ESD denied my appeal hearing without notice - Is this legal?

Yes, they absolutely MUST notify you in writing about appeal decisions. Check RCW 50.32.020 and WAC 192-04-060. These laws specifically state you have the right to a written notice of any determination that affects your benefits, including appeal decisions. The Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) has to follow proper procedures. Get everything in writing from them. Call OAH directly at 800-366-8323 rather than ESD and ask for written confirmation of your appeal status. Document everything - date/time of calls, who you spoke with, etc. You might also want to file a formal complaint with the ESD Commissioner's office.

same thing happened to my cousin last yr... esd is sooooo backed up they just 'lose' appeals they dont want to deal with

I had a similar issue last year where they 'lost' my appeal paperwork. After weeks of getting nowhere with the regular ESD line, I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual ESD agent in less than 10 minutes. The agent was able to locate my appeal in their system and confirm it was actually still pending, not lost at all. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 Might be worth trying since you need to get concrete answers about your appeal status. The agent I spoke with transferred me directly to the appeals department once they verified my information.

Quick correction - the previous comment mentioned PUA, but your post talks about regular UI. PUA (Pandemic Unemployment Assistance) ended in 2021, so I'm assuming you're dealing with a regular UI issue? The appeal process is different for each benefit type. If this is about PUA, you might need to contact the overpayment unit specifically.

I found out that legally they HAVE to send u a letter if they deny your appeal its like totally required by law!!! my friend works at worksource and said u should ask for a "status verification letter" for ur appeal and if they cant provide one u can file a complaint with the washington state ombudsman office!!

ive been waiting for a hearing for 5 months now... esd is the WORST!!! they told me my hearing was scheduled then i never got the letter then they said i missed it and now im totally screwed out of $4700 that i actually deserve but they dont care at all

Update for the OP: You might want to check if your appeal was properly transmitted from ESD to OAH (Office of Administrative Hearings). They're actually separate agencies. Sometimes ESD receives the appeal but fails to forward it to OAH, which is who actually schedules and conducts the hearings. If you contact OAH directly and they have no record of your appeal, that's your smoking gun that ESD failed to process it correctly. At that point, you can request that ESD immediately transmit your appeal to OAH with documentation showing when you originally filed it. This would establish that any delays were administrative errors, not your fault.

This is a HUGE problem with Washington's unemployment system! They deliberately make the appeal process confusing and difficult to navigate. I had to appeal a disqualification last year and the ONLY reason I got a hearing was because I sent a certified letter to the Commissioner's Office stating I would be contacting my state representative and filing a formal complaint. Magically, my "lost" appeal was found and I had a hearing scheduled within two weeks. DON'T GIVE UP! The system is designed to make you quit fighting for what you're entitled to. Get everything in writing and escalate as high as you need to go.