58-3935. Property presumed abandoned; when; general rule.
58-3935
58-3935. Property presumed abandoned; when; generalrule.(a) Property is presumed abandoned if it is unclaimed by the apparent ownerduring the time set forth below for the particular property:
(1) Traveler's check, 15 years after its issuance;
(2) money order, seven years after issuance;
(3) except as provided in K.S.A. 58-3943, and amendments thereto, stock orother equity interest in a business association or financial organization,including a security entitlement under article 8 of the uniform commercialcode, five years after the earlier of:
(A) The date of the most recent dividend, stock split or other distributionunclaimed by the apparent owner; or
(B) the date of the second mailing of a statement of account or othernotification or communication that was returned as undeliverable or after theholder discontinued mailings, notifications or communications to the apparentowner;
(4) debt of a business association or financial organization, other than abearer bond or an original issue discount bond, five years after the date ofthe most recent interest payment unclaimed by the apparent owner;
(5) a demand, savings or time deposit, including a deposit that isautomatically renewable, five years after the earlier of maturity or the dateof the last indication by the owner of interest in the property, except that adeposit that is automatically renewable is deemed matured for purposes of thissection upon its initial date of maturity, unless the owner has consented to arenewal at or about the time of the renewal and the consent is in writing or isevidenced by a memorandum or other record on file with the holder;
(6) money or credits owed to a customer as a result of a retail businesstransaction, five years after the obligation accrued;
(7) amount owed by an insurer on a life or endowment insurance policyor an annuity that has matured or terminated, three years after the obligationto pay arose or, in the case of a policy or annuity payable upon proof ofdeath, three years after the insured has attained, or would have attained ifliving, the limiting age under the mortality table on which the reserve isbased;
(8) property distributable by a business association or financialorganization in a course of dissolution, one year after the property becomesdistributable;
(9) property received by a court as proceeds of a class action, and notdistributed pursuant to the judgment, one year after the distribution date;
(10) property held by a court, state or other government, governmentalsubdivision, agency or instrumentality, one year after the property becomesdistributable;
(11) wages or other compensation for personal services, one year after thecompensation becomes payable;
(12) deposit or refund owed to a subscriber by a utility, one year after thedeposit or refund becomes payable;
(13) property held by agents and fiduciaries in a fiduciary capacity for thebenefit of another person, five years after it has become payable ordistributable, unless the owner has increased or decreased the principal,accepted payment of principal or income, communicated concerning the propertyor otherwise indicated an interest as evidenced by a memorandum or otherrecord on file prepared by the fiduciary;
(14) property in an individual retirement account, defined benefit plan orother account or plan that is qualified for tax deferral under the income taxlaws of the United States, three years after the earliest of the date of thedistribution or attempted distribution of the property, the date of therequired distribution as stated in the plan or trust agreement governing theplan, or the date, if determinable by the holder, specified in the income taxlaws of the United States by which distribution of the property must begin inorder to avoid a tax penalty;
(15) property distributable in the course of a demutualization,rehabilitation or related reorganization of an insurance company shall bedeemed abandoned as follows:
(A) Any check or draft, two years after the date of the demutualization orreorganization, if the check or draft has not been presented for payment andthe owner has not otherwise communicated with the holder or its agent regardingthe property;
(B) (i) any other property, two years after the date of the demutualizationor reorganization if instruments or statements reflecting the distribution areeither mailed to the owner and returned by the post office as undeliverable, ornot mailed to the owner because of an address on the books and records of theholder that is known to be incorrect; and
(ii) the owner has not:
(a) Communicated in writing with the holder or its agent regarding theproperty; or
(b) otherwise communicated with the holder or its agent regarding theproperty as evidenced by a memorandum or other record on file with the holderor its agent.
(c) For any time more than two years after the date of demutualization orreorganization, any property which is not subject to subparagraph (A) or (B) ofthis paragraph (15)shall be treated under otherprovisions of this chapter for the specific type of property;
(16) all other property, five years after the owner's right to demandtheproperty or after the obligation to pay or distribute the property arises,whichever first occurs; and
(17) any proceeds of a sale pursuant to K.S.A. 58-817, andamendmentsthereto, which remain after satisfaction of the lien provided by K.S.A. 58-816,and amendments thereto, that have been unclaimed by the owner for one yearfrom receipt of the proceeds of the sale and satisfaction of the lien.
(b) At the time that an interest is presumed abandoned under subsection (a)any other property right accrued or accruing to the owner as a result of theinterest, and not previously presumed abandoned, is also presumed abandoned.
(c) Property is unclaimed if, for the applicable period set forth insubsection (a), the apparent owner has not communicated in writing or byother means reflected in a contemporaneous record prepared by or on behalf ofthe holder, with the holder concerning the property or the account in which theproperty is held, and has not otherwise indicated an interest in the property.A communication by an owner with a personother than the holder or the holder's representative who has not in writingidentified the property to the owner is not an indication of interest in theproperty by the owner.
(d) An indication of an owner's interest in property includes:
(1) The presentment of a check or other instrument of payment of a dividendor other distribution made with respect to an account or underlying stockor other interest in a business association or financial organization or, inthe case of a distribution made by electronic or similar means, evidence thatthe distribution has been received;
(2) owner-directed activity in the account in which the property is held,including a direction by the owner to increase, decrease or change the amountor type of property held in the account;
(3) the making of a deposit to or withdrawal from a bank account; and
(4) the payment of a premium with respect to a property interest in aninsurance policy, except that the application of an automatic premium loanprovision or other nonforfeiture provision contained in an insurance policydoes not prevent a policy from maturing or terminating if the insured hasdied or the insured or the beneficiary of the policy has otherwise becomeentitled to the proceeds before the depletion of the cash surrender value of apolicy by the application of those provisions.
(e) Property is payable or distributable for the purpose of this actnotwithstanding the owner's failure to make demand or to present any instrumentor document otherwise required to obtain payment.
(f) Any demand or savings account or matured timed deposit with afinancial organization shall notbe presumed abandoned if regular correspondence to an owner of the account hasnot been returned to the sender.
(g) Any outstanding check, draft, credit balance, customer's overpayment orunidentified remittance issued to a sole proprietorship or business associationas part of a commercial transaction in the ordinary course of a holder'sbusiness shall not be presumed abandoned.
(h) A holder may not impose with respect to any property payable ordistributable for the purpose of this act, including any income or incrementderived therefrom, any fee or charge due to dormancy or inactivity or ceasepayment of interest unless:
(1) There is an enforceable written contract between the holderand the owner of the property pursuant to which the holder mayimpose a charge or cease payment of interest;
(2) for property in excess of $100, the holder, no more than threemonths before the initial imposition of those charges orcessation of interest, has mailed written notice to the owner ofthe amount of those charges at the last known address of theowner stating that those charges will be imposed or that interestwill cease, but the notice provided in this section need not begiven with respect to charges imposed or interest ceased beforethe effective date of this act, or for property described inK.S.A. 58-3937 and 58-3938, and amendments thereto; and
(3) the holder regularly imposes such charges or ceases paymentof interest and in no instance reverses or otherwise cancels themor retroactively credits interest with respect to the property.Charges imposed because of dormancy or inactivity may be made andcollected monthly, quarterly or annually except that beginning with theeffective date of this act, such charges may only be imposed for a maximum offive calendar years.
(i) For the purpose of this section, a person who holds property as anagent for a business association is deemed to hold the property in a fiduciarycapacity for that business association alone unless the agreement between theagent and the business association provides otherwise.
(j) For the purposes of this act, a person who is deemed to holdproperty in a fiduciary capacity for a business association alone isthe holder of the property only insofar as the interest of thebusiness association in the property is concerned, and the businessassociation is the holder of the property insofar as the interest ofany other person in the property is concerned.
(k) Any property held by a financial organization that would otherwise bepresumed abandoned under this section shall not be presumed abandoned if theapparent owner:
(1) Owns other property which is not presumed abandoned and if the financialorganization communicates in writing with the owner with regard to the propertythat would otherwise be presumed abandoned under this section at the address towhich communications regarding the other property regularly are sent; or
(2) had another relationship with the financial organization concerning whichthe owner has:
(A) Communicated in writing with the financial organization; or
(B) otherwise indicated an interest as evidenced by a memorandum or otherrecord on file prepared by an employee of the financial organization and if thefinancial organization communicates in writing with the owner with regard tothe property thatwould otherwise be abandoned under this section at the address to whichcommunications regarding the other relationship regularly are sent.
History: L. 1994, ch. 8, § 2;L. 1996, ch. 111, § 1;L. 1999, ch. 100, § 2;L. 2000, ch. 125, § 4;L. 2004, ch. 52, § 1;L. 2007, ch. 92, § 2; July 1.