Fla. Lottery Rejects $500,000 Payment After Misprint

[pirtybirdy]

Fla. Lottery Rejects $500,000 Payment After Misprint
Thursday, May 17, 2007

E-MAIL STORY PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION
OCALA, Fla. — The Florida Lottery is refusing to pay a $500,000 prize until it can inspect the $20 scratch-off ticket, which officials said Thursday appears to be a misprint.

Joe Curcio, 56, says he got the ticket at a service plaza Sunday on Florida's Turnpike.

The Gold Rush ticket has the numeral 1 on the top row and a numeral 1 above the $500,000 scratch-off piece, making the ticket appear to be a winner. But when Curcio had it scanned, the ticket's bar code indicated it wasn't.

Curcio, who owns a used car dealership, said lottery officials told him the top number actually was a "13" that was misprinted.

"They're saying it's a misprint. How do I know it's a misprint?" he asked. He has hired an attorney to press his claim.

Lottery spokeswoman Jacqueline Barreiros said Curcio still needed to turn over the ticket for a full inspection.

"We can't say whether we will pay the jackpot or not until we go through the process," she said.
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Um......I think Florida Lottery should "go scratch their ass" and pay up.

[Skylace]

Damn straight. Misprint my ass. If it says it's a winner they need to pay up. Learn from their mistake and move on.

[major.tom]

If there's no evidence of tampering and the discrepancy was a product of their fabrication process, that's their tough luck. Their quality control (or lack thereof) is not his responsibility.

Pay the man.

[eefanincan]

I think its very "convenient" that they've decided this is a misprint.... I smell a lawsuit!

[Mandy]

[fritz]

If it was my ticket and thy woulden't pay I think I would be pissed-off.500k is a drop in the bucket to them.

[Kezza]

I feel bad for the poor guy because he's losing out both ways:

1. If the lottery refuses to pay his claim and/or

2. If he wins his lawsuit and is awarded the $500,000.00, he'll then have to pay attorney's fees, thus reducing his prize money.

Sucks, doesn't it?

[faceless]

Don't the costs of a court case come as a separate amount? In most cases here the two amounts are usually separate.

[Kezza]

Not familiar with Florida law (maybe someone here is), but often in civil lawsuits, the attorneys take a percentage of the awarded amount.

[Mandy]

I believe legal fees are only "recoverable" on top of a claim if the losing party was acting frivilously.

More likely the lawyers will take a slice of the basic award. Though the basic award could be beefed up for items like distress etc.

[eefanincan]