NS&I has responded after a man slammed Premium Bonds as a “poor investment” after a friend of theirs didn’t win any prizes in 27 years.
Twitter user Mark Ludmon (@MarkLudmon) got in touch with the provider after a friend of his had tried to track down his Premium Bonds he purchased in the 1990s.
He said: “After several months, NS&I tracked down his account and gave him access – and, after 27 years, it is worth… £100. A pretty poor investment, @nsandihelp. In real terms, it’s halved in value.”
The provider responded to explain Premium Bonds do not earn interest and instead they are entered into the monthly prize draw, which currently has a win rate of 24,000 to one.
The group also explained how a person can increase their chances of winning by buying more Bonds up to the maximum of £50,000 that a person can hold.
READ MORE Premium Bonds winners for September announced
NS&I said: “The holder of £50,000 has more ‘entries’ into the monthly draw. If you were to hold only £1 in Premium Bonds, using the current odds of 24,000 to 1, you would have to enter 24,000 monthly draws before it was statistically ‘probable’ to be drawn.
“This is roughly 2000 years. On the opposite end of the scale, using the same odds, a holder of £50,000 could ‘statistically expect’ 2.083 prizes per draw.
“This is not a guaranteed return, and may for example, occur as six prizes in one month and then none for an extended period.
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“There is also the possibility that a holder of £50,000 does not win at all as it is entirely luck based.”
The provider also said the fact savers are entered into a monthly draw rather than getting an interest rate “was explained at the time of investment and within the terms and conditions of the product”.
Each £1 Bond has an equal chance of winning in each monthly draw, with top prizes including two jackpot prizes for £1million.
Other big cash prizes include £100,000 and £50,000 with winners announced at the start of each month.
One winner in the September draw, from Australia, won £50,000 for a winning Bond they purchased 55 years ago in January 1968.
Another person from West Yorkshire won £100,000 for a winning Bond that was part of just £50 in Bonds they purchased back in December 2005. They previously held £1,455 in Bonds.
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