1 In 10 PA Residents Are Owed Money: How To Claim It

HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania Treasury has launched an upgraded unclaimed property website that provides additional details and enhanced features designed to return more money to people.

Unclaimed property includes things like dormant bank accounts, uncashed checks, forgotten stocks and more. It can also include physical items such as collectible coins, jewelry and savings bonds that most often come to the treasury as the contents of safe deposit boxes.

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In most cases, state law requires businesses to report unclaimed property to the treasury after three years of dormancy.

According to state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, more than one in 10 Pennsylvanians is owed unclaimed property. The average value of a claim is more than $1,000.

"The launch of searchandclaimpa.gov means a new and improved experience for Pennsylvanians – and a better and faster way to get their money back into their pockets," Garrity said in a statement.

Upgrades to the system include:

• Automatic matching for the same owner. If a claimant starts a claim for specific properties, the system will automatically add associated properties it finds that qualify along with those selected by the claimant.
• Automatically returning $500 or less. Properties that meet Money Match criteria can be returned automatically. This can be done periodically and as new property is reported to the treasury.
• More detailed values. When reviewing search results, a claimant will see the exact dollar amount available for values below $500 and "over $500" for those above that threshold.
• Sharing property with friends. If you search and find something for a loved one or friend you can easily share these properties via email with the individual.
• Increased fraud protection. The new and improved system will better flag potential fraud to trigger a more in-depth review of a claim.

Since taking office, Garrity has returned over $1.2 billion in unclaimed property to Pennsylvanians, businesses, nonprofits and other organizations. The treasury is still working to return more than $5 billion.

To see if you are owed money, click here.