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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Cathy Owen & Hollie Bone

Meet the man who breaks the news to lottery winners that they have become millionaires

Anyone who plays the lottery will naturally check their ticket for winning numbers when the results drop - but for those lucky few who bag millions, the reality might not set in until they have met this man.

Andy Carter, has the privilege of knocking on the doors of major lottery winners to confirm that they have become overnight millionaires or won a fortune.

He is one of several senior wins advisors at Camelot, which organises the National Lottery, and has broken the incredible news to thousands of winners during his 12 years in the job.

Andy, who covers Wales and the west was the man who visited the UK's biggest ever lottery winner - after they scooped the £184m Euromillions jackpot in Gloucester, last week.

Joe, 49, and Jess Thwaite, 44, won a life-changing £184,262,899 with a lucky dip on Tuesday 10th May, Wales Online reports.

Joe and Jess Thwaite (Rowan Griffiths / Daily Mirror)

"Joe and Jess made it into the top one thousand of the richest people in the UK overnight," says Andy, sounding nearly as shocked as the couple. themselves.

"It is hard to get your head around that amount of money."

"I called them that morning to confirm the win, and to talk them through what would happen next," he says.

For Andy, a major part of his job is to ensure the welfare of lottery winners, as he explains that winning the lottery is a life-changing moment.

He said: "We obviously have financial issues to work out, but a big part of our job is checking on welfare, and making sure they are OK. These are life changing amounts, especially £184million, and we have a very big duty of care to make sure people are coping."

Andy Carter (Birmingham Mail)

"There is a real emphasis on making sure you don't just throw the money at them and run off. You have a very strong responsibility to make sure they are well looked after."

Andy, who used to work for the BBC in London before moving to Wales, doesn't say whether he thinks going public is the right or wrong thing to do, but he does give winners the pros and cons of both decisions.

"It is a very difficult decision to make," he says.

"With that amount of money (£184million), it would be very difficult to keep it quiet, and by going public you do do more to help people.

"For others, I am sometimes the only other person who knows about their win, because they decide not tell anyone, even family.

Joe and Jess Thwaite from Gloucester who have scooped £184,262,899 on the national lottery (Rowan Griffiths / Daily Mirror)

"It is a very privileged job to have to be there at a time in people's lives they will never, ever forget."

Andy reveals that some reactions are stranger than others, but claims nothing "surprises" him and says some winners have even kept it a secret from their spouse.

He said: “I have dealt with husbands who have not told wives, wives who have not told husbands, people who don’t tell their children. I’ve had to pretend to be bank managers and estate agents."

During one visit, a winner was looking "jumpy" and kept looking out the window because he hadn't told his wife about the win.

When Andy asked if he was going to, he told him: “No, we are perfectly happy but the way we do things is I look after the money and she doesn’t know what we have got so I don’t tell her.”

The National Lottery organises a number of life changing ticket draws (Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Ever conscious of his responsibility to former winners, Andy also organises meet ups to give them a chance to chat about their shared experience.

He said: "I get winners together when I can, which means they become friends," he says.

"It is good they can speak to each other, and understand each other's experiences, and there is no arguing about who is going to pay for the drinks."

As an employee of Camelot, Andy is not actually allowed to to play the lottery himself, but it doesn't stop him dreaming like the rest about us what we would do with a win.

"I can't play, but sometimes when I am helping them to fill out the forms I think about what I would do if I was allowed and had won," he says. "I think £100,000 would be great because you would be able to take a substantial chunk of the mortgage and it would give a bit of breathing space to enjoy the money."

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