Product support

Bank Validation

Our Bank Validation service lets you query whether UK account number & sort code combinations are valid, or check IBANs for most European countries. Available via our API, you can find all you need to know about using the service here.

Frequently asked questions

I know the bank this sort code refers to and the address you return does not match?

Many banks use a central processing depot for their BACS and other transactions. Therefore a BACS check on a specific sort code may return the bank's central depot rather than the specific branch address.

What does the ‘Status Information’ Field contain?

This field contains more detail about the outcome of the validation process and describes reasons why validation failed or changes made to pass validation. ‘DetailsChanged’ indicates that the account and sort code should be changed for BACs submission (check ‘CorrectedAccountNumber’ and ‘CorrectedSortCode'). ‘CautiousOK’ is set where the sort code exists but no validation rules are set for the bank (very rare).

Will a bank account check return information on the account holder?

No, our system does not contain information on individual accounts, only rules that allow us to confirm whether the structure of an account number fits the sort code. Therefore, you will only ever receive information back regarding the sort code, with a confirmation against whether the account number would fit with that sort code.