2) Trust No One

Anyone who’s watched Batman, Superman or James Bond knows that people can get pretty selfish when there’s a load of money at stake.

Etta May Urquhart (pictured) had been unsuccessfully playing the lottery in California for almost two decades. Finally her persistence paid off and she hit the jackpot – $51 million to be precise. Urquhart was giddy with joy and trembling like a leaf. She couldn’t handle the adrenaline and asked her son to go and collect the money for her. Her son willingly obliged, collected the cash and went on a mad spending spree on her behalf. He bought four houses, ten cars and a boat.

Etta May had to take her own son to court to try to win back some of the cash he’d splashed. They settled out of court eventually, but what a little git.

Similarly an illegal Guatemalan immigrant living in Georgia – Jose Antonio Cua-Toc – made a big win but couldn’t claim the prize because of his illegal status. So he gave the ticket to his employee to cash in, he basically stole the lot. Incredibly Cua-Toc managed to win most of the cash back through the courts.

So if you win, claim the money yourself to be on the safe side. It’s not worth the risk.