The July 2023 Premium Bonds draw marks the first since the prize fund rate rose to its highest rate in the past 15 years.
A form of investment offered by National Savings and Investment (NS&I), Premium Bonds remain one of the UK’s most popular ways to save.
It can be a fun option for anybody happy to accept that there’s no guarantee it will offer you a consistent income, with holders entered into a random draw at the start of every month – here’s how to check if you won.
When can I check if I won the Premium Bonds?
Usually, the results of the latest Premium Bonds draw are fully accessible to holders from the second day of the month.
The winners are actually drawn a day earlier – so generally on the first day of the month – with NS&I releasing the details of the highest prizes (anyone who has won more than £5,000) at midnight.
However, this changes if the month starts on a weekend or bank holiday, with the prize draw scheduling pushed back to the next working days.
1 July fell on a Saturday this year, which meant that the Premium Bonds results were instead drawn on Monday 3 July.
Bond holders can then able to check if they were among the winners from Tuesday 4 July.
How can I check if I won the Premium Bonds?
If you hold Premium Bonds and want to check if you’ve won a prize in the latest monthly draw, you can use the NS&I online prize checker here.
Alternatively, you can download the free app from iOS or Android, while Amazon Alexa devices can also check for you, “remembering” back across the past six prize draws.
To check on your Bonds, you will need your unique holder’s number, which can be found on your bond record or by logging into your account on the NS&I website. It will have either nine of ten digits, or be an eight digit number with a letter at the end.
Prizes don’t carry a time limit, so you can claim as far back as the original 1957 draw.
According to MoneySavingExpert, as of November 2021 there were more than two million unclaimed Premium Bonds prizes, with a total value of almost £75 million.
To reduce the potential for leaving prizes unclaimed, Premium Bonds holders can opt to have them paid directly in their bank account or automatically reinvested into more Bonds.
NS&I says that almost nine in ten prizes are now paid this way, and you can find out more details here.
How many people won the July 2023 Premium Bonds draw?
Premium Bonds holders from Staffordshire and Norfolk have received a welcome summer windfall by winning the £1m jackpot in the July 2023 prize draw.
The first winning bond, 493HK711899, was bought in March 2022 by someone from Staffordshire, who holds £48,750 in Premium Bonds. It makes them the fifth winner from the county.
July’s second top prize winner came from Norfolk, and holds £20,000 in bonds. Their winning bond carries the number 246DR645231, and was purchased in May 2015 – they are just the second winner from the county.
A total of 5,061,349 prizes were paid out in the July draw, which carry a combined value of £374,539,700 – more than £40m than in June. These were drawn from a total of 121,472,335,344 eligible numbers.
As well as the two £1m bonds, this comprised 71 winners of £100,000, 142 of £50,000, 283 of £25,000, 709 worth £10,000 and 1,418 valued at £5,000.
How likely am I to win the Premium Bonds?
At the start of this year, the interest rate of its prize fund rose from 2.2 per cent to 3 per cent, before increasing further to 3.3 per cent.
But now, after a further hike, it stands at 3.7 per cent – with yet another jump to 4 per cent from August.
A holder’s odds of winning remain at 24,000 to 1 in July, though there are now more £100,000, £50,000, £25,000, £10,000 and £5,000 prizes available.
However, from August the odds of winning will increase to 22,000 to 1. NS&I estimates that the August changes will see an extra £30m added to the prize fund, with 460,000 extra prizes up for grabs.
It estimates that the number of £5,000 prizes won by customers in August will go from 1,417 to 1,539, while the number of £10,000 prizes will increase from 707 to 769.
NS&I chief executive Dax Harkins said: “I’m delighted that we’re able to improve the odds to the best they have been in almost 15 years, with more prizes, more excitement and more life-changing wins for savers up and down the country.
“These changes will benefit millions of NS&I’s savers who have money in Premium Bonds, Direct Saver and Income Bonds.”
