EDD suddenly showing 'pending' status with 'problem needs to be reviewed' message - what happened?

This exact thing happened to me back in February. Turned out they were doing a random eligibility review. I had to wait for an interview but never got a call/letter about when it would happen. Your claim might be flagged for a quarterly review - they sometimes check to make sure you're still eligible. You should get a notice in the mail within 10 days explaining what the issue is.

mine went to pending too last month!!!! its probly identity verification they do it random sometimes especially if u moved or changed ur bank info recently

This is standard procedure. EDD regularly flags claims for eligibility determinations, especially around your benefit year quarter mark. When this happens, your payments go to pending until they verify your continued eligibility. There are several reasons this might happen: 1. Quarterly wage review where they check if you've had unreported earnings 2. Random verification of your work search efforts 3. Questions about availability for work 4. Identity verification check You should receive a notice in your UI Online inbox or by mail explaining what specific issue they need to review. If you don't see anything in your inbox, you really need to speak with an EDD representative to find out exactly what's happening with your claim.

They ALWAYS do this!!! The EDD system is designed to randomly flag accounts and make people wait for $$ even when nothing changed. It's their way of making sure people aren't committing fraud but it punishes everyone. I bet you'll be stuck in pending for at least 3 weeks unless you can get someone on the phone.

I had this happen to me last month and I discovered a trick to getting through to a representative! I was going crazy with bills piling up and no way to talk to anyone. After trying for days to get through, I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helps you get connected to an EDD rep. It basically holds your place in line and calls you when it's your turn. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10?si=TSwYbu_GOwYzt9km I was super skeptical at first but it actually worked - got through to someone who could see exactly what was flagged on my account (in my case it was a wage verification issue). The rep cleared it up and my pending payments switched to paid within 48 hours. Seriously worth it because otherwise you could be waiting weeks for them to get around to your claim.

did u say anything different on ur last certifications??? sometimes even a tiny thing can trigger a flag like if u said no to looking for work or if u reported any income at all even just a few $$$

Just a heads up - after you find out what the issue is, make sure you keep certifying for benefits every two weeks even while the review is happening. A lot of people stop certifying while pending and that creates even more problems. Keep doing your work search and documenting everything too, as they might ask for proof during the review.

good luck!!! the system is so frustrating sometimes!!! hope u get ur money soon!

UPDATE: I tried that Claimyr service and actually got through to someone! The EDD rep told me my account was flagged for a random eligibility interview (just like someone mentioned above). Apparently they're checking if I'm still actively looking for work. She scheduled me for a phone interview next Tuesday and said my payments should switch to paid soon after if everything checks out. Just wanted to update in case anyone else runs into this same issue!