Premium Bonds - have you won anything?

Finance & Banking Finance & Banking: Chat / Discussions
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461

Seemingly, investing in Premium Bonds is one way to lose the value of your savings:

How much interest do premium bonds pay?

The annual prize fund interest rate rose to 1.4% in December 2017 but premiums bonds don’t pay interest in the normal sense.

This is because you only get a return if you win prizes. So, while ‘lucky’ people might earn 1.4%, or more, the average person will earn less than this, or nothing at all.

How likely am I to win a premium bond prize?

Landing a prize is essentially a lottery, so you could hit the jackpot, or never win a single prize, but the odds of each £1 bond number winning a prize are currently 24,500 to 1.

If you hold £10,000 or more in premium bonds, you’re likely to win at least one prize (£25 upwards) during a period of 12 months.

But, if you only bag the smallest prize once, that’s the equivalent of just 0.25% interest over the year. And even with odds at 99%, there is no guarantee of winning anything at all.

Nevertheless, around 21 million people hold a total of £63bn in premium bonds … :102:

In January, 2019, the amounts and number of “winners” were :

£1m 2
£100,000 5
£50,000 11
£25,000 20
£10,000 52
£5,000 104
£1,000 1,837
£500 5,511
£100 25,194
£50 25,194
£25 3,155,110
TOTAL 3,213,040

462

Because inflation is so low it’s hardly an issue,…anyway, holding PB’s is fun. Especially if it’s spare cash that ypu don’t have any particular use for!!

I seem to do fine out of pb’s so am more tha happy keeping ready cash in them.

463

Yes you are right.

RTPI is about 2.2%

PB pay if your lucky pay 1.4% and if you are lucky even more

A lot of ISA pay between 0.8% to 2%

A lot of 5 year bonds pay up to 5%

One massive advantge is if I need to withdraw any money out of my PB in an emergence takes max of 8 days…normal within 3 days.

Most other saving plans are tried up for at least a year and some even more.

464

It’s like playing the lottery but keeping your stake. And the odds of winning are greater Omah. I managed to win £250 last year, which was a hell of a lot more than I ever did on the lottery…:wink:

465

Exactly, I won £300 last year and still have all my stake money…In fact the £300 bought me 300 extra lines as I reinvest all my winnings.

So far this year I’m up £50 which equates to an extra 50 lines.

I don’t have to remember to enter as it is automatic and I don’t have to remember to claim my prize as it is also paid automatically…

Pb’s are great!

466

Yes same here Moscow, I re invest all my winnings also, I think Premium bonds are brilliant, and you never know…One day we might pull off the ‘Big one’…:wink:

467

You might want to check those odds OGF.

A typical set of odds for PBs is as follows, courtesy of MoneySavingExpert site:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-bonds/

Prize - No of winners - The Odds

£1 million - 2 - 1 in 39,490,368,891

£100,000 - 5 - 1 in 11,283,031,922

£50,000 - 11 - 1 in 4,387,850,918

£25,000 - 21 - 1 in 2,025,162,646

£10,000 - 51 - 1 in 877,570,954

£5,000 - 104 - 1 in 407,120,538

£1,000 - 1,843 - 1 in 38,773,381

£500 - 5,529 - 1 in 10,438,988

£100 - 25,283 - 1 in 2,404,377

£50 - 25,283 - 1 in 1,358,656

£25 - 3,165,599 - 1 in 24,500

£0 - 78,978,153,112 - Virtual certainty

Staggeringly dire odds

468

I am happy to pay my tax on fools at $20 a fortnight. I won $1000 in this lottery just after Christmas and $20 last week.

There are 200000 $5 tickets in each draw but the odds of winning the Jackpot is over 9 million to 1 (it is $36 million at the moment) but the $200000 first prize (at 200k to 1) would do me, I’m not greedy and $10 a week ain’t gonna send me broke.

469

Just to complete my previous post in response to OGF’s crazy statement:

The odds of winning the Premium Bonds jackpot are a staggering 1 in 39 BILLION

The odds of winning the National Lottery jackpot are far far better at 1 in 45 MILLION

It’s a colossal difference.

Premium Bonds exist for fools who have absolutely no concept of odds and what they mean and are too lazy to go and find good investments and savings options that will keep the value of their money above inflation.

The National Lottery also exists for fools who don’t understand odds and think that in their miniscule lifetime of draws, “it might be them”

470

I don’t know about all that mathematical stuff Realist, I only know that I won 250 quid last year and it was more than I was getting on any savings account where I didn’t have to lock my money away.

At my present rate of expenditure I should have more than enough money to take care of my every need, and then some, until I finally shuffle of this mortal coil, and at least it’s safe where it is. And the rate of devaluation of my money is not nearly as fast as the devaluation of my body…

I don’t really care if I win owt’ or not, it’s just a bit of fun and isn’t that what life’s all about…:102: Give me a pair of running shoes and a sunny day, and thinking about where to deposit my money to the best effect is way down on my list of priorities…:cool: A fool?..probably! Happy and content? Definitely…

471

Very true BUT

There is always a but.

I buy a £1 P/B and don’t win this month but I still have a £1 for a go next Month and every month for years to come.

I buy a £1 lottery ticket and don’t win I do not have that £ for a go next month.

472

Which is why you are a perfect customer for such things.

You can get much better savings rates than you will achieve on Premium Bonds just about anywhere. You simply haven’t bothered to look and research.

If you’re not bothered about winning mega money then why do it? Your money could be donated to far more worthy causes than the governments coffers.

473

It’s not ‘donated’ it’s just waiting for me…:cool:

474

March

3 x £25

475

Snap me as well

476

One crappy £25 .
I wish I could think of a better investment

477

Me as well, but March isn’t over yet, I might get another.:lol:

478

OK

2x£25 this month.

Makes return on my investment so far this year of £275.

The return on my investment with my PB holdings with the interest they offer I should get back about £600, wonder if I do

If not its a case of ….Win some Lose some:-D

479

2 x £25 also…

480

£500 for me! So about £625 this year…

:lol::lol::lol: