There are so many times when entities who have funds or valuables belonging to you are unable to get them into your hands. The Post Office fails to deliver to you or returns mail (mistakenly or otherwise). You don’t use a gift card over an extensive period of time. A company closes and there are funds on deposit with the company that are not claimed. And many more situations.
Illinois law requires the entity that has your property to notify the Illinois Secretary of State by its Treasurer that there is unclaimed property. There are legal mechanisms for them to follow in order to do so. The Treasurer posts on its website a summary of the unclaimed property with enough detail that you should be able to confirm that what they are holding is yours. If you do not claim your property, eventually the State of Illinois may retain it.
When you decide to take the next step and claim the property, in most cases there is a reasonably simple process to confirm for the Treasurer that it is indeed your own, and then arrangements are made to return it to you.
You cansearch for yourself, or for a deceased family member, or for your children. Of course, a claim for return of the property must be legally made by or on behalf of the person who is the owner. You can access the Treasurer’s website at https://icash.illinoistreasurer.gov and search 24-7.
Check it out. You may be surprised that there is unclaimed property waiting for you! In almost all cases you don’t need an Attorney to assist you with the process. But if you have a unique question, let us try to help out.
