CHAPS Transfers

A recent case has clarified the position where a CHAPS transfer is made to an account with the correct account number and sort code but the incorrect name on the account. In Tidal Energy Ltd v Bank of Scotland plc ([2013] EWHC 2780 (QB)), the court looked at the CHAPS rules and the terms of the CHAPS transfer form which had been completed by the bank's customer.

The customer had brought a claim against the bank because it had instructed the bank to make a payment to one of its suppliers, giving the bank a sort code and account number to which the payment was made. The name of the account holder was not that of its supplier and the customer had been a victim of a fraud. The court ruled that there was no requirement in the CHAPS rules for the account holder's name to be included and in practice CHAPS...