By Bob Tannenhauser
Who doesn’t love found money? Well, some may just be waiting for you to find it! You could be entitled to a share of $17.5 billion in “lost money” that has been returned to New York State, according to the New York State Comptroller’s Office.
“State law requires banks, insurance companies, utilities, and other businesses to turn dormant savings accounts, unclaimed insurance and stock dividends, and other inactive holdings over to the State,” the website explains. “If there has been no activity in the account for a set period of time, usually between two and five years, your money is considered unclaimed or abandoned.”
The State returns $1.5 million per day to those who file claims. Thanks to one of our readers, Roberta Arnone, we were alerted to the probability that many Upper West Siders have money owed to them. It only takes a few minutes to search and file a claim online.
I checked the site and discovered that one of my kids had unclaimed funds. It turns out back in 2017, he had some “undelivered goods” and was owed a refund. He filed a claim in less than two minutes and his money is on its way to him. How much? It will be a surprise, as the amount is not revealed on the website.
Just go to the site, search your name or your company’s name, and if it shows you have unclaimed funds, file your claim. Take a minute and search now. Good luck and let us know if you’re successful!
Got a letter from them a week before my wife died I submitted all paper work by mail had mail sent by certified mail signed receipt almost 30 days now and still haven’t received any paperwork back and can’t through on phone line
I did mine online and it took 6 weeks to get the check. If you have a claim number you should be able to check your status online. Good luck!
I have submitted all the documents required and keep getting told I need more documentation. It’s my mother’s money. She died in 1998. I’m not sure if it is worth pursuing. I can’t find out the value. It’s like a wild goose chase.
Same for me!
I found I’m owed money from 2008 my wife is owed money from 2022.
My husband and I are owed a $5,016 income tax refund from New York State–from our 2021 tax return. I have sent several certified letters, made phone calls, etc. It has been more than a year, and I have had no word from them. Our accountant has also written to them, with no success. Any ideas?
I would think you’d see a credit for that amount when you file your 2022 State return
I checked the Unclaimed Funds site last year and found enough in a forgotten savings account from the 1980s to retire to Marbella. No, that’s a lie: Actually it was enough for dinner with a few friends at a very good restuarant. (Which we haven’t had yet because we’re still pandemic conscious.) Check it out — you have nothing to lose.
I got over a thousand dollars, and I know other people who got over $5,000!! You never know how much it will be ahead of time, but it’s worth a shot!
I’m shocked, I got over $3k and I can’t figure out where it came from (I saw I had an account which I thought was more like $100 that got so hard for me to claim from the bank since my parents were co-executors of the fund, and the address was the apartment they had sold, that I abandoned the money… but the check came today and it’s much more!) Literally, the West Side Rag made me $3k.. I will be buying one of those snazzy long sleeve shirts and you’d better believe it