Accounts payable · checked 16 October 2026

How to verify a supplier's bank details change

A good procedure is short, done every time, and leaves a record. Here's one a 10-person company can follow, and that auditors and insurers recognise.

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The procedure

Step	What to do	Why
1. Stop	Don't change anything in your accounting system or banking yet. Mark the supplier "change pending".	Most losses happen because the details were updated first and checked later, or never.
2. Collect	Get the new details through a channel you control (a secure form or link), not by email reply.	Email can be read and altered by whoever has access to it.
3. Call back	Phone the supplier on a number you held before the request. Never use a number from the request.	The fraudster controls any contact details in the request.
4. Read back	Ask the supplier to read the new account number and bank to you. Compare.	If you read it out, anyone will say "yes, that's right".
5. Approve	A second person, not the caller, approves the change.	One person can be deceived or pressured; two rarely are at once.
6. Hold	Consider a cooling-off period (for example 24 hours) before the first payment to new details.	Gives time for the real supplier to notice and object.
7. Record	Log who called, which number, when, who confirmed, who approved.	Insurers and auditors ask for it after a loss.
8. Check the payment run	Before paying, compare the payment file with verified details.	Catches changes made directly in the accounting system.

Red flags that should stop the process

• The phone number on file was changed recently, or changes in the same request.
• The supplier won't take a call, or asks you to call a new number.
• The account name doesn't match the supplier's company name.
• The new account is in a different country from the supplier.

Write it down as a policy

Use our free bank details change form and policy wording.

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