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See how Confirmation of Payee works

Understand how Confirmation of Payee helps verify bank details for secure UK payments.

Marianna avatar
Written by Marianna
Updated over a month ago

Confirmation of Payee (CoP) is like having a safety check before you pay, helping ensure you're sending money to the right person.

For all UK payments in pounds, we automatically check if the bank details match the supplier name you've entered. You'll see the result before authorising any payment.

Understanding the results

  • Full match – The name matches the bank account exactly

  • Close match – Names are similar but not identical, worth double-checking

  • No match – The account belongs to someone with a different name. Verify before paying

  • Couldn't check – The bank doesn't use this system, proceed carefully

  • Invalid details – The account number or sort code is incorrect. Double-check the details and input them manually before proceeding

We automatically flag bank details that need attention, including incomplete information, failed CoP checks, accounts with previous payment failures, and mismatched names or addresses.

If something's flagged

  1. Check the details carefully against your records

  2. Contact your supplier to confirm the correct information

  3. Update the details in Apron

  4. The flag disappears once everything's sorted

For international payments, we verify IBAN formats are correct, BIC/SWIFT codes are valid, account numbers match the country's format, and the currency is supported for that destination.

Best practices: Always verify bank details before first payments, keep contact information updated when suppliers notify you of changes, pay attention to CoP results, and regularly review your contact records.

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