DEO agent marked my claim as priority after 6 weeks on hold due to hurricane backlog - what to expect?

Same boat here!! Been on hold 7 weeks now. They also told me 'priority status' 2 weeks ago but NOTHING has happened since. DEO is a complete joke. I don't believe anything they say anymore. KEEP CALLING!!!!

I've been through this exact situation after Hurricane Debby last year. When they say "priority," it means they flagged it in their system, but there's still a queue of "priority" claims they're working through. In my experience, it took about 10 days after being marked priority before my payments released. Make sure you're still completing your work search requirements every week (5 activities per week) and claiming your weeks on time. Even with your claim on hold, if you miss claiming weeks or don't do the work search, you could lose those weeks permanently. Did the agent mention anything specific about what's causing the hold? Sometimes it's just verification backlog, but could also be employer response delays, wage verification, or identity issues.

priority dont mean nothing with them...i was told that 3 times and it took 9 weeks to get paid lol

I was in a similar situation after being on hold for 8 weeks. What finally worked for me was using Claimyr to get through to a DEO agent who could actually help. I spent weeks trying to call directly before discovering it. The service connected me to DEO in about 25 minutes when I couldn't get through at all on my own. After connecting with a senior agent, I found out my claim needed a supervisor override that the regular agents couldn't see. Within 3 days of that call, my weeks were released. You can see how it works at claimyr.com or check their video demo: https://youtu.be/UzW_hbUy-ss?si=zORd51jeq1GX5Ldj Definitely keep completing your work search requirements while waiting. And ask for a supervisor when you call - regular agents often can't see all the issues or have limited permission to fix things.

Yes, I specifically asked to speak with a supervisor after the regular agent couldn't give me clear answers. The supervisor had access to more details about my claim and could see exactly what was causing the hold. They also had authorization to override certain issues that regular agents can't touch. Don't be afraid to politely but firmly ask for a supervisor. Sometimes the first-level agents are limited in what they can see or do in the system.

The "priority" thing is hit or miss honestly. I've been through the DEO system 3 times in the past 2 years (seasonal construction worker). Here's what I've learned works: 1. ALWAYS continue doing your 5 work searches per week and claiming on schedule 2. Call multiple times - different agents give different answers 3. Document everything - agent names, ID numbers, dates you called 4. If possible, visit a CareerSource office in person - they sometimes have direct lines 5. Contact your state representative's office - they have liaisons who can escalate The hurricane backlog is legitimate. After Ian, my brother waited 11 weeks despite "priority" status. But after Milton this year, my claim that was supposedly prioritized was processed in 9 days. Keep the pressure on them and don't give up!

Most CareerSource offices take walk-ins, but it's always better to call ahead and make an appointment specifically for DEO assistance. Ask if they have a DEO specialist on site that day - not all locations have them daily. Bring your claim information, ID, and any determination letters you've received. They can sometimes access the internal DEO system or have direct contact numbers.

One more thing - check your CONNECT inbox daily. Sometimes they send fact-finding questionnaires that have short deadlines (usually 48 hours to 7 days). If you miss responding to these, it can restart your whole waiting period. Also, verify that your identity is fully validated through ID.me. With the hurricane backlog, they're being extra cautious about fraud prevention, and many claims are held up because of incomplete ID verification even if you think you've done it correctly. The system won't always notify you if there's an ID verification issue - you have to look for it in your CONNECT account under "Determination, Pending Issues and Decision Summary."

The questionnaires will appear in your CONNECT inbox (the envelope icon at the top of the page). They also sometimes email you a notification that you have a message in your CONNECT inbox, but not always consistently. For ID.me verification status, log into CONNECT and go to "View and Maintain Account Information" and then "View/Update Authentication Information." It should say "verified" under ID.me status. If not, you'll need to redo it.

My neighbor works at DEO (not gonna say which office lol) and she says the "priority" flag is real but theres like 10 different levels of priority and the basic one they give when you call isnt that high up. The hurricane backlog is also 100% real, they got like 37,000 new claims in 2 weeks after the last one which is like triple normal. still better to have any priority than none tho!

Anyone else notice they keep saying "call back in two weeks"?? ALWAYS two weeks!!! Never 10 days or 3 weeks. It's because they know you'll give up or forget after 2 weeks. They're trained to say that!!

i had 8 weeks of payments on hold last year and had to keep calling and calling. the thing that finally worked was when i got ahold of someone who actually looked at my file and saw there was a simple error code that was blocking everything. they fixed it right on the phone and i got paid 3 days later! keep trying different agents until you get someone who really looks!

i just got lucky with a nice lady who seemed to know what she was doing. but i did say something like "can you please check if theres any specific error codes or issues that might be easy to fix" and thats when she found it. i think being super polite helped too even tho i was freaking out inside lol

I called again today and got through after only 6 attempts! The agent I spoke with was much more helpful. She said my claim had a "wage verification hold" that needed supervisor approval. She put in a request for supervisor review and gave me a confirmation number this time. Said I should see movement within 3-5 business days. Fingers crossed this actually works! Will update when I know more.