Saturday, February 26, 2011

Billions in Unclaimed Life Insurance and Other Property

No need to look under sofa cushions to find lost money. Paul Sullivan's Wealth Matters column spotlights unclaimed life insurance proceeds. By one guesstimate, well over $1 billion nationwide is waiting to be claimed.

That's nothing, relatively speaking. Unclaimed property of all sorts, ranging from safe deposit valuables to old paychecks and dividends, adds up to $33 billion or so.

How hard do payers look for potential payees? Not very, judging from this Marketwatch item. With a smidgen of due diligence the Walt Disney Co. might have found an address for Angelina Jolie. Somebody at Apple probably knows Steve Jobs.

Death, followed by amateur executorship, explains why much of the $33 billion in lost property remains unclaimed. A diligent bank executor doesn't work for free, but occasionally a trust department may find as much as it charges.

Know of any good examples? Send them along to Jim Gust.

1 comment:

Michael Hartmann said...

FindYourPolicy.com is a Free consumer protection service. Everyone with life insurance can prevent loss by simply registering the company name they have life insurance with. They never ask for your social security number or policy information. Just the company name. When the time comes your beneficiaries can search the database and with certainty find what company to go to and find your life insurance. It is a free service that will prevent lost life insurance.