Do you think you could be owed money for state-held unclaimed property?
Connecticut residents are being encouraged to see if the state is holding any unclaimed property that could be given back.
You can do so by visiting CTBigList.com and searching your name.
“The unclaimed property program is a great way to reunite residents and other entities with money or property that was lost or abandoned somewhere in the system,” said Treasurer Erick Russell.
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Russell said that since the program began, close to a billion dollars has been returned to residents.
"This money belongs in the hands of its rightful owners, and I encourage everyone to search the database and claim their property," he said.
If you navigate the page and see you're owed money, there's a claim process to go through. With recent improvements to this system over the past few years, the list of viewable properties has expanded and the process is more streamlined, according to the Office of the State Treasurer.
It used to be a requirement that claim forms be notarized, but that's since gone away.
Last year, more than 25,000 claims were processed and over $70 million was returned. The Office of the State Treasurer says these are record numbers.
Unclaimed property owed to you could include unpaid life insurance benefits, forgotten bank accounts, utility deposits and refunds, annuities, contents of safe deposit boxes and more. It becomes unclaimed property when you haven't initiated contact for a certain amount of time.
When this happens and the property owner can't reach you, the money or other properties are submitted to the state.
The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administration estimates that one in seven Americans has unclaimed property waiting to be claimed.
There's no time limit for you to file a claim with the state.
“No matter how long it takes, we intend to return property to its rightful owners,” Russell said. “This is your money. You should have it.”
You can click here to learn more or call 800-833-7318.
