State Treasurer Curtis Loftis Announces Addition of 615,000 New Properties to Unclaimed Property Website

In observance of February 1 being National Unclaimed Property Day, State Treasurer Curtis Loftis announced that more than 615,000 new properties have been reported to the State’s Unclaimed Property Program.

“We know that approximately 1 in 10 Americans have unclaimed property. Each year billions of dollars get returned to State Treasurer’s Offices across the country,” explained Treasurer Loftis. “It’s our job to return those funds to the rightful owners, and I am encouraging individuals, businesses, charities, schools and other organizations to check our website (treasurer.sc.gov) to see if we have funds waiting for you.”

Each fall companies that are holding unclaimed property for South Carolinians must remit these funds to the state’s Unclaimed Property Program, which is administered by State Treasurer Curtis Loftis. Staff then reconcile these reports and add the properties to its unclaimed property database so the public can begin the process of searching and claiming these funds.

Currently there is more than $750 million in unclaimed property located across the state. Examples of unclaimed property include dormant bank accounts, uncashed checks, unclaimed insurance proceeds and forgotten utility deposits. The State Treasurer’s Office acts as custodian of these funds until the rightful owners come forth and make a claim. Since 2011, more than $260 million has been returned to South Carolinians.

“I often tell people that helping find owners of unclaimed property is one of the most gratifying parts of my job as state treasurer,” Loftis added. “Over the years, we’ve found people with a few hundred dollars to claims valued at nearly $1 million. There is no cost to search for or claim these funds, so we always want to remind people to check our database at least twice a year to see if they have unclaimed funds.”

Visit the State Treasurer's Office website at treasurer.sc.gov to see if there is new money waiting for you.