Under state law, unclaimed property is returned to the State after it has been left with a “holder”, such as a bank, insurance company, or other business or organization, and there has been no owner generated activity in the account for a set period of time and the company’s attempts to contact the owner are unsuccessful. The Attorney General’s Office holds the property for 25 years while attempting to locate the rightful owner or their heirs. During this time, individuals who are legally entitled may file a claim for the property with the Unclaimed Property Division. If the money goes unclaimed after 25 years, it is deposited in the State’s Common School Fund and can no longer be claimed.
In addition to money and securities, the Indiana holdings include tangible property such as watches, jewelry, coins, currency, stamps, historical items and other miscellaneous articles.
Each year millions of dollars in dormant or lost accounts go unclaimed. If you know anyone who has ever moved or died, the state may be holding unclaimed cash, lost securities, bonds, refunds, insurance claims, deposits, jewelry or coins. There is no charge to search the state data for anyone's name.
Do not assume that the business has your last known address, in which case the property is supposed to be sent to the state of incorporation of the business. Many times the state of incorporation is Delaware, New Jersey, New York or California.
Another tip that may be helpful is to try various combinations of your name, try putting you first name last and your last name first. Don't forget that you may have assets in your maiden name.
Keep in mind that if someone calls or writes to you and asks that you pay them money for the successful return of your unclaimed property, you probably have some out there somewhere. The folks who are contacting you are called "heir finders." They are not likely to contact you unless they believe that they have found property belonging to you. Heir finders generally charge a fee to locate and help return unclaimed property to you.
