DEO only paid partial benefits after appeal hearing win - missing half my weekly payment amount
I'm completely confused about what DEO is doing with my benefits after winning my appeal. After waiting AN ENTIRE YEAR for my appeal hearing (ridiculous!), the judge finally ruled in my favor last week. I thought everything would be fixed, but when I checked my account today, they've only deposited PARTIAL payments for several weeks. I was supposed to get $125 per week, but they only paid $63 for each of those weeks! That's literally half of what I'm owed! Has anyone dealt with this partial payment nonsense after winning an appeal? I can't afford to wait another year to get the rest of my money. My CONNECT account doesn't show any explanation for the reduced amount. Do I need to file another appeal just to get the full amount I'm entitled to? This system is so frustrating!
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Geoff Richards
This happens more often than you'd think. Most likely they applied a 50% reduction due to what they're classifying as 'partial eligibility' for those weeks. Did you report any income during those weeks? Even small amounts can trigger partial payment calculations. You need to check your Determination Letters in CONNECT - there should be a detailed breakdown showing WHY they calculated that $63 amount.
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Laila Fury
•I did work a few hours during those weeks, but I reported everything exactly as it happened! I thought they already took that into account when deciding my appeal. Where do I find these determination letters? I've looked everywhere in CONNECT but can't find any explanation.
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Simon White
Ooomg this literally SAME THING happened 2 me!! I won my appeal in january and they only paid me like half of what i was supposd to get. took me 3 MONTHS to get it fixed because noone at DEO would answer the phone!!!! So frustrating!!
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Laila Fury
•How did you finally get it fixed?? Did you have to file something else or just keep calling?
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Simon White
•i had to call like 50 times before i got through. kept getting disconnected. finally got someone who said there was a 'calculation error' but they fixed it. took another 3 weeks to get the rest deposited tho
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Hugo Kass
I went through this exact situation last spring. The reduced payment is definitely because of the partial income deduction formula they use. For every dollar you earn over 1/4 of your weekly benefit amount, they reduce your payment by that amount. So if your WBA is $125, and you earned more than about $31 in those weeks, they reduce accordingly. Here's what you need to do: Go to the Determination section, not the Payments section. You need to look at the monetary determination for those specific weeks. It should show the income you reported and their calculation. If it's wrong, you need to request a redetermination specifically for those weeks. I was having terrible luck getting through on the phones until I tried Claimyr. They got me connected to a live DEO agent in about 20 minutes when I'd been trying for weeks. You can see how it works at https://youtu.be/UzW_hbUy-ss?si=zORd51jeq1GX5Ldj or go to claimyr.com - it was worth it to finally get someone to explain my calculation and fix the weeks that were wrong.
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Laila Fury
•Thank you! I'll check those determination letters more carefully. I think I might have reported some small income, but not enough to cut my benefits in half. I'm going to try that service - I've wasted so much time trying to get through to DEO and I just need this resolved.
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Nasira Ibanez
my aunt had this happen 2 years ago and it turned out they had used the wrong base period for calculating her benefits. called DEO for 3 weeks straight before getting through. its always something with them...
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Khalil Urso
This is a common issue after appeals. The system is applying the partial income reduction formula correctly, but it's confusing without an explanation. Here's how it works in Florida: 1. If you earn less than 25% of your Weekly Benefit Amount (WBA), there's no reduction 2. For every dollar you earn above that 25% threshold, your benefit is reduced dollar-for-dollar 3. You reported part-time income, so they're calculating: $125 - (your reported income - $31.25) For example, if you earned $93.25 in a week, the math would be: $125 - ($93.25 - $31.25) = $125 - $62 = $63 Double-check your reported income for those weeks. If that matches what you actually earned, then their calculation is correct. If not, you need to request a redetermination specifically for those weeks with incorrect calculations.
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Laila Fury
•That actually makes perfect sense now! I was working about 12 hours a week at $9/hr during that period, which would be close to $108 before taxes. So the calculation would be about right. I just wish they explained this clearly somewhere instead of making us figure it out ourselves. Thank you for breaking this down!
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Khalil Urso
•You're welcome! Glad I could help clarify. If your reported income is correct, then unfortunately that partial payment is all you're entitled to for those weeks. The system is working as designed in this case, even though they do a terrible job explaining it to claimants.
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Myles Regis
Is the $125 your full WBA or is that already a reduced amount? Because my original WBA was $275 but after deductions it came to $132 so just making sure you're looking at the right baseline amount...
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Laila Fury
•The $125 was my full weekly benefit amount based on my previous earnings. I was only working part-time before I lost my job.
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Brian Downey
I'm dealing with something similar right now but it's because of child support deductions. They take 40% off the top of my payments. Is there any chance you have a garnishment or child support order that might be causing the reduction?
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Laila Fury
•No garnishments or child support in my case. Based on what others have explained, it looks like it's just the partial earnings reduction formula being applied correctly. I was working part-time during those weeks.
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Geoff Richards
Glad to see you got it figured out! For anyone else reading this thread with similar issues - always check your Determination Status for each week in question. The CONNECT system applies all these formulas automatically but does a terrible job showing the math. Always report your income accurately, and remember that even small amounts of earnings will reduce your weekly benefit once you cross that 25% threshold.
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