Winning the lottery can be a game-changer for anyone. If you’re in a tough spot money-wise, a lucky ticket might help you turn your life around. Granted, you have to be the owner of the ticket, not just the one who bought it.
However, one individual felt entitled to a share of the winnings, even though the ticket was a gift to their nephew. Feeling like luck had slipped through their fingers, they asked their nephew for a significant portion of the prize.
When their family started distancing themselves, they turned to Reddit for judgment. Keep reading to find out what happened!
Taking to Reddit’s ‘Am I The A*****e‘ thread, the Redditor (who goes by the username accountforaita33) wrote:
“So I may have seen a post like this on here a few years ago but nothing came up in the search and I honestly don’t remember the outcome.
I have had a really rough year, laid off from my job and I’m out of unemployment options. I do own my house and managed to scrape buy to pay my property taxes and insurance with odd jobs but I am eating ramen just about every meal.
I love my nephew and can’t get by on the thought that I wouldn’t be able to get him a birthday present (Nov 3rd). I scraped together whatever change I could and bought him some lottery scratchers. and holy shit he actually won (on two of them no less). One was for about $50 which was cool enough but the second one was actually into the middle 5 figures. I mean life changing money (I can’t say exactly how much because in our state lottery winners are all public record).
His parents (my sister and her husband) are very well off. My nephew has a fully funded college fund and every material thing he could ever want. when I found out I told my sister that it would be really cool if my nephew gave me at least 3/4 of the winnings. She asked if I was serious. I said I felt I was being very generous because I really need all of it. She actually hung up on me. I texted my nephew and I think he actually blocked me.
Here’s the thing, I NEED this money. It’s a matter of me eating or not eating. He doesn’t. Am I the asshole for thinking he should share the winnings of the gift I gave him?”
What did Reddit users think?
Reddit users weighed in with their opinions, with one person saying that the Redditor was being an a*****e: “You don’t get to ask for part of someone’s gift. It sucks you’re having it tough but still doesn’t mean you’re ‘generous’ for asking for only part of the gift. Sure ask them for help, but don’t ask for his gift.”
Another person added: “Yeah you are sorry. It was a gift. That means it is all his and you are not entitled to any of it. You could always try asking for a loan from family if they are that well off.
Someone else chimed in with: “Unless the ticket came with an agreement like ‘if this wins I get half’, then the ticket, and any resulting winnings, are a gift. Trying to take back a gift is an a*****e move. Your financial situation and his are both 100% irrelevant. It doesn’t matter if he’s Jeff Bezos and you’re homeless. A gift is a gift.”
Ultimately, the verdict was clear: while winning the lottery may bring fortune, it doesn’t entitle others to claim a piece of the prize, especially when it was given as a gift with no strings attached.
