Just discovered you can freeze your EBT card if lost - saved my CalFresh benefits!

Yes! This feature saved me about $430 in benefits last year when my wallet got stolen. The freezing function prevents anyone from using your card while you figure out if it's truly lost or just misplaced somewhere. There's no limit to how many times you can freeze/unfreeze - I've done it several times when I thought my card was missing. Just remember you have to call that same number to unfreeze it before trying to use it at the store (learned that the embarrassing way standing at checkout). If it's permanently lost, you should request a replacement through your county worker or BenefitsCal account instead of just keeping it frozen.

wait you can do this?? omg why dont they tell us these things when we get the card?? i had mine stollen last month and lost all my benifits for the month. had to wait till next month for more food money, my kids were so mad

I'll add something important here - if your card is ACTUALLY stolen (not just misplaced), freezing is good temporarily but you should IMMEDIATELY request a replacement card AND report the theft to your county worker. Under certain circumstances, they can replace stolen benefits, but you need to report it quickly. The freeze feature is more of a temporary safeguard while you figure out if you just misplaced it or if it's truly gone. Also, this is exactly why I never keep more than my monthly amount on my EBT - I use it all each month because I'm paranoid about exactly this scenario.

Freeazing ur card is good but theres a HUGE PROBLEM with the whole systm!! My nephew had his phone stoln with his EBT card in the case and they took ALL $342 in 20 minutes!!! When he calld they said benefits CANT be replaced even tho he reported it right away!!! The county worker said theres some new law but it sounds like excuses to me. This whole system is BROKEN and they don't care about us!!!

If anyone is struggling to reach their county office about stolen benefits or card replacement, I recently discovered a service called Claimyr that helped me get through to my worker after days of trying. Instead of waiting on hold for hours, they basically hold your place in line and call you back when a real person is available. Saved me hours of frustration when my benefits were suddenly cut off last month. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8

Just a tip from personal experience - I label my EBT card with a small sticker on the back that says "EBT" because it looks so similar to my regular debit card. Stopped me from accidentally leaving it places or mixing them up. As for the freezing feature, I use it regularly when I'm not planning to shop. Better safe than sorry!

One time I froze my card and completely forgot about it. Went to the grocery store, loaded up $200 worth of food, and then couldn't figure out why my card kept getting declined. The cashier was giving me THE LOOK while the line grew behind me. Had to abandon my cart and call from the parking lot to unfreeze it. So embarrassing! Now I set a reminder in my phone whenever I freeze it lol.

To clarify about benefit replacement since there's some confusion in this thread: California has the EBT Theft Reimbursement program that CAN replace stolen benefits in many cases. Requirements: 1) Report within 10 days of discovering the theft, 2) File a police report, 3) Complete the specific theft report form from your county, 4) You can be reimbursed up to twice in a federal fiscal year. This is for electronic theft OR physical card theft. The law was expanded in 2025 to cover more situations. Don't let anyone tell you it's not possible!