In 1980, a couple from Lorraine aged 18 and 19 won 4.7 million old French francs in the Loto. Nicknamed the “millionaire fiancés”, they pose all smiles in front of the photographers with their check, without any accompaniment behind them. Less than three years later, they separated, riddled with debts. In 2013 this time, a young girl, Jane Park, became the youngest winner in the history of EuroMillions at the age of 17, with a jackpot of around 1 million pounds, or 1.2 million euros. Years later, she confided to English media: “I thought my life would be ten times better, but in fact it is ten times worse ». The young woman had spent all her earnings on cars, vacations, clothes and cosmetic surgery. Later, she wanted to file a complaint against the operator Camelot for ” neglect “.
Even more recently, a Frenchman lost his 5.6 million winnings in just eighteen months. He said last May that he regretted not having consulted the experts advised by the FDJ. Because, today, so that this type of accident does not happen again, the FDJ systematically offers individual support to its “Big Winners”, when the gain is equal to or greater than 1 million euros, followed by a collective program accessible for at least five years. The average is 400 participants per year in dedicated workshops. Because we might believe that with a large sum in our pocket, our life would be simpler, but in reality, many traps await us…
The classic mistakes of the “nouveau riche”
“Receiving a large amount of money can lead to mistakes like leaving your job prematurely, overestimating your risk tolerance, being too spendy, being too generous, or being scammed more or less sophisticated, and more or less legal”explains Maxime Roussigné, financial investment advisor and moderator of the Reddit community r/vosfinances. These errors most often occur in the first weeks, before the winner has been able to consult any professional.
“The role of a good CGP in this situation is twofold: to help with financial planning and to coach their client to avoid the classic nouveau riche mistakes »explains Maxime Roussigné. According to him, this planning must start as soon as the order of magnitude of the gain is known, and not after the first expenses or decisions taken alone. Early support also makes it possible to anticipate requests for money that flow in quickly once the secret was out to family and friends.
Three-step planning
“A 7 or 8 figure gain necessarily calls into question the current financial plan. My first recommendation will logically be the updating of the heritage plan, with a reconsideration of achievable life goals »underlines Maxime Roussigné. Because that is perhaps the biggest mistake: faced with a sum that we have never seen before, that we have not made grow with the fruit of our work or our investments, it is difficult to estimate it for know what it actually allows you to doespecially in the astonishment of the moment. Whatever the state of emergency felt by the winner in the first days following the announcement of the draw, it is therefore important not to neglect this step.
“We then secure the short term, then the medium term, before structuring the long term at the end of the implementation of the recommendations. It will then be necessary to apply the plan, and finally take advantage of its wealth of in the most aligned way possible with the client’s values »he explains. A precise order, which leaves little room for improvisation in the first weeks and which often involves giving up on an immediate favorite purchase – but for a more solid future.
