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Just one day after the draw for the third largest lottery jackpot in history and just a few weeks after some major allegations of fraud against Ontario's lottery system were leveled, those in control of the games have issued some new rules to protect you and your winnings.
The controversy started when a math professor compared the number of lottery kiosk clerks who've claimed big prizes with the chances of so many of those people actually winning that much money. When he calculated the odds in the multi-trillions, alarm bells went off.

That led to charges that some clerks were telling unsuspecting ticket holders their numbers were worthless when they weren't, ending in the workers claiming the prizes for themselves.

Other players then came forward, alleging they'd also been ripped off.

While Ontario Lottery and Gaming officials flatly denied the charge, they were well aware public perception trumped reality.

So they've now come out with a seven-point plan designed to restore your trust in their contests.

Among the changes - giving you the ability to check your own ticket at one of their terminals, permitting clerks to check tickets only if they're signed, displaying larger video screens to let you see what's going on and an investigation of every retailer win over $10,000, instead of the current $50,000.



OLG officials insist there was nothing wrong with the previous safeguards, but these improved measures should remove any lingering doubts.

"In our business, trust is absolutely paramount," suggests C.E.O. Duncan Brown. "Without that, without the trust that the public has, we simply don't exist. "

In a written statement, Brown went one step further. "To anyone who feels their concerns were not taken seriously enough, we apologize and we will do better."

The Ontario Ombudsman is looking into the current allegations and will examine how the lottery brass dealt with the complaints. But he's not impressed by the changes.

"It's a positive first step, but it's not the final step," Andre Marin warns. "As far as I'm concerned, it does not respond to the concerns that we've heard from the public."

Marin claims his office has received some 300 complaints from ticket-holders since he launched his investigation two weeks ago.

"It seems we've hit a sore spot with hundreds of ticket buyers," he confirms. "The calls are still coming in."

City Pulse

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