottery takes home £2.5 million after being given ultimatum

Home> News> US News

Updated 14:36 4 Aug 2023 GMT+1Published 14:30 4 Aug 2023 GMT+1

Man who won £4 million on lottery takes home £2.5 million after being given ultimatum

He hit the jackpot but ended up taking home a much smaller sum

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

A bloke who won a whopping $5 million (£4m) on a scratch card was left with a lot less after he made a decision on how he’d like to receive his winnings.

Daniel Grijalva Esquivel, from Kansas City, won the $5 million after purchasing a New York Lottery's Cash X100 scratch-off for $20 (£15) from a convenience store in Spring Valley, New York.

According to the New York Lottery, the odds of landing the $5 million (£3.9m) jackpot are one in 4,498,390.

In the US, when someone wins the lottery one of the first decisions they are asked to make is whether they would like to have their prize as a one-off payment or break it down into annual payments.

Advert

Daniel Grijalva Esquivel won the life-changing sum earlier this year.
NY Lottery
And when Esquivel was asked, he opted for the lump sum, meaning that after forking out fees and taxes he ended up with just $3.2million (£2.5m) - I mean, let’s be honest, it’s still an impressive amount but a whole lot less than his original prize.

Across the US, most lottery winners decide to take their jackpot as a one-off lump sum, like Esquivel did.

However, those who choose to have the annual payouts usually receive winnings nearer the advertised jackpot, but are still subject to taxes.

The other benefit to the annual payouts is that they offer a steady stream of income over the years and mean you’re less likely to blow through it all in a couple of years - unlike British lottery winner Michael Carroll.

Chicago-based lawyer Andrew Stoltmann, who has represented several lottery winners over the years, says that opting for the annual payouts is a far safer idea for most people.

Advert

Speaking to CNBC in 2022, he said: “Few lottery winners have the infrastructure in place to manage a lottery windfall.”

He won big on a scratch card.
NY Lottery

In an interview with The Sun, Stoltmann explained: "They [the winners] tend to be from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

“So they then take this massive sum of money and they just don't really know what to do with that. It's a pretty big mistake."

He went on to explain that even if someone does fritter away their first payout it’s not the end of the world.

Advert

“To make a mistake with the first year’s winnings is not catastrophic if the winner is going to receive another 29 years’ worth of payments,” Stoltmann added.

OK, well duly noted. Now I’m off to buy a scratch card - wish me luck.

Featured Image Credit: NY Lottery/Getty

Topics: US News, Money

Claire Reid
Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

9 mins ago
18 mins ago
an hour ago
17 hours ago
  • 9 mins ago

    Scientists discovered maximum age an average human can likely live to

    Researchers studied dead people for thirty years

    News
  • 18 mins ago

    Oasis gig thrown into chaos after ticketless fans storm Heaton Park fences as band takes to stage

    Oasis fans jumped over the Heaton Park fences as Liam and Noel Gallagher took to the stage

    News
  • an hour ago

    Family of Air India victims speak out after they're 'stunned' by report explaining cause of devastating crash that killed 260

    A preliminary investigation into the tragedy suggested the fuel control switches were turned off

    News
  • 17 hours ago

    Doctor shows how much medicine costs in the US compared to the UK and Australia with shocking results

    Not all healthcare systems were created equal

    News
  • Man who won £5.4 million on lottery ended up homeless after one mistake 'destroyed his life'
  • Brit who won £107.9 million on lottery after 'predicting it' shared surprising update on life after winning
  • Man who thought he won £1 million on Postcode Lottery immediately went next door to be told bad news
  • Why lad, 20, who won £7.5 million on lottery won't stop working and went back the day after