Can you buy a car on unemployment benefits from NYS Department of Labor?
I've been on unemployment for about 2 months now and my old car finally died completely. I found a decent used car for $8,500 but I'm worried about whether buying it could affect my unemployment benefits. Does NYS Department of Labor track purchases like this? I need reliable transportation to keep up with my job search requirements but don't want to mess up my claim. Has anyone dealt with this situation before?
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Tami Morgan
NYS Department of Labor doesn't monitor your purchases or bank account activity unless there's a specific reason for investigation. Buying a car with your unemployment benefits is completely legal - it's your money once you receive it. The only thing that matters for your claim is that you continue meeting the work search requirements and report any work income accurately on your weekly claims.
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Maya Diaz
•Thanks! That's reassuring. I was worried they might think I'm not really looking for work if I'm making big purchases.
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Rami Samuels
yeah i bought a car last year while on UI, no problems at all. just make sure you can still afford your other bills because unemployment doesn't last forever
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Haley Bennett
Actually, having reliable transportation can help your job search efforts. Many employers ask about transportation during interviews. Just keep all your documentation in case you ever need to show that the purchase was legitimate - bill of sale, financing paperwork if applicable, etc. The NYS Department of Labor is more concerned about unreported work income than how you spend your benefits.
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Douglas Foster
•This is smart advice. I never thought about keeping the paperwork but that makes sense if there are ever any questions.
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Nina Chan
I was in a similar situation last month - needed a car for job interviews but was nervous about the purchase. Honestly, if you're having trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to ask questions like this directly, there's a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helps people reach unemployment agents by phone. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Really helped me get quick answers when I couldn't get through the regular phone lines.
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Maya Diaz
•Interesting, I hadn't heard of that before. The phone lines are always busy when I try to call.
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Ruby Knight
Just remember that unemployment is temporary income. Make sure you're not overextending yourself financially. That said, if you need the car for work search activities and can afford the payments, there's nothing wrong with purchasing it. NYS Department of Labor doesn't have restrictions on how you use your benefit payments.
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Diego Castillo
Wait, can they really not see your bank account? I thought the government could see everything...
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Tami Morgan
•They don't routinely monitor bank accounts. That would only happen if there was suspected fraud and they got legal authorization for an investigation. For regular unemployment claims, they rely on your weekly certifications and employer reports.
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