Communication Vehicle Must Compensate Reader for Publishing Incorrect Lottery Result

A reader will be compensated by a publisher who published incorrect lottery draw results in their newspaper. The decision, made by the Minas Gerais Court of Justice, establishes compensation of R$ 8,000 for moral damages.

A man sought compensation for moral damages after mistakenly believing he had won the lottery prize. He claimed to have experienced great embarrassment in front of family, friends, and bank employees. After checking the result in the newspaper and believing he had won R$ 1.67 million, he went to a bank branch to claim the prize. However, upon arrival, he discovered that the newspaper had published the numbers from a previous draw.

According to Judge Marco Aurélio Ferrara Marcolino, the case's rapporteur, although the company is not the official responsible for lottery results, it publishes this data to attract readers and increase sales. Therefore, when it disseminates incorrect information that causes damage, it must bear the consequences. Marcolino stated that the newspaper's error "exceeds the limit of everyday adversities." Initially, the Itamarandiba Comarca denied the compensation claim, classifying the incident as "mere annoyances." However, upon appeal, the reader's request was accepted. The judge recognized that the man suffered significant moral damages, including disappointment and sadness, due to the incorrect disclosure.

Lottery outlet must compensate bettors for failing to register winning Mega-Sena pool

In 2010, 40 people from Novo Hamburgo/RS bought shares of a pool at the Esquina da Sorte lottery outlet. However, the game was not correctly registered in the Federal Savings Bank's system. When the numbers 20 - 28 - 40 - 41 - 51 - 58 were drawn in draw 1155, the participants initially felt like winners but soon found out that the prize had been accumulated.

Each participant paid R$ 11 for a share of the pool. If they had received the prize of R$ 53 million, each would have pocketed approximately R$ 1.3 million. Prevented from collecting the prize, the bettors appealed to the courts.

In 2016, the 4th Region Federal Regional Court acquitted the owner of the lottery outlet, José Paulo Abend, and convicted employee Diane Samar da Silva of fraud. The rapporteur of the case, Judge Sebastião Ogê Muniz, emphasized that there was no evidence that Abend knew that the pools were not being registered. On the other hand, it was proven that Diane was responsible for the registration and that she appropriated the betting amounts. Diane was sentenced to 2 years and 4 months of community service and fined approximately R$ 2,000.

In the civil sphere, 14 of the bettors filed a lawsuit for material and moral damages against the lottery outlet and the Federal Savings Bank, requesting compensation for the prize value and additional moral damages, totaling R$ 2,668,430.52. They argued that the Federal Savings Bank failed in choosing and supervising the lottery outlet. At first instance and at the 4th Region Federal Regional Court, the request was denied. The rapporteur stated that the pool betting modality was not officially recognized by the Federal Savings Bank and that the responsibility for the acts of the lottery outlet does not fall on the Federal Savings Bank. The lottery outlet was disaccredited by the Federal Savings Bank for commercializing the pool, an unauthorized practice. In 2016, the bettors appealed to the STJ. The trial was postponed in 2022 and still awaits a new date for deliberation.

Bettor misses out on prize and compensation for disregarding official lottery result

An error in publishing the lottery result led a woman to believe she had hit the six numbers in draw 1275 of Mega-Sena and had become a millionaire. Only upon going to a lottery outlet to collect the prize was she informed of the mistake.

The plaintiff argued that the error caused her moral damage and requested that the newspaper compensate her in the amount equivalent to 10% of the prize (which was approximately R$ 61 million). However, the rapporteur of the appeal, Judge Alexandre Marcondes, stated that the amount requested was absurd since the assessment of moral damage has no relation to the lottery prize value. The judge emphasized in his vote that the bettor is a consumer of the product and trusted the veracity of the information published in the newspaper, making compensation appropriate. "The error caused significant emotional disturbance and alteration of the plaintiff's psychic state. In a few hours, the appellant went from a state of great euphoria to intense frustration, not being, as the appellee wishes to imply, mere annoyance or everyday dissatisfaction," he stated.

These cases highlight the importance of journalistic accuracy and the responsibility of media outlets and lottery institutions to ensure that the information they disseminate is correct. When they fail in this duty and cause harm, they may have to compensate those affected. The decision of the Minas Gerais Court of Justice and the related cases show that Brazilian justice recognizes the seriousness of such errors and the emotional and financial consequences for those involved. However, it is important to emphasize the importance of verifying bets from official sources, as justice does not always favor the bettor.