ESD overpayment waiver stuck in 'pending review' for 10 months - call or wait?

don't just wait!! I had the SAME issue with a $4200 overpayment from that time, and my waiver sat "pending review" for 7 months. I finally got thru to someone at ESD who told me they had actually LOST my supporting documents and the whole thing was just sitting there with nobody working on it. They wouldn't have ever contacted me about it either. You definitely need to talk to a live person or you might be waiting forever.

I work with ESD cases, and unfortunately this is more common than you'd think. The overpayment waiver system has a huge backlog, especially for pandemic-era benefits. The good news is that your debt should be in "collections hold" status while the waiver is under review, meaning they can't actively try to collect while it's pending. That said, I would definitely recommend calling. There's a very real possibility your waiver is stuck in some digital queue without proper assignment. The online portal only shows status, not actual progress. Best to call early in the morning (right when they open at 8am) when wait times are shortest. In the meantime, make sure you have digital copies of ALL documentation you submitted with your waiver request. If they did lose anything, you'll want that ready to resend immediately.

I waited 8 months for my waiver review last year and turns out they needed additional info from me but never sent a notice! Check your spam folder too, they sometimes send emails that get filtered. Good luck!

I had the same problem trying to get through to ESD about my overpayment waiver. I spent like 3 weeks trying to call and always got disconnected or had to hang up after waiting forever. I finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an ESD agent in like 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 Saved me so much time and frustration. The agent I talked to was actually able to escalate my waiver review since it had been sitting there for months. Might be worth trying instead of calling normally.

my sister works at ESD and says theyre super understaffed right now. so ya definitely call bc theres a chance your stuff is just sitting in a digital pile somewhere. the squeaky wheel gets the grease and all that lol

The overpayment waiver process has specific timelines that ESD is supposed to follow. According to WAC 192-220-030, they should make a determination within a reasonable time. Ten months is definitely excessive and indicates your claim may have fallen through the cracks. I'd recommend three things: 1. Call ESD directly and request a status update. Ask for your case to be escalated due to the extended wait time. 2. If calling doesn't work, submit a formal written inquiry through your eServices message center. This creates a paper trail. 3. If all else fails, contact your state representative's office. They often have constituent services that can help with ESD issues. Also, make sure to continue filing your current unemployment claims properly while this older issue is being resolved. The two matters are technically separate in ESD's systems.

UPDATE: I finally got through to ESD this morning after trying since 8am! The agent found my file and said there's actually a SYSTEM GLITCH that's been affecting some waiver requests where they get stuck in the system without being assigned to a claims specialist for review. She's escalated my case and said I should hear something within 5-7 business days. She also added a note that it's been pending an excessive amount of time. For anyone else dealing with this - CALL THEM! Don't just wait like I was doing!