Pennsylvania residents fail to claim an average of $17 million in Pennsylvania Lottery prize money each year, according to a staff report from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Last year’s tally was relatively low, with $8.2 million uncollected in prizes. In 2021, however, Pennsylvanians left $20.5 million on the table. From 2012–2021, the unclaimed annual average was $17.8 million.

Most of the money comes from draw games, including Powerball, Mega Millions, and Cash4Life. Unlike scratch-off tickets, the Department of Revenue is able to identify when and where those winning tickets are sold.

The burden of claiming a prize is on its ticket purchaser. State lottery officials, however, routinely reaches out to the public, highlighting unclaimed funds. This steady communication includes daily press releases for winning prizes worth $100,000 or more.

“We have heard from many players who have checked their winning tickets after seeing a story on their local television station or reading about it online, so this is one way that we can help players avoid missing out on a prize,” said Pennsylvania Lottery press secretary Ewa Swope.

Read more about unclaimed Pa. Lottery winnings in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

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Nationwide, some big bucks have been left on the lottery table at the state level.