ESD overpayment finally resolved after 16-month battle - Success story & lessons learned

No lawyer - couldn't afford one. I did consult with the Unemployment Law Project for free advice, which was super helpful. They have a hotline you can call. The biggest thing is just documenting EVERYTHING and being super organized with your evidence.

Wait so can ESD just randomly decide whenever they want that you owe them money??? Even years later??? This is terrifying! I'm on unemployment right now and report everything correctly but now I'm paranoid they'll come after me in the future!

They generally have up to 3 years to identify and assess overpayments, but there are exceptions that can extend this timeline. The best protection is exactly what the OP did - keep detailed records of everything: screenshots of your weekly claim submissions, any communications with ESD, pay stubs, and work search activities. Store these securely for at least 4 years after your claim ends.

No interest, thankfully! But they were threatening to send it to collections if I didn't resolve it, which would have destroyed my credit score. They also mentioned potential garnishment of future wages. The anxiety from those threats was almost worse than the financial hit itself.

I organized everything two ways - chronologically in one file and by document type in another. For each appeal level, I submitted the COMPLETE set of evidence again, even if I had submitted it before. Don't assume they'll look at previous submissions. The "available for work" issue is tricky. Make sure you have documentation of your job search activities for each week they're questioning. The more detailed, the better - names, dates, application confirmation emails, etc. Good luck with your case!

If you're still within the time limit, you might want to try reopening your case. One strategy that sometimes works is getting through to an ESD claims specialist who can review the documentation directly rather than waiting for the formal appeals process. Getting through to ESD by phone is nearly impossible with standard methods, but I've had success using Claimyr (claimyr.com). They have a system that gets you through the phone queue much faster. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 Sometimes talking to the right person can resolve these issues without going through the full appeal process, especially if you have clear evidence your employer reported incorrect information.

thx for the tip. prob too late for me but might help somebody else reading this

About two weeks after the OAH hearing (where the judge seemed skeptical of ESD's evidence), I got a call from an ESD representative who said they'd "reviewed my case further" and were willing to settle. I think they realized they might lose completely if the judge ruled in my favor, so they offered the settlement as a compromise. I probably could have fought for a better deal, but honestly, I was just so exhausted by the whole process that I accepted the 25% offer.

My benefits had already ended when they issued the overpayment notice, so I can't speak to that specific situation. But from what I've heard from others, if you're appealing an overpayment but still receiving benefits, you can continue filing weekly claims. They might hold payments until the appeal is resolved, though.

You should absolutely continue filing weekly claims even if your benefits are temporarily suspended due to an issue or appeal. If you stop filing and later win your appeal, you won't be able to receive retroactive payments for weeks you didn't submit claims. Always continue claiming, even if payments are on hold.

facts!!! took 10 weeks just to get my initial claim approved and now they wanna say i owe them $ for a mistake THEY made. how is that fair???

This is excellent advice. I actually tried the waiver route first but was denied because they determined the overpayment was due to "misreporting" (which it wasn't - it was their error). But the compromise settlement ended up being a good alternative. One thing I learned is that you can pursue multiple options simultaneously - I had both an appeal and a waiver request in process at the same time.

Smart!!! I never thought to log the names of reps I talked to. No wonder my appeal failed - it was basically my word against theirs with nothing to back me up.