The maximum refund for authorised push payment fraud

If a scammer persuaded you to send money by bank transfer, the rules that came into force on 7 October 2024 require your bank or payment firm to reimburse you in most cases, up to a maximum of £85,000 per claim¹. That cap is the single most important number on this page, and it is a limit per claim rather than per payment, so several transfers made as part of one scam are treated together³.

The £85,000 figure was not the regulator's first choice. The Payment Systems Regulator originally proposed a maximum of £415,000 per claim, a level it said would have protected 98 per cent of the value of APP scams⁴. The final level was set at £85,000, which matches the limit used by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme⁵.

Alongside the cap sits an excess: firms may deduct up to £100 from a claim¹. The regulator has said that while the excess affects roughly 30 per cent of cases by volume, it represents less than 1 per cent of the total value of APP fraud cases². There is no minimum loss needed to claim⁷.

Maximum refund: up to £85,000 per claim

The reimbursement requirement obliges payment firms to reimburse all in-scope customers who fall victim to APP fraud in most cases¹⁰. The maximum amount a consumer can claim back is £85,000¹. The same figure appears across the guidance published by banks and building societies: one states the total claim limit is up to £85,000¹¹, another sets out a maximum claim amount of £85,000 for each payment¹², and a third confirms the maximum you can claim under this right is £85,000¹³.

The cap is not a target and it is not a guarantee. It is the ceiling on what the rules require a firm to pay. Below that ceiling, the amount reimbursed depends on what was lost and on whether any exclusion or refusal ground applies. The regulator's own scheme rules describe the sending firm deducting from the value of a reimbursable payment anything exceeding the maximum level¹⁴.

The £85,000 figure also lines up with the deposit protection limit, which one bank notes was chosen to match the Financial Services Compensation Scheme⁵. That parallel matters to a reader because it means the two main safety nets for money held or moved through a bank are set at the same level.

The £415,000 limit that was proposed and then cut

The regulator consulted in Q3 2023 on the appropriate maximum value for APP fraud claims¹⁵. In December 2023 it published a policy statement setting the maximum level of mandatory reimbursement at £415,000, a level it said applied to all consumers, including vulnerable consumers². The same document described the maximum reimbursement level as £415,000 per claim for APP scams over Faster Payments².

That figure did not survive. The final requirement uses £85,000, and the regulator's own consultation record shows the change of direction: it had said it would introduce a maximum level of reimbursement by value and consult on the appropriate maximum¹⁰. The Which? response to the consultation records that 98 per cent of the value of APP scams would have been protected under a £415,000 cap⁴.

The practical effect of the cut is that very large losses are only partly covered. APP fraud losses reached £576.4 million in 2025, a 19 per cent increase on the previous year¹⁶. For comparison, losses totalled £485.2 million in 2022¹⁵. The cap means the small number of cases above £85,000 fall outside the mandatory requirement, and a reader who has lost more than that should look at what happens if you lose more than £85,000 to a bank transfer scam.

The £100 excess and when it does not apply

An excess of up to £100 may apply to a claim¹⁷. One bank explains it plainly: a £100 excess could apply to any eligible claim, which means it would not reimburse that amount if the claim was successful¹⁸. Another states it may apply an excess of up to £100 to a claim under the scheme⁵, and a building society describes a maximum excess of £100 on an APP scam claim¹⁹. One provider notes claims under the scheme may be subject to an excess currently set at £100²⁰.

The excess is a deduction, not a fee you pay upfront. It reduces the refund by up to £100, so a claim for a small loss may produce little or nothing back. The regulator's figures put the scale in context: the excess affects approximately 30 per cent of cases by volume but less than 1 per cent of the total value of APP fraud cases².

The regulator consulted specifically on the excess and the maximum level of reimbursement and on how the maximum should apply to vulnerable customers⁸. The reimbursement requirement includes additional protections for vulnerable customers⁶, and the ombudsman has said that if the rules apply and you were particularly vulnerable to the specific type of APP scam, your bank or payment provider must reimburse you²². The £100 excess is covered in more detail on the £100 excess on bank transfer scam refunds.

Payments covered: Faster Payments and CHAPS

The reimbursement requirement was introduced within Faster Payments²³. Payments made using Faster Payments are covered², and the rules require banks and other payment service providers to reimburse you up to a maximum of £85,000 if you are the victim of an APP scam²².

CHAPS is covered under separate rules. The regulator's consolidated policy statement includes the requirements for reimbursement of APP fraud committed over the CHAPS payment system²⁴, and it consulted on the value of the excess and maximum level of reimbursement for Faster Payments while putting questions on a maximum reimbursement level for CHAPS on behalf of the Bank of England⁸. The consultation set out a path to reducing the impact of this type of fraud by making sure more victims of fraud get their money back⁸.

The distinction matters because the payment system used decides whether the mandatory rules apply at all. A transfer sent through Faster Payments or CHAPS sits inside the scheme. A payment made another way may not, which is why the next section sets out the exclusions in full.

Where the refund limit does not apply

The reimbursement requirement does not apply to a list of payment types and circumstances. The regulator's consolidated statement sets out that it does not apply to payments which take place across other payment systems, payments made before 7 October 2024, international payments, payments made for unlawful purposes, and civil disputes⁷.

Consumer guidance adds further exclusions: international payments, card payments, cryptocurrency transfers, payments to accounts the consumer controls, civil disputes, payments sent or received by credit unions, municipal banks and national savings banks, first-party fraud, gross negligence, payments before 7 October 2024, and claims made more than 13 months after the last payment²⁵. The Consumer Council for Northern Ireland summarises the position as reimbursement to a maximum of £85,000 with conditions where it does not apply²⁶.

Two of those exclusions deserve their own pages. International transfers sit outside the scheme, which is covered on are international transfers covered by scam refund rules?. Gross negligence is a ground on which a firm can refuse, covered on gross negligence: when a bank can refuse a scam refund. The consumer standard of caution, which sets out what counts as being careful enough, is explained on the consumer standard of caution.

How to claim and how long a refund takes

The regulator says customers will be more protected under consistent minimum standards, with most APP fraud victims being reimbursed within five business days⁶. One bank describes a five working day investigation period, after which, if the claim is approved, it will reimburse up to the maximum²⁷. Another says that in some cases it can take up to 35 business days to be reimbursed²⁸.

The reimbursement rate in the first three months of the policy was reported as 86 per cent and has since been revised up to 87 per cent²⁹. That figure covers the value of APP scams below the £100 excess, above the maximum cap of £85,000, and transactions with other characteristics the dashboard tracks²⁹.

The steps are straightforward. Report the scam to your bank as soon as possible, keep any evidence of the payments and the contact with the fraudster, and submit the claim within the 13 month window⁹. Your provider then investigates. If the claim is refused, the refusal grounds are narrow: a provider can decline if it can prove you were not careful enough when you made the payment, or that you were involved in the fraud³⁰. The process is set out in more detail on claiming a refund from your bank after a push payment loss.

Who pays, and what to do if the refund is refused

The firm that sent the payment reimburses you. The rules require payment firms to reimburse all in-scope customers who fall victim to APP fraud in most cases¹⁰, and the maximum your bank has to pay you is currently £85,000³¹. The regulator has also set out how the cost is shared between sending and receiving firms, but that is behind the scenes and does not change who pays you.

If your bank refuses, you can complain to it and then take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which handles complaints about scams where you were tricked into making a payment²². The ombudsman's role is to look at whether the firm handled the claim correctly, including whether a refusal ground genuinely applies. More on that route is on taking a refused scam refund to the Financial Ombudsman and how to complain to your bank about a scam refund.

Free, impartial help is available. The Consumer Council for Northern Ireland publishes guidance on how to stop, avoid and report scams²⁶, and the Take Five campaign explains how APP scams work and what to watch for³². If a loss has left you struggling with debt, Business Debtline offers free guidance on dealing with fraud³³.