In 2023, 4.5 billion transactions were made using the Faster Payments system. According to the PSR, users reported 252,626 cases of APP scams totalling almost £341m. The report shows the percentage of APP scam cases that were fully and partially reimbursed by each firm. Under the existing voluntary reimbursement framework, 67% of money lost to APP scams was reimbursed. While this has improved between 2022 (61%) and 2023 (67%), the regulator says there is still an inconsistent approach by firms when it comes to reimbursing victims. By volume of cases, Nationwide fully reimbursed 96% of the APP scam cases reported to it, followed by TSB which fully reimbursed 95% of cases and Barclays which fully reimbursed in 82% of cases. In contrast, only three percent of cases reported to AIB were fully reimbursed, while Danske Bank fully reimbursed seven percent, and Monzo just nine percent. In terms of value of APP losses, TSB reimbursed 88% of APP scam losses to customers in 2023. Nationwide reimbursed 87% and HSBC reimbursed 76%. Again, the data shows that the chances of getting your money back depends on who you bank with, as AIB Group reimbursed just 9% of APP scam losses, Danske Bank 13%, and Monzo 17%. David Geale, managing director of the PSR, says: “Today’s report highlights how payment firms tackled APP scams and the way they treated those who fell victim in 2023. We can see some positive changes with more victims being reimbursed than in 2022. But there is still more to do - particularly for some smaller firms which have much higher rates of receiving fraud than larger firms. “Our new mandatory reimbursement measures will dramatically increase protection for consumers. These come into effect on 7 October 2024, and we are already seeing payment firms innovating and improving their controls, which is key to preventing scams from happening in the first place.”

Currently, only the sending firm makes any reimbursement, ignoring the vital role receiving firms play in preventing scammers from accessing the UK’s payments systems. Under tthe new model, the cost of reimbursement will be split 50:50 between sending and receiving firms - putting incentives in at the receiving end for the first time. Banking industry lobby groups have been pushing for delays to the introduction of the new rules and want the cap on payouts decreased from £415,000 to £30,000, warning that the costs to smaller firms will be overly-onerous and damaging to competition. UK Finance has highlighted the role of Big Tech in facilitating APP scams. Ben Donaldson, managing director of economic crime at UK Finance says: “Reimbursement is important in the fight against fraud, but it does not solve the problem on its own. Our focus has to be protecting consumers in the first place and that means looking at where fraud originates.

"Our data shows that over 90 per cent of APP fraud starts online or over the phone, through social media, fake messages and calls. Despite this, the technology and telecommunications sectors bear no responsibility for reimbursing victims. That needs to change and these sectors also need to tackle the criminal activity that proliferates on their platforms, sites and networks.”