Reuters
 
London, Jan 3: A mystery lottery ticket holder missed out on 9.4 million pounds ($16.19 million) on Monday after failing to claim the prize in time.

A winning ticket was bought in the Doncaster area of northern England for the July 6, 2005 British National Lottery.

But no one has produced the ticket bearing the numbers 3, 12, 17, 36, 44 and 49 to claim the prize before a deadline of 1730 GMT on Monday and the cash will now go to good causes.

"Unfortunately, I can confirm that the ticket-holder did not come forward within the deadline to claim their prize and has now sadly missed out on this substantial amount of money," a National Lottery spokesperson said.

"To avoid this situation happening again, we would urge all National Lottery players to check their tickets on a regular basis."

The prize money plus interest accrued will now go to various good causes to add to the 17 billion pounds already raised for them through lottery ticket sales over the last 11 years.

Winning ticket holders have 180 days in which to claim their prize.

Britain's National Lottery has given away 26 billion pounds in prizes and created more than 1,800 millionaires since its launch in 1994.

The lottery advised players worried about losing a winning ticket or failing to realise they had won to consider playing on the internet or by mobile phone. Players using these high tech methods are notified electronically if they have won.