Gambling Commission deems House Lottery not legal
If you consider that your chances of winning the lottery is in fact 1 in 45,057,474 and striking it lucky by getting five numbers plus the bonus ball is 1 in 7,509,579. A recent chance to win what for many will be their most expensive and prized asset, their home, gave people a chance of only 1 in 50,000 which is somewhat more of a chance for you over the national lottery! Yes there are a few differences in this story ie lottery is £2 a ticket whereas the home lottery was £10 a ticket and of course winnings from the national lottery can be quite a sum depending on how many others you share the prize with (I’m not doing the exact comparison maths – leave that to you the reader to work out).
Anyway, back to the story in that a couple selling their property in North Yorkshire, Robert and Avril Smith, took it upon themselves to raffle their property over trying to sell it (£10 a ticket). They had also intended to extended tickets sales in order to be able to offer £60,000 for the charity Cancer Research UK.
Tickets were selling and it was soon to be announced who the overall winner was (an extension of ticket sales was planned also) though they had to cancel the project following communications with the Gambling Commission who declared it illegal to continue.
The couple had a website dedicated to the lottery and have since to state on it: ‘competition now closed‘.
A personal message is visible on the website and the couple still hope to sell their property in the meantime enabling them to relocate to another part of the UK. Great initiative from them both and let us hope the extra publicity they have received will give them the result they are after and a buyer for their property!
https://wayh.co.uk/ – Message:
Dear All,
It is with sincere regret and upset that this competition has to close.
The Gambling Commission has deemed the competition a potential lottery and not a legal prize competition.
This is despite independent legal advice we obtained to the contrary. It is also after a period of over 4 months of silence from the Commission, despite being told of our competition on 30th July 2018. In their leaflet published 03/18 the Commission states that although they will not approve or help develop such competitions they will act IMMEDIATELY on any obvious concerns. They did not contact us immediately in spite of the fact that it is their role to monitor such competitions.
We understand the disappointment to you all and can only apologise sincerely as well as offer a full refund.
This eventuality is covered in clauses 5 & 6 of our terms and conditions.
We had hoped to be in a position to offer the house as the prize or, alternatively, cash prizes in accordance with our terms and conditions. The Commission will not let us do either.
As you will have seen my wife and I have been through a lot over the last three years and it was hoped that this would give us the break we need. Unfortunately, we are back to square one.
This property is open to offers to purchase.
To claim a refund for your ticket please visit www.wayh.co.uk/signin. You will be able to login to your account and there will now be a ‘Claim Refund’ button where money will be returned via bank transfer within 7-10 working days.
We wish you all a Happy Xmas and New Year.
All our regards,
Robert & Avril
e than 6,000 people who bought one or more tickets.
You May Also Enjoy
Rights Act: Key changes renters need to know — new rules start on 1 May 2026
What Would Make Me Stay: How Tenants Are Redefining What Home Really Means
Competition for rented homes falls to lowest level in six years
Mortgage lending now supports 30% of housing stock
Is it worth buying a fixer-upper property?
