Title XL, Real and Personal Property

(1) Subject to subsection (4), any sum payable on a traveler’s check that has been outstanding for more than 15 years after its issuance is presumed abandoned unless the apparent owner or authorized representative, within 15 years, has demonstrated a continued interest in the pro…

Notwithstanding s. 717.117, an unredeemed gift certificate or credit memo as defined in s. 501.95 is not required to be reported as abandoned property.(1) The consideration paid for an unredeemed gift certificate or credit memo is the property of the issuer of the unredeemed gift…

(1) Any sum payable on a check, draft, or similar instrument, except those subject to ss. 717.104 and 717.115, on which a banking or financial organization is directly liable, including, but not limited to, a cashier’s check or a certified check, which has been outstanding for mo…

(1) Any demand, savings, or matured time deposit with a banking or financial organization, including deposits that are automatically renewable, and any funds paid toward the purchase of shares, a mutual investment certificate, or any other interest in a banking or financial organ…

(1) Any virtual currency held or owing by a banking organization, corporation, custodian, exchange, or other entity engaged in virtual currency business activity is presumed unclaimed unless the owner, within 7 years, has communicated in writing with the banking organization, cor…

(1) Funds held or owing under any life or endowment insurance policy or annuity contract which has matured or terminated are presumed abandoned if unclaimed for more than 5 years after the date of death of the insured, the annuitant, or the retained asset account holder, but prop…

(1) Property distributable in the course of a demutualization, rehabilitation, or related reorganization of an insurance company is deemed abandoned 2 years after the date the property is first distributable if, at the time of the first distribution, the last known address of the…

Any deposit, including any interest thereon, made by a subscriber with a utility to secure payment or any sum paid in advance for utility services to be furnished, less any lawful charges, that remains unclaimed by the apparent owner for more than 1 year after termination of the …

Except as otherwise provided by law, any sum that a business association has been ordered to refund by a court or administrative agency which has been unclaimed by the apparent owner for more than 1 year after it became payable in accordance with the final determination or order …

(1)(a) Stock, other equity interests, or debt of a business association is presumed abandoned on the date of the earliest of any of the following:1. Three years after the date a communication, other than communications required by s. 717.117, sent by the holder by first-class Uni…

All intangible property distributable in the course of a voluntary or involuntary dissolution of a business association which is not claimed by the apparent owner for more than 6 months after the date specified for final distribution is presumed abandoned.History.—s. 12, ch. 87-1…

(1) All intangible property and any income or increment thereon held in a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of another person, including property held by an attorney in fact or an agent, except as provided in ss. 717.1125 and 733.816, is presumed abandoned unless the apparent ow…

All intangible property and any income or increment thereon held in a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of another person under a trust instrument is presumed abandoned unless the apparent owner has, within 2 years after it has become payable or distributable, increased or decre…

All intangible property held for the apparent owner by any court, government or governmental subdivision or agency, public corporation, or public authority that has not been claimed by the apparent owner for more than 1 year after it became payable or distributable is presumed ab…

Unpaid wages, including wages represented by unpresented payroll checks, owing in the ordinary course of the holder’s business that have not been claimed by the apparent owner for more than 1 year after becoming payable are presumed abandoned.History.—s. 16, ch. 87-105; s. 15, ch…

All tangible and intangible property held by a banking or financial organization in a safe-deposit box or any other safekeeping repository in this state in the ordinary course of the holder’s business, and proceeds resulting from the sale of the property permitted by law, that ha…

(1) Property is presumed abandoned upon expiration of the applicable dormancy period under this chapter. However, such property is not deemed abandoned for purposes of reporting or remittance to the department until the holder has conducted reasonable due diligence as required by…

(1) It is specifically recognized that the state has an obligation to make an effort to notify apparent owners in a cost-effective manner that their abandoned property has been reported and remitted to the department. In order to provide all the citizens of this state an effectiv…

(1) Every person who is required to file a report under s. 717.117 shall simultaneously pay or deliver to the department all abandoned property required to be reported. Such payment or delivery shall accompany the report as required in this chapter for the preceding calendar year…

(1) Upon the good faith payment or delivery of abandoned property to the department, the state assumes custody and responsibility for the safekeeping of the property. Any person who pays or delivers abandoned property to the department in good faith is relieved of all liability t…

Whenever property other than money is paid or delivered to the department under this chapter, the owner is entitled to receive from the department any dividends, interest, or other increments realized or accruing on the property at or before liquidation or conversion thereof into…

(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2)(a), the department after the receipt of abandoned property shall sell it to the highest bidder at public sale on the Internet or at a specified physical location wherever in the judgment of the department the most favorable market for the p…

(1) All funds received under this chapter, including the proceeds from the sale of abandoned property under s. 717.122, shall immediately be deposited by the department in the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund. The department shall retain, from funds received under this chapter, an a…

Abandoned funds reported in the name of a campaign for public office, for any campaign that must dispose of surplus funds in its campaign account pursuant to s. 106.141, after being reported to the department, shall be deposited with the Chief Financial Officer to the credit of t…

(1) Any person, excluding another state, claiming an interest in any property paid or delivered to the department under this chapter may file with the department a claim on a form prescribed by the department and verified by the claimant or the claimant representative. The claima…

(1)(a) If an abandoned demand, savings, or checking account in a financial institution is reported as an “and” account in the name of two or more persons who are not beneficiaries, it is presumed that each person must claim the account in order for the claim to be approved by the…

(1)(a) Claims on behalf of an active or dissolved corporation, for which the last annual report is not available from the Department of State through the Internet, must be accompanied by a microfiche copy of the records on file with the Department of State or, if the corporation …

An estate or any person representing an estate or acting on behalf of an estate may claim abandoned property only after the heir or legatee of the decedent entitled to the property has been located. Any estate, or any person representing an estate or acting on behalf of an estate…

For the purpose of determining joint ownership of abandoned securities or dividends, the term:(1) “TEN COM” means tenants in common.(2) “TEN ENT” means tenants by the entireties.(3) “JT TEN” or “JT” means joint tenants with the right of survivorship and not as tenants in common.(…

(1) For purposes of this section, the term “conflicting claim” means two or more claims received by the department for the same abandoned property account or accounts in which two or more claimants appear to be equally entitled to the property. The term also includes circumstance…

(1) It is and has been the intent of the Legislature that, pursuant to s. 26.012(2)(b), circuit courts have jurisdiction of proceedings relating to the settlement of the estates of decedents and other jurisdiction usually pertaining to courts of probate. It is and has been the in…

(1) A claim for abandoned property made by a beneficiary, as defined in s. 731.201, of a deceased owner need not be accompanied by an order of a probate court if the claimant files with the department an affidavit, signed by all beneficiaries, stating that all the beneficiaries h…

In rendering a determination regarding the merits of an abandoned property claim, the department shall rely on the applicable statutory, regulatory, common, and case law. Agency statements applying the statutory, regulatory, common, and case law to abandoned property claims are n…

If any person files a petition for writ of garnishment seeking to obtain property paid or delivered to the department under this chapter, the petitioner shall be ordered to pay the department reasonable costs and attorney fees in any proceeding brought by the department to oppose…

(1) At any time after property has been paid or delivered to the department under this chapter, another state may recover the property if:(a) The property was subjected to custody by this state because the records of the holder did not reflect the last known address of the appare…

(1) Any person aggrieved by a decision of the department may petition for a hearing as provided in ss. 120.569 and 120.57. In any proceeding for determination of a claim to property paid or delivered to the department under this chapter, the burden shall be upon the claimant to e…

Any person who claims entitlement to abandoned property by means of the death of one or more persons shall file a copy of the death certificate of the decedent or decedents that has been certified as being authentic by the issuing governmental agency.History.—s. 129, ch. 2004-390…

Any person who claims entitlement to abandoned property by reason of a court document shall file a certified copy of the court document with the department. A certified copy of each pleading filed with the court to obtain a court document establishing entitlement, filed within 18…

The department may decline to receive any property reported under this chapter that the department considers to have a value less than the expense of giving notice and of sale. If the department elects not to receive custody of the property, the holder shall be notified within 12…

If the department after investigation finds that any property delivered under this chapter has insubstantial commercial value, the department may destroy or otherwise dispose of the property. No action or proceeding may be maintained against the state or any officer or against th…

(1) The expiration before or after July 1, 1987, of any period of time specified by contract, statute, or court order, during which a claim for money or property may be made or during which an action or proceeding may be commenced or enforced to obtain payment of a claim for mone…

(1) To carry out the chapter’s purpose of protecting the interest of missing owners through the safeguarding of their property and to administer and enforce this chapter, the department may:(a) Investigate, examine, inspect, request, or otherwise gather information or evidence on…

(1) Every holder required to file a report under s. 717.117 shall maintain a record of the specific type of property, amount, name, and last known address of the owner for 10 years after the property becomes reportable, except to the extent that a shorter time is provided in subs…

(1) Every claimant representative and buyer of abandoned property shall keep and use in his or her business such books, accounts, and records of the business conducted under this chapter to enable the department to determine whether such person is complying with this chapter and …

(1) The department may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction to enforce or administer any provision of this chapter, any rule or order promulgated under this chapter, or any written agreement entered into with the department.(2) In addition to any other powers co…

(1) The following acts are violations of this chapter and constitute grounds for an administrative enforcement action by the department in accordance with the requirements of chapter 120 and for civil enforcement by the department in a court of competent jurisdiction:(a) Failure …