UK lottery and scratch card prizes for 2020/2021 and 2021/2022

Request

Please could you provide me with the total number of unclaimed UK lottery and scratch card prizes for the years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022.

Response

Thank you for your request which has been processed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

In your email you have requested the total number of unclaimed UK lottery and scratch card prizes for the years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022.

Section 21 of the FOIA provides that information is exempt where it is reasonably accessible elsewhere. This information is published by Camelot here under the Annual Reports section:

Camelot end-of-license reports (opens in a new tab)

You can search this report for the term ‘unclaimed’ to find the requested information.

Review of the decision

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your Freedom of Information request you are entitled to an internal review of our decision. You should write to FOI Team, Gambling Commission, 4th floor, Victoria Square House, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B2 4BP or by reply to this email.

Please note, internal review requests should be made within 40 working days of the initial response. Requests made outside this timeframe will not be processed.

If you are not content with the outcome of our review, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have already exhausted the review procedure provided by the Gambling Commission.

The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office (opens in a new tab), Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

Information Management Team
Gambling Commission
Victoria Square House
Victoria Square
Birmingham B2 4BP

Internal Review Request

Thank you very much for your reply. Unfortunately the Gambling Commission's suggestion to look in the annual reports doesn't really help as the information has not been published by Camelot in their annual report for 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 hasn't been published yet.

I find it difficult to believe that rather than type £110.1m in the list and deliver the unpublished figures for 2021/2022, the Gambling Commission typed a lengthy email basically telling me to look for myself in a document for 2021/2022 which doesn't even contain the specific information I require.

Please could the Gambling Commission provide me with the total of unclaimed lottery and scratch card prizes for 2021/2022 and 2022/2023?

2009/2010 - £93.4 million

2010/2011 - £93.5 million

2011/2012 - £105.9 million

2012/2013 - £180.8 million

2013/2014 - £112.2 million

2014/2015 - £127.6 million

2015/2016 - £128.4 million

2016/2017 - £132.0 million

2017/2018 - £122.5 million

2018/2019 - £125.0 million

2019/2020 - £123.1 million

2020/2021 - £100.1 million

2021/2022 -

2022/2023 -

This is not rocket-science, I'm asking the Gambling Commission for two numbers which, in the interests of National Lottery and scratch card lottery transparency, should be readily available to the public. Please provide the numbers I have requested at your earliest convenience. Thank you very much for your time.

Internal Review Response

I am writing further to your Freedom of Information request dated 20/04/2023 which we responded to on 10/05/23, and your subsequent email querying our response.

We have conducted an internal review of the response provided to you and our findings are detailed below.

This internal review was conducted by someone who was not involved in the processing of your original request.

In your original request you requested the total number of unclaimed UK lottery and scratch card prizes for the years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022.

In our response we advised that Section 21 of the FOIA provides that information is exempt where it is reasonably accessible elsewhere. This information is published by Camelot at the link below under the Annual Reports section:

Camelot end-of-license reports (opens in a new tab)

We advised that the information requested could be located by using the search term ‘unclaimed’.

Section 21 is an absolute exemption which means there is no requirement to carry out a public interest test if the requested information is exempt.

The Information Commissioner’s Office section 21 guidance explains that, in order to be exempt, the requested information must be reasonably accessible to the applicant by another route. In order for section 21 to apply, there should be another existing, clear mechanism by which the particular applicant can reasonably access the information outside of FOIA.

The information requested is routinely published by Camelot as the operator of the national Lottery and is therefore accessible via another route.

After reviewing your request and our response, I uphold our original decision to engage the section 21 exemption. Whilst the requested information is held by the Commission it is reasonably accessible elsewhere:

20/21 Camelot 2020/21 Annual Report & Accounts (opens in a new tab) (pg169)

21/22 Camelot 2021/22 Annual Report & Accounts (opens in a new tab) (pg267)

In your most recent email, you have also requested the unpublished total number of unclaimed UK lottery and scratch card prizes for 2022/2023. This did not form part of your original request. As such, this will be processed as a new request and the 20 working day statutory time limit would apply. A separate acknowledgement of this request will be sent shortly.

If you are not content with the outcome of your review, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Gambling Commission. The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.