Virginia Department of the Treasury staff helped Danville residents find a record total of $351,000 during an unclaimed property virtual call event that was held last Thursday and Friday.
The previous high during a Danville event was $103,230 found a year ago during a two-day call in June.
Last week, Treasury workers looked up 678 names during the two days. Residents with money owned to them were sent a claim form.
The event was held in partnership with the City of Danville’s Treasurer’s Office. Last week’s event was the fifth event for Danville residents since 2019. To date, the events have recovered $635,978.
The City of Danville Treasurer's Office has already saved the date for Dec. 1-2 to hold this event again.
Virginia’s consumer protection law requires businesses to escheat/report unclaimed property over to the state, relieving the business of the financial liability. Virginia holds the property as the custodian until the rightful owner, or heir, files a claim.
More than $1 billion has been paid out to Virginians since this program was started in 1961. Unclaimed property comprises “abandoned assets or accounts” considered dormant because of inactivity and can include utility deposits, customer refunds, unpaid wages, money from insurance policies, securities and investments, bank accounts, and tangible property. Property becomes unclaimed when the holder company has not had contact with the owner of the property for a specified period of time.
These call events are held to aid citizens in searching and starting the claim process. Virginians can also easily search the Commonwealth’s unclaimed property database by visiting VaMoneySearch.org. This free website allows individuals to search the Commonwealth’s unclaimed property database and download a claim form.