When can I check if I have won the premium bonds? How to use the NS&I prize checker for the October 2023 draw
Premium Bonds are one of the UK’s most popular ways to save once you accept there’s no guarantee they will offer a consistent income.
This form of investment is offered by National Savings and Investment (NS&I), a savings bank owned by the Government.
Rather than earning regular interest on their money, bond holders are entered into a random draw at the start of every month, with tax-free prizes worth between £25 and £1m.
The prize fund rate has increased significantly this year – reflecting the UK’s rising interest rates – and currently stands at its highest point in almost a quarter of a century.
When are the October 2023 Premium Bonds winners announced?
Usually, the results of the latest Premium Bonds draw are fully accessible to holders from the second day of the month.
This is despite the fact that the winners are actually drawn a day earlier – usually the first day of the month.
NS&I release details of the highest prizes – anyone who has won more than £5,000 – at midnight.
However, this differs if the month starts on a weekend or bank holiday, with the prize draw pushed back to the next working day.
As 1 October falls on a Sunday this year, the Premium Bonds results will instead be drawn on Monday 2 October. This mean Premium Bond holders will then be able to check if they were among the winners from Tuesday 3 October.
Here are the remaining Premium Bonds prize draw dates for 2023 – if you are a holder, you will be able to check your bonds the day after the numbers have been drawn:
- Monday 2 October
- Wednesday 1 November
- Friday 1 December
How can I check if I have won the Premium Bonds?
If you hold Premium Bonds and want to check if you’ve won a prize in the latest monthly draw, you can use the NS&I online prize checker here.
You can also download the free app from iOS or Android.
To use the NS&I prize checker on its website, you’ll need your holder number, which you can find on your bond record or by logging in to your account. It has either 9 or 10 digits, or 8 digits followed by a letter.
Prizes don’t carry a time limit, so you can claim as far back as the original 1957 draw.
According to MoneySavingExpert, as of November 2021 there were more than two million unclaimed Premium Bonds prizes, with a total value of almost £75 million.
To reduce the potential for leaving prizes unclaimed, Premium Bonds holders can opt to have them paid directly in their bank account or automatically reinvested into more Bonds.
NS&I says that almost nine in 10 prizes are now paid this way, and you can find out more details here.
How likely am I to win the Premium Bonds?
At the start of this year, the interest rate of its prize fund rose from 2.2 per cent to 3 per cent, before increasing further to 3.3 per cent.
In July there was a further increase, to 3.7 per cent, it then jumped again to 4 per cent ahead of the August draw.
NS&I raised the prize fund rate again for September, with a significant increase to 4.65 per cent – the highest since March 1999.
This change means the odds of any single bond winning have also improved, from 24,000/1 in July to 21,000/1 – their best level since the April 2008 draw.
The minimum amount to pay into Premium Bonds is £25, and the maximum amount you can pay in is £50,000. More than 22 million people hold Premium Bonds.
You can find more information here.
