Hey, Did You Lose Something?
You may be richer than you think. Government experts estimate that $32 billion worth of lost, forgotten, or unclaimed money is waiting for consumers to find it. While some of it is under couch cushions or car floor mats, the vast majority of unclaimed cash is waiting in State government hands for the rightful owners to come get it. But it doesn’t wait forever. Here's where to look online to see if there's money waiting for you to claim... |
Get Your Lost Money Back
Did you know that if you have a bank account that has had no activity for as few as two years, it may be declared abandoned, and turned over to the government? Fortunately, there are ways to get that money back.
All of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have “unclaimed property” programs. So do the Canadian provinces of Quebec, British Columbia, and Alberta. Details of their legislative authority vary, but in general they collect and safeguard abandoned or unclaimed funds which banks, brokerages, insurance companies, and other specified institutions are required to report and hand over.
The government is supposed to attempt to reunite citizens with their money. But if you've moved or changed your name, that connection could be missed. And who knows how hard they really try to find you? So it's a good idea for make use of online tools to see if you have any missing money that could be reclaimed.
There’s even a National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) whose website makes it extraordinarily easy to see if you have any cash coming to you. Just enter your first and last name (or any other name, such as your maiden name or the name of a deceased relative) and look for matching records of funds among the search results. “Cash” may include stocks, bonds, and other liquid assets, not just currency or bank account balances.
Each jurisdiction has its own rules for claiming found money. Most States hang onto unclaimed property forever. A Kansas City, MO, woman collected $6.1 million that her ancestors had lost! Once you find money that seems to be yours, you can contact the appropriate agency to claim it.
Only 37 States participate in NAUPA’s searchable online database, so don’t stop there if you have lived or done business in a State that isn’t on NAUPA’s interactive map. Contact the State’s Treasury department or Comptroller to see if it’s holding any cash for you.
Other Places to Search for Unclaimed Funds
The federal government may also have money for you. The U.S. Treasury’s Bureau of Public Debt keeps track of unredeemed savings bonds; you can search its database here. The FDIC is holding money owed to depositors of failed banks; you can search for yours here. The National Credit Union Administration has its own database of unclaimed deposits. If your private pension plan went bust, the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp. may have your back. If you have a FHA mortgage, HUD may owe you money.
Some States allow local governments to safeguard small amounts of unclaimed cash for up to two years before turning it over to the State. Try Google searches for “unclaimed property” plus the names of towns or counties in which you’ve lived. Google searches for “unclaimed child support” or “undistributed child support” can be fruitful, too; one single mom collected over $30,000 that way.
Beware of anyone who wants a fee to help you find unclaimed property. There are so many free ways to search that I can only describe such finders-fees as scams. The sole exception to that rule is MIB Solutions, a private firm that keeps track of life insurance policies. Life insurance companies are not required to make any effort to pay benefits; beneficiaries must file claims. MIB charges $75 to help you find and claim benefits you may not know were owed to you.
Have you ever searched for abandoned or unclaimed funds? Have you done so and found money? Tell me about your experience. Post your comment or question below...
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This article was posted by Bob Rankin on 16 Nov 2015
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Article information: AskBobRankin -- Hey, Did You Lose Something? (Posted: 16 Nov 2015)
Source: http://askbobrankin.com/hey_did_you_lose_something.html
Copyright © 2005 - Bob Rankin - All Rights Reserved
Most recent comments on "Hey, Did You Lose Something?"
Posted by:
Tom
16 Nov 2015
Doesn't seem to work. Puts me into a continual loop to go to one place, search and then brings me back to where I was.
Posted by:
Louie
16 Nov 2015
Thanks Bob! I just used the NAUPA site to find my mom was owed $10.00. Hey, it's better than nothing.
Posted by:
Carole
16 Nov 2015
I didn't see this website:
http://www.missingmoney.com/
Posted by:
Old Man
16 Nov 2015
You asked: "And who knows how hard they really try to find you?" Not very hard.
A couple of years ago I did a search and found a company owed me over $80 for about 3 years. They had my current address listed as the last known address.
Posted by:
Humbug7
16 Nov 2015
The State of NE puts on a big ad campaign each year, but they really don't put in the LEGALLY required time to find people. Searching their database, you'll see a ton of listings for local communities, county governments, even other departments within the state government! I'll bet other states are similarly lax in their efforts, so it's really a good idea to check these once a year.
Posted by:
Robert
16 Nov 2015
Many states have their own programs so go ahead and check with each that you may have resided in or a relative may have lived in. Be sure it's a state-run website and not some third-party one that wants to charge you a fee.
I've found out I have some funds due me, but the requirements to claim are somewhat long and confusing. Mine requires a notary public seal on the paperwork as well (you can't do it all on-line. Still have to mail information in.)
Also, the good news is that as far as I can tell there should be no fees involved (at least with my state's program). I had some lost dividends that some outfit that was contracted by the company that owed them to me wanted to charge a hefty fee to get. I found out if I just waited a bit until they were turned over to the state apparently no fees get deducted.
Posted by:
es
16 Nov 2015
Hi, bob
please tell me that giving in our social security numbers will not enable identity theft. After submitting the info, someone made that comment and got me a bit nervous.
so what do you say about this?
Posted by:
Carole
17 Nov 2015
es, here is the answer to your question.
When I saw this question about ID theft. I thought to myself, I know the answer to this question. I use to work in the collections and frauds dept for a bank. If I had a SS number and driver's license number, I could steal anyone's ID. Be careful when ever you give out this information to anyone. If you fill out a credit card application, this information is required. Anyone working for a bank can obtain this data. If you fill out an application online, any hacker could obtain this information. All I can be careful.
Posted by:
Charles Heineke
17 Nov 2015
Thanks for the reminder, Bob. I'd used my state's site to find a 4-figure sum owed to my former wife and me some years back and was glad I found it. When I checked today, from your article, I wasn't expecting anything. But I found $60.38 owed to me and promptly got the claim papers printed out and they're now ready to go into the mail. You never know if you don't check.
About submitting the SSN, which someone here had questioned, I checked the site to ensure that the https:// was there and also that it was my state's website, https://mycpa.cpa.state.tx.us/up/search.do. Always check for https:// before submitting such personal info.
Posted by:
Sarah L
17 Nov 2015
In Illinois, there is a cash dash program, aggressively promoted by the last several state treasurers, with an easily searched list of funds by name. Our family recovered an insurance policy in the name of our dad who died over 30 years earlier. We had dealt with that same insurance company, so have no idea why it took so long to show up. My sister the executor put on her executor hat once more, and split the money among us like the rest of his estate. (executor hat means we had to each have our signature notarized, not just her.) We each got several thousand dollars, well worth that small effort. It is worth to get a few hundred that I did not know was waiting for me.
Several in my extended family have reclaimed money. It pays to keep checking the web site. That insurance policy for our dad was not on the files a decade earlier, suddenly showed up, the same experience as others have had. We found funds for our cousin who moved to California, too.
Is Illinois is in that system of 37 states?
The program is known as cash dash, but the url has a new name, icash, here is the link: https://icash.illinois.gov/index.asp
Posted by:
Bob Hill
21 Dec 2015
I found 1800.00 from a stock certificate for which the company had been taken private. Thank-you Bob!