Government
agencies are holding tens of billions of dollars in
unclaimed funds. Last year alone, states collected $22.8
billion in missing money and unclaimed property, of
which less than $1 billion was claimed by owners or
rightful heirs.
Assets are
considered unclaimed in the eyes of the law when contact
with the owner is lost - typically due to a name change
after marriage or divorce, an unreported change of
address or expired postal forwarding order, incomplete
or illegible records, and clerical errors.
When owners
fail to communicate an interest in an asset over a
specified number of years known as the dormancy
period, those left holding unclaimed assets: banks,
stock brokers and transfer agents, utilities, employers
and life insurance companies - remit the funds to the
protective custody a government trust account in a legal
process known as escheat.
Here this money
awaits your claim, along with billions of unclaimed
dollars held by government agencies themselves,
including the IRS (tax refunds - $73 million), Bureau of
Public Debt (savings bonds - $9 billion), Social
Security Administration (benefit checks - $478 million),
HUD (mortgage refunds - $500 million), PBGC (pension
benefits - $80 million), FDIC (bank accounts - $200
million) and others.
It's important
to note that in addition to those that have neglected to
claim assets to which they are directly entitled,
millions of family members are unaware they’re eligible
to collect unclaimed assets owed deceased relatives, who
passed on without leaving an updated will or complete
financial road map for their heirs. For example, more
than one-quarter of all life insurance policies go
unclaimed, because it is generally up to family members
to notify the insurance company when a policyholder
dies. The vast majority of life insurance companies lack
the specialized resources and expertise necessary to
locate lost beneficiaries.