Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a)
Under Section 15-210(a) of the Act the period after which property is
presumed abandoned is measured from the later of:
1)
the date the property is presumed
abandoned under the Act; or
2)
the latest indication of interest
by the apparent owner in the property.
b)
Under Section 15-210(b)
of the Act, an indication of an apparent owner's
interest in property includes, but is not limited to:
1)
a record communicated by the
apparent owner to the holder or agent of the holder concerning the property or
the account in which the property is held;
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;
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;
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;
5)
a deposit into or withdrawal from an account at a financial
organization, except for a recurring ACH debit or credit previously authorized
by the apparent owner or an automatic reinvestment of dividends or interest;
and
6)
subject to
Section 15-210(e) of the Act, payment of a premium on an insurance
policy.
c)
Owner-initiated Activity. Owner-initiated financial transactions or
authenticated owner-initiated administrative activity are an indication of an
apparent owner's interest in the property. A holder must maintain a record of
owner-initiated activity. These include, without limitation:
1) trading activity in the account;
2) depositing funds into the account or
withdrawing funds from the account;
3) non-automated electronic
distributions;
4) contacting the
holder to discuss any account related matters;
5) sending the holder paperwork or documents
related to the account;
6) meeting
with (or otherwise interacting with) a financial advisor regarding the
account;
7) modifying the account
profile;
8) sending the holder
correspondence regarding the account whether via mail or electronic means,
including e-mail;
9) submitting an
account service request online;
10)
voting a proxy;
11) setting up the
account for e-delivery;
12)
accessing the account via the holder's website or other electronic means;
and
13) the initial authorizing of
automatic payments or distributions from the account by the apparent
owner.
d) Activity that
Does Not Show Apparent Owner Interest. Apparent owner interest is
distinguishable from holder-generated activity such as, without limitation,
crediting dividends, posting account fees, and mailing account statements,
which does not constitute apparent owner interest.
1) Automatic financial or administrative
transactions or activity, such as automatic payments or distributions or
automatic portfolio rebalancing, or system conversions, shall not be considered
apparent owner interest.
2)
Non-return of Mail
A) Non-return of mail sent
by the holder to an account owner does not constitute apparent owner
interest.
B) Returned Post Officer
(RPO) Standard
i) Despite the general rule
that non-return of mail does not constitute apparent owner interest, certain
types of property are considered abandoned when first-class mail is returned
undelivered to the holder by the U.S. Postal Service. This is commonly referred
to as an RPO standard and is used in Sections 15-202, 15-204 and 15-208 of the
Act.
ii) When an RPO standard is
used in the Act, the non-return of mail still does not constitute apparent
owner interest. Instead, the presumption of abandonment is triggered by the
return of the mail instead of by the passage of time without apparent owner
interest.
iii) In Section 15-208 of
the Act, a security is presumptively abandoned on the earlier of 3 years after
an RPO standard is met or 5 years from the last indication of interest by the
apparent owner. The non-return of mail does not constitute apparent owner
interest for the 5-year presumption under Section 15-208 of the Act.
e) Interest by
a Person Other Than the Apparent Owner
1)
An action by an agent or other representative of an apparent owner,
other than the holder acting as the apparent owner's agent, is presumed to be
an action on behalf of the apparent owner. [765 ILCS
1026/15-210(c)]
2)
A communication with an apparent
owner by a person other than the holder or the holder's representative is not
an indication of interest in the property by the apparent owner unless a record
of the communication evidences the apparent owner's knowledge of a right to the
property. [765 ILCS
1026/15-210(d)]
3) If an apparent owner is deceased, apparent
owner interest shall include, but is not limited to, activity of beneficiaries
and estate executors or other persons who have a legal or equitable right to
ownership or custody of the property.
f) Consolidated Statement Rule for Financial
Organizations
1)
If the apparent owner
has another property with the holder to which Section 201(6) of the
Act
applies, then activity directed by an apparent owner in any other
accounts, including loan accounts, at a financial organization holding an
inactive account of the apparent owner shall be an indication of interest in
all such accounts if the apparent owner engages in one or more of the following
activities:
A)
the apparent
owner undertakes one or more of the actions described in this Section
regarding any of the other accounts the apparent owner has with the
financial organization;
B)
the apparent owner increases or decreases the amount of funds in any
other account the apparent owner has with the financial organization;
or
C)
the apparent
owner engages in any other relationship with the financial organization,
including payment of any amounts due on a loan.
2) This subsection (f) applies so
long as the mailing address for the apparent owner in the financial
organization's books and records is the same for both the inactive account and
the active account. [765 ILCS
1026/15-210(f)]
g)
For an amount held on a payroll
card, an indication of owner interest includes wages from an employer pursuant
to Section
14.5 of the Illinois
Wage Payment and Collection Act [820 ILCS 115 ] in the form of
a recurring ACH credit previously authorized by the apparent owner; however, an
ACH credit is not an indication of owner interest if the holder assesses fees
for account inactivity on the payroll card account. [765 ILCS
1026/15-210(g)]
