Is your cash waiting for you?

SPRINGFIELD – Did you know that there is more than $5 billion in unclaimed funds across Illinois and $320 million specifically in Lake County?

This means that if you live in Lake County, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs’ office may be holding onto your money – also known as unclaimed property – for safekeeping from uncashed checks, forgotten bank accounts, insurance policies or other assets. With the goal of returning this money to Illinois residents, the Treasurer’s Office has a program called I-CASH to help people find and claim their money quickly and easily.

“We want to return this money to its rightful owner,” Frerichs said in a news release. “Putting money back in people’s pockets so they can help Illinois’ economy is a lot better for our state than letting the money sit in our cold vault.”

Under Frerichs, the Treasurer’s Office has returned more than $2 billion to 1.7 million residents across the state. The office has taken steps to make the I-CASH website user-friendly and accessible, recently launching a full website in Spanish.

The process is simple. Search your name in the I-CASH database. If you find money or property under your name, click claim and complete the primary information form. Note that the form will require you to share your Social Security number. This information is used only to verify your identity and process the check to return the money to you. Once the claim is filed, the check will be processed and mailed directly to the address provided in the primary information form, which takes about two to four weeks. In certain cases, especially when trying to claim a late relative’s money, the office may reach out and ask for more information.

There are countless success stories of the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office returning unclaimed property to residents, including a veteran from Lake County who was reunited with a $500,000 life insurance policy taken out by his late wife. When efforts were first taken to return the money, the veteran thought it was a scam, but with the diligence of state Sen. Mary Edly-Allen of Libertyville and the unclaimed property program, the money was rightfully returned to its owner.

“If you have an I-CASH success story, no matter how big or small the amount returned, we want to hear about it,” Frerichs said in the release. “By sharing your stories on social media using #ICASHMyCash, we hope to reach more people and return even more money to the pockets of hardworking Illinoisans.”

The State Treasurer’s Office does not charge for returning money. By law, the office must hold onto missing money and try to return it as long as it takes.

Frerichs encourages people to check the I-CASH database twice a year to see if there is money waiting for them. To check if you have unclaimed property or to learn more about the I-CASH program, visit icash.illinoistreasurer.gov or es.icash.illinoistreasurer.gov for Spanish.