Government Unclaimed Money

If you have forgotten about any of your old savings or checking accounts or happened to move without ever getting a deposit of money back from say, a utility service, then this money is actually still yours! It is possible to recover this money through your state’s government. In fact, many states have now made locating and recovering your unclaimed property a whole lot easier, utilizing online claim forms and online property databases for individuals to now use.

The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (or NAUPA) has estimated that the total dollar value of unclaimed assets and money currently held by all of the states in our country is over $10 billion dollars. And government agencies, banks and businesses in America are thought to be holding right around that same amount. According to study data, it seems that around 26 million Americans or so are actually the owners of the unclaimed money and assets.

Many people would also like to know if the Federal Government is able to locate unclaimed assets for them, and the answer is no. There are no employees or agencies in the Federal government that can assist you in finding unclaimed money or property. A statement issued by the U.S. Treasury Department said, "There is no government-wide, centralized information service or database from which information on unclaimed government assets may be obtained. Each individual Federal agency maintains its own records and would need to research and release that data on a case-by-case basis. The only unclaimed asset information that would be in the possession of the Department of the Treasury would pertain to outstanding Federal government check issue records." Therefore, each state may have different methods of recovery and laws concerning unclaimed property and about collecting and reporting it as well.

Unclaimed property may be an amount of money or any kind of financial asset which seems to be abandon by its original owner. Typical unclaimed assets and property include: Mutual fund accounts, bonds, stocks, un-cashed payroll checks, un-cashed cashier’s checks, un-cashed divided checks, utility deposits, store refunds, credit balances, proceeds from a life insurance policy, wages, gift certificates, savings accounts, checking accounts, safe deposit boxes, travelers checks, court deposits, court payments or royalty payments.

Public utilities, financial institutions, etc. are required by state law to report unclaimed or abandoned personal property when said property or accounts have been considered “inactive” when the owner cannot be located and the state’s law requiring a specific period of waiting has passed. When this occurs, the property is handed over to the state’s Treasurer or Comptroller who will act as its “legal guardian” until such time when its rightful owner can claim it.

Since every state may have differing requirements and methods to locate and claim unclaimed assets, you might begin by searching though online databases for every state in which you think you might have unclaimed property in. Then, you can also research more about it using the Internet. If you then believe there is unclaimed property that is yours, you will be required by the state to provide them with a complete overview about you in order to verify ownership claims made by you about property they have. Be aware that some states will take a 1% to 1 ½ % handling fee as well.

Additional Resources: http://www.squidoo.com/unclaimed-government-money