If you’ve ever forgotten to cash a check, or perhaps moved and didn’t even realize you missed one in the mail, it’s time you checked Oklahoma’s unclaimed property fund.
In Tulsa County, there are more than $181 million waiting to be claimed, according to Lara Blubaugh, a spokesperson for the Oklahoma State Treasurer.
So what is unclaimed property? It could be over payments to your utility company, forgotten deposits, stocks or even contents from a safe deposit box. After a period of time, the property is considered abandoned. But as the owner, it’s your right to reclaim what is yours.
Since 1999, when the unclaimed property division was transferred to the State Treasurer’s Office, nearly $673 million worth of unclaimed property has been returned in Oklahoma. Right now, about 1.3 million pieces of unclaimed property are still up for claim in Tulsa County.
However, the process to reclaim your property can be complex, especially when there are often fraudulent claims, according to State Treasurer Todd Russ. Russ said getting your claims back may take a while, but don’t give up.
“Unclaimed property is a real opportunity. It’s not a scam,” Russ said. “We don’t work for the tax commission, we’re not going to turn you in, there’s no charges, we do it for free. We’ll do anything we legally can to help them because we want this back in the hands of Oklahomans.”
How to make a claim
You can access your unclaimed property, or see if you have any, through the Oklahoma unclaimed property division website. Every state in the nation has a division offering this service. To search for your property across multiple state lines, you can use the MissingMoney website.
After searching your first and last name in the database, you will be asked to claim your property based on your home address. Then, you can put in a request for your property claim at no cost. But, depending on the kind of property you are requesting, there will be different documents that you need to provide in order to claim your property.
For example, anything with longstanding history might require you to provide evidence for those deeds. More intense requests could also require you to wait longer for your property. If it’s a simple request, like a lost income check less than $1,000, then you might only have to provide your Social Security card and your driver’s license. You can upload your proof online.
What is considered unclaimed property?
- Jewelry (such as pocket watches)
- Stock certificates
- Coin collections
- Cash (such as life insurance claims, mineral interest, royalty payments, last payroll checks)
- Collectibles
- Gold bullion
Personal property claims have to be picked up, but financial items can be returned through wire transfers or checks, said Russ.
There is not a minimum amount that can be held. From the company’s end, they generally have between one and seven years to submit funds to the unclaimed property division. If you think you are owed money and cannot find it in the database, you are encouraged to reach out to the holding party directly, according to the Oklahoma State Treasurer.
But, there is also another way for you to see if you’re owed money. Each quarter, new names of people who might have unclaimed property are published in the county newspaper. To make sure your accounts are up to date, Russ recommended continuing following up on your claim.
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