Nearly 140,000 Illinois Residents Sent Checks for Unclaimed Property: ‘Not a Scam,’ Treasurer Says

Thousands of Illinois residents could have a check from the state waiting for them in their mailboxes.

The Illinois State Treasurer’s office recently sent checks for unclaimed property to 138,561 people in Illinois, totaling a record $13.2 million.

Treasurer Michael Frerichs held a news conference Tuesday to remind Illinois residents to cash those checks.

“We’ve done a great job convincing people in the state that there are identity thieves out there, that they think it’s a scam. They think it’s a scam and these checks don’t get cashed,” Frerichs said.

“This money does not belong to the State; It belongs to our citizens and we love giving it back.”

These checks are part of the latest wave sent out through the Enhanced Money Match program, which allows the treasurer to automatically return money to Illinois residents without them filing a claim.

The program uses information collected by the state and compares it to the treasurer’s unclaimed property database.

Once the treasurer matches the recipient’s name and address, he or she will send a check — all people have to do is cash it.

“If you see a check from the state treasurer in the mail…it’s not fraud,” Frerichs said. “All you have to do is open the envelope and cash the check.”

Since the program launched in 2018, the treasurer’s office has returned more than $102 million to nearly 422,000 people.

Most of the checks released in this latest round are for $50 to $100, according to Frerichs.

But sometimes there can be a life-changing amount of money in unclaimed property.

In 2022, Frerichs announced the largest unclaimed estate and heirs ever: $11 million left behind by a Southwest Side man with no immediate relatives.

Joseph Stancak, described as a hermit and recluse by the few who knew him, died in 2016 at age 87, without leaving a will.

The money sat waiting for a legitimate heir or heirs to appear, and eventually a Barrington lawyer found 119 distinct heirs.

To check for unclaimed property, go to www.illinoistreasurer.gov/ICASH.