Confirmation of Payee is a service to make bank transfers safer. It checks that the account holder name and details you typed in match those on the account you’re trying to pay.
We do this by matching the details you enter when making a bank transfer (account holder name, account number and account type) with the recipient's bank. If the details don't match for whatever reason, we'll let you know before you make the payment so you can make an informed decision if you'd like to proceed.
We're doing this to help prevent users from becoming victims of scams.
With Confirmation of Payee, we can warn you if the person you think you're paying has a different name on their account (and could be a fraudster).
The initiative works in reverse, too. If someone else is trying to pay you, their bank will check the details they entered to make sure they match the ones on your Monzo account.
If there’s a mismatch, we’ll warn you before letting you make the payment.
If all the details you typed match the details on the account, we won’t show you any warnings and you’ll go directly to the payment. But if there’s a mismatch or we can’t check the details we’ll let you know before you make the payment.
We’ll let you know if the account details don’t match.
This is useful if the account you’re paying into belongs to a fraudster who’s hiding their identity under a fake name. Remember that once you make a payment to a fraudster, it’s almost impossible to get your money back, so review these warnings carefully and don’t make a payment if you have any doubt at all about who you’re paying.
The warning can also come up if you made a typo on the name – we’ll show you the account holder name so you’ll know if it’s just a typo or if it’s two different names.
This service isn’t available for every bank transfer
Some people might ask their bank to keep their data anonymous, so we can’t always confirm everyone’s details. If this is the case we’ll tell you that the person you’re paying has chosen not to be checked. We won’t be able to tell you if the details match.
There are a few reasons why someone could ask their bank to keep their details anonymous. For example, if they’re a person of public interest. But it could also be a fraudster.
In some cases, the bank you’re sending money to can’t respond to our ‘Confirmation of Payee’ request. This doesn’t mean that the name or account don’t match – it only means that for technical reasons, we can’t do the check right now.
You could try checking again later or contacting the person you’re paying to be sure the details are correct. If you think you’re at risk of being scammed, read this advice on how to spot a scam.
This works for personal, joint, and business accounts where payments are sent in the UK by ‘Faster Payments’, and both banks are signed up to the service. Many UK banks are starting to use the service, which is a good step to help stop fraud.
The UK payment regulator has asked Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, Nationwide Building Society, Royal Bank of Scotland Group and Santander UK to sign up to the Confirmation of Payee scheme. We’ve decided to sign up voluntarily because we think this is a good way to help stop fraud. We'll be rolling it out over the next few days to Monzo customers.
Confirmation of Payee is a great initiative, but it won’t stop all fraud from happening. We’ve put together some guidance so you can spot scams and keep your money protected from fraudsters.
Stay safe!
