Been trying contacting EDD for 6 days straight - phone system is completely broken

23 out of 47?! That's basically a coin flip. This is insane that we have to gamble with hours of our time just to maybe talk to someone.

The call drop rate is brutal. I heard it's around 30-50% of all calls that make it to hold. System is completely overwhelmed.

Wait, the ENTIRE call center takes lunch at the same time? That explains why I could never get through around noon!

Yep, complete dead zone from 12-1:30. They should announce this but they don't. Also avoid calling after 4pm - they stop taking new calls.

Is Claimyr legit? I'm desperate enough to try anything at this point but worried about scams.

Totally legit. Check their reviews on Google. I was skeptical too but it actually works. Way better than losing entire days to redialing.

Can confirm Claimyr works. Used it last week after 3 weeks of failed attempts. Got my callback in 35 minutes on a Wednesday afternoon.

You've gotten through 6 times?! What's your secret? I'm doing 1-wait-1-1-*** but still getting nowhere.

Patience and timing. I literally treat it like a part-time job. Start at 7:55am, take breaks, avoid lunch hours. Also both 833 and 800 numbers are the exact same line.

The early bird approach works. I set my alarm for 7:30, make coffee, and start dialing at 7:55. Got through twice this way.

Thank you! I wasted so much time trying different numbers thinking they were separate lines.

Yeah, they consolidated everything. Makes it worse because now everyone's calling the same overloaded line.

312 attempts?! This is absolutely ridiculous that we have to do this.

I know it sounds crazy but I need my benefits. Been unemployed 4 months and this extension is critical. At least I have data now on best times.

Your data matches mine. Wednesday afternoons are definitely the sweet spot for getting through.

2.5 hours?! I don't know if I can handle that kind of hold time.

I put it on speaker and did other stuff. Worth it to finally get my issue resolved. Thursday afternoons seem to work best.

Congrats on getting through! Gives me hope that it's actually possible.

That's the second person mentioning Claimyr. What exactly do they do?

They dial for you automatically, stay on hold, then call your phone when an agent picks up. Costs like $20 but saves hours of your time. Check claimyr.com

I was skeptical about paying for something like this but after wasting 3 full days calling, it was totally worth it.

73 attempts in one day! That's dedication but also shows how broken this is.

I'm taking tomorrow off work just to call EDD. This is becoming a full-time job itself.

Don't take time off work for this. Use an auto-dialer service instead. Not worth losing income to play phone tag.

Why don't they announce this officially? Seems like basic customer service to let people know when they're unavailable.

No idea why they keep it secret. Would save everyone so much wasted time if they just posted their actual availability.

The lack of transparency makes everything worse. At least tell people when not to call!

18 minutes?! That's incredible compared to what we're all going through.

Right? I wish I'd done it weeks ago instead of wasting all that time. My sanity was worth the $20.

Which service did you use? There seem to be a few options out there.

Claimyr - seems to be the most popular one. They have good reviews and it actually worked for me.

70 seconds exactly? I've been waiting random amounts of time. No wonder I keep messing up the sequence.

Yeah, timing is crucial. Too fast and you get kicked out, too slow and you miss the window. It's like a stupid game.

2000 minutes?! That's insane. This whole situation is costing us money just to access our own benefits.

Exactly! And that's not even counting the time off work. The whole system is backwards.

Try Google Voice or Skype for cheaper calling. Or just bite the bullet and use a callback service - probably cheaper than overage charges.

Friday afternoon success is impressive! Maybe I should stop trying to time it perfectly and just use a service.

That's exactly what I realized. All this strategizing about best times doesn't matter if you're not actually getting through.

That's it, I'm done with manual calling. Going to try the service too. Thanks for all the advice everyone!

Good choice! Your time and sanity are worth more than the service fee. Best of luck getting your issue resolved.

This whole thread convinced me too. The manual approach is just not realistic anymore with how broken their phone system is.