I'm glad you've submitted the hardship waiver. While waiting for the response, you might also want to request an explanation of the overpayment if you haven't received one. Call or check your online message center for a document explaining exactly which week(s) were overpaid and why. Sometimes it's a simple reporting error that can be corrected. And yes, to reassure you again - your benefits will continue with the recoupment deduction applied until the overpayment is satisfied. If your hardship waiver is approved, you'll see the deduction amount decrease in future payments.

Just wanted to add that you can also check your NY.gov account online to see the exact breakdown of your overpayment determination. Sometimes they show week-by-week details there that aren't clear in the mailed notices. Also, if you do end up calling, try calling right at 8am when they open - that's when I've had the best luck getting through to someone who can actually help explain what happened. Good luck with your hardship waiver!

I went through this exact situation in December! Changed my direct deposit on a Thursday, certified Sunday, and got my payment Tuesday like clockwork. The key thing is that you updated it BEFORE certifying - that seems to be what matters most. I was stressed about it too because I had bills due, but it worked out fine. The NY system is definitely inconsistent based on what everyone's saying here, but since you got the timing right (changed before certification), I think you'll be okay. Just keep an eye on both accounts Tuesday morning and don't panic if it doesn't show up right at your usual time - sometimes it comes a few hours later than normal when there's been a change. Good luck! 🤞

I had almost the exact same situation back in September! Changed my direct deposit on a Thursday, certified on Sunday, and was sweating bullets waiting for Tuesday. Mine actually went through to the new account right on schedule - no delays at all. I think the key is that you made the change before your certification date. From what I've seen, most of the horror stories involve people who tried to change it AFTER they certified or during the processing window. Since you updated it Thursday and you're certifying Sunday, you should be in good shape. The system usually processes banking changes within 1-2 business days, so by Sunday it should be locked in. Still nerve-wracking though when rent is on the line - I totally get that stress! Keep us posted on how it goes Tuesday.

Congrats on getting it resolved! Your experience is exactly why I always tell people not to just wait for the online document review - calling is so much faster even though it's a pain to get through. For anyone else reading this thread, Ruby's case is a perfect example of how the system is supposed to work. When you have recent employment that wasn't included in your standard base period, they should automatically check your alternate base period eligibility. If they don't, don't panic - it's fixable, you just need to get a human on the phone to manually trigger the review. The backpay makes it worth the hassle of calling!

I'm so glad you got this resolved Ruby! As someone new to this community, reading through your entire experience was incredibly helpful. I'm actually dealing with the exact same situation right now - they denied my claim even though I worked full-time January through March 2025. Your post made me realize I shouldn't just sit around waiting for weeks for them to review my documents. I'm definitely going to try calling tomorrow and specifically ask about my Alternate Base Period review. It's so frustrating that their system doesn't automatically catch this, but at least now I know there's a real solution. Thanks for sharing your whole journey - it gives me hope that this will actually get fixed!

Make sure you have your bank account info ready for direct deposit setup too. Also if you were in a union or had any pension contributions, that might affect your claim so have those details available.

One thing to add - if you were laid off, try to get a separation letter from your employer stating the reason (layoff, lack of work, etc.). While not absolutely required, it can really speed up the process since NYS Department of Labor won't have to contact your employer to verify the reason for separation. This is especially helpful if your former company is slow to respond to unemployment inquiries.

This exact thing happened to me in April! Super frustrating. I tried all the usual stuff - logging out/in, different browsers, clearing cache, etc. Nothing worked for like 4 days. Finally got through to someone who said there was a "claim status mismatch" in their system that was triggering the wrong message. They fixed it while I was on the phone and I was able to certify immediately after. Since you've only collected 13 weeks out of 26, this is definitely a system error on their end. Don't let them try to tell you that you've exhausted benefits - you know your own payment history. Keep trying to certify every day, and if it doesn't resolve by Monday, definitely call or try one of those callback services people mentioned. The key is getting a human who can actually look at your account details, not just the automated responses. Also pro tip: when you do get someone on the phone, ask them to put a note in your file about the issue and the fix. Sometimes these glitches repeat and having documentation helps speed up resolution next time.

Ugh, this is so stressful when you're relying on these payments! I had something similar happen a few months ago - not the exact same message but the system randomly decided I wasn't eligible to certify one week. Turned out there was some kind of flag on my account that got triggered by mistake during a system update. The most frustrating part is how the website gives you basically zero useful information about what's actually wrong. Like, if there's really an issue with my claim, at least tell me what it is so I can fix it! I'd definitely try the phone certification line first before stressing too much - sometimes the website and phone systems aren't synced properly. And if that doesn't work, it sounds like you'll need to get a real person to look at your account. The advice about Claimyr seems legit based on what others are saying, might be worth the cost if you can't get through the regular way. Keep us posted on what happens! This stuff affects so many people and it helps to know what actually works when these random errors pop up.