Confirmation of Payee
The FAQs are set out to provide you with guidance on our Confirmation of Payee (CoP) process and why it has been put in place.
What is Confirmation of Payee?
CoP is an account checking service for UK GBP payments that helps to make sure they are not sent to the wrong account.
It helps customers and businesses make payments safely by checking the name on an account before a new CHAPS, Faster Payment or Standing Order is set up. It cannot be used for BACS payments, including Direct Debits, at the moment.
CoP is one of the many ways the finance industry is tackling fraud, in particular Authorised Push Payment fraud.
What does Confirmation of Payee mean for me?
If you are paying someone, you will need to:
- Have the full name of the person or business you want to pay. For joint accounts, you only need the first and last name of any of the account holders.
- Choose whether you are paying an individual or Company account.
- Make sure you are confident you are paying the correct individual or company.
- Make sure you provide your full account name to anyone who is paying you.
How to keep your money safe
IMPORTANT: If you have any concerns about a payment that you have been requested to make, please contact your payee directly using a telephone number from a trusted source or official website in order to verify their account details.
By learning to spot the manipulative tactics employed by APP scammers, consumers can protect themselves. Here are a few key warning signs that you may be looking at a scam:
- Changes to account details: If a company or individual you have dealt with in the past is asking you to use a new account with a different name and/or account number, the request might not be legitimate. If in doubt, it’s best to get in touch with them directly.
- An offer is too good to be true: Fraudsters may lure in consumers with promises of cheap deals. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.
- Strange communication: Fraudsters often impersonate a legitimate business or government body. If you receive a communication from a familiar organisation that doesn’t seem right, get in touch directly to check if the communication was from them.
- Pressure to make a payment: Fraudsters often manipulate would-be victims by pressuring them to act quickly, with promises of limited-time offers, or warnings of negative consequences if action isn’t taken. If you are being asked to transfer money or provide personal details urgently, you may be the target of a scam.
- Requests for personal information: If you receive an email or text message asking you to provide personal information such as a password or address, do not provide them. Genuine companies will never ask you to send these details over text or email.
How does Confirmation of Payee work?
When you set up a new payee, or amend an existing payee, we will check the details of the account you are paying against the information that the payee’s bank holds.
Once these have been checked, the main responses you will get are a ‘All details match’, ‘It’s not a full match’ or ‘It’s not a match’.
- Match: The name on the account matches and we will let you continue with the payment.
- It’s not a full match: The account name may be a close match and/or the account type may be wrong. You will need to contact the payee to confirm the correct details in order to continue with the payment.
- It’s not a match: If the account does not match our requirements we will notify you why. This could be one of the following reasons:
- Incorrect name
- Incorrect account number
- The payee’s account does not support CoP
- The payee has opted out of CoP
You will need to contact the payee to confirm the correct details or request other account details if their account does not support CoP.