N.J. Admin. Code § 17:20-12.17 - Delivery, retention, and storage of tickets by courier service

(a) Tickets are bearer instruments and ownership is not established until the back of the ticket is physically signed by the courier customer. A printed name shall not be considered to be the courier customer's signature, as required for prize redemption by this subsection. If a winning ticket prize is under $ 600.00, the printed courier customer name on the back of the ticket shall suffice as a signed ticket as long as the courier customer who purchased the ticket authorizes it in writing according to the courier customer terms and conditions.

(b) A courier service shall employ method(s) for secure delivery of winning tickets to the correct courier customer. A courier service shall propose secure methods(s) and timeframe(s) for delivering tickets to courier customers during the application process. Any such methods shall be verifiable; that is, proof that the correct ticket(s) are delivered to the correct courier customer. See N.J.A.C. 17:20-12.4(a)14. Approved methods of delivery cannot be changed except as specifically approved, in writing, by the Director.

(c) A courier service shall store each physical ticket purchased and retained on behalf of a courier customer in New Jersey, in a secure safe or vault with a minimum fire rating of Class 150-1 Hour issued by Underwriter Laboratories Inc., or such equivalent rating approved by the Director. The premises housing such safe or vault shall be protected by a burglar and fire alarm system with 24-hour central station monitoring. Additionally, the safe or vault shall be subject to access control rules implemented by the courier service and be continuously monitored and recorded by security cameras 24 hours a day, seven days per week. All recordings must be securely stored for a minimum of 30 days. The courier service shall fully describe its access control rules in its application.

(d) A courier service shall maintain a secure database of all stored tickets, linking each ticket to the courier customer who purchased it.

(e) A courier service is wholly responsible to its customers for lost, damaged, destroyed, stolen, or missing tickets, notwithstanding the degree of care that they may have exercised with regard to the tickets.

(f) A courier service is responsible to its customers for the foreseeable consequences of the loss of tickets, or for other breaches of these rules or game rules.

(g) In the event that a courier service is unable deliver a winning ticket to a courier customer using the information provided during the account sign-up, the courier service shall make all reasonable attempts to locate the courier customer prior to the expiration of the prize. If after all reasonable attempts fail, and the ticket expires, the courier service shall retain all evidence of its attempts to make contact with the courier customer. Should the courier customer contact the courier service after the ticket is expired, it is the responsibility of the courier service to explain what steps were taken to find the customer prior to the expiration of the ticket.

(h) As tickets are held in trust, and not owned by the courier service, under no circumstance shall a winning ticket for a prize of $ 600.00 or more that is about to expire be redeemed by anyone except the courier customer who purchased the ticket.

(i) The Division shall bear no responsibility or liability for locating courier customers having winning ticket(s) who have not been found by the courier service.

(j) The Division shall bear no responsibility or liability to a courier customer when a winning ticket expires.

(k) A courier service shall retain all non-winning tickets and winning tickets redeemed by the courier service until at least 90 days have passed from the expiration of the applicable period in which a prize claim may be made validly to the Division in regard to such ticket.

(l) A courier service shall report to the Division within two hours of discovery regarding any theft from, or unauthorized entry upon, its premises, including whether any tickets or property appear to be missing at the time, and shall supplement such report regarding any missing tickets or property immediately upon obtaining additional information thereon.

Notes

N.J. Admin. Code § 17:20-12.17

Adopted by 50 N.J.R. 1826(b), effective 8/6/2018