By Cristin Ross
Sometimes things just get lost in the shuffle that is life.
Never fear, the Texas State Comptroller’s office is helping Texans find their lost, abandoned or otherwise unclaimed property.
State officials on Sunday released an updated list of names on record as having unclaimed property. Records indicate more than $1.5 billion remains unclaimed.
The list includes names and even businesses from Athens, Brownsboro, Cedar Creek, Chandler, Eustace, Gun Barrel City, LaRue, Malakoff, Murchison, Poynor and Trinidad.
“We’ve been on the list in the past,” said Lisa Kocian, owner and pharmacist of Gibson Pharmacy in Athens and Malakoff. “I think the last time we collected, it was an insurance check that, I guess, had gotten lost in the mail.
“I definitely think it’s a good idea to check the list every year, because sometimes, you never know.”
To check the list, call 1-800-654-3463 or log onto www.window.state.tx.us/up.
According to the comptroller’s Web site, property is turned over to the comptroller’s office annually when the owner’s whereabouts are unknown and the property has been inactive on the books of the reporting company after the appropriate abandonment period has run.
“In today’s mobile society, Texans can easily lose track of uncashed stock dividend checks, insurance proceeds, utility and rent deposits, and other assets that may escape attention,” State Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn said in a press release published on the official comptroller Web site. “As comptroller, I am responsible for collecting these abandoned assets. I am committed to returning them to their rightful owners.
“From a long-dormant bank account to a forgotten utility deposit or family heirloom in an abandoned safe deposit box, the state may be holding valuable property that belongs to you. If so, I want to return your property to you.”
The comptroller’s office acts only as custodian for the missing owners, holding the property in trust until it is claimed. Texas never takes legal ownership of the property, so there is no time limit for filing a claim.
To claim lost property:
• call 1-800-654-3463;
• go to www.window.state.tx
.us/up;
• e-mail unclaimed.property@cpa.state.tx.us; or
• write to Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Unclaimed Property Research and Correspondence Section, P.O. Box 12019, Austin TX, 78711-2019.
