Unclaimed Property and Automatically Renewable Time Deposit Accounts

When to Include Automatically Renewable Time Deposit Accounts in Unclaimed Property Report

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Question

When may an automatically renewable time deposit account be considered for inclusion in the unclaimed property report?

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Explanations

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A. B. C. D.

D

Unclaimed property laws require financial institutions, including banks, to report and remit abandoned property, such as bank accounts with no activity or contact from the account owner, to the state in which the account was established. This requirement helps protect the owner's property rights and allows the state to return unclaimed property to the rightful owner or their heirs.

An automatically renewable time deposit account is a type of bank account that automatically rolls over for a new term upon maturity, unless the account owner provides instructions to the contrary. In the context of unclaimed property laws, such accounts can be subject to reporting if the account is considered abandoned.

The answer to the question of when an automatically renewable time deposit account may be considered for inclusion in the unclaimed property report is option C, when a customer does not instruct the bank in writing to roll over the account.

If the account owner does not provide instructions to the bank to roll over the account, the account may be considered abandoned after a period of time specified by state law, which can range from one to five years, depending on the state. Once the account is considered abandoned, the bank must report and remit the funds to the state as unclaimed property.

Options A, B, and D may not necessarily trigger reporting of an automatically renewable time deposit account as unclaimed property. Option A, when a customer has corresponded with the bank but not made deposits to the account, may not indicate abandonment of the account. Option B, when a customer has shown interest in the account but not made deposits to the account, is also insufficient to demonstrate abandonment. Option D, when the customer has not deposited or withdrawn funds from the account or another account at the same bank, is not enough to determine whether the account is abandoned as the account may still be active and in use by the customer.