CalFresh EBT card theft - $1100 stolen, how to report and get reimbursed?

omg that happened to my cousin last month!! she said she had to call some fraud number and file a police report but idk if she ever got the $ back

Did she get any emergency benefits while waiting? I can't afford to wait weeks for them to investigate. My kids need to eat NOW.

I'm so sorry this happened to you. EBT theft is unfortunately getting more common in California. You need to: 1) Call the EBT customer service line at 877-328-9677 to report the card stolen immediately, 2) File a claim form for stolen benefits, 3) File a police report, and 4) Contact your county worker to notify them. They should issue you a new card right away, but getting the stolen benefits back can take 30-90 days after investigation.

30-90 DAYS??? We can't wait that long! Do you know if they give emergency replacement benefits while they investigate?

This happened to me last summer. They stole $780 from my account. Here's exactly what you need to do:\n\n1. Call EBT Customer Service (877-328-9677) IMMEDIATELY to report the theft and cancel your card\n2. They'll mail you a new card (takes 5-7 days usually)\n3. You MUST file a police report - take it with you to your county office\n4. Go to your county CalFresh office IN PERSON with your ID and police report\n5. Ask for form CF 303 - EBT Benefit Theft Report\n6. Ask for emergency replacement benefits while they investigate\n\nThe investigation took about 6 weeks for me, but I got back 100% of what was stolen. Don't just call - you need to physically go to the office.

i heard they dont even replace stolen benefits anymore i thought that was only during covid??

California permanently extended the benefit replacement protections! SB 1055 passed last year makes the theft replacement permanent, but you MUST report within 10 days of discovering the theft. The longer you wait, the harder it gets to recover the money.

Thank you so much, this is really helpful. I'm going to call right away and then go to the office tomorrow morning. I didn't know about the 10-day reporting requirement!

If you can't get through to your county office by phone (which is SO common with CalFresh), try using Claimyr. It's a service that gets you through to a real person at the county office without waiting on hold for hours. I used it when my benefits were cut off suddenly and got through in minutes instead of days of trying. Here's a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8 and their website is claimyr.com. Seriously worth it in emergency situations like yours.

Thank you! I've been trying for two days and just keep getting hung up on by their automated system. I'll check this out right now because I'm desperate to talk to someone.

One more important tip: When you fill out the CF 303 form, be VERY specific about where you were when the theft likely happened. If you've used your EBT card at suspicious ATMs or stores with known skimming problems, mention that. Include any unusual transactions from your account history. The more detail you provide, the faster the investigation usually goes. Also, if you have children under 18, make sure to mention that when requesting emergency replacement benefits - they prioritize households with children.

That's really good advice. I've only used my card at the grocery store near my house, so I'm pretty sure someone skimmed it there. I'll definitely mention having kids too.

btw make sure u change ur pin and dont use ur birthdate or anything obvious!! my friend had hers stolen twice bc she used an easy pin

Good point! I actually was using my birth year as my PIN (stupid, I know). I'll definitely change it to something totally random this time.

The same thing happened to me in January and I never got a PENNY back because the county said I waited too long to report it (14 days). The whole system is RIGGED against us. They have money to track down people they think are committing fraud but when WE get stolen from, suddenly they don't have resources. The caseworkers just don't care about our families going hungry. It's disgusting.

The 10-day reporting requirement is strict, but you can appeal that decision. The county should have informed you about this timeframe when you received your EBT card. If they didn't provide proper notification, you might have grounds for appeal through the state hearing process.

UPDATE: My sister just went through this process last month and said there's now an online option to report theft through BenefitsCal.com too. You still need the police report, but you can upload everything through the portal instead of going in person if that's easier for you. Just make sure you follow up with a phone call to confirm they received everything.

That's really good to know! I'm going to try both approaches to make sure it gets handled. I submitted the online form and I'm heading to the office tomorrow. Thanks everyone for all your advice - I'm still stressed but at least I know what to do now.