A Quebec Couple Thought Their Lottery Ticket Was Worth $1,000 & They Were Very Wrong

A Quebec couple got the surprise of a lifetime when they mistook their lottery ticket win for a figure much less than what they actually walked away with.

Gaétan Bergeron and France Marcoux from the Centre-du-Québec region purchased a Célébration 2023 ticket — one that they mistakenly thought won them $1,000. Following the January 8 Célébration draw, Bergeron checked his and his wife's lottery tickets through the Loto-Québec Lotteries app.

While verifying their ticket, Bergeron realized that the winning numbers matched. "At the time, Bergeron saw a number followed by a couple of zeros, and thought they’d won $1,000," Loto-Québec said. Well, it turns out it was a few more zeroes than that.

The lucky duo didn't take home $1,000, they won $1,000,000! Bergeron double-checked his ticket and there were three more zeroes than he'd originally thought.

Bergeron and his wife have some pretty solid plans for what they'll be spending their money on. Loto-Québec says that Bergeron intends to spoil family members, while Marcoux wants to retire early and enjoy life to the fullest — rightfully so!

The winning ticket was purchased at the Épicerie Mi-Jo in Drummondville. The retailer will receive a 1% commission of $10,000.

This isn't the first time lottery winners have misread their tickets. Mélissa from Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean had tossed out her ticket after thinking she didn't win. Turns out, it was worth $500,000.

"As soon as the retailer finished validating her ticket, Mélissa threw it in the garbage thinking she hadn't won anything...She picked it back up really quickly!" Loto Québec shared.

Moral of the story? Check your lottery tickets, folks. And check 'em real good.