after buying washing powder for the house, there was on the packet a suggestion that if you send the barcode to the company you could win a certain large amount of money.my niece who sent it did win that money and the money was used to buy an appartment. is this money lawful? if not , what should be done with it, knowing that my brother is well off, praises be to allah. may allah reward you.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

If the buyer of this product did not buy it with the mere intention of partaking in the competition, then it is permissible to take this prize and benefit from it as this is not gambling. Gambling is when the incentive of buying the product is solely or mostly in order to take part in the competition.

For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 84133 and 88613.