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The estimated value of unclaimed property held by federal and state governments are
more than $1 trillion dollars. With advancements in
technology, governments have more resources to do a better job
in enforcing escheat laws. Millions of individuals have property they
just do not know about. The good news is that it is easier than
ever to find your property via the Internet.
What is Unclaimed Property
State escheat laws apply to almost every type of property (i.e., real,
personal, intangible, etc). In 1954, the federal government enacted The
Uniform Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act. This act provided
states a model to incorporate into their own statutes.
After property remains dormant for a specific period, state laws
say that the holder of the property should turn the property over to the proper
state authority. The dormancy period varies state by state since each
state has their modified version of the Uniform Disposition of Unclaimed
Property Act. The dormancy period may also vary by the type of
property. When state governments receive dormant property, they do
not receive ownership of that property. Their responsibility is to merely
hold the property until there is a claim against it. If the property
remains unclaimed for a certain period (again, varies by state laws), then
the state government acquires ownership of the property and generally reverts
to a general fund and should benefit the public.
Popular Sources of Unclaimed Property
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Dormant bank accounts
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Uncashed Dividend Checks
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Gift Certificates
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Payroll Checks
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Customer Credits
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Security Deposits
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Death Benefits
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Unclaimed Deposit Boxes
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Tax Refund Checks
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Insurance Benefits
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Stocks, Bonds, and Other Investments
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Money Orders
Holder Responsibility
Holders of dormant property include (but not limited to) banks, insurance
companies, non-profit organizations, local governments, and commercial
businesses. Unfortunately, many of the aforementioned organizations are
not aware of their reporting responsibilities. Therefore, they may write
off this unclaimed property and which essentially leads to enrichment of
their organization. Organizations with dormant property have a great
responsibility and additional administrative burden in complying with escheat
laws. For instance, they do not only have to comply with their own state
laws, but also the state laws of the last known address of the owner. In
addition, they have a "due diligence" responsibility (defined in
state statutes) which means they must spend their resources and
attempt to locate the owner of the property. States have tried to
make compliance with escheat laws easier by creating reciprocity, which means
these organizations may file their compliance reports with one state. The
problem is that there is not reciprocity among all
states. Furthermore, the dormancy periods for property are not the
same for each state. Most states recognize that there are compliance
issues and many of them are attempting to increase compliance by means of
awareness programs and audits.
Tips for Finding Unclaimed Property
First, be cautious of third party companies that offer assistance in reuniting
you with unclaimed property. Be sure that you identify all costs you may
incur before making any agreements. When speaking with these companies,
ask plenty of questions and find out if they are registered to conduct business
in your state.
When searching for unclaimed property, expand the scope of the search to
include not only your name, but also the name of relatives. For instance,
you may have a relative that pasted away with unclaimed property and it is a
possibility that state laws provide you an interest in that unclaimed
property. Therefore, make a list of all relatives that include the states
they had residence, variations of their names, and social security
numbers. Also, note that dormancy periods may affect your
searches. If the unclaimed property is relatively new, it may have
not been turned over to the state government. For example, say your
grandmother pasted away last year and you believe she had more bank accounts
than were identified. Common dormancy periods for dormant bank
accounts range between three to five years.
Making a Claim
Once identifying the state government that is
holding your unclaimed property, you must follow specific procedures to file an
unclaimed property claim. Similar to state statutes, claim procedures
will vary with each state government. My advice is to go to the state's
web site and locate their procedures. Depending on the nature of the
unclaimed property, consider speaking with a state representative in the
unclaimed property division to confirm instructions or obtain additional
input. Remember to record the name of the person that you spoke to,
date/time of communication, and other relevant information. This
information may be helpful to prevent unnecessary delays in obtaining the
unclaimed property. My experience with government workers is that if you
ask the same question to ten different individuals, you will
receive ten different answers.
Click here to
search unclaimed property databases by state.
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