UK’s Richest Lottery Winners Spend Big on Used Volvo

The UK’s all-time biggest lottery winners are not letting their newfound wealth go to their heads. Since winning £184 million (US$224 million) on the EuroMillions draw on May 10, Joe and Jess Thwaite, a couple from Gloucestershire, England, have splurged a small portion of their riches on a used Volvo.

It is quite a nice second-hand Volvo, though – a V60 wagon. It has electric windows and everything.

They’re mega-lottery winners, but first and foremost, they’re down-to-earth people who have worked hard their whole lives,” said a neighbor after being doorstepped by tabloid newspaper The Sun. “The fact that they’ve not splurged it all on sports cars or booze shows what great people they are.”

Joe, who has said the lottery win will give the couple “time to dream,” was not quite ready to go nuts and splash out on his ultimate fantasy vehicle. The 49-year-old previously told reporters that it would be a Skoda Superb wagon, “Because of the amount of stuff you can get in the boot [trunk].”

Tax-Free Millions

EuroMillions is a little like the Multi-State Lottery in the US, only with nation states. Members include Belgium, France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK.

Having said that, EuroMillions jackpots don’t quite reach the monstrous heights of America’s Powerball or Mega Millions because they’re capped at €230 million (US$243 million.)

US jackpots regularly surpass the EuroMillions cap and have exceeded $1 billion three times. The current record is a $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot on January 13, 2016. That was split between three winners from California, Florida, and Tennessee.

The biggest single lottery win of all time is the $1.537 billion Mega Millions jackpot of October 23, 2018. That was won by someone in South Carolina, who opted to remain anonymous.

Unlike in the US, though, the EuroMillions jackpot is tax-free (at least in most jurisdictions) and paid in a lump sum.

Pushing the Boat Out

That means the frugal Thwaites received exactly £184,262,899 into their bank accounts, and they don’t have to share it with any pesky government agencies. That’s enough to buy 6,509 brand new Skoda Superbs.

In the meantime, the couple is house hunting. They are prepared to push the boat out a little more for a new property, but they’re still not getting carried away.

“I don’t know, I think I got up to about £7 million, and then I just thought I was being stupid. I thought, ‘what are you doing?’” said Joe when asked if he had set as an upper price limit.