EBT card suddenly stopped working - no funds showing since yesterday
Is anyone else having problems with their CalFresh EBT card not working? Went to Grocery Outlet yesterday evening to buy food for my kids and the card got declined. Checked the balance through the app and it shows $0 even though my benefits are supposed to hit on the 10th of each month (which was 2 days ago!). Called the EBT customer service number on the back of my card but got stuck in this endless automated message loop. Been trying all morning but still can't get through to a real person. My kids are hungry and I have no food in the house. Has this happened to anyone? Is there a system outage or something? Really stressing out right now.
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Bethany Groves
This is probably because of the system maintenance they've been doing. There was a notice on the BenefitsCal website about EBT system updates happening between the 10th-12th this month. Your benefits might be delayed by a day or two. I'd recommend checking again tomorrow morning. If you still see zero balance after that, you should contact your county office directly.
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Sebastián Stevens
•I didn't see any notice?? And I can't wait another day - we literally have no food. Do you know if there's a way to get through to a human at the county office today? I keep calling and hanging up after 30+ minutes on hold.
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KingKongZilla
The SAME EXACT THING happened to me!! My balance is showing $0 too and I know for a FACT my benefits should've been loaded on the 11th. I think something's going on with the whole system. I tried the customer service line like 5 times already and either get disconnected or stuck on hold forever. This is SO ridiculous!
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Sebastián Stevens
•Omg glad I'm not the only one! Have you tried going to the actual county office? I'm thinking about just showing up there tomorrow if this isn't fixed by tonight.
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Rebecca Johnston
could be u didnt do ur SAR7 on time? they cut mine off last month cuz i turned it in 2 days late
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Sebastián Stevens
•No I definitely submitted my SAR7 last month. Got the confirmation text and everything. And I just did my recertification 3 months ago, so I should be good until next year.
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Nathan Dell
For emergency situations like this where you need to reach someone at CalFresh quickly, I used a service called Claimyr that actually worked for me. When I was having similar EBT card issues a couple months ago, it got me connected to a real person at my county office in about 10 minutes instead of hours on hold. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8. Much better than waiting on hold all day when you need food for your kids.
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KingKongZilla
•Does this actually work?? I've been trying to get someone on the phone for TWO DAYS. I'll try anything at this point.
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Nathan Dell
•Yeah, it worked for me. I was super skeptical at first but my case was actually resolved that same day. Definitely better than waiting on hold forever just to get hung up on.
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Maya Jackson
have u checked ur mail lately?? sometimes they send those notices about verifications they need and if u dont send it in they cut u off without warning. happened to my cousin last week
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Sebastián Stevens
•I check my mail every day and haven't gotten anything from the county. I also check my BenefitsCal account messages regularly. No notifications about missing anything.
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Tristan Carpenter
This sorta sounds like the quarterly maintenance thing. My worker told me they do updates to the EBT system every few months and sometimes it causes delays. Usually fixed within 48 hrs.
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Sebastián Stevens
•Hope that's all it is! Just worried because I've been on CalFresh for 2 years and this has never happened before.
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Bethany Groves
Just an update - I checked the CalFresh EBT website and they've posted an official notice about a system delay for benefits scheduled between the 10th-12th. They're saying all benefits should be available by end of day tomorrow (the 13th). If you need emergency food assistance before then, you can contact your local food bank or call 211 for resources in your area. Hope this helps!
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Sebastián Stevens
•Thank you so much for checking! That's a huge relief. I'll call 211 and see if there's a food bank nearby that can help us get through today. Really appreciate the info.
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Amaya Watson
Sometimes too it can be an issue with your specific EBT card. My card stopped working suddenly last year and it turned out the magnetic strip was damaged. I had to request a replacement card. If your balance is actually supposed to be there but the card isn't working, that could be the problem. You can request a replacement through your online account or by calling your county office.
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Sebastián Stevens
•That's something I didn't consider. The card is pretty beat up since I've had it for 2 years. But I think it's more likely the system issue since the balance is showing $0 in the app too. I'll keep this in mind though if the problem continues after tomorrow. Thanks!
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KingKongZilla
UPDATE: Just checked my EBT card balance and the money is finally there!!! Check yours!
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Sebastián Stevens
•YESSS! Mine just loaded too! Full balance is there. Thank goodness! Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions. Crisis averted!
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