Unclaimed Bank Balances – Do you have one?

I love knowing I have money in the bank. If I check my balance and realize that the balance is getting low, I try to top it up.  This is partly to prevent incurring any fees as well as to ensure there is something put aside in case of emergencies.

I know persons who have so many bank accounts that they lose track.  They might have decided to stop using the account because their balances were very low or they left the country and so left their money behind.

Consumers might believe that because their accounts had very little money it made no sense to retrieve them but they forgot about the interest that the untouched money will accumulate over the years.

There have been cases of course where persons might be unaware of the balances in the account.  Relatives of deceased persons might also not be aware of the bank accounts of their loved ones.

Unclaimed Bank Accounts/Balances Published

On April 18, 2015, The Gleaner published an extensive list of unclaimed bank balances from the National Commercial Bank.  The list identified the names, addresses, bank account numbers and dates of the last transaction on the account.

I was shocked to see the number of organization and individuals who had left the money in their account for so many years.  The amount of money that was left in the accounts ranged from paltry sums of less than $50.00 to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

It was important to note that many of the accounts were not used from the 1980′s which led me to wonder if the consumers involved had simply forgotten their accounts.

Where will the money go?

So what happens if no one comes forward to collect the money?

Well according to the laws which regulate the banks, if after they have published the names of the account holders four times in one year and receive no response, the money will be given to the Jamaican Government at the end of that year.

It sounds harsh to lose money like that, especially in these economical trying times. If you were to add all the unclaimed balances it would amount to millions of dollars for the government’s coffers.

Do you have any unclaimed bank balances?

If you do it is best to check with your bank about either revitalizing or withdrawing the money and closing the account.

Teri Ann Renee Paisley

Gleaner online writer

Tags: bank balances