Unclaimed
Property

Abandonment Period – see Dormancy Period.

Active/Activity- an action taken on property by the owner, which may include making a deposit or withdrawal, writing a memorandum to the holder, or taking any action that according to the law is adequate to determine that the owner is aware of the property.

Aggregate- a group of many individual owner accounts reported in one lump sum total.

Claimant- an entity or individual claiming to be the rightful owner of the unclaimed property.

Custodian- an entity or individual who holds property in a safekeeping capacity for the benefit of the rightful owner. A custodian controls the property until it is delivered to the rightful owner. Most states act as "custodian" of the unclaimed property.

Due Diligence/Due Diligence Letters- the degree of effort required by law that an unclaimed property holder must exert to find the rightful owner before the property is sent to the state. Usually this is in the form of a "Due Diligence Letter."

Disclaimer- see Indemnification.

Dormancy Period - the period of time, also referred to as the abandonment period, during which an owner of property does not take action on his property. (See Activity.) The dormancy period is determined by the type of property and may vary from one to 15 years.

Dormancy Date - the most recent date that the owner and the holder of the property made "active" contact with each other. This is also known as the "date of last activity." Examples of activity dates include the issue date of a check and a customer’s date of deposit into a checking account.

Escheat – when the title to property is transferred to the state, making the state the legal owner.

Holder - the entity, usually a business or government agency, who controls the unclaimed property until it is transferred to the owner or the state on behalf of the owner.

Indemnification/Indemnify- an agreement that protects a party from loss by transferring the responsibilities to a third party.  The state of Idaho indemnifies the holder, protecting the holder from liability, and assumes the responsibility to return the property to the owner.

Intangible Property - property that cannot be held in your hand, something that is abstract, or represented by a symbol. For example, an ownership interest in a company is represented by a stock certificate.

NAUPA standard format - A holder reporting format approved by the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA); which is the nationally accepted standard for reporting unclaimed property to states.  Click here to view the format specifications.

Owner - a person having legal or equitable claim to the unclaimed property.

Person - any individual, business association, governmental subdivision or agency, public corporation or authority, estate, trust, two or more persons having a joint or common interest, or any other legal or commercial entity.

Rightful Owner - a person who has the legal right to property.

Real Property - real estate and fixtures, which are not generally applicable to the unclaimed property statutes (See Frequently Asked Question No. UCP-3 concerning property left in Rental Storage Units).

Tangible Property - personal property that is represented by itself. A diamond ring and a silver coin are examples.
(See Frequently Asked Question No. UCP-2.)