VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Department of Treasury in Virginia reports there is just over $2 billion in unclaimed property owed to people in Virginia.
The News 3 Investigative Team continues to follow through on this topic.
When a company is trying to return money to an individual and they can’t find them, by law, it’s eventually sent to the Department of Treasury.
Investigations
Does the Department of Treasury have money that's owed to you?
It could be old utility deposits, stocks, bond dividends, insurance proceeds, and in rare cases, even physical property.
David Oswald emailed the News 3 Investigative Team after seeing our report in February about unclaimed money he and his sister were owed after their dad died in 2001.
They tried to obtain the money years ago but had trouble.
Oswald said he sent in the needed documents, emailed again, and didn’t hear anything for seven months.
Watch previous investigation: Does the Department of Treasury have money that's owed to you?
We reached out to the Department of Treasury about his case and they told us they’ve had a huge volume of claims that were started. They asked the public to be patient, as their processing time is longer than usual.
State officials claim Oswald didn’t submit the evidence they needed to process their claim, but he disagrees.
He was eventually sent a check for over $3,000, but he was told his sister would have to process her claim.
Officials report that one in seven people in the United States is believed to have unclaimed property.
Don't Waste Your Money
Easy way to find unclaimed funds in your name
It’s not just people who are owed money: most cities in the region also have unclaimed property.
In Virginia, you can search for unclaimed money here. Click here to search nationwide.
There has been $1.1 billion returned to citizens since the program started in the early '60s.
