CT $1 Billion Unclaimed Property Difficulties: Critics Say It’s Too Hard To Get Money

The Connecticut Treasurer’s office regularly reminds residents about the money and property on its unclaimed property database just waiting to be claimed - currently hovering around $1 billion.

But some state residents say they have tried to claim property, and it is too difficult, so they have given up.

Subscribe

“They keep advertising all the money to be claimed, and then they make it almost impossible for you to claim it. Other states just send you a check,” said Patch reader Kate L., who asked for her full last name to be withheld.

She described her family’s unsuccessful efforts to recoup money owed to deceased relatives. According to Kate, even providing proof of power of attorney wasn’t considered sufficient by the state.

Another Patch reader, Mike Brouillette, said he tried to claim property of a deceased relative from East Hartford, and he said state officials wanted probate judgments, though he said there weren’t any, and sworn statements from other relatives. The property he was trying to get was only $45. Brouillette says he ultimately gave up.

“I told the state $45 is much more important to you than it is to me,” he said.

The Treasurer’s office’s latest reminder to get people to claim their property came earlier this year. Patch readers described encountering difficult hurdles, such as the state requiring proof you lived at a particular address decades ago.

Ron Lizzi of Bethany has been pushing for the past decade for reforms to the unclaimed property system, not only in Connecticut but in other states.

According to Lizzi, multiple states use taxpayer data to determine an owner’s current address and automatically send checks to owners of unclaimed money without requiring claims.

“It’s been a long road to reforming CT’s dysfunctional unclaimed property program,” Lizzi said. “Significant progress has been made…. but more reform is needed. CT should be automatically returning tens of millions of dollars, as other states have done.”

Officials urge property owners: “Try again.”

Michelle Seagull, the state’s assistant treasurer for unclaimed property, said there are certain scenarios where it is harder to claim money, such as when there are multiple owners, or people have a common name.

“There are a lot of people with similar names, we can’t always go based on name alone,” she said. “For the majority of claims, a claim is submitted, or people are just getting a check in the mail.”

Her advice to people who haven’t been successful in getting money or property they know is theirs?

“Certainly try again,” Seagull said. “We have made efforts to streamline the process. Where we don’t have enough information, we do need evidence. We understand it is frustrating for people, because they know who they are, but sometimes we need more information.”

According to the State Treasurer’s office, Connecticut has returned more than $1.3 billion to rightful owners through its unclaimed property program since 1998. The unclaimed property ranges from uncashed paychecks to utility deposits to insurance proceeds and old bank accounts.

New programs boost returns, officials say

The Treasurer’s office says two recent programs have increased the amount returned annually to property owners.

Through the CT Big Match program, announced in 2025, sole owners of unclaimed property worth less than $2,500 are eligible. If the Treasurer’s office can match you and your address with its records, you will receive a letter in the mail informing you of the match and how much money you can expect, then checks arrive within two months. No application is required.

Claims over $2,500 still require the traditional application process, according to the Treasurer’s office.

CT FastTrack was launched in 2024 to leverage data-matching technology to speed up the process for individuals who file a claim.

Brett R. Cody, communications director for the Office of the Treasurer, said the amount of money returned reached a record high for 2025.

He attributed this higher rate to the success of the CT Big Match and CT FastTrack programs.

In fiscal year 2023, $71.6 million was returned to rightful owners. This amount grew to $82 million in fiscal year 2024, and $120.9 million in fiscal year 2025, according to Cody.

“Our office is always leveraging data to get money returned to its rightful owners, but we also want to mitigate error and fraud,” Cody said.

While some have called for the $2,500 threshold to be increased, such as to $5,000, Cody said the state’s unclaimed property team believes the current threshold is safest for consumers and the integrity of the program.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers are considering legislation aimed at reducing the amount of unclaimed property coming to the Treasurer’s office in the first place.

If a bank account is dormant due to no interaction, it can get transferred to the state as abandoned, for example. Legislation under consideration would broaden the definition of ways people can interact with an account so it isn’t considered dormant when it is actually active, according to Cody.

“The legislation would be a big change, updating what is considered an indication of interest in an account,” Seagull said. “We are trying to update it to include the modern ways people interact with accounts. We don’t want money to come to us too soon.”

Visit the state’s website at CTBigList.gov, which has a searchable database of unclaimed property. There is also a national unclaimed property lookup tool at MissingMoney.com.