There's $40 Billion in Unclaimed Money: Here's How to Find Out If Any Is Yours
Lauren Cahn
4 days ago
Trump and Biden trade insults in Iowa
Official: Pilot who crashed chopper radioed he was lost
© Olena Bloshchynska/Shutterstock Hundred dollar bills
Imagine if there were unclaimed funds, unclaimed money, and other sorts of unclaimed property sitting around somewhere waiting for the day you'd finally figure it out and snap that loot up. Well, you don't have to imagine. If you've ever had a bank account, belonged to a credit union, held a job, paid taxes, had a loved one die, or bought a whole life insurance policy, some of that $40 billion could actually belong to you.You can actually get to the bottom of whether you're the owner of any unclaimed property and retrieve it. All by yourself. Without paying a fee or getting scammed in any way. It's nothing like these hidden fees you had no idea you've been paying.
Where to find unclaimed money and property
Wouldn't it be awesome if there were a great big "Unclaimed Money" store where you could stop by, announce yourself, and leave with the bag of unclaimed money with your name on it? The truth isn't quite as convenient. The fact is, there is no single repository for unclaimed property/unclaimed funds. Rather, states run their own "abandoned property" programs, which often include programs that work to return property to its rightful owner. That's because the laws that reunite individuals with their unclaimed property were intended to protect (forgetful) owners and give them every chance to collect what's theirs. That being said, there's no shortage of questionable companies that will do the legwork for you in exchange for a fee. Nor is there any shortage of scammers who attempt to lure you into a fruitless search for nonexistent property by convincing you that you're owed such property and that they know how to get it back for you. So, the bottom line here: Don't fall for these tricks, or these other online scams you might fall for. Instead, make use of these free tools:
The notion that there's "free money" out there can be incredibly seductive. But don't let it seduce you into falling for a scam. The first thing to remember is if you really never lived in, say, Kansas, then it's highly unlikely anyone claiming you have funds in Kansas is anything but a scammer. And by all means, always follow these rules of thumb:
Related video: Texas is sitting on $5 billion it wants to give away (provided by KHOU)
00:37
03:00
Texas is sitting on $5 billion it wants to give away
Does the government owe you money? There might be unclaimed funds or property waiting for you from savings or checking accounts, wages and pensions, tax refunds, life insurance policies, and a lot more. Companies may offer to find this money for a fee. And scammers may try to trick you with fake promises of money from the government. But you can find your unclaimed money yourself for free. Check out USAGov's list of official sources to get started:
Answers to Questions about Unclaimed Property
What is unclaimed property?
Unclaimed property (sometimes referred to as abandoned) refers to accounts in financial institutions and companies that have had no activity generated or contact with the owner for one year or a longer period. Common forms of unclaimed property include savings or checking accounts, stocks, uncashed dividends or payroll checks, refunds, traveler's checks, trust distributions, unredeemed money orders or gift certificates (in some states), insurance payments or refunds and life insurance policies, annuities, certificates of deposit, customer overpayments, utility security deposits, mineral royalty payments, and contents of safe deposit boxes.
What happens to these accounts that have no activity?
Acting in the best interest of consumers, each state has enacted an unclaimed property statute that protects your funds from reverting back to the company if you have lost contact with them. These laws instruct companies to turn forgotten funds over to a state official who will then make a diligent effort to find you or your heirs. Most states hold lost funds until you are found, returning them to you at no cost or for a nominal handling fee upon filing a claim form and verification of your identity. Since it is impossible to store and maintain all of the contents that are turned over from safe deposit boxes, most states hold periodic auctions and hold the funds obtained from the sale of the items for the owner. Some states also sell stocks and bonds and return the proceeds to the owner in the same manner.
How do states try to return this money?
The state treasurers and other officials who administer the unclaimed property programs have developed many powerful and effective methods to locate owners including the use of websites, cross-checking public data, staging thousands of awareness events at state fairs and even shopping malls, and developing a national database, MissingMoney.com. The methods work as tens of millions of potential lost owners inquire annually resulting in this vital consumer protection program returning money to people at a rate approaching two billion dollars annually.
How do I begin my free search?
Companies are required by law to send funds from lost accounts to the state of the owner's last known address. That means you could potentially have unclaimed property in every state that you have resided. You might want to begin your search on MissingMoney, a Web site officially endorsed by the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) containing the official collective records from most state unclaimed property programs. NAUPA will link you to every state unclaimed property program Web site where you can search. Both sites are free.
If searching is free, why do I receive notices that there is a charge to search?
Several business firms have used the states' freedom of information acts to obtain owner information. These firms notify individuals that they will conduct a search for unclaimed property in their name for a fee. Many states do not even provide complete records to these firms to protect your privacy. The bottom line is that you may pay them to search if you wish, but all the information is accessible free of charge by searching the state databases or MissingMoney, or by contacting any state unclaimed property office.
I have received a notice that property has been found, but there is a fee to obtain it.
There are many businesses, sometimes called finders or locators, which find legitimate lost property for owners and offer to inform them of how to obtain it for a fee, usually a percentage of the total (some states limit the fee to 10 percent). Sometimes, companies will hire these firms to find you before they turn the funds over to the state. Ultimately the finder will ask you to sign a contract. The majority of firms that provide these services work within the law, but there are also many unclaimed property scams across the United States. Before signing any contract from a firm of this type, we recommend that you be cautious and contact the unclaimed property office in your state for more information.
How do I keep my property from becoming lost in the future?
Remember, property becomes lost due to a company having no communication with the owner. You should contact institutions that hold your money or property every year and especially when there is an address change or change in marital status. For security reasons, most financial institutions do not forward mail. Keep accurate financial records and record all insurance policies, bank account numbers with bank names and addresses, types of accounts, stock certificates, and rent and utility deposits.
The Information presented on this site is for information purposes only. Copyright ©2019 National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators. All Rights Reserved.
Facts About Unclaimed Property
Lauren Cahn
4 days ago
Trump and Biden trade insults in Iowa
Official: Pilot who crashed chopper radioed he was lost
Imagine if there were unclaimed funds, unclaimed money, and other sorts of unclaimed property sitting around somewhere waiting for the day you'd finally figure it out and snap that loot up. Well, you don't have to imagine. If you've ever had a bank account, belonged to a credit union, held a job, paid taxes, had a loved one die, or bought a whole life insurance policy, some of that $40 billion could actually belong to you.You can actually get to the bottom of whether you're the owner of any unclaimed property and retrieve it. All by yourself. Without paying a fee or getting scammed in any way. It's nothing like these hidden fees you had no idea you've been paying.
Where to find unclaimed money and property
Wouldn't it be awesome if there were a great big "Unclaimed Money" store where you could stop by, announce yourself, and leave with the bag of unclaimed money with your name on it? The truth isn't quite as convenient. The fact is, there is no single repository for unclaimed property/unclaimed funds. Rather, states run their own "abandoned property" programs, which often include programs that work to return property to its rightful owner. That's because the laws that reunite individuals with their unclaimed property were intended to protect (forgetful) owners and give them every chance to collect what's theirs. That being said, there's no shortage of questionable companies that will do the legwork for you in exchange for a fee. Nor is there any shortage of scammers who attempt to lure you into a fruitless search for nonexistent property by convincing you that you're owed such property and that they know how to get it back for you. So, the bottom line here: Don't fall for these tricks, or these other online scams you might fall for. Instead, make use of these free tools:
- Unpaid wages: If you think you may be owed back wages from your employer, search the Wage and Hour Division's (WHD's) database of workers to see if you have money waiting to be claimed. WHD is a part of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL).
- VA life insurance funds: Search the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for unclaimed insurance funds that are owed to certain current or former policyholders or their beneficiaries.
- Pensions from former employers: Search for unclaimed pension money from companies that went out of business or ended a defined plan.
- Tax refunds: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may owe you money if your refund was unclaimed or undelivered.
- Bank failures: Search the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for unclaimed funds from the failed financial institution.
- Credit union failures: Find unclaimed deposits from credit unions.
- Damaged money: The Treasury Department will exchange mutilated or damaged U.S. currency.
- FHA-insurance refunds: If you had an FHA-insured mortgage, you may be eligible for a refund from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). To search the HUD database, you will need your FHA case number (three digits, a dash, and the next six digits—for example, 051-456789).
- Foreign claims: U.S. nationals can find money owed to them from foreign governments after loss of property. For unclaimed federal government funds, this site can point you to the best place to start.
- For funds and property that may be in a state in which you lived at one time, MissingMoney.com can help point you toward unclaimed funds and property. The services are offered for free in partnership with NAUPA (National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators).
The notion that there's "free money" out there can be incredibly seductive. But don't let it seduce you into falling for a scam. The first thing to remember is if you really never lived in, say, Kansas, then it's highly unlikely anyone claiming you have funds in Kansas is anything but a scammer. And by all means, always follow these rules of thumb:
- Never wire money
- Don't pay for a prize
- Don't give out any personal info to an individual or group that reaches out to you (including your social security number)
- Report the scam
Related video: Texas is sitting on $5 billion it wants to give away (provided by KHOU)
00:37
03:00
Texas is sitting on $5 billion it wants to give away
Does the government owe you money? There might be unclaimed funds or property waiting for you from savings or checking accounts, wages and pensions, tax refunds, life insurance policies, and a lot more. Companies may offer to find this money for a fee. And scammers may try to trick you with fake promises of money from the government. But you can find your unclaimed money yourself for free. Check out USAGov's list of official sources to get started:
- Search for unclaimed money and property in every state where you have lived. You can check state-by-state for individual programs or contact your state's unclaimed property office for help. And keep an eye out at state fairs and even malls, where state treasurers and other officials hold public awareness events.
- Check for unclaimed funds from bank failures or unclaimed deposits from credit union closures. Did you have money in a checking or savings account at a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)-insured financial institution? If the financial institution closed, you can search the FDIC database. For unclaimed deposits from credit union failures, search the listings at the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).
- Look for unclaimed or undelivered tax refunds or a refund from an FHA-insured mortgage. The IRS may owe you money if you earned income in the past few years but did not file a tax return because your wages were below the filing requirement. To claim your refund, follow this guidance from the IRS. For undelivered tax refunds, use theWhere's My Refund toolto check your status. Did you purchase mortgage insurance from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)? You may be eligible for a refund. Find out by searching the HUD database. You will need your FHA case number (three digits, a dash, and the next six digits—for example, 051-456789).
- Search for unclaimed back wages, pension money, or life insurance funds. Are you owed unpaid wages from your current or a past employer? Check the Labor Department'sWage and Hour Division's records to see if you have money waiting to be claimed. You also may be owed a pension if a company you worked for went out of business or ended a defined plan. For your unclaimed pension search, you'll need either the participant's or beneficiary's last name, the name of the company that provided the pension, or the state of the company's location. And you can check with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for unclaimed life insurance funds if you're a current or former VA life insurance policyholder or a beneficiary. This search is not for Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) or Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI) policyholders.
- Every U.S. state, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta in Canada, and the nation of Kenya have unclaimed property programs that actively and continuously find owners of lost and forgotten assets.
- The purpose of unclaimed property laws is to protect consumers by ensuring money owed to them is returned to them, rather than remaining permanently with financial institutions, business associations, governments, and other entities. Prior to the enactment of unclaimed property laws and the establishment of state programs, there was no centralized means though which owners could seek to recover unclaimed assets. Most companies in possession of unclaimed property had no particular reason or incentive to attempt to locate missing owners entitled to property.
- In FY 2015, $3.235 billion was returned to the rightful owners by the state government unclaimed property agencies of the $7.763 billion collected.Programs strive to return a higher percentage of unclaimed property receipts to owners and each year more money is returned. For almost all states, unclaimed property collections represent an immaterial percentage of overall state revenue (less than one-half of one percent).
- For decades, it has been recognized as the appropriate policy for unclaimed funds to be used for the public good, until such time as is recovered by the rightful owner. Without impacting the obligation of the state to return unclaimed funds, collections are utilized to finance operations, including special programs such as for public schools and college scholarships. The U.S. Supreme Court stated in the 1951 Standard Oil Co. v. New Jersey case, "property thus escapes seizure by would-be possessors and is used for the general good rather than the chance enrichment of particular individuals or organizations."
- Claims can be made into perpetuity in most cases, even by heirs.
Answers to Questions about Unclaimed Property
What is unclaimed property?
Unclaimed property (sometimes referred to as abandoned) refers to accounts in financial institutions and companies that have had no activity generated or contact with the owner for one year or a longer period. Common forms of unclaimed property include savings or checking accounts, stocks, uncashed dividends or payroll checks, refunds, traveler's checks, trust distributions, unredeemed money orders or gift certificates (in some states), insurance payments or refunds and life insurance policies, annuities, certificates of deposit, customer overpayments, utility security deposits, mineral royalty payments, and contents of safe deposit boxes.
What happens to these accounts that have no activity?
Acting in the best interest of consumers, each state has enacted an unclaimed property statute that protects your funds from reverting back to the company if you have lost contact with them. These laws instruct companies to turn forgotten funds over to a state official who will then make a diligent effort to find you or your heirs. Most states hold lost funds until you are found, returning them to you at no cost or for a nominal handling fee upon filing a claim form and verification of your identity. Since it is impossible to store and maintain all of the contents that are turned over from safe deposit boxes, most states hold periodic auctions and hold the funds obtained from the sale of the items for the owner. Some states also sell stocks and bonds and return the proceeds to the owner in the same manner.
How do states try to return this money?
The state treasurers and other officials who administer the unclaimed property programs have developed many powerful and effective methods to locate owners including the use of websites, cross-checking public data, staging thousands of awareness events at state fairs and even shopping malls, and developing a national database, MissingMoney.com. The methods work as tens of millions of potential lost owners inquire annually resulting in this vital consumer protection program returning money to people at a rate approaching two billion dollars annually.
How do I begin my free search?
Companies are required by law to send funds from lost accounts to the state of the owner's last known address. That means you could potentially have unclaimed property in every state that you have resided. You might want to begin your search on MissingMoney, a Web site officially endorsed by the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) containing the official collective records from most state unclaimed property programs. NAUPA will link you to every state unclaimed property program Web site where you can search. Both sites are free.
If searching is free, why do I receive notices that there is a charge to search?
Several business firms have used the states' freedom of information acts to obtain owner information. These firms notify individuals that they will conduct a search for unclaimed property in their name for a fee. Many states do not even provide complete records to these firms to protect your privacy. The bottom line is that you may pay them to search if you wish, but all the information is accessible free of charge by searching the state databases or MissingMoney, or by contacting any state unclaimed property office.
I have received a notice that property has been found, but there is a fee to obtain it.
There are many businesses, sometimes called finders or locators, which find legitimate lost property for owners and offer to inform them of how to obtain it for a fee, usually a percentage of the total (some states limit the fee to 10 percent). Sometimes, companies will hire these firms to find you before they turn the funds over to the state. Ultimately the finder will ask you to sign a contract. The majority of firms that provide these services work within the law, but there are also many unclaimed property scams across the United States. Before signing any contract from a firm of this type, we recommend that you be cautious and contact the unclaimed property office in your state for more information.
How do I keep my property from becoming lost in the future?
Remember, property becomes lost due to a company having no communication with the owner. You should contact institutions that hold your money or property every year and especially when there is an address change or change in marital status. For security reasons, most financial institutions do not forward mail. Keep accurate financial records and record all insurance policies, bank account numbers with bank names and addresses, types of accounts, stock certificates, and rent and utility deposits.
- Cash all checks for dividends, wages, and insurance settlements without delay.
- Respond to requests for confirmation of account balances and stockholder proxies.
- If you have a safe deposit box, record its number, bank name and address, and give the extra key to a trusted person.
- Finally, prepare and file a will detailing the disposition of your assets.
The Information presented on this site is for information purposes only. Copyright ©2019 National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators. All Rights Reserved.
Facts About Unclaimed Property
- Every U.S. state, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta in Canada, and the nation of Kenya have unclaimed property programs that actively and continuously find owners of lost and forgotten assets.
- The purpose of unclaimed property laws is to protect consumers by ensuring money owed to them is returned to them, rather than remaining permanently with financial institutions, business associations, governments, and other entities. Prior to the enactment of unclaimed property laws and the establishment of state programs, there was no centralized means though which owners could seek to recover unclaimed assets. Most companies in possession of unclaimed property had no particular reason or incentive to attempt to locate missing owners entitled to property.
- In FY 2015, $3.235 billion was returned to the rightful owners by the state government unclaimed property agencies of the $7.763 billion collected. Programs strive to return a higher percentage of unclaimed property receipts to owners and each year more money is returned. For almost all states, unclaimed property collections represent an immaterial percentage of overall state revenue (less than one-half of one percent).
- For decades, it has been recognized as the appropriate policy for unclaimed funds to be used for the public good, until such time as is recovered by the rightful owner. Without impacting the obligation of the state to return unclaimed funds, collections are utilized to finance operations, including special programs such as for public schools and college scholarships. The U.S. Supreme Court stated in the 1951 Standard Oil Co. v. New Jersey case, "property thus escapes seizure by would-be possessors and is used for the general good rather than the chance enrichment of particular individuals or organizations."
- Claims can be made into perpetuity in most cases, even by heirs.