In 2012, a man was told he’d be set for life after winning a lottery prize, but now he’s losing his house.
John Wyllie, 61, won $5,000 (£3,687) a week for over 18 years when he was given the title of PCH Prize Patrol’s lotto winner.
This amounted to $260,000 (£191,738.30) being sent every year during January.
The money was something amazing for Wyllie, who was then able to retire from work and buy a six-acre house in Bellingham, Washington.
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However, things would soon take a turn for the worse.
The company- Publishers Clearing House (PCH) - filed for bankruptcy this year without informing John or other winners of their lengthy prize cheques.
Because of this news, John has scrambled to find a job and has been unsuccessful.
He told KGW8 that it ‘feels like a nightmare’ and as he hasn’t worked in a decade, his job prospects aren’t great.
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So, he’s been forced to make the difficult choice to sell his trailer and jet ski.
Sadly, it might even leave him having to sell his home.
John said that when he worked for PCH, the company managed to get funds via investments that helped to set up a pot for winners.
ARB Interactive, which has acquired PCH, has been blamed for winners not getting their future funds, with John saying as per the Mirror: “They've promised that they will guarantee any future winners that they will get the money.
“But they're not going to go back and pay the $20 to $25million that the prior winners hold. That isn't their responsibility.”
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PCH was bought by ARB Interactive for £5.24 million, after the company’s revenue dropped by over £500 million after the pandemic.
In April it filed for Chapter 11 protection, which is bankruptcy.
However, the documents say it was confirmed that the former winners would not be getting any more payments prior to its acquisition.
A spokesperson for ARB said to the outlet: “At ARB Interactive, we are committed to restoring and preserving the trust that has defined the Publishers Clearing House (PCH) brand for decades.
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“Our vision is to rebuild PCH as a brand synonymous with trust, excitement, and long-term integrity, and to ensure that every future winner can have full confidence their prizes will be paid in full, no matter what.”
An ex-employee has now spoken out about it all.
Former senior vice president of PCH, Darrell Lester, said to the Mail he was ‘really, really angry’ at what is going on.
He added: “I'm angry at the individual who changed the payout for us several years ago.”
He said the company stopped investing money, and as soon as PCH's debt increased to $40 million, the payments to all winners stopped.
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He now reckons any former winner will be unlikely to get a cheque again.
However, he said there’s a lesson to be learned in all of this.
He said: “I would never, ever, ever take a 30-year payout.
“If you win, take the lump sum. If a state or company goes bankrupt, they don't have to pay the winnings.”
Britt Jones