Treasurer Garrity Urges Pennsylvanians to Search for Unclaimed Property

With the Easter bunny’s annual visit just around the corner, Treasurer Stacy Garrity today urged Pennsylvanians to grab their baskets and hunt for some of the more than $4 billion worth of unclaimed property being safeguarded by Treasury.

She also noted that more than $10 million is owed to Pennsylvanians with the words Easter, bunny, rabbit, egg, chick, chocolate, hop, candy or basket in their name or business name.

“Searching for unclaimed property is like the ultimate Easter egg hunt,” Garrity said. “It is so simple to search for money that’s owed to you, a loved one, or a friend. With about one in ten Pennsylvanians owed unclaimed property, chances are pretty good that you’ll find something — and whether it’s a little extra cash or a long-lost family heirloom, we want to get it back to you.”

The state’s unclaimed property law requires assets to be turned over to Treasury after certain periods of time. Unclaimed property can include things like dormant bank accounts, uncashed checks, forgotten stocks, insurance policies, tangible property like the contents of abandoned safe deposit boxes, and more.

Tangible items are auctioned by Treasury after about three years of storage in the vault to make room for incoming property. Auction proceeds are kept in perpetuity for a rightful owner to claim in the future. Military decorations and memorabilia are never auctioned, and Treasury works diligently to find veterans and their families to reunite these priceless symbols of service.

The average unclaimed property claim is worth about $1,500. Last year, Treasury returned more than $135 million of unclaimed property to Pennsylvanians.

Search Treasury’s unclaimed property database to see if you have property waiting to be claimed at patreasury.gov/unclaimed-property.