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Virginia: Online Filing for Unemployment Benefit Claims Gets High Satisfaction Marks

The service has generated a 95 percent approval rating after processing more than 27,000 claims over the Internet.

RICHMOND, Va. -- In May, the Virginia Employment Commission and VIPNet launched a pilot to process unemployment compensation claims over the Internet.

Since then, officials said, more than 27,000 Internet claims have been, which accounts for nearly 10 percent of all unemployment benefit claims filed. VEC officials said they anticipate that up to 25 percent of all unemployment benefit claims will be filed via the Internet in 2003.

Before the online service was introduced, unemployment benefit claims could only be filed in person at a VEC office.

"We believe that Internet claims filings will save Virginia and its claimants more than $2 million annually," said Gov. Mark Warner.

The VEC also developed a customer-satisfaction survey to measure the effectiveness of the online unemployment benefit claim service, and, of the 6,000 survey responses received to date, the service has recorded a 95 percent overall approval rating, and 93 percent of respondents said they would prefer to use the Internet to file future claims with the VEC.

"We have received more than 1,100 electronic comment cards from claim filers in the last six months, which is an extraordinary response to an eGovernment service," said Rodney Willett, general manager of VIPNet, which manages and operates the state's Web site. "The message we're hearing is very clear -- this online system treats unemployed filers with dignity and respects the value of their time."