The Tennessee Department of Treasury (TDOT) said Wednesday that it returned more than $68 million in unclaimed property to Tennesseans in Fiscal Year 2023, a record for the state department.
“Unclaimed property is money that has been turned over to the State by businesses and organizations unable to locate the rightful owners, such as utility refunds, uncashed paychecks, credit balances for overpayments, rental deposit refunds, gift certificates, securities, and abandoned bank accounts,” the department explained. “The Unclaimed Property program is a consumer protection program of the Department of Treasury that works to reunite this missing money with its rightful owner.”
Through the agency’s website, claimittn.gov, Tennessee residents can conduct a free search of their own names, and if they are matched to unclaimed money, TDOT says claims are typically paid in about two weeks.
The department also recommends searching for common misspellings of the resident’s names and addresses, explaining that that may be the reason the money was not refunded in the first place.
“The Division utilizes various methods to locate owners of unclaimed property, including mailing letters to the address provided when the property was turned over from the business (holder), and sending letters to employers of potential claimants whose Social Security Number has been matched with records from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development,” according to the department. “On average, the Unclaimed Property Division sends hundreds of thousands of letters each year to potential claimants.”
There is no date by which Tennesseans must reclaim their property, but warns residents to “[b]eware of any service asking you to pay them to help you get your money back,” and that if they are “ever contacted about unclaimed property in Tennessee and would like to check the validity,” to go to claimittn.gov.
At the national level, the Network of the National Association of State Treasurers oversees a National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NUAPA).
“NAUPA is the leading, trusted authority in unclaimed property,” according to the organization. “We help individuals claim their unclaimed property, and help businesses ensure compliance per state law in annual reporting.”
“NAUPA, an affiliate of the National Association of State Treasurers, is the foremost authority on unclaimed property and is comprised of the unclaimed property programs of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as several foreign jurisdictions. The organization’s objective is to facilitate collaboration and otherwise support program administrators in reuniting all unclaimed assets with rightful owners. These programs returned over 5 billion dollars in FY 2023 to their rightful owner.”
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on X/Twitter.
Photo “Tennessee State Capitol Building” by Antony-22. CC BY-SA 4.0
