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A TikTok user’s video helping individuals claim money owed to them by their state treasury is exploding in popularity, at least one agency in Virginia has confirmed.
Alex Pearlman posted a video on April 11 discussing how users can find unclaimed money owed to them by their state, The Daily Dot reported.
@pearlmania500 Literally billions of unclaimed funds in every state. Go get your 💵! #pearlmania500 #money #treasure #pennsylvania #florida #government #rubytuesdays #google #milestone ♬ original sound – Alex Pearlman
Pearlman’s instructions are simple: Go to Google and search for “unclaimed property” after the name of your state. Locate a state treasurer’s website that ends in .gov. Individuals can search for their name and file claims to receive any funds that are theirs.
“Literally billions of unclaimed funds in every state,” Pearlman says in the video’s caption. “Go get your [money].”
As of June 2023, Pearlman’s video has spurred a wave of cash-outs across the country.
Bradley Earl, the director of the Unclaimed Property Division at the Virginia Treasury Department, told The Virginia Mercury, “claims numbers jumped last week, and I think it’s directly as a result of TikTok.”
The department has paid out more than $46 million for more than 50,000 claims received in the current fiscal year, which is more than double the previous fiscal year.
Earl credits this increase to switching to an online claims system and increased social media awareness.
However, some claims require more information such as identification documents or verification of homeownership, which may delay the process. Claiming unclaimed property for deceased relatives may take up to six weeks, especially for larger amounts of money.
Companies are now more thorough in reporting unclaimed property, which contributes to the millions currently in the state’s account. Although not all funds can be returned to their rightful owners due to various reasons, a portion is required by law to go into the state’s Literary Fund.
“You don’t typically come across a government agency that’s trying to give money away,” Earl told the Virginia Mercury.