CBS Colorado Investigation Discovers Over 1,200 Colorado Residents Delayed Unemployment Benefits Due to Integrity Holds
The recent update from Colorado’s unemployment office indicates that while 114,400 people are unemployed in the state, there are only 47,981 active unemployment claims. Out of this number, 2.5% of claims – equivalent to 1,208 people – are currently stuck in program integrity holds, which is an improvement from previous figures last summer when more than 5,000 claims were reportedly held up. A program integrity hold is a unique situation where claims undergo a careful review process conducted by a specialty team to mitigate the risk of payments reaching fraudsters. While this system provides an added level of protection against fraudulent claims, it inadvertently leads to legitimate claims getting held up for longer than expected.
Among the claimants affected by delays is Jill Snider, a resident of southeast Aurora, who had her unemployment money of $19,000 withheld for over a year due to a mishandled submission by a staff member on her claim paperwork. Despite making numerous attempts to rectify the issue, including submitting ten different forms of identity verification, she received no resolution until after CBS News Colorado intervened.
For those facing similar struggles, the advice is to persist in reaching out to the unemployment office. During less busy periods, between 10:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., claimants are advised to call the unemployment customer service to avoid long waiting times. In addition, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment issued a statement highlighting the various improvements made and the steps taken to resolve hold-ups more speedily, including a comprehensive review of the PI hold investigations which led to the implementation of a number of strategic initiatives.
For more assistance, you may also visit eddcaller.com on how to get ahold of edd customer service or how to get through to edd. With resources such as helpful guides and relevant contact information, finding support for your unemployment claims becomes more accessible.