I'm new to this community but wanted to share my experience since it might be relevant to your son's situation. I work in HR for a logistics company and we've dealt with similar cases before. From an employer perspective, when someone can't fulfill a job requirement due to circumstances truly beyond their control, it's generally not considered misconduct for unemployment purposes. The key factors EDD typically looks at are: 1. Was the employee meeting the job requirement when hired? (Yes - he had a working vehicle) 2. Did the employee willfully fail to meet the requirement? (No - transmission failure is mechanical, not intentional) 3. Could the employee reasonably remedy the situation? (No - $4,300 is prohibitive on a $22/hr salary) In my experience, EDD tends to be pretty reasonable about these situations. The employer will likely contest the claim initially, but if your son presents the facts clearly during his phone interview, he should have a strong case. One thing I'd add to the great advice already given - if possible, have him get something in writing from his employer about the termination reason. Even a text message or email stating it's due to the vehicle issue helps establish that this wasn't performance-related misconduct. Hope this helps, and best of luck to your son during this difficult time!

I'm new to this community but dealing with a somewhat similar situation, so I wanted to chime in with support and a question. My heart goes out to your son - having your car break down when it's essential for work is such a nightmare scenario, especially when the repair costs are so high. From everything I've read in this thread, it sounds like he has a really solid case for unemployment benefits. The fact that multiple people have shared successful outcomes from nearly identical situations is very encouraging! I'm curious though - has anyone here had experience with whether it matters if the car was financed vs owned outright? My situation involves a financed vehicle, and I'm wondering if that affects how EDD views the "ability to repair" aspect. Just thinking that if someone has car payments, it might actually strengthen the case that they truly can't afford a major repair on top of monthly payments. Regardless, your son should definitely apply right away if he gets terminated. This absolutely wasn't his fault, and from what everyone's shared, EDD seems pretty reasonable about these vehicle breakdown cases. Keeping my fingers crossed for a positive outcome for your family!

I'm going through this exact situation too and the frustration is so real! I was making $4,600/month as a UX designer before getting laid off three weeks ago, and my weekly benefit amount is $385. Like everyone else here, I had no idea about the maximum benefit caps and how little unemployment actually covers in California. What's been helping me so far: I immediately signed up for CalFresh after reading about it in this thread (got approved within a week!), called my utility companies about hardship programs (PG&E actually has a pretty decent temporary assistance program), and I've been using the 211 helpline which connected me to a local food bank and rental assistance program I never knew existed. The mental shift to "survival mode" that others mentioned is crucial - I had to completely let go of my previous lifestyle and focus on absolute essentials. It's humbling but also clarifying in a weird way. I'm also doing some freelance design work on the side, being careful to stay under that $25/week limit so it doesn't affect my benefits. The job market feels brutal right now, but reading everyone's stories here reminds me this is temporary even when it doesn't feel that way. We're all going to get through this, and hopefully with some valuable perspective on the other side. Stay strong everyone!

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this shock - I just went through the exact same thing! Was making $4,900/month as a marketing manager and got my first EDD payment of $340/week last month. The reality check was brutal. What really helped me was immediately calling 211 (as others mentioned) - they connected me to programs I had no idea existed, including emergency utility assistance and a local food pantry that delivers groceries. I also found out my city has a temporary rental assistance program specifically for people on unemployment. One tip that's been a game-changer: I started meal prepping with ingredients from the food bank and buying generic everything. My grocery bill went from $400/month to under $100. Also, if you have any skills you can freelance (writing, tutoring, pet sitting), you can earn up to $25/week without it affecting your benefits - every little bit helps. The hardest part mentally was accepting this is just temporary survival mode, not permanent. Focus all your energy on the job search while utilizing every resource available. You're definitely not alone in this struggle - California's benefit system is completely out of touch with actual living costs here. Hang in there!

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - was laid off in September but just filed last week because I was so overwhelmed by everything. Reading through all these responses is actually giving me hope! It sounds like there are definitely people who have successfully gotten backdating approved, especially when health/anxiety issues were involved. @Omar - from what I'm seeing in these comments, it seems like your best bet is to call right at 8am Monday, have all your dates organized, and be honest about any health issues you dealt with during that time. Even anxiety and feeling overwhelmed by the system after job loss seems to count as "good cause" for some reps. One thing I noticed is that multiple people mentioned being specific about mental health impacts - it's not just physical health issues that qualify. Job loss can be really traumatic and affect your ability to handle bureaucratic stuff right away, which sounds exactly like what you (and I) went through. Fingers crossed for both of us! Let us know how your call goes - I'll probably be calling later this week once I get my timeline organized too.

This thread has been incredibly helpful - thank you all for sharing your experiences! As someone who's been lurking in this community for a while, I wanted to add that I successfully got backdating approved last year in a very similar situation. I was laid off in May but didn't file until August due to a combination of job search optimism and honestly being intimidated by the whole EDD system. What really helped my case was documenting a timeline of events and being upfront about the mental health impact. After losing my job, I went through a period of depression and anxiety that made it really hard to focus on administrative tasks. When I finally got through to an EDD rep, I explained this honestly along with my job search efforts during that time. The rep told me that mental health struggles following job loss are absolutely considered valid reasons for delayed filing. She backdated my claim to my separation date, and I received about 14 weeks of back pay totaling around $6,000. My advice for anyone in this situation: don't minimize the psychological impact of job loss. It's real, it's documented, and EDD recognizes it as good cause. Be prepared with exact dates, any documentation you have (even informal notes about your mental state), and don't be afraid to be vulnerable about how losing your job affected your ability to navigate the system immediately. The callback feature on EDD's website is also much less stressful than repeatedly calling. Good luck everyone!

I'm in a similar boat right now - exhausted my benefits in January but my benefit year runs until August. It's such a confusing and stressful situation! From what I've learned lurking in this community, once your balance hits zero, that's really it until your benefit year ends. The hardest part is that EDD's website makes it look like your claim is still "active" when really there's nothing left to collect. I kept logging in expecting to see something change or get some kind of notification, but nope - just that depressing $0 balance staring back at me. I finally bit the bullet and called last week. Took forever to get through (surprise, surprise) but the agent confirmed what everyone here is saying - no more money gets added to your existing claim once it's exhausted, even if your benefit year isn't over. She did mention looking into CalFresh and other assistance programs while I wait for my benefit year to end. Hang in there - at least we're not alone in dealing with this mess of a system!

I went through this exact same situation a few months ago and it's incredibly frustrating! Like everyone else has mentioned, once your claim balance hits $0, EDD doesn't automatically add more money even though your benefit year is still active. It's such a misleading system because they keep showing your claim as "active" when there's really nothing left. I made the mistake of waiting weeks thinking something would happen automatically, but nothing did. When I finally called (after many, many attempts to get through), the agent confirmed that I had to wait until my benefit year ended to file a new claim - assuming I had enough qualifying wages from any work I did during the current benefit year. One thing that helped me during the gap was applying for CalFresh (food stamps) and looking into local food banks and assistance programs. It's not much, but every little bit helps when you're struggling financially. Also, make sure to keep documenting your job search activities because you'll need that when you're eligible to file your new claim. The whole system is designed to be confusing and it feels like they're hoping people will just give up. Don't let them discourage you - call to confirm your specific situation and explore all available resources while you wait for your benefit year to end. You've got this!

One more tip about Money Network cards that might help others: once you receive your card, download their mobile app and set up account alerts. You'll get notifications whenever a payment is deposited. You can also set up transfers to your bank account through the app, which is much easier than trying to withdraw cash from ATMs (which often have fees unless you use specific in-network ATMs).

Just wanted to follow up on this thread since I went through something similar last month. For anyone else dealing with this issue, I found that the Money Network customer service is actually way more helpful than trying to reach EDD directly. They can tell you immediately if you have a card, what address it was sent to, and can expedite a replacement. I also discovered that you can actually access your money online through their website once you get your card info, so you don't have to wait for the physical card to arrive if you're in a real emergency situation. The website is moneyneworks.com and you can create an account if you have your card number. Might save someone a few days of waiting!