Unclaimed Property Blog

Under Washington law, funds in any account dormant for three years are forwarded to the state Department of Revenue as unclaimed property.

Does this mean you no longer have this money after three years? Patti Wilson, operations manager of the Department of Revenue’s unclaimed property section, said there’s no need to panic. “They can always get their money, there are no time limits,” she said.

The law, she said, is intended to protect consumers. “People die, people move, they forget about accounts,” Wilson said. “Otherwise, those banks continue to charge fees until there is nothing left.”

You could lose money you didn’t even know you had. Your unclaimed property used to be safeguarded by the state. Now states are enacting laws that enable them to use the unclaimed property for publicly funding statewide and legislative campaigns.

This is a true good news, bad news situation. There are needed actions being taken to remove corruption regarding funding campaigns, however, it is the citizen that will still be paying.

In Connecticut such is the case. Governor M. Jodi Rell praised the passage of the landmark campaign finance reforms for which she has been fighting for months, declaring that “Connecticut is now a national model for reform� and that “Connecticut citizens can once again be proud of the way we conduct our campaigns.�

Throughout the United States there is money to be given away by the IRS. Yes, you read that right, the IRS is giving away money. Actually it is trying to return money to people that have not received their tax refund. IRS refund checks go unclaimed for many reasons. Sometimes, as in the case of hurricane victims, people face a significant change in their normal lives.

Nationally, there are 84,290 taxpayers with undeliverable refunds, totaling approximately $73 million with an average refund of $871. Here is a breakdown for some states:

Do you know when you can say no to giving out your Social Security number (SSN)? Do you know why you would not give it out to someone? Read on to find out these answers.

Put your Social Security number in a computer and poof; access to information such as your bank account, your phone number, where you work, where you live, etc.

Today, schools, phone companies, utilities, health clubs, insurance companies, video stores, just about everybody wants your Social Security number. Some of the more prevalent uses are to get your credit rating and determine whether you pay your bills, and to keep track of you through name and address changes.

Usually when one says they have debt this is taken as a negative. However, there could be more to this debt than meets the eye.

Not all debt is alike—and not all debt is bad. It’s very reasonable to carry a mortgage or a car loan. What is needed is that you pay attention to the cost of the debt. If you have a revolving debt on a credit card that’s charging you 18% per year, you’re in a bad situation. If your student loan is costing you 6% per year, that’s not as worrisome.

It seems that everyone has different views on how to spend money. What do you do with money that has been dormant and unclaimed for many years? Recently the UK has made known how it wishes to handle its unclaimed assets.

Chancellor Gordon Brown said in his pre-budget report that banks and building societies had agreed that unclaimed assets held in accounts will be diverted to help improve youth services and financial education. It said banks could have an option to focus on their local community charities.

Dormant accounts will be defined as those untouched for 15 years.

If you have ever felt like there was too much hassle to getting a rebate, you may be correct. Read on for how this could be the case.

Brian Grow, author of “The Great Rebate Runaround,” found in his research that companies are not eager to give out rebate checks and have many ways to keep them from you. It is not uncommon to ask consumers to send in copies of their sales receipt multiple times or to hold on to the rebate check for several months, hoping you will never bother to follow up on it.

Now you can determine if that jewelery or rare coin you “found” is really lost, mislaid or abandoned property.

Property Law: Lost, Mislaid, & Abandoned Property

In the common law of property, personal belongings that have left the possession of their rightful owners without having directly entered the possession of another person are deemed to be lost, mislaid, or abandoned, depending on the circumstances under which they were found by the next party to come into possession of them. The rights of a finder of such property are determined in part by the status in which it is found. Because these classifications have developed under the ancient and ofttimes archaic common law of England, they turn on fine and nuanced distinctions.

There are many different rules and regulations concerning the use of gift cards. Will it expire is the most common question regarding gift cards. Another concern is if there is a service fee. Then that one lingering question—when the card has expired and was not used, who has ownership of the money?

Q: Can a business that has issued a gift certificate for a product or service put an expiration date on it after receiving payment in full?

A: Yes, businesses do have this right.

On Tuesday December 13th, CashUnclaimed.com Founder, Mr. Bill McIntosh, donated his unclaimed cash to ensure that the Whittier Women’s and Children’s Crisis Shelter have a happier holiday season. Mr. McIntosh discovered he had unclaimed money after a recent search on his newly updated website, www.cashunclaimed.com.

An estimated $25 billion of unclaimed money is sitting unbeknownst to the moneys’ owners, while many Americans could use financial assistance this Christmas. In the spirit of spreading joy and love for the holidays, CashUnclaimed contacted the owners of unclaimed property and requested a donation of the found money to this women and children’s shelter. Several of those contacted did make a donation to this worthy cause as it does provide a hotline, crisis shelter and protection, meals, clothing and much more to battered women and children.