A lucky man has won a huge jackpot after thinking his lottery machine was broken.
The Michigan winner had to give up more than half of his winnings, however, because of a simple choice.
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A Saginaw County man recently experienced the surprise of a lifetime when he discovered he had won $4 million in Michigan Lottery Ultimate $4,000,000 Instant Game.
The 52-year-old, who chose to remain anonymous, purchased his winning ticket at the Fastlane convenience store, located at 3540 State Street in Saginaw, 35 miles north of Flint.
“I stopped for gas and bought two $4,000,000 Ultimate tickets while I was at the store,” the player said.
“I scratched the barcodes, scanned the first ticket and received a message to file a complaint. I scanned the ticket again, and when the message appeared the second time, I thought the scanner was broken.
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“I scanned the second ticket and it scanned correctly, so I wasn’t sure what was going on.
“I went to my car to get gas and scratched the ticket while I waited. It’s difficult to describe the feeling when I saw the value of the prize.
“I got in the car and yelled, ‘We just won $4 million!'”
DECISIONS DECISIONS
The lucky player recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim his prize, according to the Michigan Lottery.
He chose to receive the winnings as a one-time payment of about $2.7 million.
With his new fortune, he plans to buy land and invest.
For prizes over $5,000, the Lottery is required to withhold 24% for federal income tax and 4.25% for state income tax, in accordance with the Michigan Lottery.
These withholdings may not fully satisfy your total tax liability.
For prizes of $1,000 or more, the Lottery is required by state law to check with the Treasury Department to see if the winner has any outstanding debts, according to the state lottery website.
This includes back taxes, child support (Friend of the Court), past-due fees to the Secretary of State, court judgments, or any other debts assigned to the state of Michigan for collection.
If the winner has any of these debts, the Lottery must withhold the amount due from the prize, up to the total amount of the winnings.
Lottery winnings: lump sum or annual fee?
Players who win big on lottery tickets typically have a choice to make: lump sum or annual fee?
Both payment methods can affect how much money you receive from your prize.
Annuities are paid slowly in increments, usually over 30 years.
Lump sums are paid all at once, but in smaller amounts since taxes are withheld all at once. This means 24% of your prize goes to Uncle Sam immediately. Many states also tax earnings.
Annuities can give winners time to create the financial infrastructure needed to receive a life-changing amount of money, but lump sums have the advantage of being taxed only once.
It’s also worth considering inflation when making a choice, as payments don’t adjust to the value of a dollar. This means you will likely receive less valuable money at the end of an annuity.
Each state and game pays prizes differently, so it’s best to check with your state’s lottery to confirm payment policies. A financial advisor can also help you weigh the pros and cons of each option.
Experts have differing opinions on the possibility of get the lump sum or take the annual fee.
STAYING ANONYMOUS
Under state law, players who win more than $10,000 in state-only games are granted anonymity, according to the Michigan Lottery.
However, winners have the option to waive this anonymity if they wish.
For multistate games, state law follows the specific rules of those games.
Regulations for multistate games like Powerball, Mega Millions and Lucky For Life allow for public disclosure of winners’ names.
Meanwhile, another lucky person is yet to claim their lottery winnings after their numbers were drawn several weeks ago.
And someone in South Carolina won $200,000 on a scratch-off lottery ticket, but almost discarded it before realizing his win.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
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