How to stop a continuous payment authority (CPA) and get a refund

To stop a continuous payment authority (CPA), tell your bank or card provider that you cancel it. The FCA says the card provider must stop the payments, even if you have not contacted the business. Ask by the end of the business day before the next payment. A payment taken after that is unauthorised, and the provider must refund it.

This guide explains what a CPA is, how it is different from a direct debit, what to say when you cancel, and what to do if the bank refuses or a payment is still taken.

Key takeaways

• A continuous payment authority is a recurring card payment. The business uses your card number to take payments, as your agreement allows.
• You can cancel it with the business or with your card provider. The card provider cannot make you contact the business first.
• Cancel by the end of the business day before the next payment is due.
• A payment taken after you cancel is unauthorised. The card provider must refund it, and related charges, immediately.
• Cancelling the CPA does not end the contract or a debt. Agree another way to pay what you owe.
• If the provider does not fix it, the Financial Ombudsman Service is free.

What is a continuous payment authority?

A continuous payment authority, also called a recurring card payment, lets a business take money from your debit or credit card again and again. You give consent once, when you sign up. After that, the business does not ask before each payment.

Businesses often use CPAs for:

• subscriptions and free trials that turn into paid plans
• gym and club memberships
• insurance paid monthly by card
• payday and other short-term loan repayments

Because the business holds your card details, a CPA can be hard to see and hard to stop. It does not show as a direct debit in your banking app.

CPA, direct debit and standing order: the difference

If you cancel a standing order, your bank stops the payments. You control a standing order, so the business cannot restart it. As with a CPA, cancelling it does not cancel a contract or a debt.

How to cancel a CPA, step by step

1. Find the payment. Look at your card statement for the business name, the amount and the date of the next payment.
2. Contact your card provider. Use the phone number on your card, the app or secure chat. Say: "I withdraw my consent for the continuous payment authority to [business name]. Please cancel it and stop any further payments."
3. Do it in time. Ask by the end of the business day before the next payment is due.
4. Tell the business too, if you can. This is not required, but it can prevent arguments about the contract.
5. Keep a record. Write down the date, the time, the name of the person you spoke to and any reference number. If you use chat or email, keep a screenshot.
6. Check your next statement. If the business takes another payment, contact the card provider at once.

If your card is replaced, do not assume that the CPA stops. Some businesses can still take payments after your card is replaced. Cancel the CPA itself.

What if a payment is still taken?

A payment taken after you withdrew your consent is an unauthorised payment. The Payment Services Regulations 2017 say that you can withdraw consent to a series of payments at any time. The FCA says the card provider must then refund the payment, and any related charges, immediately.

Contact the card provider and say:

• the date when you cancelled the CPA, and how you did it
• the date and amount of each payment taken after that
• that you ask for a refund of each payment and of any charges or interest it caused

For more on unauthorised payments, see money taken from your account without permission.

What if the bank tells you to contact the business?

The FCA says your card provider cannot insist that you agree the cancellation with the business first. If the bank refuses to cancel, or says it can only stop the payment when the business agrees, make a complaint to the bank.

The Financial Ombudsman Service expects firms to cancel a CPA without unnecessary delay when the customer asks, and to refund unauthorised payments. If a firm has difficulty stopping a payment, the ombudsman says the customer should not pay for that difficulty.

If the CPA is for a subscription that you already cancelled, also read cancelled a subscription but still being charged.

Payday loans and CPAs

Many payday and short-term lenders take repayments by CPA. Extra FCA rules apply to them:

• A high-cost short-term lender must not make more than two unsuccessful attempts to take a payment with a CPA.
• It must not use a CPA to take part payments.
• When a lender is told that a CPA was cancelled, it must stop using it.

Cancelling the CPA does not cancel the loan. If you cannot pay, tell the lender and ask for help. Lenders must treat customers in financial difficulty with forbearance. Free debt advice is available from MoneyHelper. Be careful of paid "debt help" firms; see debt advice red flags.

If the loans were not affordable in the first place, you may be able to complain about that too. See payday loan refunds.

How to complain

1. Complain to your card provider first. Say what you asked, when, and what went wrong. Ask for the refund and for any charges to be removed.
2. Wait up to eight weeks for a final response.
3. Escalate if you disagree. The Financial Ombudsman Service is free and independent, and you keep all of any money it awards. It can tell a firm to refund unauthorised payments, charges and interest, and to pay compensation for distress or inconvenience.

Complaints usually must be made within six years of the problem, or three years from when you knew about it. After the final response, you have six months to go to the ombudsman. Check the current time limits.

Sources: FCA, Recurring card payments (continuous payment authorities), last updated 23.06.2025; Payment Services Regulations 2017, regulation 67 (consent and withdrawal of consent); FCA Handbook, CONC 7.6 Exercise of continuous payment authority; Financial Ombudsman Service, Continuous payment authorities and Time limits. Last checked: 31.10.2026.

How HeyRefund can help

HeyRefund is a free tool. It helps you set out the dates, the payments and what the bank said, and drafts a complaint for you to send yourself. It does not contact the bank for you, and it is not a claims company.