Pay — and Play — at the Pump

California Lottery unveils a new way to purchase lotto tickets at gas stations.

August 26, 2014

LOS ANGELES – Starting next month, it will be easier than ever for Californians to purchase lottery tickets, as the California Lottery rolls out a new program allowing customers to buy tickets directly at the pump. The “Play at the Pump” pilot program will be implemented at about 150 gas stations to gauge public interest. 

California Lottery officials are hoping that, once they already have their credit card out to pay for gas, customers will use it to play the lottery at the pump as well. Earlier this week, state lottery officials set up a couple of the new lottery ticket-dispensing gas pumps for the media to see how they work.

Winning numbers are tied to the card used for payment and any winnings under $600 are automatically credited to the card. Purchased numbers can also be texted to a cell phone, which means the numbers don’t even need to be printed at the pump. A $1 convenience fee will be added to all Play at the Pump purchases.

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