Interim by-appointment only process for claimants of $50,000 or more
In-person prize claims for winning-ticket holders of $50,000 or more have resumed at the OLG Prize Centre in Toronto. The gradual resumption of in-person prize claims begins with a by-appointment only process prioritizing players who have been unable to claim their prizes since the temporary closure of the OLG Prize Centre to the public on March 17, 2020.
To best protect customers and staff, measures recommended by public health officials, are in place at the Prize Centre to prevent and reduce the spread of COVID-19, including:
- physical distancing;
- increased cleaning of public and shared spaces;
- available hand sanitizing stations; and
- the mandatory use of personal protective equipment such as masks by customers.
As such, the number of potential claimants who will be allowed inside the Prize Centre at any given time has been significantly reduced. At this time, appointments are being extended to jackpot and major prize claimants.
Upon successfully contacting the claimants of prizes of $50,000 or more and making those arrangements, the Prize Centre will begin to reach out to claimants of $10,000 or more to offer prize claim appointments. Future announcements will be made as to when OLG will open appointments to others wishing to claim their prize in-person at the Prize Centre.
However, in-person claims are not required for prizes of less than $50,000 and players are reminded:
- Prize claims of up to $49,999.90 can be submitted by mail, following the instructions on OLG.ca or by calling the OLG Support Centre at 1-800-387-0098.
- Lottery prizes of up to $999.90 can be redeemed at any one of the 10,000 lottery retail outlets provincewide. The payment of these prizes is subject to the availability of cash at specific outlets
While the Prize Centre was not conducting in-person claims, OLG continued to pay thousands of customers prizes sent in by mail totalling more than $17 million. The mail-in prize limit was increased from $9,999.90 to $49,999.90 to allow more customers the opportunity to claim their prizes during this unprecedented time while still upholding prize integrity.
OLG appreciates the patience and understanding from our players as we worked to implement these additional procedures to ensure the safety of our customers and our staff.
