Waikanae couple claim $15.6m Lotto prize

File photo / NZ Herald

Living week to week will be a thing of the past for a Waikanae couple, who have come forward to claim a $15.6 million Lotto prize.

They watched live as their numbers came up to win them Lotto's eighth-biggest prize ever on Saturday night, New Zealand Lotteries' chief executive Todd McLeay said.

"A week ago I didn't know how we were going to do Christmas this year, it really is a miracle come true," one of the winners said.

"We've been living week to week, so this win is going to change everything for the better, and not just for us, for our kids, and our grandkids too. We can finally buy our own house!"

The couple did not usually watch Lotto but tuned in on Saturday.

"At first I was all 'these are stupid numbers' but then I started checking the numbers on our ticket and realised that we'd won, it was completely unreal."

The winners planned to keep working, and to share their prize with charities.

"We're long-time believers that you've got to give to get, so we've already worked out which charities we're going to give some money to, make sure that they have a good Christmas as well."

The winning Lotto Powerball ticket was sold at Waikanae Beach Four Square, in the 15,000-strong town of Waikanae, 60km north of Wellington. Their prize is made up of $15,114,000 from Powerball First Division and $500,000 from Lotto First Division.