Fixed! Old 2020 ESD claim causing disqualification on new claim - how we got 6 weeks backpay released
Just wanted to share a success story after weeks of stress! My partner's unemployment benefits were showing as 'disqualified' for SIX WEEKS with no explanation. We tried everything - calling daily (never got through), messaging through eServices (no response), even emailing our state rep. Nothing worked. Turns out the disqualification was from an unresolved issue on a 2020 claim that somehow carried over to the new claim filed in March 2025. The system flagged it automatically without any notice explaining WHY it was disqualified! After nearly giving up, we finally connected with an adjudicator yesterday who spent almost 90 minutes reviewing everything. She manually cleared the old issue, removed the disqualification, and approved all 6 weeks of claims. This morning $4,850 appeared in our account! For anyone dealing with mysterious disqualifications - check if you had any previous claims with ESD that might have unresolved issues. The system apparently doesn't forget, even years later. Also sending a formal complaint to the state auditor about this ridiculous system. No one should have to lose six weeks of income because of a glitch from 5 years ago that no one bothered to communicate!
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Mei Wong
That's awesome! But OMG im so worried now. I had a claim in 2020 too that got denied and I never appealed it. Now I'm filing a new claim and worried the same thing might happen??? How did you actually get through to a REAL person? I've been calling for 2 weeks straight and they either hang up on me or I get stuck on hold forever until their office closes.
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Jamal Washington
•It was a nightmare honestly. We called over 40 times using the auto-redial on our phone. Usually got the 'high call volume' message. The day we got through, we started calling at exactly 7:59am right before they opened.
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Liam Fitzgerald
This is unfortunately very common with ESD's system. Those old claim flags don't automatically clear even after years. The technical term is "unresolved issue carryover" and it affects thousands of claimants who had any kind of adjudication issue during previous claim periods. For anyone experiencing this: request an "Issue Resolution Conference" specifically. Don't just ask to speak with a claims agent - they can't override the system flags. You need an adjudicator with supervisor-level access. Make sure to mention the exact dates of both your old and new claims when requesting this. Also, check your "Decisions" tab in eServices. Sometimes there are old determination letters explaining the original disqualification reason that you can reference when speaking with staff.
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Jamal Washington
•Thank you for this info! I wish I'd known to ask for an "Issue Resolution Conference" specifically. We just got lucky that our call was transferred to someone who actually knew what they were doing. The Decisions tab was completely unhelpful in our case - the old letters weren't even showing up anymore.
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PixelWarrior
congrats on finally getting it fixed! similar issue happened to me but with an overpayment from 2021 that i supposedly never paid back (I DID!!) had to wait 8 weeks to get it resolved!! esd needs to fix there systems cus its ridiculous we have to suffer because of their technical problems
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Amara Adebayo
•The reason these issues persist is because ESD uses two separate database systems that don't properly synchronize. Their payment processing system (UTAB) doesn't always communicate correctly with their claims management system (GUIDE). For overpayments specifically, you should always request a "payment ledger" which shows exactly what's been applied to your account. Keep documentation of everything because their systems are notoriously unreliable with historical data.
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Giovanni Rossi
So your telling me that even though my 2019 claim had some kind of issue that I fixed at the time, it could still mess up a new claim in 2025?? That's insane! WHAT KIND OF SYSTEM WORKS LIKE THAT?!? It's like they WANT people to suffer.
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•YES!!! ESD is literally the worst government agency in existence. They denied me for 12 weeks because of an "able and available" issue from 4 years ago that was already resolved! I filed a complaint with the state ombudsman AND my state rep. Nothing happened. Lost my apartment because of their incompetence.
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Amara Adebayo
Glad you got this resolved! For technical clarity on why this happens: ESD's eligibility system maintains what they call "indefinite flags" on claimant accounts. These are supposed to be reviewed during new claim filing, but due to staffing shortages and system limitations, many get automatically applied without human review. The correct procedure should have been: 1. New claim filed 2. System identifies historical flag 3. Adjudicator reviews to determine if still relevant 4. Decision made BEFORE any payments are held Instead, the system applies historical disqualifications automatically and places the burden on claimants to figure out why. It's completely backwards. If this happens to anyone else, specifically request a "Flag Review and Determination" when you call. This is the official process to address historical issues carrying over.
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Jamal Washington
•Thank you for this detailed explanation! If we had known to ask for a "Flag Review and Determination" specifically, we might have saved weeks of stress. The most frustrating part was that nobody told us WHY the claims were disqualified. There was no letter, no message, just a status change to "disqualified" with zero explanation.
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Dylan Evans
this whole thing makes me nervous because i had a messy claim back in 2022 where my employer said i quit but i was actually laid off. we had a whole hearing and everything. i eventually won but now im worried that might somehow come back to haunt me if i ever need unemployment again...
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Liam Fitzgerald
•You should be fine since you ultimately prevailed in your hearing, but it's always good practice to print or save PDF copies of your determination letters showing the favorable outcome. If you log into eServices, go to the "Decisions" section and download anything showing you were eligible after that dispute. Keep those records indefinitely - ESD's system only maintains some documents for 4 years, and you want proof if an old issue resurfaces.
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Fatima Al-Mansour
THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS RIGGED AGAINST US!!! I've been saying this for YEARS!!! They DELIBERATELY make it impossible to reach them and they DELIBERATELY use these old "issues" to deny benefits so they don't have to pay out!!! It's all about protecting their precious trust fund and making claimants suffer. I bet they have performance metrics for adjusters based on how many claims they DENY rather than approve!!
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Mei Wong
•Do you really think it's intentional? I mean that's scary if true. I've been trying to get through for weeks and starting to feel like they're ignoring me on purpose...
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Amara Adebayo
•While ESD definitely has serious system and process problems, there's no evidence of intentional claim suppression. The real issue is that their technology infrastructure dates back to the 1980s with layers of patches and workarounds added over decades. The legislature hasn't funded a complete system overhaul that's desperately needed. The current system was designed for traditional employment patterns, not the modern workforce with multiple jobs, gig work, etc. That's what causes most of these problems, not malicious intent.
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Jamal Washington
UPDATE: Called my state representative's office today and they're collecting similar stories about ESD system problems to present at the next workforce committee meeting. If you've experienced similar issues with old claims affecting new ones, send your story to your rep! Maybe if enough of us complain, they'll finally update their systems.
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PixelWarrior
•good idea! which rep did u contact? i'm in snohomish county and wanna send mine too
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