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Free money? How to find yours or your family’s unclaimed money from accounts, properties and other funds.
According to the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, NAUPA, the US has Billions of dollars in unclaimed properties.
The organization claims that 1 in 10 people have unclaimed money in some form. Unclaimed funds sit on States and Federal databases when institutions can’t find their owners.
The missing or unclaimed cash can come from lost savings and checking accounts, customers over payments, traveler’s checks, stocks, dividends, missing payroll checks.
Also, from unclaimed music royalty money, unclaimed retirement accounts, rent security deposits, missing insurance claims, unclaimed government bonds and lost tax refunds.
8 Tricks to Find Lost Money: Free Search for Unclaimed or Abandoned Accounts
Search for Unclaimed Money at Banks
The most popular site to search for unclaimed property is Missing Money.com. This website works with states’s institutions responsible for tracking unclaimed money. The website’s database can be searched by state you currently live or have lived.
New York State alone claim to have $13 Billions in unclaimed funds.
Another website to search for funds is the NAUPA at Unclaimed.org. This website represent and works with States offices that handle unclaimed money. The site has an interactive map you can search by state. It also provides information on missing or unclaimed money.
The unclaimed funds in these databased can range from lost payroll checks to savings and securities missing accounts.
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Find Unclaimed Pension Money at the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
The Pension Guaranty holds unclaimed pension money for individuals. This money may have come from closed, bankrupted or merged pension funds and the owners can’t be located.
Use the Search function on the database to find if a pension plan is listed as unclaimed. For help locating an individual unclaimed pension contact customer service.
Customer Contact Center at 1-800-400-7242. The PBGC Customer Contact Center hours are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Find Unclaimed funds at the US Treasury Department
Treasury bonds and securities that have been lost, destroyed or gone unclaimed can be located at the Treasury Department. This department holds the records for the unclaimed bonds.
The process to find unclaimed Treasury bonds is a manual one. If you suspect you or some one has lost bonds or US securities, fill out the FS From 1048 and submitted to the claim department.
These bonds are mainly; E, EE, I bonds, Savings Notes, H and HH bonds.
Search for Unclaimed Life Insurance Policies
It is the responsibility of the insurance policy beneficiaries to inform insurance companies of the policy holder death. Sometimes these beneficiaries are not aware that a policy even exist. Upon the insurance holder death the money may go unclaimed.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners has a database to search for lost or unclaimed insurance policies. The unclaimed policies may be owed to families of deceased individuals who are not aware of the policy existence.
Use the website’s Locator Service to search Unclaimed Life Insurance Policy.
For Veterans, you can check the Department of Veterans Affairs database for unclaimed insurance funds owed to veterans or their families.
Search for Undelivered Tax Refunds Checks
You may have a refund that was undelivered because you moved or other reasons. You can check the Where is My Refund tool to find put its status.
For State’s unclaimed refund contact your State’s Revenue Department.
Do a free Search for Unclaimed Music Royalty Money
The AFM & SAG-AFTRA IPRD Fund has a list of sound recording performers with unclaimed royalty money. The performers can’t be located because of inaccurate or missing information.
The money may be owed to the performer or their families. If you find your name on the list complete the Performer Information Form to claim your royalty money.
Unclaimed Funds in Canada
In Canada there are millions of unclaimed money and property sitting in government’s offices. If you think you may be an owner or a beneficiary of unclaimed money, check these websites’ databases.
British Columbia Unclaimed Property Society – This office helps holders of unclaimed property to find their owners.The searchable database allows the individuals to identify whether unclaimed funds are held in their names.
In Canada you can also search for unclaimed property at the Bank of Canada.
Tips for Finding and Claiming Missing Money
Free search – You can do a search for unclaimed property for free. It will take you a few months to complete and submit documentation.
Search tips – The databases may have incomplete information regarding your identity. So, it’s important to use variations of your identification to see if your name is listed. Check out the following tricks.
- Search by all your previous names and last names.
- Search by all the places you have lived before.
- Use variations of your name.
- Search by last name alone.
- Don’t use space between first and last name. Also, try using space.
- Also, look for unclaimed money by first initial and last name.
- If you think you may be a beneficiary in someone else’s accounts, search by your name as well as the owner name.
Third Party – You can use legitimate third party. These are businesses that will do the search and claim on your behalf. Do not pay upfront for these services.
Avoid scams in the “missing money” industry
It seems that where ever there is money, there is a scam on how to get it without efforts. The unclaimed or missing money industry is no exception.
You should be aware of scams where people try to ask you for personal financial information or for a fee to give you a sum of money in return.
Unless you have initiated the process to claim missing money or property, you shouldn’t trust any other source claiming to have money for you. In the past, there have been scams done via emails, telephones or by traditional mails to cheat people of their own money.
There are billions of dollars in unclaimed money. Find out if you or your family is entitled to any of this money sitting in unclaimed funds. The money may have come from lost or forgotten accounts, insurance policies and even payroll checks.
