Unclaimed Property Blog

Colorado, like so many other U.S. States, is grappling with problem of unclaimed funds. Colorado is taking all the possible steps to payback its citizens who might have some unclaimed funds. As a practical step towards this, State Treasurer, Cary Kennedy, kicked off the 2010 Great Colorado Payback on April 16, 2010.

Kennedy made an announcement through a press release that the Great Colorado Payback managed to pay claims totaling more than $500,000 to a Fort Collins resident. It was one of the twenty claims made during the past fiscal year, which ranged between $40,000 and $1 million. Colorado had eight claims this year that were worth more than $100,000.

Many are owed bank pay-outs from Washington Mutual. With Washington Mutual going into the history books, many of its customers might be entitled to one last withdrawal coming into their mailbox. Millions of dollars held in accounts which have been dormant at the time of its bankruptcy have been transferred to the states’ unclaimed property offices.

J.P. Morgan Chase purchased Washington Mutual in 2008 after its failure to serve the interests of its customers. The Federal Deposit Insurance Company (FDIC) which was the supervising agency in the seizure of Washington Mutual handed over at least $251.4 million in unclaimed money to different states.

In a collaborative effort, State and Federal governments have taken all the right steps in preserving the unclaimed and lost property. The fact that all the lost property from over the years is safe with the government is a great relief for most of the residents who are aware of the fact that they have an unclaimed fund lying somewhere. In a concerted effort with the federal government and other agencies, state governments have simplified the process of funds location and reclaim. The following improvements have been observed as part of the drive to reunite the lost funds with the actual owners…

New York boasts of being home to one of the largest pile of unclaimed money in the country. As of the last estimate, this vault continues to grow in size with every passing month. By a very correct estimate, the state of New York currently holds nearly $10 billion in unclaimed funds. Most of these unclaimed funds come from come from 25 million inactive bank, business, and government accounts unclaimed by their owners and in the care of the state controller’s office. The New York state treasury is taking all the measures to relocate the rightful owners of the unclaimed money.

Almost all of the state and federal agencies are unanimous in their verdict that the pile of U.S unclaimed money is growing rapidly with each passing day and there is no practical solution in sight. National and State unclaimed databases are swelling with unclaimed funds at a rapid pace with new and lost money being added monthly without any signs of slowing down or without any increased activity on the reclaim front.

It’s a common perception that the process of claiming a lost property is too cumbersome to be pursued, but with a lot of concerted effort from local and federal government and various agencies, the myths about the reclaim process has been shattered. As our lifestyle gets faster, majority of us (more than 80%) have forgot to account for some cash or property at some point of our lives. With time, these unclaimed funds or property passes on into the hands of government and unclaimed property agencies. But, if somebody tells you that the authorities are waiting for you to reclaim your lost funds that would be music to your ears.

Unclaimed lottery jackpots: It sounds unrealistic but the fact is that every year dozens of hefty jackpots are left unclaimed. Unclaimed lottery winnings have been on the rise. In most of these cases the efforts to locate the rightful owners of these lotteries have gone in vain. In 2005, Illinois reported $14 million of unclaimed lottery winnings. Indiana reported more than $5 million of unclaimed lottery ticket in the same year. The state of Massachusetts reported $4.6 million of unclaimed lottery money a few years earlier. Between 2008 and 2009, Georgia reported almost $45 millions of unclaimed lottery money.

The increasing pile of unclaimed money across all the state treasuries is a major cause for concern for the government and its associated agencies. The unclaimed money database is adding new entries to its list with every passing day. Larger states, like California and New York, have a larger problem at hand because of the size, population, and cosmopolitan workforce. Every state treasury and federal government is taking aggressive steps to unite the owners of these unclaimed monies with their lost funds.

The words “lost property” would generally make one frantic or nervous. However, one of the most reassuring facts about unclaimed and lost property is that they are safe and secure with the state and federal agencies. Apart from the robust and far-reaching reclaim programs initiated by federal government, state treasuries have also taken very concrete and practical steps to ensure that U.S. residents do not have face roadblocks when looking for their lost funds. Most of the owners of lost funds are now realizing that the process of reclaim is much easier than they anticipated.

Unclaimed money has been a subject generating more and more awareness among the state governments. It needs a high level of concerted action between the government agencies and the citizens to minimize the flow of unclaimed money. Can we really prevent it? It is a statistical fact that almost 85% of U.S. residents have left behind cash and property at some point and failed to claim it back.