having money paid into your account electronically

[cheesepie1]

i lent an ex-flatmate some money and he wants to pay it back but electronically. is it safe to let him do this by giving him my account and sort code numbers? or am i being stupid? sorry tired - brain not working. he isn't totally reliable and i don't know him very well really. advice please

Perfectly safe. I only ever really give people money in this way!

Safe and very common way to pay people.

It will be fine, they can't do anything with your account number and sort code except pay money into your account. They wouldn't be able to get into the account and take anything out with only that info. It's far more convenient than having to bank a cheque.

But the advice is to get him to transfer £1 first to make sure no one mis typed the numbers, then after you can see that transaction he can transfer the rest.

if not trustworthy, then ask for something really old fashioned like a cheque. If he knows your name, address, a/c number and sort code then it could be enough to instigate some sort of identity theft.

Make sure he puts a description of what it is for.

You've written cheques, right? The information you're giving him is printed on the front of every cheque you write.

If he knows your name, address, a/c number and sort code then it could be enough to instigate some sort of identity theft.

So you're saying that you should never write cheques to people you don't trust? Because your name, account number and sort code are on the front of every cheque.

OP if you open a PayPal account he could pay you that way, all he'd need is your email address.

CuboidalSlipshoddy
If I'm paying, I wouldn't use a cheque to someone I didn't trust, no. OP is owed money, the onus is on the debtor to repay it. As they are not reliable, I'd wouldn't want to share account details with them.

Maybe having some experience of working with fraud-prevention at a well known retailer has jaundiced my viewpoint, certainly everyone I knew in Profit Protection were very wary about given out that sort of info.

Oh please stop the bollocks. Give him you account and sort code there's fuck all they can do with it other than pay money In.

We have some idiots in our society.

It wouldn't bother me in the least.