Lottery winner warns others after hidden loophole causes financial "disillusionment"

An Australian man who won the lottery is now using his experience to warn others about the hidden dangers should they also hit the jackpot.

70-year-old, Frank Kemmler, bagged $60,000 (£32,156.06) and he told the TV show A Current Affair onFriday that he immediately booked a holiday for him and his family.

However, things soon turned sour for Kemmler when he visited his local Centrelink and discovered that access to his pension was going to be cut due to him winning the lottery.

This was because his lottery winnings would be paid in monthly instalments, which are classed as a form of income. Kemmler described the discovery as a "disillusionment."

He added: "It was so unexpected, it took me a couple of days to realize I had just been cut off for no reason at all. So much for being lucky."

Kemmler claims that he wasn't given the option to receive the winnings as one lump sum and was left to pay for his doctor appointments and medication all by himself as if was previously covered by his pension.

A Current Affair

Now that his lottery payments have dried up, Kemmler said that he reapplied for his pension on December 1st but was told that due to the staff being so busy he would have to wait six months to start receiving the money again.

Kemmler is now using his experience and knowledge of what happened to him to warn others. "The pension is not really my main worry, because I’m just trying to stop other people from falling into the same trap," he said.

"These people that are buying these [lottery] tickets, there’s no warning anywhere … to say that you’re going to lose your pension. If I’d known then what I know now, I would’ve given the win to my daughter and kept the pension for myself.”

In a statement to news.com.au Services Australia "offered to work directly with Mr. Kemmler to ensure he’s getting the support he is eligible for."

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