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23rd Jan 2019

National Lottery issues response to reports of underage people buying Lotto products in shops

Carl Kinsella

National Lottery Under 18

It could be you. But only if you are over 18.

A report from the Office of the Regulator of the National Lottery (ORNL), published today, revealed that no less than one-third of under 18s were able to buy Lotto tickets as part of their study. The survey was undertaken across July and August of 2018.

The National Lottery Act of 2013 prohibits the sale of National Lottery products to anybody under the age of 18.

In response to the regulator’s survey on sale of Lotto products to underage customers, the National Lottery has reminded retailers of their contractual obligations.

In a statement issued on Wednesday afternoon, the National Lottery commented: “All of our retailers are contractually obliged not to sell National Lottery games to under 18s and must commit to our Sales Code of Practice to ask for age verification if in any doubt.”

The organisation stated that it provides training for retailers with regard to the sale of their products, and that “every retailer is given over 18s notices to display at points of purchase and is reminded of the age restrictions when their contract is renewed every year.”

Referring directly to the report, the Lotto said: “We welcome the fact we now have an independent baseline from which to improve our controls.”

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