Confirmation of payee explained - what is it and which banks use CoP?

Have you ever been worried that you’re not sending money to the correct person via a bank transfer? Even after entering the recipient’s bank account details, you could still be concerned that it’s definitely going to reach them. This is where confirmation of payee (CoP) has stepped in to provide greater assurance to bank customers. Continue reading our helpful guide on confirmation of payee to find out everything you need to know.

What is confirmation of payee?

Confirmation of payee is an account name checking service that helps to make sure payments aren’t sent to the wrong bank or building society account. It provides a new way of checking account details that gives customers greater assurances of where their money is going, and helps to avoid accidentally sending money to the wrong person or account.

Confirmation of payee helps you safely check the name of the account that you’ve entered when transferring money or setting up a standing order.

CoP also provides another layer of protection against fraud and scams, and you now need to know a payee’s name in order to send money to them, just like you would do with a cheque. If sending to an individual, you would need their full first and last name.

How does confirmation of payee work?

So, how exactly does confirmation of payee work? Well, when setting up a new payee on your bank account, or amending the details of an existing one, you can check the name of the account holder alongside their account number and sort code.

Once you’ve entered all of the bank account details of the payee you’re planning to send money to, you will get one of three messages in return from your bank before confirmation of payment. They are:

• Match
• Partial match
• No match

Match

If your online banking (via an app on your smartphone or a website on a computer) returns a ‘match’ for the details you’ve inputted, then everything is clear for you to go ahead with the payment.

This confirms that the details you’ve entered match the person you’re attempting to send the money to, allowing you to then complete the confirmation of payment.

Partial match

If you’ve used a similar name to the account holder, then you’re likely to return a ‘partial match’ response. Your bank may then offer the name they have on record for the details you’ve entered and check to see if you’d like to update what you’ve entered. You could also go back to the payee you’re intending to pay and double check their information, then try again.

If trying to pay somebody under the age of 13, their account name will not show up as a correction.

No match

If you have entered the incorrect information for your intended payee, your bank will tell you that there is no match. You can then try to double check the information with the payee.

You can also choose to ignore the ‘no match’ alert and go ahead with the payment, but your bank may not be able to retrieve the money if it is sent to the incorrect payee.

Which banks use confirmation of payee?

Almost all banks in the UK have signed up to confirmation of payee, with the six main banking groups forced to join by March 2020.

Other smaller banks, like Starling, M&S Bank, and Monzo all joined up in 2020 too, providing their customers with added security.

The increased use of smartphones in the 21st century has seen a rise in the number of mobile-only banking services like Monzo and Starling, so joining confirmation of payee was an important selling point to attract new customers away from the larger corporations.

Bacs payment services at Interbacs

Interbacs was established by Bacs software developing experts with more than 30 years of experience in Bacs payment services and business payment software delivery. Over the years, we have developed a well-rounded team of developers, project managers and banking experts to provide the ultimate support for all your Bacs payments processing needs.

We concentrate on delivering the highest quality payment and collection solutions. The friendly, professional and efficient processing team at Interbacs is always on hand to answer your phone calls with a smile and a listening ear.

Direct debit solutions at Interbacs

Interbacs offers market leading direct debit solutions. As one of the first Bacs Solution Suppliers in the UK, we have a wealth of experience in delivering first-class direct debit systems. We have a range of products and services that can help you to manage your cash flow, from our Bacs Approved Bureau to our InterPay Bacs payment software. Our software has a fully integrated validation suite that not only verifies the bank data against the EISCD, but also validates the payers’ name against the bank account. We can also perform basic identity checks to confirm the payees are who they say they are.

Our direct debit solutions make signing up new customers a quick, easy and streamlined process. You can browse our complete selection online. If you would like to find out more about confirmation of payee, or if you require any further assistance, do not hesitate to contact us.