Thousands of Victorians are sitting on a surprise windfall, according to the State Revenue Office (SRO), which is calling on people to stake their claim for disowned cash.
Assistant Treasurer, Danny Pearson said SRO was holding $111 million in unclaimed money that belonged to people of all ages from across the State.
“The cash is theirs for the taking if individuals and companies can establish their bona fides through a simple system that begins with an online search,” Mr Pearson said.
“There are more than 740,000 entitlements waiting to be claimed,” he said.
“SRO data reveals that a Box Hill man is entitled to an $882,697 deposit, while a Nunawading woman can claim $677,002.”
Mr Pearson said that, in the past five years, there had been more than 60,000 successful money claims worth almost $20 million, from sources including electricity, gas and water companies; local Councils; real estate agents; insurance companies; and lotto tickets.
The Assistant Treasurer said the SRO held records of money that remained unclaimed after 12 months from sources such as share dividends; salaries and wages; rents and bonds; debentures and interest; and proceeds from sales.
Mr Pearson said the majority of entitlements had been held by the SRO for less than 10 years.
“The City of Melbourne is the Council area with the most potential claims – 57,000 totalling $15.2 million at an average of $266 – followed by Monash ($7 million), Boroondara ($6.7 million) and Whitehorse ($4.8 million),” he said.
“In regional Victoria, Greater Geelong leads the way with almost 24,700 people able to claim $2.9 million at an average of just under $120 each.”
Mr Pearson said Greater Bendigo residents could potentially claim $1.2 million and Latrobe City Council residents around the same amount.
Further information on unclaimed money held by SRO can be accessed at this PS News link.
