Lottery Pool Contract Must Address These 7 Questions

Lottery Pool Contract Must Address These 7 Questions

Posted: Tuesday, Apr 02,2019 | Time: 04:51 am | Edited by: The Lottery Lab Staff

Many people strongly believe that lottery pools are the most reliable and cost-effective method to increase their chances of winning the lottery. Office pools are very common because it is easiest to convince people to invest in lottery pools when they work in the same place. Moreover, nobody wants to come to work the day after the office wins a lottery that they didn’t participate in.  But lottery pools can also turn into a bitter experience if you aren’t prepared to win. To avoid disputes and conflicts with your co-workers, here is a list of questions you must address in your office pool contract before starting or entering one.

Question 1: Who is the pool manager or representative?

The first thing you need to consider is the manager or representative of your lottery pool. To keep the things organized, purchasing the tickets, keep the tickets safe, and check for the winning ticket, you need someone that is trusted. Remember to name the lottery pool manager in the contract.  

Question 2: When will your lottery pool buy tickets?

Your lottery pool contract should address the lifespan of the pool. Some lottery pools buy tickets on a weekly or monthly basis while others purchase tickets only when the jackpot hits a certain amount. Address the conditions under which tickets are purchased on the contract to avoid disputes over “missed” jackpots.

Question 3: Who are the participants?

Before purchasing tickets, make a list of the participants. The most frequently reported issue in winning lottery pools is that people claim that they were a participant in the pool and that they “just forgot to pay the money”. Ask the potential participants for their money before letting them join the participant list. Add their name to the list only after they have paid their share. Remember to put this rule in the contract as well.

Question 4: Are participants allowed to purchase tickets privately?

Imagine you’re in a lottery pool, another participant hits the jackpot but they are not willing to share the jackpot because they claim that they bought the lottery ticket privately. This incident has happened in the past so it’s a good idea to mention in the contract whether the participants are allowed to purchase private tickets or not.

Question 5: How your lottery pool is going to choose the lottery numbers?

To choose the lottery numbers you have two options, either you can choose the “Quick Pick” method to let the computer pick random numbers for you or let the participants mark the numbers on the playslip. If you opt to pick your own numbers, specify the numbers to be picked on the contract as well for more transparency. By doing so, the participants will not be able to falsely claim that they purchased the ticket privately.

Question 6: What will happen to the smaller prizes?

Smaller prizes can be difficult to distribute and giving them a way to an individual can raise conflicts. So, what are you going to do with the smaller prizes? One option is to use small prizes to buy tickets for the next lottery pool or save them for a group luncheon. If you use the prize money for the next lottery pool, make sure that only people who participated in the first drawing get the benefit, and be sure to address this in your lottery pool contract.

Question 7: Are participants allowed to purchase more than one “share” in the drawing?

If you want to keep the distribution of the lottery jackpot simple, only allow participants to make equal contributions to the lottery pool. Some pools allow participants to invest more money than others and if they win they get a bigger piece of the prize. However, you need to address this rule in the contract to avoid the issue of splitting the jackpot. There are local and state rules as well which influence lottery pools. Make sure you know the basics of lottery rules and also aware of the state rules, before creating a lottery pool.

Lottery pools have gained much popularity with advancing times. Due to the very reason that Mega Millions and Powerball have been offering skyrocketing jackpots over a number of times, the only problem being its odds. This is why lottery pools have become a common trend with players these days so that they have ample resources to turn the odds in their favour and bag the jackpot. Are you worried about sharing the jackpot? Well if the jackpot is worth millions, you'll surely not feel bad sharing it rather losing it all. 

To learn the basics about lottery pools, read: Things You Need To Know About Lottery Pools