IBA Compliance Connection

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The new Illinois unclaimed property law provides that the “presentment of a check or other instrument of payment of a dividend, interest payment, or other distribution” is an indication of interest in an account. My understanding is that if an account pays interest or dividends by check, and the apparent owner negotiates that check, that activity counts as an indication of interest. But if we credit interest and dividends for an account automatically with no other activity or contact from the apparent owner (such as an online banking login or oral inquiry), there is no indication of interest. Is that right?

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admin

Yes, we agree with your interpretation of the Illinois Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (Illinois RUUPA). An indication of interest includes the “presentment of a check or other instrument of payment” for distributions of interest and dividends. But if the apparent owner has not presented a check or other instrument to deposit a distribution of interest or a dividend, as when interest is automatically applied to an account by electronic transfer, that automatic transfer would not constitute an indication of interest.

Of course, as your question implies, there are several other activities that do count as indications of interest, such as an online banking login, or an oral inquiry that is contemporaneously preserved by your bank in a record.

For resources related to our guidance, please see:

  • Illinois RUUPA, 765 ILCS 1026/15-210(b) (“Under this Act, an indication of an apparent owner’s interest in property includes: . . . (3) presentment of a check or other instrument of payment of a dividend, interest payment, or other distribution, or evidence of receipt of a distribution made by electronic or similar means, with respect to an account, underlying security, or interest in a business association; . . .”)
  • Illinois RUUPA, 765 ILCS 1026/15-210(b) (“Under this Act, an indication of an apparent owner’s interest in property includes: . . . (2) an oral communication by the apparent owner to the holder or agent of the holder concerning the property or the account in which the property is held, if the holder or its agent contemporaneously makes and preserves a record of the fact of the apparent owner’s communication; . . .”)
  • Illinois RUUPA, 765 ILCS 1026/15-210(b) (“Under this Act, an indication of an apparent owner’s interest in property includes: . . . (4) activity directed by an apparent owner in the account in which the property is held, including accessing the account or information concerning the account, or a direction by the apparent owner to increase, decrease, or otherwise change the amount or type of property held in the account; . . .”)