A Rhode Island Lottery player said that a scan from the state’s lottery app declared that his winning scratch-off tickets were losers — only to show the opposite result a few hours later.
According to GoLocalProv, East Providence resident Nick Williams purchased a few scratch-off tickets from a 7-11 convenience store and then used the Rhode Island Lottery app to confirm the status of what he believed were winning tickets. The state allows residents to purchase a range of tickets digitally, including instant lottery games and online keno.
GoLocalProv provided an update on the matter on Wednesday, as the Rhode Island Lottery took responsibility for its malfunctioning app. Paul Grimaldi, spokesperson of the state’s Department of Revenue, said:
“The Rhode Island Lottery makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of information available on our website and app. Recently, an app scanning issue was brought to our attention [by GoLocal]. We identified an incorrect message related to some instant ticket games associated with the scan feature on the app that may occur when the retail lottery system is offline daily from approximately 1:15 a.m. to 5 a.m. (7 a.m. on Sundays).”
He added:
“In-state and multi-state draw games as well as, iLottery games were unaffected. We worked diligently with our vendor to rectify this instant ticket scanning message issue. Our vendor developed, tested, and released a fix so that this incorrect instant ticket message no longer appears.
“Players who have any questions or concerns should please contact lottery headquarters at 401-463-6500, extension 149.”
Rhode Island Lottery provides mixed results through app
“I was confused,” Williams said. “I checked the tickets several more times only to receive the same message from the app — ‘Ticket #xxxxx has been scanned. SORRY. NOT A WINNER. GOOD LUCK NEXT TIME.’”
Williams reportedly returned to the 7-11 around midnight and was told by a cashier that the tickets could not be checked again until 5 a.m. because the lottery machine was off.
At about 4 a.m., Williams checked the app again and it was still showing the tickets as losers. Then, approximately an hour later, the app declared that the tickets were winners.
Williams provided screengrabs that displayed the scratch-off ticket numbers and supported his claim by showing the two different alerts from the lottery.
GoLocalProv also purchased a winning ticket that reportedly showed an “error” message when its bar codes were scanned.
Were other lottery players affected by this problem in RI?
The Rhode Island Lottery website currently lists three prizes worth more than six figures that are unclaimed.
The unclaimed list includes a Wild Money prize from August 2023 ($240,876), a Powerball win from December 2023 ($150,000), and a massive win in the February Mega Millions, worth $1 million even. That unclaimed Mega Millions ticket was purchased at a Stop & Shop in Bristol.
It’s possible that other lottery players in the state received the wrong message from the app when checking tickets. It couldn’t hurt to re-scan any that were previously deemed a loss if you still have them available.
Rhode Island launched its iLottery app in May 2020. Its features include:
- Keno and eInstant games
- A wallet feature that can manage transactions and direct deposit winnings into your account
- The ability to save your favorite Keno wagers
- Establish play limits
- Check eInstant and Instant Game offerings
- A VIP account and personal preferences
- A quick scan for Instant Games and Draw Game tickets to reveal if you’re a winner
- Updated jackpot totals
- Winning numbers for Powerball, Mega Millions, Lucky for Life, Wild Money, The Numbers, Keno, and Bingo
- Locate your nearest Rhode Island Lottery retailers
- Important how to play information
Photo by PlayiLottery
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