Questions about a 401K retirement plan from an old job

Marie5656

Marie5656

SF VIP
Location
Batavia, NY
Last week, my husband got a letter from Social Security saying they had a record of an old retirement account, from 1993, when he spent a year working for Coca Cola in West Virginia (he had be transferred there from Western NY Coke). They gave the name of the company holding the retirement.
Thing is, when I did a search for the company, there was no website for it, and the number they had was not in service. I was directed to a different website, but there is no way for me to figure out how to contact them to get information for him.
Went to Coke's corporate website, and the site for the local West Va. bottling company, again, no way or idea how to contact any sort of HR person to find out about this.
Has anyone else here dealt with such a thing? The amount is just under $5000, and we can sure use it. Any input will be appreciated. By the way, the SSA cannot help. I called. They said HE has to contact Coke
 

Hoot N Annie said:
You might take a look at West Virginia's unclaimed property records. Escheat laws require companies to notify the state of unclaimed funds. You can search by name. Hey, it's worth a shot!

https://apps.wvsto.com/eclaims2/
Click to expand...

I tried, and they needed his zip code from when he lived there. He could not remember, but I will see if there is another way I could check. In the meantime, he and I sat at the kitchen table just a few minutes ago, and went to Coke's corporate website. We found a couple places I can email. Will keep everyone posted.
I am glad I am patient with doing this kind of research.
 

You also might research whether the company which is supposed to have the money was bought or absorbed into another company. I would also give that State Treasurer's office a call and see if they have suggestions. If they can't help you, they should be able to direct you to someone who can help.

If the bank or insurance company held others' money in a fiduciary capacity, there have to be records somewhere.
 
Going to keep trying. Such a mystery I have here. I have to be away from computer for most of tomorrow, dealing with some real life issues (other than this one). Then back to work on the project.
 
Butterfly said:
You also might research whether the company which is supposed to have the money was bought or absorbed into another company. I would also give that State Treasurer's office a call and see if they have suggestions. If they can't help you, they should be able to direct you to someone who can help.

If the bank or insurance company held others' money in a fiduciary capacity, there have to be records somewhere.
Click to expand...

The link I gave her is to the state treasurer's office - she can find the zip thru goggle if they remember the name of the town.
 
Been there and done this. Your circumstance may be different, but it took several calls to SSA to finally get someone to give me the necessary contact information. In my case, they turned it into a conference call with the appropriate contact person, then exited the conversation. In my case the company referenced had gone through numerous changes dating back to 1985, yet they knew the exact person to call.

My advice would be to give another call to the SSA or maybe even a few more. My impression was some are more helpful than others, but my attitude may have been a bit different as well.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top