Foreign Bank Transfer Confusion

[numtumfutunch]

Ive almost certainly made this harder than it should be.......

I need to pay a uni invoice for my son whos abroad
For reasons I havent got to the bottom it needs to come from here and he cannot pay it himself locally

I have a 'beneficiary' - Western Union - who have a London address and a 'beneficiary bank' which is Barclays also over here, cash stated to settle the invoice in GBP and an IBAN (starting GB) plus reference for me to tag it with

The confusion is that my own bank have told me that this is a Uk transaction not a foreign one as the beneficiary and beneficiary bank are both in the UK and the sort code and account number are unable to be verified by their security as being legit, which Im sure they are as the invoice has come direct from the university

Naturally its impossible to speak to the university due to the time difference at the moment and Id like this settled before I get bogged down with work for the rest of the week

Any help very much appreciated - are the bank confused, as I certainly am!

[Kirkmoly]

You might want to check that the IBAN correlates to the account and sort code properly. If you head to iban.com you can generate the IBAN from the account details and you get the correct digits after the GB. Just to rule out one source of error.

[egomeister]

numtumfutunch said:

Ive almost certainly made this harder than it should be.......

I need to pay a uni invoice for my son whos abroad
For reasons I havent got to the bottom it needs to come from here and he cannot pay it himself locally

I have a 'beneficiary' - Western Union - who have a London address and a 'beneficiary bank' which is Barclays also over here, cash stated to settle the invoice in GBP and an IBAN (starting GB) plus reference for me to tag it with

The confusion is that my own bank have told me that this is a Uk transaction not a foreign one as the beneficiary and beneficiary bank are both in the UK and the sort code and account number are unable to be verified by their security as being legit, which Im sure they are as the invoice has come direct from the university

Naturally its impossible to speak to the university due to the time difference at the moment and Id like this settled before I get bogged down with work for the rest of the week

Any help very much appreciated - are the bank confused, as I certainly am!

He can't pay it locally and the uni is getting you to pay western union? Sounds like a scam to me. You are definitely talking to your son?

[Motorman74]

I'd be very wary of anything Western Union - I'm not saying that they aren't used for genuine transactions, but they are the choice of scammers and have been for years.

I'd be contacting the University directly - via a phone number you can verify as genuine, not off any documents you have been sent, and ask the relevant questions, maybe get their foreign bank details to pay directly.

[egomeister]

Motorman74 said:

I'd be very wary of anything Western Union - I'm not saying that they aren't used for genuine transactions, but they are the choice of scammers and have been for years.

I'd be contacting the University directly - via a phone number you can verify as genuine, not off any documents you have been sent, and ask the relevant questions, maybe get their foreign bank details to pay directly.

Exactly this. I don't see why the transaction should have to go via WU to the university. They should be a proper enough organisation to give you local bank details you could pay directly too, even if for some reason your son was unable, but that still seems contrived.

[QJumper]

Time difference or not, I'd be wanting to speak to both my son and the university directly. It sounds very odd to me.

[Carbon Sasquatch]

Agree with the above - Western Union screams scam - be very very careful.

Once sent you can never get it back.

[numtumfutunch]

Thanks all

I definitely smelled a rat with Western Union however its legit - he generated the invoice from a portal on the Uni website and its for the expected amount

Since posting Ive checked a few emails for previous foreign transfers eg holidays and for each one the bank is in the expected country in question and IBAN is appropriate to that country too unlike here where they are all UK based

Cheers

[essayer]

I would not do anything until I call the uni (from a number you have checked is correct) and speak to their Finance dept to confirm the details

[Carbon Sasquatch]

numtumfutunch said:

I definitely smelled a rat with Western Union however its legit - he generated the invoice from a portal on the Uni website and its for the expected amount

Since posting Ive checked a few emails for previous foreign transfers eg holidays and for each one the bank is in the expected country in question and IBAN is appropriate to that country too unlike here where they are all UK based

Is he 100% certain it's the actual Uni site ?

Western Union as the only accepted payment mechanism sounds incredibly dodgy - it's like sticking cash in the post - to an anonymous collection box.....

[egomeister]

Nothing that has been mentioned has persuaded me it's not a scam yet.

Why is your son generating invoices from a uni portal? That sounds odd. What kind of amount are we talking here?

Have you actually spoken to your son, or is it all over text?

[Kirkmoly]

I believe Western Union has deals with a number of universities overseas (and for overseas students in the UK) whereby the funds are transferred automatically from WU to the uni against the students account balance. Not saying this isn’t or is a scam but it isn’t a completely unusual scenario.


ETA: https://business.westernunion.com/en-at/global-pay...

Edited by Kirkmoly on Monday 23 January 17:59

[egomeister]

Kirkmoly said:

I believe Western Union has deals with a number of universities overseas (and for overseas students in the UK) whereby the funds are transferred automatically from WU to the uni against the students account balance. Not saying this isn’t or is a scam but it isn’t a completely unusual scenario.


ETA: https://business.westernunion.com/en-at/global-pay...

Edited by Kirkmoly on Monday 23 January 17:59

That reassures me a bit that the transaction might be legit - not a service I was aware of.

OP: The product Kirkmoly links to suggest card payment could be an option - does the invoice offer you that option?

[numtumfutunch]

egomeister said:

Kirkmoly said:

I believe Western Union has deals with a number of universities overseas (and for overseas students in the UK) whereby the funds are transferred automatically from WU to the uni against the students account balance. Not saying this isn’t or is a scam but it isn’t a completely unusual scenario.


ETA: https://business.westernunion.com/en-at/global-pay...

Edited by Kirkmoly on Monday 23 January 17:59

That reassures me a bit that the transaction might be legit - not a service I was aware of.

OP: The product Kirkmoly links to suggest card payment could be an option - does the invoice offer you that option?

The only option is Western Union

Reassuringly the university website lists them as the conduit for foreign currency payments and having spoken to the boy who is pretty savvy it all looks legit, Ive also spoken to WU on the phone and been told they have had a recent revamp which would explain my bank not recognising the account as legit

But Western Union...............

I'll report back although Im still nervous

[numtumfutunch]

And relax...........

Its all good and the university have just confirmed receipt of funds

And I also spent so long on the phone to my bank, the university and Western Union themselves my phone provider phoned up to advise me I should be on a different call package

It would have been so much easier if they didnt use WU however its clearly stated on the university website and in theory is a good system - boy gets bill in GBP and I pay over the phone.

Pity my bank couldnt match and verify the account details Id been given but stress now over

Thanks

[egomeister]

Glad to hear it is resolved!

The scenario had all the hallmarks of a potential scam - family member who is not easily contactable in a far off land needing a quick payment via Western Union. A pleasant surprise that it was legit for once!

[Carbon Sasquatch]

Glad it was a good outcome.