Tennessee Unclaimed Funds

Tennessee is currently holding millions of dollars in unclaimed funds!

Unclaimed funds are intangible assets (cash, stocks, or bonds) that a company or other entity is holding that belongs to you that have become abandoned. 

It includes:

• bank accounts
• stocks and dividends
• wages
• refunds
• insurance payments
• gift certificates
• credit balances 
• overpayments
  

and many more items.

Unclaimed funds does not include real estate.  The unclaimed property division is not in possession of land, homes, or vehicles.  If you are interested in acquiring land or homes that are auctioned due to delinquent taxes contact your local county trustee’s office.

Property becomes unclaimed or abandoned when it is determined that a specified amount of time has elapsed when a company or other entity has not been able to return your asset or make contact with you.  To prevent your accounts from becoming unclaimed or abandoned, keep accounts active and make sure that you make a deposit or withdrawal, cash all checks for dividends, insurance benefits, and wages, update your address, or contact the company at least every three years.

In Tennessee most property types are presumed abandoned or unclaimed if there has been no account activity for 3 years. However, wages and utility deposits are presumed abandoned or unclaimed after 1 year.

The unclaimed property law is designed to collect, safeguard and return lost or forgotten property to its rightful owners.  Each state has similar laws.

There is no minimum amount of funds that can go unclaimed.  Businesses must report all unclaimed property, no matter how small.

Unclaimed funds are remitted to the State only after two things have occurred:

1.  There has been no activity on the account for the applicable dormancy period, and
2. The holder has attempted to contact the owner at the last known address.

If these are unsuccessful, then the money is remitted to the State.

Businesses are required to report unclaimed funds to the State by May 1st every year.

Click here to search for Tennessee unclaimed funds.

If you feel the property belongs to you, follow the instructions to complete a claim online.

Tennessee is a custodial state.  The owner or heirs may claim property at any time.  The funds are held in perpetuity.  They always belong to the owner and will not become the property of the State.

Once unclaimed property is reported to the state, there is no time limit to reclaim your funds.  Unclaimed funds are always available to the owner or their heirs.

There is no fee to claim your funds from the State.  This is a free service.

You can contact the Tennessee unclaimed funds division at 866-370-9429 between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday or at:

UCP – Claims
Unclaimed Property Division
PO Box 190693
Nashville, TN  37219-0693

If your funds were earning interest at the time they was turned over to the State,  the State of Tennessee will continue to pay you interest.

The State of Tennessee holds securities in a trust account. The shares are liquidated within twelve (12) months following the date the property was received.

Companies are required by law to make an effort to contact owners before reporting the funds if they believe they are unclaimed.  There are many reasons why they may fail to communicate including an incomplete address, missing correspondence, or an error in the company’s records.

If a company only reports a name but not an address with it, the claimant will be required to provide proof that they did business with the company who reported the funds.  Examples of proof might be an invoice, W-2 forms, receipt or an account statement with both the original owner’s name and the company name.  If you have never done business with the company reporting the funds then they may belong to someone else with the same name.

The owner, estate, lawful heir or duly authorized representative can claim funds listed in the database.

The dollar amount is not listed in the search tool to discourage fraudulent activity.  The website is updated daily.

Once you have your claim form, read it carefully, fill it out completely and sign it . Section C of each claim form will detail the documentation you are required to provide. The required documentation will include a copy of your current identification reflecting your current mailing address and documentation proving your ownership of the account.  You may be required to present more information.   Refer to your claim form for the specific documentation required for your particular claim.  Then, mail the completed claim form to the address indicated on it.

The claimant is the individual claiming the funds, whether for themselves or as an heir to the owner.

Proof of ownership is usually established by address or social security verification.  Sometimes, the claimant is not able to verify that he or she lived at the last known address that was reported.  In these cases, the unclaimed funds department does everything they can to assist you in establishing ownership.  If they are not successful in finding a connection to an old address, you may be asked to do further research.  In most instances, claims of this nature are reviewed on a case by case basis.

A copy of an old bill (ex. utility bill), copy of an old tax return, school records, birth or death certificates or credit reports can be used to provide proof of a previous address.  Anything that officially lists your previous address is sufficient.  If you are unsure, you can contact the office for help.

Once claims are fully processed, checks are mailed to the address recorded on the claim form.

Processing time varies throughout the year depending on  volume and the complexity of the claim.  The period may be extended if all of the required documentation is not included with the original claim package.  Claims with securities take longer.

Did you know you can make money finding unclaimed money for other people?

There is a little known business that lets you do that. Unclaimed money finders locate people that don’t know they money being held for them and help them to recover it.

In return, they charge a commission after the money is recovered.

Please click here if you would like to learn more about this business.