BBB: Do you have any unclaimed property?

JACKSON, Tenn. — Just in time for the holiday season, you or a loved one could be missing out on some forgotten money.

“Tennessee Unclaimed Property Division says one in ten people have unclaimed property being held by one or more states,” said Toddnetta Trice, communications specialist for the Better Business Bureau.

Currently, the state of Tennessee has $1 billion dollars in unclaimed property. This can be in the form of savings and checking accounts, stocks, uncashed dividends and other forms of personal property.

“Payroll checks, travel checks, unredeemed money orders, or gift certificates, and even proceeds for life insurance policies. So yes, that is probably the most common unclaimed property,” said Trice.

So how does unclaimed money work? There can be numerous reasons from a loved one dying and you were a beneficiary, failure to close a bank account.

“When a business or an organization has had no contact with or can’t locate the owner of certain kinds of property after a specific time it’s required they turn over the property to the state treasury,” said Trice.

In 2023, there was $155 million received by the Tennessee Unclaimed Property Division.

“It can be 20 years ago, 30 years ago, it’s no time limit so you can always determine if there is money is owed to you somewhere,” said Trice.

If you are unsure if you are a recipient of unclaimed property there’s a way to look and see.

“We’re saying claimittn.gov, that is the official unclaimed property website for the National Association of State Treasurers for Tennessee,” said Trice.

If you’re nervous of scams while trying to claim this money, you can check with the Better Business Bureau so they can point you to resources.

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