I won $25,000 a year for life – I ‘checked the ticket 10 times’ before I collected my money but only got $390,000

A MAN from Macomb County in Michigan found himself thousands of dollars richer.

To his disbelief, he realized he had won a lottery prize of $25,000 annually for life - but at a cost.

Donald Heilig, 69, secured the grand prize when his Lucky For Life ticket matched the five white balls drawn on April 19: 5-8-24-28-34.

He purchased the winning ticket at the Hub Sports Bistro at 16780 21 Mile Road in Macomb Township, Michigan, just north of Detroit.

"I play Lottery regularly, usually Daily 4," Heilig said, according to the Michigan Lottery website.

"But on April 19 I decided to try Lucky For Life."

Upon awakening at 2:30 am, Heilig said that he pulled up the winning numbers before settling back into bed.

It proved quite difficult for him to discern whether he was still in the realm of dreams or if he had truly struck it big, given the late hour of the night.

"The next morning, I had my wife look at the ticket to make sure I had really won," he said. "We must have checked the ticket at least 10 times before we came to claim the prize."

Heilig recently visited lottery headquarters to collect his winnings, per the Michigan Lottery website.

He opted for a one-time lump sum payment of $390,000 over annuity payments of $25,000 annually for 20 years or life.

Then, he added that he plans to purchase a car for his wife and save the remainder.

BEFORE YOU CLAIM

For prizes exceeding $5,000, the lottery is mandated to withhold 24% for federal income tax and 4.25% for Michigan state income tax.

However, these withholdings may not fully cover your tax obligations.

It is advised to seek guidance from an accountant, tax attorney, or financial planner to ascertain your total tax liabilities, per Michigan Lottery.

Lottery prizes are categorized as income, hence you were provided with a W-2G form for filing your personal income taxes.

The prize amount and the tax withholdings are reported to both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Michigan Department of Treasury, per the state's lotto site.

For prizes of $1,000 or more, state law necessitates the Lottery to verify with the Department of Treasury if the winner owes any outstanding taxes, child support (Friend of the Court), or fees to the Secretary of State.

This also includes court judgments, or any other debts turned over to the state of Michigan for collection.

If a winner has any outstanding debts, we are obligated to withhold the amount of the debt, up to the full prize amount.

Meanwhile, a Powerball award valued at $200,000 in North Carolina is nearing its expiration date.

And an unclaimed Powerball prize of $500,000 awaits in Iowa.