Authorised Push Payment (APP) scams are where people are conned into authorising their bank to make payment to a fraudster.

The Payments Systems Regulator (PSR) is planning for new protections for consumers, from APP scams, to be in place from September 2018, as an industry code.

The Regulator ran a consultation from November 2017 to January 2018, to give people the opportunity to provide feedback on the regulator’s plans. It gathered opinions from the payments industry, consumer groups and individuals to make sure the PSR could understand how best to protect people from APP scams.

The Changes

Once the industry code is in place, it will be publicly consulted on, for refinement in early 2019 and the regulator expects that it will continue to evolve to ensure preventative measures are kept up to date.

The PSR is also bringing consumer and industry representatives together to establish a dedicated steering group. Led by an independent chair appointed by the PSR, the group will ensure the contingent reimbursement model is designed in the best way to minimise the number of scams in the future and protect victims of scams.

Paul Smith, Head of Policy at the PSR, said:

“This is about making a positive difference for people to protect them from APP scams – where people are tricked into sending money to a fraudster. The banks have already made some changes but, from September 2018, this industry code will see better protections available to everyone.  We expect the code to evolve over time to make sure methods of preventing APP scams are up to date.”

“This is a complex piece of work and we have set a challenging timeline, but it is essential we see, as soon as possible, a model that is effective in protecting people.”

Good progress by the regulator.

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