Barclays and fast payments.

ANGLICANPAT

I was embarrassed by my ignorance when I came on here a couple of months ago , asking about 'fast payments' - all I knew that was fast, was CHAPS .
Well , I can excuse myself after the morning Ive just had ! I bank with HSBC and thanks to this forum now know who does and doesnt do fast payments. I wanted to pay for a new car today to a main dealership who use Barclays. No probs I thought, Ill do a FP . Just to be on the safe side I rang the Barclays for businesses Head office in Manchester , (which the garage had noted for me as being their bank, along with their own sort and acc no.) It was the same tel line that youd use if you wanted to start up a new business , so I asked the simple question ' Do your clients have the ability to accept fast payments?
This is how the conversation went.
"Fast payment, how do you mean?"
me - Ermm - just the facility to accept instant fast payment.
" Oh you mean CHAPS , yes we do"
me -- No, you pay for that, I mean the newish facility FP-fast payment.I know Barclays do it for ordinary customers, Im just checking its the same for business accounts although I cant imagine it wont be.
"Sorry , I dont know what you mean, Ill have to go and ask a colleague"
3 MIN WAIT WITH THE MUSIC
"Hello, sorry to keep you, no we dont offer fast payment, only the ordinary BACS or CHAPS .
Quick panic by me as I hadnt anticipated a negative.
Got onto the garage (a major dealer) accounts dept. Hi, Ive just spoken to your bank and theyve told me they cant accept fast payments . Thats unbelievable.
"Oh Ive seen fast payments written on things coming in, Im sure we do?"
me-Well its worrying me that your bank didnt know anything about them and are saying no they dont do instant FP's.
"Oh instant payment, you should have said 'CHAPS', no wonder they didnt know what you were taking about , yes CHAPS will be fine"
NO, Id have to pay for Chaps, I MEAN FP, BARCLAYS DO IT FOR ORDINARY CLIENTS!
" Oh,not CHAPS? just a minute Ill ask "

---

" hello , ah well we're a double dealership here, looks like the fast payments Ive seen coming in are the Mazda half ones, we musnt do them . Tell you what give me your number and Ill ring our head office and find out.
Five minutes later
"Hello- Ive been told yes both halves of our company do do fast payments"

Phew, thank goodness but all that unecessary stress. What a gap in knowledge though considering Ive been dealing with Barclays business set up service , and a main dealer accounts dept!

Lokolo

You really should have come here first.

http://www.ukpayments.org.uk/sort_code_checker/

Put in the sort code and it says here whether it can recieve.

ANGLICANPAT

Thanks, thats another good one Ive bookmarked. Wish the MSE list of cans and cants etc was a sticky though, I take a while to find it sometimes.