New Yorkers are owed over $27 million in unused gift cards. Now, the state wants to return the funds to their rightful owners, which could be you.

How many times have you received a gift card and completely forgotten about it? Either you lose the card or shove it in the back of a drawer where it just sits there for years. It turns out that even if you completely forget about a gift card, New York can still get you your money back.

Most people don't realize that unused gift card balances legally have to be turned over to the state after five years of inactivity. That means that the extra money on an old Dunkin' card, a refund in store credit from Best Buy or any gift card that's in your name is still rightfully yours even if you have no idea it even exists.

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New York State Comptroller, Thomas P. DiNapoli, has made it his mission to make sure consumers get the funds from gift cards that they're owed. According to DiNapoli, the state recently obtained $27 million in unused gift cards from 2023.

This means that you could have some funds coming to you that you didn't know existed.

How to Claim Unknown Gift Card Funds in Your Name

Luckily, it's very simple to not only find out if you have an unclaimed gift card but to request to have those funds returned to you.  The state's comptroller's office has a searchable database that contains over $18.4 billion owed to New Yorkers. Besides unclaimed gift cards, the database also contains life insurance payouts, old paychecks, settlements and other funds that are just waiting for you to claim.

The Richest People Living In New York State

A number of Empire State residents are among the richest in the nation. We found out how they made their billions and how much each is worth. 

LOOK: Here is the richest town in each state

Just saying the names of these towns immediately conjures up images of grand mansions, luxury cars, and ritzy restaurants. Read on to see which town in your home state took the title of the richest location and which place had the highest median income in the country. Who knows—your hometown might even be on this list.

Gallery Credit: Meagan Drillinger