PRICE, Utah – September 6, 2019 – After watching a story about Utah’s Unclaimed Property Division on the local news, Helper resident Trinnaty Barnes’ stepmom visited mycash.utah.gov. She discovered that the State was safeguarding a significant sum of money for her stepdaughter.
“It turns out, after getting run over by a car several years ago, I was owed a $5,100 insurance settlement that for some reason I didn’t receive,” Barnes said. “I was totally surprised, and skeptical, when my stepmom texted that she found my name on the State’s website. I thought it was a scam and called her to verify that it was really her who texted me.”
After verifying the legitimacy of mycash.utah.gov, Barnes spent about 10 minutes entering her information on the secure government website. Her claim was processed, and she received a check in the mail in early August.
“The whole process was really easy. Everyone I talked to at the Unclaimed Property Division was really nice and very helpful,” Barnes said. “Everyone should take a few minutes to search the website to see if they have lost money. I had no idea I had so much money waiting to be claimed, and it has made is huge difference in my life.” Barnes used the money to start a teeth whitening business.
The Utah Unclaimed Property Division is currently safeguarding 19,189 properties totaling nearly $2 million for Carbon County residents. When a business owes money to an individual it cannot find, it remits those funds to the state’s Unclaimed Property Division after three years of non-contact with the owner. Unclaimed property comes from sources, including dormant bank accounts, overpaid medical bills, uncashed checks, safe deposit box contents and unpaid insurance benefits.
“Our mission is to reunite lost property with rightful owners, and our team works hard to get money where it belongs – into the pockets of rightful owners,” Treasurer David Damschen said.
Treasurer Damschen is meeting with local elected officials in Price on September 6 as part of an initiative to reunite unclaimed property with rightful owners in rural parts of the state. The group will comb through a list of names of individuals and businesses in Carbon County with unclaimed property to help the Division get the money back where it belongs.
“We have had a lot of success with this approach in the past. Local officials are connected to the community and often recognize the people on the list or their family members,” Treasurer Damschen said. “They play an invaluable role in getting claims initiated and money returned to rightful owners.”
While the outreach function of the office is effective, the Division still primarily relies on individuals going online to see if they have unclaimed property.
“One in five Utahns has lost money. Everyone should go online, find and claim their property – and check for family, friends and deceased relatives as well. It’s better than playing the lottery, and the odds are much higher,” Unclaimed Property Administrator Dennis Johnston said.
For more information and to search property, visit mycash.utah.gov or call 801-715-3300.
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