SDGE bill with my name showed up on someone else's CalFresh case - identity mix-up?

omg that happened to me last year!!! my roommates disability paperwork somehow got mixed into my calfresh file... the worker said something about their scanning system sometimes putting docs in wrong electronic folders. u should definitely call ur worker asap

That's so disturbing! Did they fix it right away or was it a hassle? I'm going to call tomorrow morning but now I'm paranoid about what other mix-ups might have happened.

This is definitely concerning but not as uncommon as it should be. The county offices process thousands of documents daily, and their document management systems sometimes incorrectly assign uploaded documents to the wrong case. You should absolutely contact your eligibility worker right away. Ask them to:\n\n1. Document this privacy incident in your case notes\n2. Remove your SDGE bill from your friend's case file\n3. Verify that no other documents have been misplaced\n4. Request written confirmation that the issue has been resolved\n\nAlso ask if they need to file an internal privacy incident report. Each county has specific procedures for handling these situations.

Thank you for the detailed steps! I'll definitely follow this exactly. Do you know if I should be worried about my benefits being affected? Like if they think I'm part of her household now or something weird like that?

I work in the field and can tell you this happens with the document imaging system. When people upload documents through BenefitsCal or when county staff scan papers, they sometimes get indexed to the wrong case. It's a system limitation. Your benefits shouldn't be affected if you call to get it corrected, but definitely report it so they can fix both cases. Ask them to complete a \

ive been on calfresh for 3 years and the county ALWAYS loses my stuff!!!! one time they denied me bc they said i didnt send in my paystubs but i had confirmation email from benefitscal that i uploaded them!! the system is broken

This is definitely concerning but fixable. I had a similar issue where my rent receipt somehow ended up in my ex-husband's case (we've been divorced for years!). I spent THREE DAYS trying to reach someone at the county. Kept getting stuck in the phone tree or disconnected. Finally I tried Claimyr.com and got through to a real person in about 20 minutes. They have this system that navigates the phone trees for you and gets you to a live worker. There's a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8\n\nOnce I got through, the worker fixed it right away and documented everything. They explained it was a document indexing error in their system.

Thank you for sharing this! I've already been disconnected twice today trying to reach someone. I'll check out that service if I can't get through by tomorrow. Did they give you any documentation that the issue was resolved?

U should check ur EBT balance ASAP!!! This could be identity theft. My cousin had something similar happen and someone was using her info for benefits in another county!!!! Log into ur benefitscal account and make sure everything looks right. Also ur friend should send u a picture of the document so u can see exactly what info they have.

Oh no, I hadn't even thought about that possibility. Just checked my account and my balance seems normal, no unexpected changes. My friend is going to send me photos of everything tomorrow when she gets home. Really hoping this is just a stupid clerical error.

This is concerning but not necessarily malicious. When documents get uploaded or scanned at county offices, there's a process called

this happened to me too but it took WEEKS to fix because they kept saying they needed to get supervisor approval to move documents between cases 🙄

Weeks?! That's ridiculous. I'm going to be super persistent about this. I don't want it affecting either of our renewals or causing problems down the line.

the county is ALWAYS messing up!! one time they had my income listed as $5,200 a month when i only make $1,700!! fight them on this!!!

You're right that errors happen, but it's important to approach this calmly. The county processes thousands of documents daily, and while mix-ups shouldn't happen, they do. Most eligibility workers genuinely want to help correct these issues. Document everything, get case numbers and worker IDs when you call, and follow up in writing if possible.

Update from the OP would be helpful - were you able to reach someone and get this resolved? This type of document mixing can sometimes flag cases for fraud investigation if not addressed quickly, since it appears as though two people might be applying for benefits using the same documentation. Not to add stress, but best to be proactive.

I finally got through yesterday! The worker was actually really helpful and apologetic. They confirmed it was a document indexing error in their imaging system - apparently when documents are uploaded, they sometimes go into a general queue and then get manually assigned to cases. Someone clicked the wrong case number for my SDGE bill. They've moved it to my correct file and put notes in both our cases explaining the mix-up. They also checked and confirmed no other documents were misplaced. Such a relief!