Confirmation of Payee FAQs
Confirmation of Payee adds an extra layer of protection in the fight against fraud and scams. It makes it more likely that your payments are being routed to the intended recipient and not accidentally or fraudulently misdirected to the wrong account.
Confirmation of Payee adds an extra layer of protection in the fight against fraud and scams. It makes it more likely that your payments are being routed to the intended recipient and not accidentally or fraudulently misdirected to the wrong account.
Confirmation of Payee applies to UK-based payments into and out of your account. It does not apply to international payments.
When you set up a new payee or amend an existing payee’s details, you will be asked to verify that the account belongs to the person or business you intend to pay before making the payment. Confirmation of Payee will then inform you whether the details you have entered match the account of the person or business you are paying.
To ensure payments are correctly sent and received:
- Use the payee’s full name or business name that is on their bank account. Please note:
- This will be the name that is used in communications such as bank statements
- It may be different to the name that is on the bank card
- For businesses, this may be different to a trading name
- For joint accounts, only one of the names registered to the account is required
- Do not use shortened names or abbreviations
- State whether the payment is to a business or a personal account
- Do not add information to the payee’s name such as an invoice number – this can be added as a reference in the payment description
Please note – not all banks are required to have Confirmation of Payee capability yet.
Currently, Confirmation of Payee is only mandatory for the largest UK banks. However, as it helps protect against fraud and misdirected payments, other banks have decided to voluntarily join the service. This means that participants are at different implementation stages, and efforts are being made to ensure all participants can check a wider range of account types. In the interim, you may find that even when both the payee and the payer’s bank are using Confirmation of Payee, it may not always be possible to check the account details.
Checks are made to ensure the account details provided match those held by the bank of the person or business being paid. This applies to new payees and changes to existing payees.
After you have entered the details of the person or business you intend to pay, you will get one of the results below:
Yes, match
You have entered the correct name of the account holder and can proceed with the payment.
No, close match
You have used a similar name to the account holder, for example, an abbreviated version of their original name rather than a first and last name or have a spelling mistake. You will be given the correct name of the account holder to confirm. If you recognise the name provided, you can either choose to proceed with the payment, update the details so the name can be checked again, or contact the intended recipient to confirm their details.
Always stop and think before ignoring a Confirmation of Payee response if the details do not match.
No match, check before proceeding further
If the account details you enter are different to those held by the bank of the person you are paying, you will be advised that the details do not match. It could be possible that you are being targeted by criminals and the payment is being requested for fraudulent purposes.
Always stop and make further checks if the details do not match – check the account details of the person or business you wish to pay by calling them, preferably using a published telephone number on an official website for example.
Further information on how to protect yourself from fraud can be found here.
Confirmation of Payee unavailable
If an account is not available through Confirmation of Payee, whether temporarily or otherwise, you will be notified that the name is unable to be confirmed. You can try again later or if you do wish to continue, only do so if you are certain the details you have entered are correct. Please contact the person you are paying if you are unsure.
Never set up a new payee without verifying the details first. We recommend this is done verbally to mitigate potential fraudulent activity.
Please try again later or contact us for assistance.
Private Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2600
Commercial Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2100
Yes – we will keep your data secure. Banks and other payment providers use secure technology to safely exchange Confirmation of Payee information with other participants.
All participants undergo rigorous security checks and are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
After your account is opened, it may take up to two business days before other banks are able to verify it as part of their Confirmation of Payee checks. If you have any concerns or would like to verify your account details are correct, please call:
Private Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2600
Commercial Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2100
Confirmation of Payee will not prevent fraud entirely but is one of a range of measures used by the industry to help combat fraud and the organised criminal groups responsible. It helps prevent sending payments to an unintended recipient, making accidental or misdirected payments to the wrong account holder, as well as providing another layer of protection in the fight against fraud.
Situations where the name you enter does not match could well be a fraudulent transaction or a scam. We recommend that you do not proceed with a payment if any of the details do not match unless you have conducted additional checks and are 100% sure the account information is correct.
You should also be alert to criminals who try to beat Confirmation of Payee by either asking victims to ignore negative results, or, who ask victims to pay an account in a different name (e.g. a personal account when it should be a business account) to get a positive match.
Be aware that if you proceed with a payment, we might not be able to recover the money for you.
Further information on how to protect yourself from fraud can be found here.
Every time you set up a new payee you will be required to verify the details are correct before it is saved to your payee list. Once verified, you will only be required to verify this payee again if you change any of their details.
You should contact the payee to clarify the details before you make any payment to ensure you have the correct details.
You need the name of just one of the joint account holders, exactly as it appears on their account to be able to get a match.
You need the business name exactly as it appears on an invoice or payment instruction you have been given – remember, some businesses have more than one trading name. If you are in any doubt, please confirm with the payee.
Batch files fall outside of the Confirmation of Payee service offered by Arbuthnot Latham at this time. We recommend you never set up a new payee without verifying the details first.
If you need to add a reference to a payment, for example when paying a bill, you can add this to the ‘Description’ field of your payment in online banking. We recommend you enter the account and reference number first, followed by the name of the ultimate beneficiary when using a secondary reference, such as a credit card number or utility bill details.
You cannot opt out of Confirmation of Payee checks when you are making a payment to someone else. You are automatically included in this service as it adds an extra layer of protection, which makes it less likely that you will fall victim to fraud or use the wrong account information by accident.
However, you can request to opt out of your details being checked when someone is paying you. Opting out means that people trying to pay you through a bank registered for Confirmation of Payee will not be able to validate your account details. This may cause problems as people trying to pay you may be uncomfortable sending money if your account details cannot be verified.
You can still request to opt out by calling us. If your request to opt out is successful, when a person or a business tries to pay you, they will not be able to check your details. This will be the case for all your accounts, including any joint accounts. To do this please call:
Private Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2600
Commercial Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2100
If you opt out and then change your mind, please call:
Private Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2600
Commercial Banking Support: +44 (0)20 7012 2100
If you have a complaint relating to Confirmation of Payee, please follow our complaints process here.