What is a standing order?

How do standing orders work?

With a standing order, you instruct your bank or building society to set up a fixed payment that automatically goes out on an agreed date, both of which you can control.

A standing order can be used to pay people, organisations, or to move money between your accounts.

When would you use a standing order?

You would typically use a standing order when needing to repeatedly make the same payment that won’t need to change in the near future.

This could be for:

• Rent or mortgage payments
• Subscriptions such as for streaming, magazines, memberships etc.
• Splitting household expenses with a partner
• Making regular deposits into your savings

Pros and cons of standing orders

Before setting up a standing order, it worth considering the pros and cons:

How to set up a standing order

You can set up a standing order yourself directly through your bank or building society, including online or on your phone, but this can vary between providers.

You’ll then need both the sort code and account number of the account you’re sending the money to. You may also need to add a reference if the account you’re paying isn’t yours to help the payee recognise your payment.

How to change a standing order

A standing order can also be changed through your provider, usually online or by app though again it’s worth checking with your provider to see what other options are available.

From there, you should be able to navigate to your scheduled payments and amend the amount, frequency or date of the standing order. Keep in mind that it could take a couple of days for any changes to take effect, meaning any imminent payments could still go out unchanged.

What happens if you switch bank accounts?

If you decide to move current accounts, any standing orders should be automatically transferred across, provided you use the Current Account Switch Service (CASS).

Be aware that as the switching process typically takes up to seven working days, any new standing orders set up during this time may not be transferred across.

What happens if a standing order fails?

A standing order may be refused for many reasons, including if there are issues with your, or the recipient’s provider. However, the most common case is that there are not enough funds in your account to make the payment.

When this happens, some banks or building societies may try to take the payment again or will cancel the standing order outright if a certain number of payments fail consecutively. You may also be charged a fee, and certain providers may even force the payment, resulting in you going into your overdraft.

You’ll also need to consider the consequences of missing a payment, particularly if it was intended for something important like your rent or bills.

To avoid this, it may be worth setting up a small interest-free overdraft with your provider (if available) to act as a buffer zone if you know you won’t have enough to pay beforehand, or as a safeguard for unexpected shortages. This could give you time to transfer in funds from your alternative accounts or to make other arrangements.

How to cancel a standing order

You usually have the option to set an end date when setting up a standing order, in which case it should cancel automatically.

However, should you need to stop payments for whatever reason, it’s relatively straightforward to cancel a standing order at any time through your bank or building society – the fastest option being online or through your provider's mobile app. You’ll still need to cancel the standing order a few days before the payment date as it may take time for the changes to be made.

You’re the only person who has the right to cancel your standing order, so make sure to inform any organisation you may still owe money to before cancelling. This is because you’ll need to set up an alternative payment method to avoid falling behind on any future payments.