Last year a record amount of unclaimed money and unclaimed property was returned to its rightful owners in Pennsylvania. Over $254 million was returned last year, but there is still over $3.4 billion in the missing money coffers. According to the state website, 1 in 10 residents of the keystone state have money or property owed to them. These funds can become unclaimed due to simple issues with spelling in names and old addresses without proper forwarding in place.
Pennsylvania also holds tangible items that go unclaimed and store those items in an actual vault:
Pennsylvania Treasury’s Vault is used to maintain the custody of tangible property reported to the Bureau of Unclaimed Property. Tangible property is physical assets such as collectible coins, jewelry, military medals, stamps, antiques, savings bonds or other physical items. They come from abandoned safe deposit boxes held by financial institutions, evidence from police departments, and various other entities such as colleges, hospitals and nursing homes. Tangible property is held for three years, after which time it may be liquidated and the cash proceeds from the sale held in perpetuity by the state to be claimed by the rightful owner.
PATreasury.gov
Another form of unclaimed property in PA is their Missing Medals search. A specific search form that allows families to search for military medals for their loved ones, which was an important initiative for the Treasury Secretary:
“Every military decoration Treasury holds reflects a sacrifice, and I want to make sure we get these medals back in the hands of the Pennsylvanians who earned them or the family members who would treasure them. That’s why I’ve established this initiative, to make sure that as many of these symbols of service as possible are reunited with veterans and their families.”
Joe Torsella, State Treasurer
Be sure to search your state for unclaimed money and unclaimed property that may belong to you or your loved ones.