Is any of the $8.3 million worth of unclaimed property in Whitley, Knox and Laurel counties yours?

There is more than $8.3 million worth of unclaimed property in Whitley, Knox and Laurel counties combined, and some of it might be yours.

Each year the Kentucky State Treasury receives millions of dollars from places like banks and insurance companies, who by statute must transfer assets of inactive accounts to the Treasury for holding.

The property comes from various places.

Much of it is money from old bank accounts or refunds from insurance companies due to people, who could not be found. Some of it is actual items from safety deposit boxes and so forth, such as guns, jewelry, stamp collections and in one case an urn containing someone’s remains.

There is $2,989,097.67 worth of unclaimed property in Whitley County, $4,175,540 in Laurel County and $1,173,561.02 in Knox County, according to Kentucky Treasurer Allison Ball’s office.

To learn more about unclaimed property, go to https://treasury.ky.gov/unclaimedproperty/Pages/overview.aspx.

To search if you have unclaimed property, click the unclaimed property search link on the page then on the next screen click the www.missingmoney.com link.

Start by filling out your name or business name and click “search.”

This screen should show a selection of names that are either identical or similar to the name you’ve typed in. Then narrow your search. At the top of the screen, fill out the name, city, and select “Kentucky” from the state drop-down menu. Then click “Search.”

Search for your name and an address you can identify. You will be able to see an estimated amount of the value of the unclaimed property, as well as from where the funds were initially held. Click the “Claim” button on the left side of the name and address you can identify.

The item(s) you have selected will be added to the “My Claims Cart” at the top right of the webpage.

This page confirms that the information on this website is connected to the Kentucky State Treasury. Read the directions and select the best option for you. Please select the correct relationship that you have to each property being claimed.

Select the “Relationship” option that describes your relationship to the property you are requesting to claim.

• Select “Owner” if it is your name listed on the property account.
• Select “Heir” if the reported owner is deceased and you are an heir to the property.
• Select “Executor” if the reported owner is deceased and you were appointed in court as the Executor, Administrator, or Estate Representative.
• Select “Corporate Officer” if the reported owner is a business or organization and you are a corporate officer or other authorized agent for the business/organization.
• Select “Other” if you have any other relationship to the reported owner such as Power-of-Attorney, Guardian, Conservator, Custodian, or Legal Representative.

Complete the form with accurate information, then click “Continue.”

At this point, your information has been sent to the Kentucky State Treasury Unclaimed Property Division.

If you selected your relationship to the name on the property as “Owner,” you have two options:

• Select “Display PDF Forms” and print the claim form, complete it, sign it, and mail it to the state treasurer’s office along with the required information. Please note: If you print your claim form, you will not receive a copy in the mail.
• Select “Request Forms from State” and request that you be mailed a claim form. A claim form will be mailed within the next 7-21 business days.

The quickest way to have your claim processed is to select “Display PDF Forms” and print the claim form, complete it, sign it, and mail it to the treasurer’s office along with the required documentation.

If you selected your relationship to the name on the property as Heir, Executor, Corporate Officer, or Other, you have completed your request and should receive a claim form in the next 7-21 business days.

Kentucky Treasurer Allison Ball recently announced that her office had returned $16,290,800.08 in unclaimed property to Kentuckians in 2020.

Ball and her team completed more individual property claim returns than the previous year, despite the pandemic and the implementation of reduced in-person staff and telework practices.

“I am proud of my team for their hard work and commitment to serve the Commonwealth through returning unclaimed property. The pandemic left many Kentucky families with real deficits and worry over their financial wellbeing, and this property was a helping hand I was honored to deliver,” Treasurer Ball said. “I feel strongly this property belongs to Kentuckians, not the government, and I am proud to continue building upon my promise of returning more unclaimed property to Kentuckians.”

Ball is passionate about working with communities and individuals to return unclaimed property to its rightful owner.

The treasurer’s office has returned more than $105 million in unclaimed property since Ball first took office.

In her first term, she returned more unclaimed property than any other state treasurer in Kentucky history.

“The pandemic has required a host of adjustments and modifications for workplaces across our Commonwealth, the Treasury included,” Unclaimed Property Director and Deputy Chief of Staff Lorran Hart Ferguson said. “I am proud of the Unclaimed Property Division’s tenacity and commitment to return this property despite the hardships the pandemic presented.”

To learn more about unclaimed property, go to https://treasury.ky.gov/unclaimedproperty/Pages/overview.aspx.