Treasurer returns $226M in unclaimed property last year

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - The state's unclaimed property program reunited $226 million with its rightful owners last year.

State Treasurer Michael Frerichs announced last week that an estimated 174,000 people were beneficiaries of the program in 2020 despite a sagging economy and the strain of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The treasurer's office controls the property when it's discovered until the owner can be found. Property can include unpaid life insurance, forgotten bank accounts and even rebate cards.

'œToo many people unknowingly are separated from their money and other valuables,'ť Frerichs said in a prepared statement. "It is our job to fix that.'ť

The average amount returned during the 2021 fiscal year, which ended June 30, was $1,000.

The program, made law in 1961, was assigned to the treasurer's office in 1999. Since Frerichs took office in 2015, the state has returned $1.2 billion in 790,000 claims.