Allwyn, incoming licensee for the Fourth National Lottery Licence, set out some next steps for National Lottery retailers ahead of the changeover on 1 February 2024.

With site surveys – where all retailers are being visited for future equipment upgrades – progressing smoothly, Allwyn will be contacting National Lottery retailers to tell them how they can electronically transfer their existing Retailer Agreement from Camelot to Allwyn, ready for the start of the new licence.

To ensure retailers don’t experience an interruption to their National Lottery service, this will need to be done by 18 December 2023 at the latest – and communications and reminders will ramp up over the coming months.

As part of the transfer process, retailers will be given access to an online portal where they can read their new Retailer Agreement. Camelot Retail Sales Executives – working on behalf of Allwyn – will be visiting retailers over the next few months to talk them through the key changes and to answer any questions they might have ahead of signing the Agreement through the portal. The portal will be smartphone compatible and will include a simple “how to” video and written guides to make the transfer as easy as possible.

Under the new Agreement, commission levels will remain the same for National Lottery Draw-Based Games, Scratchcards and prize payments, and payment terms will remain the same for all games. In addition, any bonds and Direct Debit mandates already in place will automatically transfer from Camelot to Allwyn.

Allwyn will also be removing the monthly lease fees for existing Compact Lottery Terminal (CLT) retailers in the Fourth Licence (saving some retailers up to £600 per year), and introducing additional player protection measures and support.

The majority of the changes to the Agreement have come about as a result of changes to the law and changes associated with the Fourth National Lottery Licence – for example:

• simple name changes to reflect Allwyn as the new operator
• modernisation of some of the language used in the Agreement
• the updating of some conditions to align with recent changes to laws, especially in areas such as data protection and recordkeeping
• the merging of the agreements Camelot had for its two different terminal types into one

In addition, Allwyn and Camelot have jointly set out a timeline of what retailers can expect over the next six months in the lead up to 1 February. This includes the ongoing site surveys –which are being carried out by Momentum In-store and which will continue until the end of September – as well as a series of pre-planned Lotto and EuroMillions event draws over the summer and autumn, and National Lottery Christmas activity (including festive Scratchcards and special event draws) to ensure the continued strong performance of The National Lottery during the remainder of the Third Licence.

Following the 18 December Agreement transfer deadline, retailers can expect to receive a “Welcome to Allwyn” pack early in the New Year, which will contain more information on what they can expect from 1 February – including initial details of new and improved National Lottery games from March 2024 onwards. Retailers will also receive information about the training they will be required to complete digitally ahead of the changeover.

In the meantime, retailers don’t need to do anything until they’ve received details of the online portal.

Allwyn’s Retail Director, Katharine Challinor, said: “Retailers will soon be hearing from us on how they can easily transfer their existing Retailer Agreement. Their Camelot Retail Sales Executive will also visit their store to guide them through the process and answer any questions they might have. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank National Lottery retailers for their continued support and the role they play in raising £30 million every week for Good Causes across the UK.”