$7 Billion in Savings Bonds Unredeemed

Uncle Sam wants you to check your attic, basement and closets for forgotten savings bonds. The Treasury Department’s Bureau of Public Debt is launching a radio and print advertising campaign aimed at encouraging savings bond owners to cash in the matured bonds they hold. More than $7 billion worth of savings bonds have matured but haven’t been redeemed, the government says. Ads are expected to begin surfacing next week. “We’re hoping that increased awareness of when bonds stop earning interest will cause people to take a look at their bonds and redeem or exchange the matured bonds,” said Van Zeck, commissioner of the public debt. Some of the bonds are worth five, even 10 times, what people paid for them, the bureau said. For instance, a person who paid $75 for a $100 Series E bond in April 1960 would find that bond is worth about $770 today. People who want to find out the value of their savings bonds, whether or not they are still earning interest and other related information, can go online to https://www.savingsbonds.gov, call (800) 4US-BOND or write to Savings Bonds, Parkersburg, WV 26106-1328.