State Treasurer Riley Moore today announced his Office’s Unclaimed Property Division returned more than $1.4 million worth of unclaimed property to individuals, businesses and other organizations during the month of November.
“We’re continuing to see very strong totals of unclaimed property being paid out to rightful owners,” Treasurer Moore said. “With inflation and holiday spending, people need every dollar they can get – so I encourage everyone to visit our website and see if there’s any unclaimed money available in your name.”
The Unclaimed Property Division paid out 1,337 claims totaling $1,406,425 during the month of November.
Unclaimed property frequently includes old financial accounts, checks or payments that haven’t been cashed, were forgotten about or maybe hadn’t been received by its intended owner. Those funds are often turned over to the State Treasurer’s Office after they’ve sat inactive for over a year.
“A lot of times these are rebates, refunds or insurance payments people don’t even know were out there in their name,” Treasurer Moore said. “That’s why it’s important to always check and see if we’re holding any unclaimed property for you.”
Treasurer Moore said his Office has more than $300 million in unclaimed property listings for individuals, businesses and other organizations. He encourages everyone to visit www.wvtreasury.com today to search and see if they have funds to claim.
What is Unclaimed Property?
Unclaimed property can include financial accounts or items of value in which the owner has not initiated any activity for one year or longer. Common examples include unpaid life insurance benefits, forgotten bank accounts and unused rebate cards. (While the title includes the word “property,” it does not however include real estate.)
West Virginia’s unclaimed property laws protect the public by ensuring money and property owed to them is returned to them, rather than remaining permanently with financial institutions, business associations, governments and other entities. The Treasurer seeks to reunite the unclaimed property, including uncashed paychecks, stocks, or safe deposit box contents, with its owner.
Nationwide, nearly 33 million people in the United States – one in every 10 – are estimated to have unclaimed property available for them to claim.
How Can I Find Unclaimed Property in My Name?
West Virginians searching for lost financial assets can go to www.wvtreasury.com, then click on the large Unclaimed Property “Search” button to the right of the page under the heading, “Are We Holding Your Money?” In addition to finding property, the www.wvtreasury.com website will also help you track a claim.
A demonstration of how to use the Unclaimed Property search site is available on the Treasury’s YouTube page, at: https://youtu.be/K09yQ7YNKlE.
To search for lost financial assets outside West Virginia, visit www.MissingMoney.com.