How to Find Out If Your Old Premium Bonds Are Worth Anything

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Track down the quid you deserve with this simple guide

Co-authored by Eric McClure

Last Updated: December 8, 2024 Fact Checked

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Finding Lost Bonds

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Checking Online Bonds

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Claiming Your Money

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Tips

Hoping to claim prize money from old premium bonds? You're in luck, because it's super easy to do! Every month, premium bonds are put into a monthly lottery drawing to win tax-free prize money from £25 to £1 million, and your odds improve over time so it’s definitely worth investigating. In this article, we’ll show you how to find out what your bonds are worth—even if you don’t have the bond.

Checking for Premium Bond Prizes

Use the NS&I prize checker tool and your holder’s number to pull the bond’s value online. If you don’t have a holder number, use your NS&I number to log in to your online account. Call 08085 007 007 (or +44 1253 832007 if you're outside the UK) for help if you’re struggling to find info on your bond.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Finding Lost Bonds

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Enter your holder’s number in the NS&I prize checker tool. All of your premium bonds are grouped together under a single holder’s number, which is printed on your bond. That holder’s number is basically your ID for the NS&I. Hop in the checker tool and enter the 10-, 9-, or 8-digit holder number to pull up the value of the bond.^{[1]
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- This will also tell you if you’ve got any unclaimed prizes! Premium bond winnings never expire, so even you won back in the 1950s, the money is still good.
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Write a letter to NS&I, Sunderland SR43 2SB if you lost the bonds. Yes, we know it’s ridiculous you can’t do this online or over the phone. Write a short letter explaining that you bought bonds but either don’t know your holder’s number or don’t physically have the bonds. The NS&I will pull their records and provide you with the info you need.^{[2]
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- Include your name, address, and date of birth in the letter. If you bought the bonds at an old address or you went by a different name, include that info, too.
- For security reasons, the NS&I will not write back if you don’t sign your letter. Even if you printed the letter out, sign it at the bottom to ensure they respond.
- Provide as much detail as possible. If you know approximately when or where you bought the bonds, it can help narrow it down.
- Do not use any old Glasgow or Blackpool addresses you’ve come across. The NS&I shuttered those offices years ago.
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Call the NS&I at 08085 007 007 if you’re unsure what to do. The NS&I will answer questions for free over the phone. Give them a ring any day from 7am to 10pm and they’ll help answer any questions you have regarding old bonds—they won’t be able to relay personal info over the phone, though.^{[3]
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- Call +44 1772 329880 if you’re not in the UK at the moment or you no longer live there.
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Apply for the NS&I tracing service if you aren’t sure that you have premium bonds. The NS&I tracing service will hunt down any existing bonds for you using whatever shred of info you can give them. Scroll down to the bottom of the downloads and forms page and click “form to track down lost savings” to get started.^{[4]
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- You can fill out and mail a tracing service application form to Sunderland SR43 2SB if you prefer.
- The tracing service usually takes about 4–6 weeks to send you a bond report if they find an account.
- You can also use My Lost Account to track down old premium bonds—and maybe even other lost funds!

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Checking Online Bonds

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1
Use your NS&I number to check your bond’s value online. If you bought premium bonds in the last few decades, you probably did it online. To access these bonds, log into your account using your NS&I number, name, and password.^{[5]
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- You will automatically get an NS&I number when you first buy a Premium Bond.
- Your NS&I number is 11 digits long and has 11, 21, 31, or 41 as the first digits.
- If you ever forget your NS&I number, fill out this form and they’ll email it to you.
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Put the holder’s number in NS&I prize checker tool if you can’t get into the account. If you don’t know your NS&I number or the website isn’t working, simply enter your holder’s number into the online prize checker tool to identify any unclaimed funds. The holder’s number is printed on the bond.^{[6]
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- The holder’s number is always 9, 10, or 11 digits long.
- You will get your holder’s number when you purchase your first bond or when someone gives one to you. It’s printed on the front of the bond if you have the physical copy.
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Download the NS&I app for Android or iOs to check your bonds. The NS&I app allows you to check the value of your bonds whenever you want, and it can find any unclaimed funds you may have already won. Download the app and sign up with your NS&I number or the holder’s number on your bonds.^{[7]
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- If you haven’t won yet and you really want to cash the bonds out whenever you do, the app is the best way to go—you’ll get a notification as soon as you win.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Claiming Your Money

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Log in to your bond account with your NS&I number to see your prize history. Type in your NS&I number, your surname, and the password you’ve set up for your online account. Look for the tab that says “Prize History” to see if any bonds you own were selected in the drawings. If your Premium Bond was chosen, you’ll see the date it was selected and how much money you won from it.^{[8]
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- If you haven’t made an online account, click the “register” button to sign up for a new login with your NS&I number and your personal information.
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Check your bank account if your bonds are registered. NS&I will automatically deposit your prize funds in the bank account you’ve linked to your holder’s number if you’ve enrolled online. You will usually see the prize money deposited into your account with about 2 weeks after you win.^{[9]
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- NS&I stopped issuing paper checks in 2020, so you won’t get any kind of physical check in the mail if you were wondering.
Call them at 08085 007 007 in the UK, or +44 1772 329880 if you’re out of the country. Explain that you have some super old paper bonds and that you’d like to cash them. They’ll mail you a premium bond cashing form and walk you through the steps you’ll need to take to claim your unclaimed funds.^{[10]
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