PFS Your Alternative Banking Provider

Confirmation of Payee

What is Confirmation of Payee?

Confirmation of Payee is a UK account name-checking service. Before the launch of Confirmation of Payee, sort codes and account numbers were only used by banks to determine where a payment was being sent in the UK. Confirmation of Payee adds an extra layer of security to protect consumers and businesses further by enabling them to check that the account name entered matches the account they are planning to pay as well as by alerting payers in case of any discrepancies.

Sending a Payment:

When sending a payment, it is important to check you have the right details for the person or business you wish to pay. For individuals, this will be their first and last name. For businesses, this will need to be the name registered to their bank account, which may be the same as their trading name. We recommend confirming the account name when setting up a new payment before sending it. You will need your payee’s:

Full First Name and Last Name (or Business Name)
Sort Code
Account Number
Account Type (Personal account or Business Account)

When making a payment, the Confirmation of Payee service will provide one of the following responses:

Match – If you have used the correct account name, you will receive confirmation that the details match and can proceed with the payment.

Close Match – If you have used a similar name to the account holder, you will be provided with the actual name of the account holder to check (e.g Alex Smith vs. Alexander Smith). You can update the details and try again or contact the intended recipient to check the details.

No-Match – If you have entered the wrong name for the account holder, you will be told that the details do not match and be advised to contact the person/business you are trying to pay.

Unavailable – Sometimes Confirmation of Payee will not be able to match the account that you are trying to pay. This occurs when it is not possible to check the name, for example as a result of timeout, opt-out or if the account doesn’t exist. This may also be because the financial institution managing the account you are paying from or to has not yet enabled this functionality.

Receiving a Payment:

When you’re expecting a payment, it’s important that the person sending it is given the correct details. Remember, someone may not send the payment if the name they use does not match the one on your account. The sender of the payment will need your:

Full First Name and Last Name (or Business Name)
Sort Code
Account Number
Account Type (Personal account or Business Account)

Opting out of Confirmation of Payee:

Confirmation of Payee (CoP) is a mechanism used to mitigate the chance of inadvertent or mistaken payments being made to the wrong Payee. By confirming details of the Payee, CoP provides account holders a degree of comfort that payments are being made to the intended Payee and reduces the chances of fraud. Therefore, we strongly recommend that account holders remain opted-in to the service.

It is important to note, that CoP is mandatory for account holders when making a payment. However, account holders are entitled to opt out of CoP where a payment is being received on their account. This means, where a payment is being received, the account holders account details will be unavailable for verification by the Payer. Instead, the Payer will see a message indicating the Payee’s details cannot be confirmed.

When choosing to opt-out of CoP, it is important that account holders consider the impact of the choice and how opting out may affect the fluidity in receiving payments. Payer’s may be deterred from making payments to a Payee unable to be confirmed.

Account holders that wish to opt-out of CoP may do so by completing a CoP opt-out/opt-in application. PFSL will review opt-out/opt-in request and provide a response within 5 working days.

Account holders that choose to opt-out of CoP are not prohibited from re-entrance. To re-enter CoP, an account holder must complete the opt-out/opt-in application. PFSL will review opt-out/opt-in request and provide a response within 5 working days.