Bored Panda works better on our iPhone app
Continue in app Continue in browser

The Bored Panda iOS app is live! Fight boredom with iPhones and iPads here.

“We Were Just Like, What The Hell?”: Aussie Couple Furious After Winning $4.2 Million House
“We Were Just Like, What The Hell?”: Aussie Couple Furious After Winning $4.2 Million House
User submission
2K

“We Were Just Like, What The Hell?”: Aussie Couple Furious After Winning $4.2 Million House

40

ADVERTISEMENT

What would you do if you were gifted a $4.2 million home after winning a lottery prize? To a couple from Victoria, Australia, the answer is quite simple: complain about a list of missing items that were allegedly promised in the giveaway’s promotional video.

Kevin and Andrea Griffin’s reaction to winning the house has left many Aussies speechless.

RELATED:

    Image credits: lmctplus

    The pair were recently given a multimillion-dollar home in Grisbone—54 kilometers away from Melbourne—which was featured on the reality television series The Block. The TV show follows couples as they compete against each other to renovate homes and sell them at auction for a higher price.

    Adrian “Lambo Guy” Portelli, a Melbourne-born businessman, bought the property last November to raffle it off as a star prize in his company, LMCT+.

    The Griffins had been paying a $20 monthly subscription to LMCT+ for over a year before winning the big prize, which they described as “life-changing” to the Herald Sun

    However, the couple wasn’t entirely pleased with their new property.

    The Aussie couple won the big prize after participating in an LMCT+ giveaway

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Image credits: lmctplus

    Image credits: lmctplus

    After realizing that a few items were missing from the home, they discovered CCTV footage of Portelli removing $100,000 worth of items before handing the house over to them.

    Among these items were luxury appliances like a robot mower, a treadmill, a BBQ smoker, and a wine fridge, as well as less pricey items like candles, books, and towels.

    The Griffins have accused the businessman of “stealing” these goods and issued a bill for the list of lost items.

    “We were just like, what the hell? Why has he done this?” Ms. Griffin said after seeing the video surveillance footage.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    If he had known that the property wouldn’t come with the valuable items, Mr. Griffin explained, then he would’ve preferred to take the $3 million in cash that the businessman offered as an alternative prize.

    The pair claims that the original owner, Mr. Portelli, “stole” several items that were featured in the giveaway’s promotional video

    Image credits: adrian_portelli

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Mr. Portelli hit back at the complaints by releasing behind-the-scenes footage that had been cut out of the final edit of the video that showed the couple being handed the keys to the home. 

    The clip, which enraged Aussies, shows the Griffins’ peculiar reaction to seeing their brand-new property for the first time.

    “Is that heated?” Ms. Griffin says at the beginning of the video while pointing to the outdoor pool, to which Mr. Portelli responds that he doesn’t know.

    “It would want to be,” Mr. Griffin then adds.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    When she enters one of the living areas, the woman says: “Where did my wine fridge go? There was a wine fridge there.”

    “They forgot to give that ceiling its final coat,” Mr. Griffin complains when inspecting another room.

    The woman notes: “There’s a couple of lamps in there. We can sell those on eBay.”

    Adrian Portelli responded to the allegations by posting a behind-the-scenes video showing the couple complaining about their new home

    Image credits: areyoukiddingme420

    Image credits: areyoukiddingme420

    Of course, people didn’t take long to respond to the clips, stressing that many Australians struggle to pay for rent, and the pair’s attitude was “ungrateful and embarrassing.”

    ADVERTISEMENT

    In the video, posted on LMCT+’s social media, the business owner defended himself by highlighting the couple’s controversial reaction.

    “I am sure you guys would all agree if you were handing someone a $4.3m prize … if they started acting like that, you would want to get the hell out of there as well,” he said.

    The Griffins can be heard saying that the wine fridge was “missing” and that they “forgot to give the ceiling a final coat”

    Image credits: areyoukiddingme420

    ADVERTISEMENT

    According to Mr. Portelli, the removed items were only intended to be used for the promotional video of the giveaway and were part of sponsorship deals with different companies.

    Additionally, he explained that the products were not included in the terms and conditions of the lottery.

    “The Block contestants do receive many items from sponsors that aren’t included. So in the shed there were a lot of items like a treadmill, there was wine that the contestants won, there were toolboxes, etc.”

    ADVERTISEMENT

    “Now, in our terms and conditions, we do state that the house comes fully furnished and yes, it came fully furnished with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of furniture, however, apparently there’s hundreds of items that are missing.”

    You can watch the video below

    @areyoukiddingme420♬ Sunrise – Official Sound Studio

    Following the outraged reactions brought about by the video, the businessman has decided to raffle off the removed objects for a ticket price of $1, expressing that he wants the products to go to “someone who is going to be grateful and deserving.”

    All of the proceeds of the giveaway will go to Australians affected by homelessness.

    Most people slammed the couple for being ungrateful, stressing that the house is a life-changing prize

    ADVERTISEMENT
    ADVERTISEMENT
    ADVERTISEMENT
    ADVERTISEMENT

    However, some said the couple is in their full right to complain about the prize

    ADVERTISEMENT
    ADVERTISEMENT

    249Kviews

    Share on Facebook
    Marina Urman

    Marina Urman

    Author, Entertainment News Writer

    Read more »

    With a degree in social science and a love for culture, I approach entertainment journalism at Bored Panda with a research-driven mindset. I write about celebrity news, Hollywood highlights, and viral stories that spark curiosity worldwide. My work has reached millions of readers and is recognized for balancing accuracy with an engaging voice. I believe that pop culture isn’t just entertainment, it reflects the social conversations shaping our time.

    Read less »
    Marina Urman

    Marina Urman

    Author, Entertainment News Writer

    With a degree in social science and a love for culture, I approach entertainment journalism at Bored Panda with a research-driven mindset. I write about celebrity news, Hollywood highlights, and viral stories that spark curiosity worldwide. My work has reached millions of readers and is recognized for balancing accuracy with an engaging voice. I believe that pop culture isn’t just entertainment, it reflects the social conversations shaping our time.

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Author, Community member

    Read more »

    Hey there! I'm a Visual Editor in News team. My responsibility is to ensure that you can read the story not just through text, but also through photos. I get to work with a variety of topics ranging from celebrity drama to mind-blowing Nasa cosmic news. And let me tell you, that's what makes this job an absolute blast! Outside of work, you can find me sweating it out in dance classes or unleashing my creativity by drawing and creating digital paintings of different characters that lives in my head. I also love spending time outdoors and play board games with my friends.

    Read less »

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Author, Community member

    Hey there! I'm a Visual Editor in News team. My responsibility is to ensure that you can read the story not just through text, but also through photos. I get to work with a variety of topics ranging from celebrity drama to mind-blowing Nasa cosmic news. And let me tell you, that's what makes this job an absolute blast! Outside of work, you can find me sweating it out in dance classes or unleashing my creativity by drawing and creating digital paintings of different characters that lives in my head. I also love spending time outdoors and play board games with my friends.

    What do you think ?
    Sunny Day
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Most people who win houses can't afford to keep them and end up selling them anyway. This couple should have taken the 3 million cash.

    Meami
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yep. I’m sure the property taxes and insurance are outrageous.

    Load More Replies...
    Bailey
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    While the attitude of the people sounds poor, this sounds more like a dodgy company trying to spin public opinion in their favour. It wasnt a freebie or "gifted" to them, it was a prize by a company who charge a monthly subscription for people to enter their raffle competitions. They don't need to be "grateful" to him, his business is making money off these competitions, it's not like he is doing it out of kindness or charity. If they asked people to pay to enter a competition where the impression was given that the furnishings shows were part of the prize, then the winners have every right to complain when they are not included . The company is already under investigation by the gambling commission and CBS in Australia, so would seem like they are more probably the issue here

    Imagineer
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I immediately figured that many of the items, especially when it listed candles and books, were in there for the photos only. These people are ungrateful, and not the class of people who would actually be able to take care of the place.

    Load More Replies...
    Nancy T
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    How will they afford to pay taxes, maintenence and utilities on the home?

    Pieter LeGrande
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    On top of forking out the money to replace the missing items. And they need to be of a sufficiently high standard that they do not devalue the house. Note: always take the money.

    Load More Replies...
    Oskar Hauser
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's such a stupid move to take the house instead of the money. Sure it looks amazing, but you need the income to maintain it. If you want to sell it then you need to pay someone to do that for you because at this price very few people can even afford to buy it off you and you'd need connections to find the right buyer who will. So then you have a lot of hassle and will have to pay the realtor. Just take the money, buy a smaller, average home you can maintain on your regular income and invest the rest of the money or put it toward your children's future. You can either live in a cool house for a while or secure your family's financial stability for the next generation at least. I know which choice I'd make.

    Andrei Iepure
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah, making people look bad after setting up their expectations and then scamming them out of items which were shown to be on the property. Pathetic PR stunt by Adrian Portelli

    Mandy Delaforce (PC Girl)
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well, I would have been surprised of missing things, but I would asked about it and accepted the answer. I would have taken the money, personally. I would rather choose where I live and that would buy me a nice property south of Adelaide. :)

    The Starsong Princess
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If you win a prize, you aren’t required to perform gratitude. As well, the prize itself is described in the terms and conditions. Fully furnished likely includes what was shown in the promotional videos.

    g90814
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    wait until they get the tax bill, unless they arent taxed in AUS?

    Tucker Cahooter
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Not an accountant, but lottery winnings aren't taxed in Australia, so I think they don't owe anything (same story if they took the $3 million in cash). They would just have to pay the usual rates etc. Assuming they are living in it, they wouldn't be taxed either if they decided to sell it (after a decent period of time, I think it needs to be 12 months at least) since it is their primary residence. So my suggestion to them is that they should be grateful bastards instead of ungrateful bastards

    Load More Replies...
    Ima Manimal
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The ingratitude. If you can’t afford the taxes, just take the money.

    JP Purves
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There are similar tv shows in the U.S. From what I've read, most of the homes do come fully furnished and usually include a vehicle and some money ($250,000?). What I've also read is that the winners rarely take the homes due to the massive tax that comes with the prizes.

    Imagineer
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The tax is the same whether it's property or cash.

    Load More Replies...
    Load More Comments
    Sunny Day
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Most people who win houses can't afford to keep them and end up selling them anyway. This couple should have taken the 3 million cash.

    Meami
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yep. I’m sure the property taxes and insurance are outrageous.

    Load More Replies...
    Bailey
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    While the attitude of the people sounds poor, this sounds more like a dodgy company trying to spin public opinion in their favour. It wasnt a freebie or "gifted" to them, it was a prize by a company who charge a monthly subscription for people to enter their raffle competitions. They don't need to be "grateful" to him, his business is making money off these competitions, it's not like he is doing it out of kindness or charity. If they asked people to pay to enter a competition where the impression was given that the furnishings shows were part of the prize, then the winners have every right to complain when they are not included . The company is already under investigation by the gambling commission and CBS in Australia, so would seem like they are more probably the issue here

    Imagineer
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I immediately figured that many of the items, especially when it listed candles and books, were in there for the photos only. These people are ungrateful, and not the class of people who would actually be able to take care of the place.

    Load More Replies...
    Nancy T
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    How will they afford to pay taxes, maintenence and utilities on the home?

    Pieter LeGrande
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    On top of forking out the money to replace the missing items. And they need to be of a sufficiently high standard that they do not devalue the house. Note: always take the money.

    Load More Replies...
    Oskar Hauser
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's such a stupid move to take the house instead of the money. Sure it looks amazing, but you need the income to maintain it. If you want to sell it then you need to pay someone to do that for you because at this price very few people can even afford to buy it off you and you'd need connections to find the right buyer who will. So then you have a lot of hassle and will have to pay the realtor. Just take the money, buy a smaller, average home you can maintain on your regular income and invest the rest of the money or put it toward your children's future. You can either live in a cool house for a while or secure your family's financial stability for the next generation at least. I know which choice I'd make.

    Andrei Iepure
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah, making people look bad after setting up their expectations and then scamming them out of items which were shown to be on the property. Pathetic PR stunt by Adrian Portelli

    Mandy Delaforce (PC Girl)
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well, I would have been surprised of missing things, but I would asked about it and accepted the answer. I would have taken the money, personally. I would rather choose where I live and that would buy me a nice property south of Adelaide. :)

    The Starsong Princess
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If you win a prize, you aren’t required to perform gratitude. As well, the prize itself is described in the terms and conditions. Fully furnished likely includes what was shown in the promotional videos.

    g90814
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    wait until they get the tax bill, unless they arent taxed in AUS?

    Tucker Cahooter
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Not an accountant, but lottery winnings aren't taxed in Australia, so I think they don't owe anything (same story if they took the $3 million in cash). They would just have to pay the usual rates etc. Assuming they are living in it, they wouldn't be taxed either if they decided to sell it (after a decent period of time, I think it needs to be 12 months at least) since it is their primary residence. So my suggestion to them is that they should be grateful bastards instead of ungrateful bastards

    Load More Replies...
    Ima Manimal
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The ingratitude. If you can’t afford the taxes, just take the money.

    JP Purves
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There are similar tv shows in the U.S. From what I've read, most of the homes do come fully furnished and usually include a vehicle and some money ($250,000?). What I've also read is that the winners rarely take the homes due to the massive tax that comes with the prizes.

    Imagineer
    Community Member
    2 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The tax is the same whether it's property or cash.

    Load More Replies...
    Load More Comments
    You May Like
    Related on Bored Panda
    Popular on Bored Panda
    Trending on Bored Panda
    Also on Bored Panda
    ADVERTISEMENT