Introduction to Current Account Switch

This module covers the automated switch of a current account from the old to the new bank. Both accounts must be held in UK institutions. This module supports clients in the role of the acquiring and ceding party and includes the interfacing with the central UK Accounts Switch Service.

Customer Request for Switch

Banks in the United Kingdom offer account switch facility that allows individuals and non-individual customers to switch their current accounts from one financial institution to another.

The switch request can be a full switch that applies to all individual customers and small and medium businesses or a partial switch that applies to the large business and corporates.

The key difference between these switches is that a full switch requires a transfer of all the payments, standing order and direct debits from the old account to the new account.

The full switch also requires the entire funds from the old account to be moved to the new account. On the contrary, a partial switch allows the customer to select a specific list of payment arrangements that needs to be moved from the old account to the new account while retaining the old account without a closure.

A request for an account switch is always initiated at the acquiring bank. This functionality is applicable whenever the bank assumes the role of an acquiring bank for transferring in the current accounts from a ceding bank.

With this functionality, the customers can request their bank to initiate a current account switch through the multiple channels by submitting a paper form in the bank counters, initiation of request through the internet banking or mobile banking.

The following items have been released as part of this functionality:

• The UKCASS.ACCOUNT.TRANSFER.ORDER version has been introduced to facilitate the customers, in case of an electronic request, and the bank users in case of a manual request, to capture the information related to the initiation of switch.
• The UKCASS.ACCOUNT.TRANSFERIN application is used for recording both full switch and partial switch requests from the customer and to initiate the switch request with the ceding bank.
• The UKCASS.ACCOUNT.TRANSFER.ORDER,INPUT.SWITCH.DETAILS version has been introduced to initiate an account switch for the current accounts held by individual customers and sole traders.
• The UKCASS.ACCOUNT.TRANSFER.ORDER,CORP.SWITCH.DETAILS version has been introduced to initiate an account switch for the corporate current accounts held by individual customers.

There will be validations in place when a new request is initiated for an account switch. The validations will include checking the status of the underlying customer, account validations including the check for posting restrictions, dormancy check, etc. Further, the switch requested date will be validated for holidays and the ceding bank will be checked for participation in the switch service.