Community Corner

I-Cash Program to Visit Chicago This Week

Does the state have your money?

Illinois State Treasurer Dan Rutherford encourages Chicago-area residents to stop by his I-Cash table at the Republic Bank I-CASH event on Wednesday, Jan. 16. The event is being held at the Republic Bank, 6501 S. Pulaski Road, Chicago. Staff will be available 10 a.m. to noon to help anyone wishing to determine if the state is holding any money or unclaimed property entitled to them. In fact, 2,455060 owners in Cook County have $1,021,875,613 in unclaimed property. This is according to the most recent list of unclaimed property holders.

“People are thrilled to find out they have money just waiting for them through I-Cash,” says Rutherford. “I encourage you to come visit me at local I-Cash events for assistance in locating unclaimed money or property – plus everyone should make an attempt to review our online database annually so they don’t miss out on money or valuable assets the state is holding for them.” 

The recent rebranding and marketing campaign has dramatically increased the number of searches on the I-Cash (formerly Cash Dash) website and the number of claims filed. In the first month after the launch of I-Cash, the number of web visits increased by 140 percent (69,087 to 165,683), and the number of claims increased by 322 percent (7,506 to 31,703) as compared to the month before the switch to I-Cash. 

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The treasurer’s Unclaimed Property Division’s costs, including staff, computers and travel, are paid for through the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund, and not by tax dollars.

The Unclaimed Property Division has more than $1.6 billion in cash, plus contents from Illinois safe deposit boxes that have been inactive for at least five years. During Rutherford’s first year in office, the program marked the first time in history that the treasurer’s office returned more than $100 million to the people who owned those assets. The total for 2011 was $101,679,655, a 23 percent increase over the previous year. In the past, the I-Cash program returned about $80 million annually to owners. 

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To find out if you have unclaimed property through I-Cash, you can visit the treasurer’s website at www.treasurer.il.gov and follow the I-Cash link. You can contact the Unclaimed Property Division by calling 217-785-6998 or emailing info@icash.illinois.gov, although searches cannot be completed by telephone.

— Information provided by a press release from Illinois Treasurer Dan Rutherford.


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