In February 2020 Colorado had the fifth-lowest unemployment rate in the country at 2.5%. With the pandemic sweeping the nation and hitting Colorado’s ski, hospitality, and retail sectors especially hard, the unemployment rates rose dramatically in March to 4.5%. While the economy is bouncing back we now have unintended consequences from the loads of unemployment claims filed: unemployment insurance fraud.
The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) estimates that 1.2 million fraudulent claims for benefits have been filed through the state’s unemployment system, surpassing the just under 1 million valid claims filed since March 2020. Before the pandemic, the state dealt with fewer than 100 fraudulent claims a year. Stay aware. Be vigilant. And if a fraudulent case is opened in your name, start by reporting the fraud to the CDLE and then use this FREE UNEMPLOYMENT FRAUD GUIDE to help protect your information.