A retired couple in Scotland have managed to secure a NZ$110 million lottery jackpot despite a shop assistant tearing their winning ticket in two.
Fred and Lesley Higgins, 67 and 57, has checked their ticket at their local shop in Aberdeenshire when the assistant told them they hadn't won.
Moments after he ripped the ticket up and tossed it in the bin, an automated message on the terminal told them to keep the ticket and call the lottery organisers Camelot.
"The retailer immediately grabbed it out of the bin and handed it to me, not realising it was a winner before he discarded it!" Mr Higgins told media after the incredible win.
After he went home Mr Higgins double checked the ticket and asked his wife to check the numbers too. They misread it as having won £5.7 million (NZ$11 million) - still an impressive amount - before realising it was actually the £57 million (NZ$110 million) jackpot.
After claiming their prize, Ms Higgins immediately resigned from her job, the couple told media.
They've already bought a new car and are looking at getting a second home in Barbados, as well as a holiday in India and China.
Despite the near miss, Mr Higgins said he wasn't worried that they wouldn't get the money.
"I knew it was an honest mistake - it just had to be looked at to make sure everything was correct."
Newshub.
