The rules for Premium Bonds changed recently
Premium Bonds savers may want to check if they’ve won a prize(Image: Getty)
Premium Bonds holders in Manchester are being urged to check their numbers as NS&I announces the May draw winners. Each monthly draw features some big cash prizes, including amounts for £50,000 and £100,000, alongside two top prizes of £1million.
There were several large prizes for customers from the Greater Manchester area. These included four prizes for £50,000. One of the winning Bonds that was paired with a £50,000 prize was purchased fairly recently. This was lucky Bond 615HX157387, which the saver bought just over a year ago in February 2025, when they purchased £35,000 in Bonds. They held £46,875 in Bonds going into the May draw.
The other winning Bonds that bagged a £50,000 prize in the region were 571NY768886, 359LG430575, and 582LV508682. There were also seven prizes for £25,000 won by people in the area. One of these was for winning Bond 662BD170134, which was purchased very recently, in February 2026. The person bought £19,800 in Bonds at the time and held the maximum £50,000 going into this month’s draw.
£1million winners
The two £1million winners in the May draw hailed from the Highlands and Islands and Suffolk. The Highlands and Islands winner secured their fortune with Bond number 643SE292364, purchased in September 2025 as part of a £15,000 investment. They held £23,500 worth of Bonds when the May draw took place. Meanwhile, the Suffolk winner’s successful Bond, 567VN857011, was acquired in January 2024 during a £50,000 purchase. They held £50,000 in Bonds heading into this month’s draw.
The maximum holding you can have is £50,000 in Bonds. Many savers configure their accounts to automatically reinvest any winnings into additional Bonds, boosting their prospects of a future win.
The majority of prizes awarded are for modest sums of £25 and £50, with the current odds of securing a prize standing at 23,000 to one for each £1 Bond. The scheme’s prize fund rate now sits at 3.3 per cent. Both the winning odds and prize rate decreased from the April draw. Every £1 Bond carries an equal probability of being matched with a prize.
May’s draw produced some remarkable winners holding particularly old Bonds. A Bradford resident claimed £5,000 with a Bond originally purchased in December 1968. Another winner claimed a £5,000 prize for a Bond purchased as far back as October 1967.
A number of winners with relatively modest holdings won substantial prizes. These included a customer from the West Midlands with just £10 in Bonds who won £5,000, while a Wiltshire resident with only £100 in Bonds scooped £10,000.
Many savers with three-figure holdings also landed significant windfalls. The largest prize among this category went to a Lincolnshire saver who won £50,000. They held £935 in Bonds entering the May draw, having purchased their winning Bond back in December 1997 when they bought £50 worth.
Customers can verify whether they have any prizes to claim by using the prize checker facility available on the NS&I website.