Wollongong is home to a gold mine of unclaimed share dividends, trust accounts, refunds, commissions and deceased estates, topping the list for regional suburbs for unclaimed money with Revenue NSW.
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As of September 1, nearly $800,000 was sitting in limbo waiting to be collected by rightful owners - with one sum in excess of $50,000 from the proceeds of a sale.
Across the state $467 million of unclaimed money is waiting to be claimed.
NSW Minister for Finance and Small Business Damien Tudehope said now was a good time to remind people to check if they were owed money as many families were struggling financially due to the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders.
The largest single amount held on the unclaimed money register is more than $1 million from a deceased estate in Cabramatta.
- MP Damien Tudehope
"We know many people are doing it tough, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, with most households having to keep a close eye on their budget," Mr Tudehope said.
"The largest single amount held on the Unclaimed Money Register is more than $1 million from a deceased estate in Cabramatta, while there are 10 amounts of more than $500,000 each, waiting to be collected by the rightful owners.
"There are also more than 255,000 unpresented cheques worth $108 million waiting to make their way to the proper accounts."
The Unclaimed Money Register through Revenue NSW became a digital database in 2000, with the money held there because the owner may have changed address or their name, or due to misplaced paperwork or it was simply forgotten.
The top 20 of Wollongong's unclaimed money are each in the thousands and from things like unpresented cheques, superannuation, refunds and overpayments.
If you find lost money that is legally yours, you can submit a claim online to get it back. There is no time limit within which a rightful owner must make a claim.
Revenue NSW also advise "money finding agents" are private businesses that charge people to find their lost money, the government register is free to conduct the same searches.
Revenue NSW periodically undertakes data matching activities and attempts to contact potential owners of new items received from enterprises.
The unclaimed money register is found: https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/unclaimed-money/search
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