Annual Unclaimed Property auction earns nearly $100,000 for account owners, Treasurer Zweifel announces
COLUMBIA, Mo. – State Treasurer Clint Zweifel (ZWY-ful) announced today his Unclaimed Property Auction netted nearly $100,000 for account owners with more than 200 individuals viewing the auction lots.Items up for bid at the auction included a Rolex watch, China Panda gold coin set, and a Busch Memorial Stadium First Nighter Certificate. The largest single winning bid was $2,900 for the Rolex watch. The auction was held in Columbia at the Hilton Garden Inn Conference Center from Sept. 29 through Oct. 1. Nearly 2,000 lots retrieved from safe deposit boxes were auctioned off to members of the public.
“My office collects Unclaimed Property for Missourians in many forms, including items recovered from safe deposit boxes,” Treasurer Zweifel said. “All proceeds collected from this auction will be held for the original owner of the safe deposit boxes from which the items came or his or her heirs. Auctions are authorized by statute to ensure my office continues to have the physical space needed to receive and catalog the contents of safe deposit boxes each year and they are provided at no cost to taxpayers.”
The auction items originated from safe deposit boxes turned over to Treasurer Zweifel by Missouri financial institutions after five years of no contact with the owner. Contents from safe deposit boxes represent less than 1 percent of the more than $874 million held in Unclaimed Property from nearly 5 million owner accounts. The auction was held pursuant to section 447.558, RSMo, and was conducted by auctioneer James L. Johnston of Madison, Mo.
Since January 2009, Treasurer Zweifel has returned more than $242 million to more than 800,000 account owners. Missourians may search for Unclaimed Property 24 hours a day at www.ShowMeMoney.com, and in many cases may complete the claims process entirely online. Individuals may also sign up to receive an email notification when new Unclaimed Property arrives and matches their information.
About Treasurer Zweifel’s Unclaimed Property
State law requires financial institutions, insurance companies, public agencies and other business entities to turn over assets to Treasurer Zweifel that belong to a customer, client, employee or other owner if there have been no documented transactions or contact with the owner after a statutorily-defined period of time, generally five years. Most Unclaimed Property consists of cash from bank accounts, stocks, bonds and contents of safe deposit boxes that have been abandoned. It also can include uncollected insurance policy proceeds, government refunds, utility deposits and wages from past jobs. Treasurer Zweifel does not handle real property such as land and houses or certain types of personal property such as cars and boats. There is more than $822 million in Unclaimed Property maintained by Treasurer Zweifel. Treasurer Zweifel never charges for the return of Unclaimed Property.
