Confirmation of Payee (CoP) is a name-checking service designed to help protect you from fraud and payment mistakes when making payments through the Faster Payments Service.
Before you send a payment, CoP checks whether the recipient's name matches the account details held by their bank. This helps you confirm that the payment details belong to the person or business you intend to pay.
When you create a new payee or update an existing one, CoP verifies the recipient's name against their account number and sort code before the payment is completed.
Your data security
To perform this verification, banks and payment service providers securely exchange the information needed to confirm whether the payment details match.
The CoP process includes robust security measures, and all participating banks are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
How CoP works
When you create a new payment or update an existing payee, you provide:
The recipient's name
Their account number
Their sort code
We compare these details with the information held by the recipient's bank and display the verification result before the payment is completed.
The verification is performed in real time and typically takes only a few seconds.
Understanding your verification result
Verification result | What it means | What you should do |
Confirmation of Payee Matched | The recipient's name matches the account details held by their bank. | Review the payment details and continue if everything is correct. |
There may be a match on the account name | The name you entered is similar to the name registered on the recipient's account, but it is not an exact match. | Carefully review the details. Minor spelling differences or name variations may be the cause. If you are unsure, confirm the details with the recipient before proceeding. If you continue and the payment is sent to the wrong account, we may not be able to recover the funds. |
Account name does not match | The name you entered does not match the name registered on the recipient's account. | Contact the person or business you are trying to pay and confirm their details before proceeding. If you continue without correcting the information and the payment is sent to the wrong account, we may not be able to recover the funds. |
Other verification results
You may also see messages such as:
Invalid Customer Reference
Account has been switched
Account type not supported for CoP
Opted out of CoP scheme
IBAN not supported at endpoint
Secondary Reference Data Required
Service Unavailable
If you receive one of these responses, carefully review the payment details and confirm them directly with the person or business you are paying before proceeding.
Important
A successful verification confirms only that the recipient's name matches the account details held by their bank. It does not guarantee that a payment is free from fraud or that the recipient is trustworthy.
Please note that account holders under the age of 13 cannot be matched through the CoP service.
Still need help? Our team is here to support you. Please contact us via the Chat with us option in your Viva.com account.