MORE than $101 million is sitting in the WA Department of Treasury’s Register of Unclaimed Money database, and the government is encouraging people to check the register to see if they are owed funds.

The pool of unclaimed money payable to Western Australians continued to grow in 2018-19, increasing by $16.3 million as a result of some 120,000 unsettled transactions.

The largest individual amount added to the Register during the last financial year was $192,334.

The full register now contains over 691,000 unclaimed amounts totalling more than $101 million.

Unclaimed amounts relate to transactions such as unpresented cheques associated with dividend payments, real estate transactions, or deceased estates where beneficiaries are unknown or cannot be located.

The purpose of the Act is to ensure the interests of people due monies, which they may be unaware of or have forgotten, are protected.

Last financial year, only 843 accounts worth around $1.74 million were paid out from the Register.

People seeking to claim money are required to present evidence to Treasury to verify claims, including an original, signed and witnessed statutory declaration, a form of identification (such as a driver’s licence, passport or health care card), and proof of connection to the address in the database.

To search the Register of Unclaimed Money please visit http://www.treasury.wa.gov.au/unclaimedmoney

“I encourage everyone to check the register to see if they are entitled to any of the funds,” Treasurer Ben Wyatt said.

“There is no time limit to claim funds within the Register and anyone who can clearly establish a rightful claim will be paid regardless of how long it has been held.”