TOLEDO, Ohio — Lucas County ranks No. 1 in northwest Ohio with the largest amount of unclaimed funds, according to the Ohio Department of Commerce's Division of Unclaimed Funds.
Of the $4 billion currently in possession by the department, $105 million belongs to residents and businesses in Lucas County.
Here are the top 10 counties in northwest Ohio by the amount of unclaimed funds:
- Lucas County (Ohio rank: 6) - $105 million
- Hancock County (19) - $26.4 million
- Wood County (23) - $19.1 million
- Allen County (25) - $17.4 million
- Erie (30) - $14.8 million
- Huron (40) - $8.3 million
- Seneca (44) - $7 million
- Sandusky (45) - $6.7 million
- Ottawa (50) - $6.5 million
- Crawford (52) - $5.7 million
Here are the top five counties in the state by the amount of unclaimed funds:
- Cuyahoga County - $477 million
- Franklin County - $343.1 million
- Hamilton County - 267.3 million
- Montgomery County - 1331.4 million
- Summit County - 130 million
What are unclaimed funds? They are lost or forgotten money that businesses and banks report to the Division of Unclaimed Funds after accounts become inactive, typically between 3-5 years.
According to the state's Department of Commerce, the money comes from inactive checking and savings accounts, stocks and bonds, forgotten utility deposits, unknown insurance claims or last paychecks.
The department provided these three steps to claim unclaimed funds:
- Search for money at unclaimedfunds.ohio.gov
- Gather the required supporting documents
- Send the information to the Division of Unclaimed Funds either online or by mail
For more information, visit the Division of Unclaimed Funds website at this link.