You may be owed money and not be aware of it. Learn more about BC’s unclaimed property program and find out if you have funds waiting for you.
How it works
By law, if an organization holds money that belongs to you and they can’t reach you within a set time frame, the money is considered “unclaimed property” and is transferred to BC Unclaimed.
BC Unclaimed protects the interests of consumers in BC by searching for rightful owners of unclaimed funds and holding the money for them until they are found. Since 2003, BC Unclaimed has returned $27 million back to rightful owners and there is about $208 million still waiting to be claimed.
What is unclaimed property?
Despite what the name might make you think, unclaimed property only refers to money and doesn’t include physical property like land, buildings, vehicles, or other personal possessions. It also doesn’t include money from dormant bank accounts because banks are federally regulated. The Bank of Canada’s unclaimed property office manages those.
Examples of unclaimed property include:
- dormant credit union accounts
- funds held in court
- unpaid wages
- when someone dies without a will (intestate) and their next-of-kin can’t be located
- insurance payments
- overpayments to debt collectors
- real estate deposits
For more details about the types of property that BC Unclaimed can accept, read BC’s Unclaimed Property Act.
How to check if you have unclaimed money
To check if you have unclaimed funds waiting for you, simply visit BC Unclaimed’s website and search your name. If there is a balance in your name, submit the form to get more information about the source of the funds and how it can be claimed. BC Unclaimed also has a list of other sources of unclaimed property This list includes companies choosing to manage their funds independently.
Where to go for more information
If you have questions about unclaimed property, explore BC Unclaimed website for more information or to contact them for assistance.
We do not have legal oversight when it comes to unclaimed money and they are the appropriate organization to speak to about this topic.
This information is purely for educational purposes. To learn which topics we can assist you with directly, please explore our Consumer Help page.
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About Consumer Protection BC
We are not-for-profit regulator responsible for overseeing certain industries and specific consumer transactions in British Columbia. If your concern is captured under the laws we enforce, we will use the tools at our disposal to assist you. If we can’t help you directly, we will try to offer a referral to a relevant organization, if one exists. Other times, court or legal assistance may be the best option. Explore our website at www.consumerprotectionbc.ca