With the holiday season just beginning, state Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis is encouraging Floridians to join his Holiday Money Hunt and search to see if you or your business has unclaimed property in Florida.
This week, Patronis launched the Holiday Money Hunt this holiday season to spread the word and help Floridians recover and claim cash that has been unknown or lost. Currently, Florida has unclaimed property accounts with a total value of $2.5 billion. Patronis said he is on a mission to spread holiday cheer and return every last cent back to its rightful owners. Since Patronis took office in 2017, more than $1.8 billion in unclaimed property has been returned to Florida citizens. For b-roll video of the Florida unclaimed property vault and a selection of unclaimed items, please click here.
“I am excited to kick off the Holiday Money Hunt this holiday season and spread the word about unclaimed property in Florida. During the holidays, everyone can use a little extra cash, and an unexpected check from the State of Florida may help make things a little brighter this year. I am going to be working throughout this month and next to get the word out about Unclaimed Property and I hope you take advantage of this great opportunity. One in five Floridians has unclaimed property just waiting to be claimed and it only takes a few minutes to search now by visiting FLTreasureHunt.gov,” Patronis said this week.
In recognition of the Holiday Money Hunt, Patronis and the Department of Financial Services’ official social media Facebook and Twitter accounts, @JimmyPatronis and @FLDFS, will use the hashtag #FLHolidayMoneyHunt throughout November and December. Follow along with us as we encourage Floridians to begin their search now.
Florida Unclaimed Property Available by Region:
Pensacola – $57 million available
Panama City – $31 million available
Tallahassee – $41 million available
Jacksonville – $162 million available
Gainesville – $30 million available
Orlando – $391 million available
Tampa/St. Pete – $532 million available
Fort Myers/Naples – $139 million available
West Palm Beach – $294 million available
Miami – $904 million available
Unclaimed Property is a financial asset that is unknown or lost, or has been left inactive, unclaimed or abandoned by its owner. The most common types of unclaimed property are dormant bank accounts, unclaimed insurance proceeds, stocks, dividends, uncashed checks, deposits, credit balances and refunds. Unclaimed property also includes contents from abandoned safe deposit boxes in financial institutions. Unclaimed property assets are held by business or government entities (holders) for a set period of time, usually five years. If the holder is unable to locate, re-establish contact with the owner and return the asset, it is reported and remitted to the Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of Unclaimed Property.
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