More than $28,000 in funds were returned to Peabody residents last month when Massachusetts Treasurer and Receiver General Deborah Goldberg visited the Torigian Center with the Unclaimed Property Division.
Goldberg came at the invitation of State Rep. Thomas Walsh, who took the stage along with State Sen. Joan Lovely and State Rep. Sally Kerans on March 20 to present the check to residents.
“I am thrilled to have joined Treasurer Goldberg and her Unclaimed Property Division to reunite people with their lost property. Treasurer Goldberg brought her Division to Peabody and allowed dozens of residents to work with staff in a personal, friendly manner and at a convenient location,” Walsh said. “I am also grateful for the efforts of Carolyn Wynn and the Torigian Center staff for their hard work in making this night possible.”
Walsh planned the event with the Treasurer’s office to spread awareness about the Unclaimed Property Division, which reunites rightful owners with assets that have been turned over to the state.
Unclaimed property consists of financial assets such as checking and savings accounts, unpaid wages, securities, uncashed dividends, life insurance policies, uncashed checks, and safe deposit boxes left without activity for a certain period of time.
“We were able to alert many residents that they were on the list, and for others that we didn’t look at on the list, we made them aware that Unclaimed Property updates fairly frequently and that they should check it because it’s their money,” Walsh told Peabody Weekly News. “I was very appreciative of the Treasurer for making the trip to Peabody and meeting with those who had checks coming that night.”
According to the Division, assets become unclaimed when the owner cannot be contacted for a three-year period by the holder of the asset, or for fifteen years in the case of traveler’s checks.
Once the assets are in control of the unclaimed property program, outreach through advertisements, mailings, social media, and the news is deployed to notify owners.
To that end, Walsh chose the Torigian Center as the venue for the event as it is a community hub in a central location with plenty of parking.
“We probably had 40 or 50 people come through, which I was pretty pleased with. We were talking about possibly coordinating something when the seniors have their monthly luncheon, and there’s a lot going on at the senior center,” Walsh said. “Anybody can go to the website and look and fill out the paperwork; the nice thing was that the treasury staff was there. People who weren’t quite sure how to navigate the online system, there was someone there to tell them just how to get everything done.”
