8 Common Issues found during Unclaimed Property Audits

Blog Post by Moyer & Osibodu

1. Lack of adequate and complete accounting records during the audit period.

2. Lack of written unclaimed property policies & procedures or lack of compliance with company’s accounting policies and procedures.

3. Failure to maintain copies of all unclaimed property reports filed with the states and the respective proof of payment.

4. Write-off of outstanding accounting transactions such as stale checks and accounts receivable credit balances (especially small balance write-offs).

5. Failure to review all disbursement accounts and void check registers for unclaimed checks.

6. Failure to review all relevant general ledger accounts that could generate unclaimed property.

7. Lack of record or reporting history of unclaimed property held or reported by third parties on behalf of the company.

8. Lack of audit trail or failure to properly transfer accounting transactions during computer systems conversions or during mergers and acquisitions conversion activities.