Valencia (EFE) the prize was registered in the General Registry of Gambling Access Bans (RGIAJ).
As reported by the Valencian lawyer Salvador Pérez Alonso, who represents the aforementioned family, the coupon was a gift from a mother to her daughter, but ONCE “has denied the prize to the beneficiary after making her husband sign a document without explaining to him in what did it consist of?
“In a document with the clauses in lowercase letters, the signatory declared that he was the holder of the aforementioned coupon, without the possibility of modifying the ownership later, all this knowing that the husband of the graceful woman was registered in the RGIAJ”, adds this lawyer.
This lawyer also states that the seller of the coupon in question corroborates the version of this family, that is, that the person who bought it was the mother-in-law, and regrets that “ONCE usually looks for any legal loophole to avoid paying a prize won legitimately, which is far from its social nature and non-profit purpose”.
ONCE version of the coupon
On the contrary, ONCE sources consulted by EFE maintain that, indeed, whoever collected the winning coupon was registered in a registry of people who cannot play or collect prizes, and they explain that it is not the first time they have encountered a situation similar.
They also insist that “the person who showed up with the coupon in his own name and with his ID was registered with the RGIAJ and we have a legal obligation not to pay him.”
“You have to take into account -they add from ONCE- that a winning coupon is like a bearer check and that when someone comes to collect it, they must do so in their name and with their DNI”.
In Spain there are some 50,000 people registered in this registry, which is normally applied in gambling halls, casinos, or when playing online, “but from time to time this happens”, say the ONCE sources consulted, who recall that in the last three years they have obtained five legal rulings in their favor for similar cases.
“Those who consider themselves affected can, obviously, go to court, and if they are found to be right, we will be happy to pay them,” they conclude.