Fraud

What do I do if I think someone has filed a fraudulent claim for unemployment benefits using my name?
Employees must report potential fraud to ESD through the steps listed below as soon as they suspect fraud. This is because ESD has the legal authority to investigate fraud as well as stop fraudulent claims from being paid. After reporting the fraud to ESD, employees can also let UW know by emailing ischelp@uw.edu.

Contact ESD to report fraud

Employees who are victims of fraud should complete the secure fraud reporting form ESD has provided on its benefits fraud page.

The secure fraud reporting form asks for the following:

• First name and last name
• Date of birth
• Last four digits of your SSN
• Street address
• Contact information
• Claimant or Letter ID
• A brief description of how you found out an impostor-fraud claim was filed using your information. We suggest: “I received a letter about unemployment benefits but I have not applied for benefits. Please deny and cancel the claim.”
• Your permission to cancel the impostor-fraud claim filed using your information.

How do I know someone has filed a fraudulent claim in my name?
When UWHR or ISC staff have reason to believe a fraudulent claim has been filed in an employee’s name, they will contact employees by email (see What is UW doing in response to unemployment fraud? below). Separately, employees may receive unexpected regular mail from ESD about an application for unemployment they did not make, as reported in this Seattle Times article.

What is the UW doing in response to unemployment fraud?
UWHR and ISC staff are responding with a coordinated approach, with the goal of getting suspected fraud reported in two ways. This is in addition to the employee reporting the fraud to ESD (see What do I do if I think someone has filed a fraudulent claim for unemployment benefits using my name?).

1. UWHR will contact employees by email when suspicious claims are filed in their name and will provide them with information about how to report fraud through ESD’s benefits fraud website.
2. ESD provides a weekly notice of claims to ISC which are reviewed and if fraud is suspected, ISC contests the charges.

If there is a fraudulent claim in my name, does that mean I am responsible for the money paid out? What if I need unemployment in the future?
ESD has made it clear that if someone is a victim of fraud, the individual will not have to repay money paid out as a result of fraud. Additionally, if someone is a victim of fraud and then needs to apply for benefits, they will still be able to do so.