How can I verify that TLSG is a legitimate business and learn more about your company?

• TLSG is the recognized leader in the unclaimed property identification and recovery industry. TLSG is also a member of the Federal Central Contractor Registration. TLSG has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (“BBB”), and has been a member with the BBB since 1995. There have been numerous “Excellent” references posted by TLSG clients in the Positive Customer Feedback section of TLSG’s BBB Reliability Report. Additionally, the Customer Complaints section of TLSG’s BBB Reliability Report verifies that TLSG has no client complaints. To confirm TLSG's standing with the BBB please visit the BBB’s website at http://www.bosbbb.org/reports/reliability.asp. You may also contact the BBB by phone at (508) 652-4800.
• TLSG has been in business for more than 16 years and has always been in good standing with its State of incorporation, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Verification of TLSG's corporate status is available by visiting the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Secretary of State’s Corporations Division at: http://corp.sec.state.ma.us/corp/corpsearch/corpsearchinput.asp. To confirm TLSG’s corporate standing you may also reach the Commonwealth’s Corporations Division by phone at (617) 727-9640.
• TLSG's President and General Counsel, Kim Sawyer, has been a licensed attorney for 18 years and is a member in good standing of the bars of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of New York. Attorney Sawyer's standing with the Massachusetts Bar can be confirmed at the Commonwealth of http://massbbo.org/bbolookup.php. Attorney Sawyer’s standing with the New York Bar can be confirmed by searching http://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/attorney/AttorneySearch.

Will you provide me with a client list and references?

• To view a partial listing of TLSG’s public sector clients and other client testimonials please click here. Please contact your Recovery Associate if you require any additional information.

What services does TLSG provide?

• TLSG specializes in identifying and recovering all types of unclaimed funds and is uniquely focused on identifying funds held by sources that are exempt from state abandoned property laws and are subject to statute of limitations. Those jurisdictions with statutes of limitations require owners to recover their monies within a prescribed period of time or forever lose their rights to claim their funds.  Therefore, it is crucial that an owner file a timely claim to recover such funds. For a detailed explanation of the services that TLSG offers to its public sector clients please click here.

What is the source of my agency’s unclaimed funds?

• Your agency’s unclaimed funds are likely held by a federal, state, county, city or town agency (other than your own) or by a court. Your company’s funds are not held by any State Abandoned Property Office.

How come my agency never received the original payment that TLSG has contacted me about?

• There are many possible reasons your agency has not received the funds that TLSG has identified. One of the most common reasons that funds are “lost” is because the original check is returned to the issuer as “undeliverable” due to an inaccurate, obsolete or incomplete mailing address. The inaccurate payee and address information may be as a result of agency consolidation or closure. Additionally, the use of abbreviations and acronyms or payments sent in care of a third party may contribute to problems with delivering the original payment. In some instances, the payment may have become lost as a result of a minor clerical mistake such as a typographical error or insufficient postage. The original payment may also have reached your agency but the person who received it did not know how to apply the payment. Therefore, as a result, the check at issue was not presented for payment within the required time frame.

How could we not know that a payment is owed to the agency?

• It is uncertain why your agency did not know about this payment. Potentially, the funds may be a refund of an overpayment your agency issued to another governmental entity, or a fee that the holding entity paid to your agency for services your agency provided. The funds may also be owed to your agency from a collected judgment in a court matter. It is also possible that your agency was aware that the funds were owed but subsequently “wrote off” the payment as uncollectable.

How come the government agency, court or representative that originally issued the payment is not doing anything further to get my agency back its monies?

• Most government agencies have only minimal requirements with respect to locating the owners of outstanding payments.  These challenging economic times make it exceedingly difficult for government agencies, with very limited resources and significantly reduced staff, to expend the additional capital to implement programs to locate the beneficiaries of missing payments when such expenditures are not mandatory.

Can I find my agency’s monies on a State Abandoned Property website or on www.missingmoney.com?

• If you received a call or a correspondence from one of TLSG’s Recovery Associates identifying unclaimed funds belonging to your agency you will not be able to locate these funds in any State Abandoned Property website or at www.missingmoney.com. TLSG does not identify or assist with the recovery of property held by State Abandoned Property offices unless specifically retained to do so. Should your agency be interested in learning more about how TLSG may be able to assist your agency with its State Abandoned Property recovery needs please click here.

Why can’t the property that TLSG has identified as due back to my agency currently be found on a State Abandoned Property website or www.missingmoney.com?

• Many payments issued by Federal agencies, courts and numerous local government agencies are not subject to State Abandoned Property laws and are not and will never become Abandoned Property. Therefore, those payments will never be posted on a State’s Abandoned Property website or www.missingmoney.com. Moreover, TLSG monitors many federal agencies, cities, counties and towns where statutes of limitations require your agency to recover its unclaimed funds within a prescribed period of time or forever lose its right to recover those unclaimed funds.

What are the main differences between funds held by “State Abandoned Property Offices” and the “Unclaimed Funds” that TLSG has identified as available for my agency to recover?

• The names of owners of property held by State Abandoned Property Offices are generally publicized on a State sponsored website, www.missingmoney.com, or in a newspaper. Conversely, the names of the owners of unclaimed funds that TLSG identifies are generally not publicized. Moreover, owners do not typically, permanently, lose their rights to recover funds held by State Abandoned Property Offices. In many instances, TLSG identifies outstanding payments from sources of which our client's right to claim funds may be extinguished by the passage of time.  Such funds must be recovered within a prescribed time period or the client risks forever losing the right to claim its funds. Therefore, it is crucial that your agency make a timely claim or your agency my forever lose its rights to receive those funds.  Another difference between the two categories of unclaimed property is that most funds held by State Abandoned Property Offices originate from an unclaimed payment owed to the owner by an independent third party such as a bank, retailer, insurance company or utility company. On the contrary, the original issuer of the majority of the unclaimed funds that TLSG identify as available for recovery is typically a government agency or a court representative.

Can you advise me exactly where my agency’s funds are prior to entering an agreement with TLSG?

• TLSG will advise you as to whether your agency’s funds are currently held by another governmental agency, court or by a private business. Should TLSG be aware of the date that the original payment was made TLSG will also disclose that information to you. However, as TLSG has invested significant financial resources and time in researching and identifying these funds as well as verifying that your agency is the rightful owner of these monies, to protect its interest, TLSG will not disclose the exact source of your agency’s funds until an agreement is in place.

If I do not act promptly, will my agency lose its right to claim these funds?

• TLSG monitors federal, state, county, and municipal jurisdictions where statutes of limitations require owners to recover unclaimed funds within a prescribed period of time or forever lose their rights to recover their property. For example, payments that originate from federal agencies must usually be claimed within six years from their original issue date or your agency will lose its right to claim those funds. Similarly, there are many counties and cities where after a four-year period those agencies are permitted to 'extinguish' the liability on their books and keep your agency’s money. Even if there is not a time limit during which your agency must claim its funds, it is always beneficial to act promptly. The quicker your agency’s money is recovered the sooner you will gain control over those funds.

How do I begin recovering my agency’s funds?

• To initiate the recovery process, you must return a properly notarized Agency Agreement, Professional Services Agreement and a business card. Additional documentation is sometimes necessary to substantiate your agency’s right to claim the identified funds or to prove your authority to collect unclaimed property on behalf of your agency. Many sources have specific forms or affidavits that are used to request the funds or require verification of your agency’s associatation with the original payment. Some sources also require documentation to verify the signatory's authority to recover the unclaimed funds. Such verification may include a copy of the agency’s charter or bylaws, an affidavit on letterhead from another officer of the agency attesting to the signatory's authority or documents filed with a governmental source that establish the signatory is an officer of the agency. This documentation is required by the holder of your agency’s funds to verify that it is making payment to the correct legal beneficiary of these funds.

How long should it take to recover my agency’s funds?

• ` The majority of TLSG's clients receive their funds within 120 days from the time that the recovery process is initiated by TLSG. However, depending on the origin of your agency's funds and the unique circumstances surrounding your agency’s claim, this recovery time may vary. TLSG will provide you with a more accurate estimate after we have received all of your properly executed recovery documents and the requested supporting documentation.

How is TLSG compensated for its services?

• If your agency has received a telephone call or a written correspondence from TLSG, TLSG is contacting you about our Asset Recovery Service. TLSG charges a reasonable contingency fee for its Asset Recovery Services. The fee that TLSG assesses is based upon the complexity of identifying and processing your claim and the size of your claim. There are substantial costs and expenses involved in identifying and recovering your agency’s funds. These charges include but are not limited to the following: (1) obtaining and researching the records indicating that funds are owed to your agency, (2) preparing and filing the legal documents necessary to claim your agency’s funds, (3) retaining outside counsel if necessary and (4) monitoring the status of your agency’s claim through the recovery process up to final payment of your agency's funds. TLSG’s fee is inclusive of all these costs and expenses associated with the recovery of your funds. There are no hidden fees, no additional costs and TLSG never requests any payment upfront. If your agency does not receive the benefit of its payment, TLSG does not receive a fee. To learn more about TLSG’s Asset Recovery Service please click here.
• TLSG also offers to its public sector clients an Unclaimed Property Identification & Recovery Program which is TLSG’s most comprehensive service offering. The service fee for this program is typically contingent and is also determined on a case-by-case basis. To learn more about TLSG's Unclaimed Property Identification & Recovery Program please click here.

Can TLSG find additional funds belonging to my agency?

• TLSG offers our Unclaimed Property Identification & Recovery Program to qualified clients. These services use all proprietary and non-proprietary databases available to TLSG to determine if there are additional unclaimed funds that belong to a particular client. Should your agency be interested in learning more about these services please click here.