A man who claims nerves made him press the wrong button in a television game show which lost him €5m is demanding the show and production company Endemol come up with the cash.

Arrold van den Hurk’s lawyer Peer Plasman told Nieuwsuur on Tuesday night he will sue unless the show and its producers pay up €5m minus €125,000. He claims changes in the rules about the red button led him to lose the fortune.

The man was taking part in the show Miljoenenjacht – a scaled-up version of Deal or no Deal in which players try to guess which suitcase contains a fortune. Asked if he would accept an offer of €125,000 the man indicated he wanted to play on, but pressed the red button, the Telegraaf reported.

Deal

Presentor Linda de Mol consulted the show’s lawyer who said the deal had been made and Van den Hurk was out.

Plasman argues the show’s rules, sent to his client to sign, do not state the red button is binding. This sentence was later added to the online version of the rules, Plasman claims. In addition, the show’s lawyer knew which suitcase contained the €5m and so was not independent, Plasman says.

A spokesman for Endemol said the rules were applied correctly and the company is waiting to see what happens next.