COLUMBUS, Ohio — The state of Ohio has billions of dollars in unclaimed funds. The Ohio Department of Commerce’s Division of Unclaimed Funds confirms to have approximately $4 billion.
Unclaimed funds are lost or forgotten money that businesses and banks report to the Division of Unclaimed Funds after accounts become inactive. This typically happens between three to five years.
The money comes from inactive checking and savings accounts, stocks and bonds, forgotten utility deposits, unknown insurance claims or last paychecks, according to the Ohio Department of Commerce.
More than $343 million, or 8.5%, of that money belongs to residents and businesses in Franklin County.
According to the Ohio Department of Commerce, Franklin County is ranked second in the state for the most unclaimed funds at $343 million. Cuyahoga County is ranked first in the state with $477 million in unclaimed funds.
Franklin County is ranked the number one county in central Ohio.
Top 10 Counties in Central Ohio by Amount of Unclaimed Funds
- Franklin (Ohio Rank: 2) – $343 million
- Delaware (16) – $28.7 million
- Licking (21) – $22.1 million
- Fairfield (26) – $16.8 million
- Marion (37) – $10.7 million
- Knox (43) – $7.3 million
- Pickaway (47) – $6.7 million
- Madison (51) – $6.1 million
- Union (56) – $5.3 million
- Morrow (72) – $3.2 million
The process for Ohioans to claim their funds comprises of three steps: file the claim, gather supporting documents, mail or upload the information. Just go online to unclaimedfunds.ohio.gov. From there, click on “find your funds” to be directed to missingmoney.com. Enter a name and follow the process from there.