The premium bonds prize checker will not show August winners until Monday, because the monthly draw falls on the first working day of the month. More than 22 million people in the UK hold Premium Bonds, so the extra wait affects a large pool of savers looking for a result.
Phil Maciver and £50
Phil Maciver described how a prize can turn up after the draw, not just on the day it is made. In late April 2021, he said an NS&I email told him, "congratulations, you've won a prize."
"I thought; 'oh yes please,' so I went straight in and looked and it said I’d won £50," he said. He then checked his account and found the money had already been paid in.
Monday in August the draw
Premium Bonds draws usually take place 12 times each year on the first day of every month. August is different this time because the first day falls on a weekend, so the draw moves to Monday.
The prizes range from £25 to £1 million, and the more money a person invests in Premium Bonds, the more chances they have of winning the draw. That is why many holders check the premium bonds prize checker as soon as results are due, even though the timing can shift when a month begins on a weekend.
Reassigned prizes later
Phil Maciver also described the part of Premium Bonds that can catch holders out: a prize can appear long after the draw itself. He said prizes can be re-assigned days, months or even years after the draw was made.
He added, "Lots of people probably wouldn’t have noticed it. People have Premium Bonds and the money goes in the bank and they couldn’t even tell you how much they’ve won that month. They just put it in and forget about it."
NS&I can reallocate a prize if the original winner is ineligible, already holds the maximum of £50k in Premium Bonds and does not cash the prize in, or has died and NS&I has not been made aware. Maciver said, "I’m sure about 99 per cent of the people who hold Premium Bonds don’t realise if they’ve received a reallocated prize - unless a substantial amount of money comes in."
For holders checking the premium bonds prize checker, the immediate change is simple: August results land on Monday, not on the first day of the month. The wider lesson is that a win does not always arrive in the account on the same day it is drawn, so a later payment can still be a legitimate prize.
