What is authorised push payment (APP) fraud?

Authorised push payment (APP) fraud happens when you are tricked by a criminal into sending money by bank payment to an account which you do not control.

Every year thousands of people and businesses are victims of APP fraud. Common types of APP fraud include:

• Purchase scams, where criminals pretend to sell things that don’t exist.
• Impersonation fraud, where criminals claim to be someone from a bank, the police or another trusted organisation to steal money.
• Romance fraud, when criminals use a fake dating profile to start a relationship with you and then ask for money.
• Invoice fraud, where fraudsters send false invoices.

How to protect yourself from APP fraud

Criminals are experts at impersonating people, organisations, and the police. They spend hours researching you for their scams, hoping you’ll let your guard down for just a moment. Stop and think. It could protect you and your money. Before making a payment, follow the advice from Take Five to Stop Fraud:

• Take a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or personal information. It could keep you safe.
• Ask yourself, could it be fake? It’s ok to reject, refuse or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you.
• Do your research and be suspicious of any too-good-to-be-true offers or prices.
• Remember, your bank or the police will never ask you to transfer money to a safe account.

When you are making a payment:

1. Always follow any advice or warnings Kroo or other financial institutions may provide when making payments.
2. Kroo might ask you extra questions about a payment. This is to help keep you safe. Always answer these questions truthfully. If someone is asking you to lie or telling you what to say to your bank, then it’s very likely to be a scam.

It might take slightly longer for a payment to leave your account. This is so your Kroo has time to do extra checks to keep you safe from fraud.

What are APP fraud reimbursement rules?

Important changes to rules on how banks and other payment service providers reimburse victims of Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud were introduced on the 7th of October 2024. 

The new rules, that have been set by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), the body that regulates payment systems in the UK, help to protect victims of fraud. They define the ways in which APP fraud claims may be eligible for a payment refund. The new rules only apply to payments made on, or after 7 October 2024. 

What do the rules cover?

Covered:

• Payments made within the UK. You are not covered for a payment sent overseas.
• Payments made using Faster Payments (a quick way of sending money between bank accounts).
• Payments made using CHAPS.
• Payments from personal accounts if they are not being used for trade or business.
• Payments made by micro-enterprises and certain charities.

Your bank or service provider may have different rules and processes if you’re sending money within the same organisation. They will make you aware of this if the rules are different.

Not covered:

There are some situations where you won’t be able to get your money back. This includes if:

• you haven’t taken the steps needed to meet the Consumer Standard of Caution. There's more information about this below.
• You paid using cash, a cheque, or a credit, debit, or prepaid card.
• It’s a civil dispute: for example, if you've paid a genuine retailer or business but you aren’t satisfied with the product or service you’ve received.
• You have acted fraudulently yourself – including if you have lied or misrepresented your circumstances for financial gain.
• It’s a payment you have made to another account that you control.
• The payment you made is unlawful: for example, if the payment was for an illegal item.
• It's a payment to and from an account with a credit union, municipal bank, or a national savings bank (state-owned savings bank in the UK).

If a payment is taken from your account by someone else without your permission, it is called unauthorised fraud. For example, if your card is stolen and used to buy something in a shop or online. There are separate rules that cover this type of fraud. Contact us immediately if you spot any transactions that you do not recognise.

What is the Consumer Standard of Caution?

Banks do not have to reimburse money lost in an APP fraud if you have not taken certain steps before and after you make the payment. These steps are known as the Consumer Standard of Caution.

• You need to follow any warnings from Kroo such as an alert that the payment you are making is fraud or could be fraud.
• You must report the fraud as soon as you can, and no more than 13 months after the last fraudulent payment was made.
• Kroo may ask you for additional information about your claim. You need to make sure you respond to these requests.
• Once you have made a claim, Kroo may ask you to report the details of the fraud to the police, or we may offer to do this on your behalf. You should consent to these steps being taken. You also need to follow any instructions from the police or the National Crime Agency.

Kroo may not reimburse money lost in an APP fraud if you have shown a significant degree of carelessness (known as ‘gross negligence’) when making a payment. This would mean you would not have met the Consumer Standard of Caution.

What should I do if I think I have been scammed?

Contact Kroo immediately if you have lost money in an APP fraud.

From the 7th October 2024, we have a dedicated in-app flow for reporting scam claims. This method is the fastest and easiest way to report a scam claim and gives Kroo the maximum opportunity to retrieve your funds.

1. Go to the 'Home' tab in your Kroo app
2. Find the transaction in question in your transaction list
3. Tap on the transaction, then tap the 'Issue with this transaction' prompt in the 'Get Help' section.
4. Select the option ‘I believe this was a scam’
5. Follow the steps in the app to report the scam and answer the question in the chat bot
6. Give us as many details as you can so that we can investigate your claim.

You must report the fraud no more than 13 months after the last fraudulent payment was made.
The maximum amount of money you can claim under the rules is £85,000.

We may ask you for information or documents to help investigate your claim. This could include receipts or invoices, police crime reports and screenshots. Please always supply this information as quickly as possible so we can investigate promptly. We will contact you via the Kroo in-app chat if we have any questions or need further detail from you. 

You should also report fraud to Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting centre. You can contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or at http://www.actionfraud.police.uk. If you are in Scotland, please report it to Police Scotland directly by calling 101.

How long will it take to be reimbursed?

Every claim will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. As part of the process Kroo will consider the evidence presented by you, any service providers involved and – where relevant – a third party, such as the police.

If your claim is valid, in some cases you should be reimbursed within five business days of making a claim. Business days are Monday to Friday and exclude all UK bank holidays and include additional holidays in Northern Ireland and Scotland.

In some cases it can take up to 35 days to be reimbursed. This is when we need extra time to gather information from you, the bank that received the payment, or any third party involved to complete our assessment of the case. 

We will always keep you updated of the status of your claim through the Kroo in-app chat. 

Is there any Excess?

An excess of up to £100 may be deducted from any money that is reimbursed as per PSR guidance. Kroo will always confirm in writing the excess applied when providing reimbursement. Special consideration may be applied where we determine there are vulnerable circumstances.