UPDATE: I called Money Network this morning and they confirmed my card was mailed 16 days ago! They said it must have been lost in the mail and agreed to send a replacement with expedited shipping (2-3 business days). Had to pay $15 for the expedited shipping, but that's worth it considering how much I'm waiting on. Thank you all for your help and suggestions!

So glad you got this resolved! This is exactly why I always tell people to call Money Network directly first instead of trying to get through to EDD. The postal service has been having issues lately, and cards getting lost in the mail is way more common than it should be. For anyone else reading this thread - the Money Network customer service number is 1-866-692-9374 and they're usually pretty helpful once you get through to them. And yeah, that $15 expedite fee is totally worth it when you're waiting on rent money! Hope your replacement card arrives quickly and you can get that direct deposit set up ASAP!

Wow, reading through all these experiences has been both frustrating and reassuring at the same time! I'm currently dealing with this exact issue - been locked out for about 10 days now because I can't remember my last payment amount from early 2022. It's honestly mind-boggling that they'd use such a flawed security system that locks out legitimate users while asking for information that's realistically impossible to remember after years. What really stands out to me from this thread is how Jackson came back to share his successful resolution - that kind of follow-up is so valuable for everyone else struggling with this! The 8 AM calling strategy seems to be the real key here, and knowing that EDD reps have alternative verification methods available gives me actual hope instead of just despair. I'm also really encouraged to hear they're phasing out these payment-related security questions. It's about time they recognized this was a terrible approach! For a system that's supposed to help people, creating barriers that prevent legitimate users from accessing their own accounts is just backwards. Thanks to everyone who shared their stories and solutions here. This thread has convinced me to stop procrastinating and make that call tomorrow morning. The community support in dealing with these government bureaucracy nightmares really makes all the difference!

This thread has been incredibly helpful and shows exactly why peer-to-peer support is so valuable when dealing with government systems! I'm bookmarking this for future reference because the collective wisdom here is way better than anything on the official EDD website. What really strikes me is how this demonstrates a fundamental design flaw in their security system - asking people to remember specific dollar amounts from years ago is just setting everyone up to fail. It's like they prioritized creating barriers over actually helping legitimate users access their accounts. The 8 AM calling strategy that keeps coming up seems to be the real game-changer here. Jackson's 40-minute wait time is honestly much better than I expected based on all the horror stories floating around. And the fact that EDD reps have alternative verification methods available (but don't advertise this clearly) is both reassuring and frustrating at the same time. I'm really glad to hear they're finally phasing out those payment-related security questions. Hopefully other government agencies will learn from this mess and design better user experiences that don't punish people for being human and not memorizing every financial detail from their past!

Just wanted to add one more tip that helped me - when you apply for SDI online, make sure you have all your employment history ready (last 18 months of employers and wages). The system will ask for this info and it's frustrating if you have to start over because you don't have your pay stubs handy. Also, if your doctor is slow getting back the certification form, you can follow up with them because SDI won't process your claim without it. The sooner you get everything submitted, the sooner you can start receiving benefits. Good luck with your claim!

One thing that really helped me when I was navigating this same situation was keeping a simple log of which program I was receiving benefits from each week. Since you can't collect UI and SDI simultaneously, I made a basic spreadsheet tracking my claim weeks to avoid any accidental double-dipping that could cause overpayment issues later. Also, save all your confirmation emails and reference numbers from both systems - the EDD can be slow to update records between their different programs, so having your own documentation is crucial if any issues come up. The 6-week timeline your doctor mentioned is pretty typical for SDI claims, so you should be able to transition back to UI afterward if you're still job searching and have benefits remaining.

Hey everyone, I'm dealing with a similar situation to the original poster. Got my EDD benefits after a long wait and received the Money Network card, but I'm really hesitant to do online transfers because I've had bad experiences with financial websites in the past getting hacked. Has anyone here had any security issues with the Money Network website? I'm torn between wanting to avoid fees at my credit union and being worried about putting my banking info on yet another website. The money order suggestion sounds interesting but I'm not sure my landlord would accept that for rent payment. Also, for those who switched to direct deposit for future payments - how long did it take for EDD to process that change? I want to avoid getting another one of these cards if possible. Thanks for all the helpful info in this thread, it's been really eye-opening!

I'm in a very similar situation - just got approved for benefits after weeks of waiting and feeling completely overwhelmed by this Money Network card system! Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful. One question I haven't seen addressed yet - does anyone know if there's a time limit on how long the money sits on the card before they start charging inactivity fees? I want to make sure I transfer everything out promptly but also want to do it right the first time. Also, for anyone who's used the online transfer method - do you get email confirmations at each step of the process? I like having documentation for my records, especially when dealing with larger amounts like this. The whole EDD process has made me extra paranoid about keeping paper trails for everything! Thanks to everyone who's shared their experiences here. It's such a relief to know I'm not the only one who found this confusing at first. The step-by-step instructions some of you provided are going to save me so much stress.

jus wanna say good luck man. been there with the id.me nightmare... took me almost 3 weeks to get my claim filed because of it. system is broken

UPDATE: The video chat with ID.me referee finally worked! I had to wait about an hour but the person was actually really helpful. They got me verified and I was able to complete my claim online. Thanks everyone for all your suggestions - especially about the video chat option! Now I just have to wait and see if they approve my claim.