$12 Million Owed To PA Residents With Christmas-Related Names

PENNSYLVANIA — Bizarrely, some 140,000 Pennsylvanian residents and businesses named Santa, Kris, Kringle, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and other related Christmas monikers are apparently owed a huge payout.

Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity said that about $12 million is owed specifically to these particularly festively monikered entities and individuals.

The Treasury Department issued a special statement specifically

“People will always debate whether or not "Die Hard" is a Christmas movie,” Garrity said in a statement. “But there’s no arguing that finding unclaimed property is a great ending to a Christmas story. I encourage everyone to search our website for themselves and their families."

Unclaimed property includes dormant bank accounts, uncashed checks, forgotten stocks, insurance property, and more.

Officials estimate about one in 10 Pennsylvanians is owed some amount of unclaimed property. The average value claim is about $1,500.

If you believe you may be impacted, the state urges you to act swiftly. Property can be auctioned if an owner does not come forward within three years.

See the treasury's site here for details.

Tangible property may be auctioned after three years if the rightful owner does not come forward, and auction proceeds are kept in perpetuity for rightful owners to claim. Treasury never auctions military decorations and memorabilia.