The estate agency who are looking after our property in the UK are telling us that they can't pay the rent into our account anymore as we no longer have a Sort Code. They say that their bank do not recognise the IBAN number.

What can I do? Thanks

Haven't you kept open a UK account for this particular reason?

We do, but tbh it's more trouble than it's worth to use it, mainly because it does not have internet banking (long story).

They are talking nonsense. It is perfectly possible to make a payment to an overseas account using the bank name, account number and either the swift or IBAN code. Sounds as if they aren't familiar with the differences, a fairly common issue with those who haven't grasped the concept of a world outside of the UK.

Hmmm, as I thought. Would you think that the bank would know how to use the IBAN? I am wondering if the estate agents just did not even bother to try...

The IBAN aggregates the sort code and bank account number along with a bank identifier and check digits - the check digits are a great innovation and hugely reduce the chances of transferring money to a wrong account.

wiki is your friend: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interna...Account_Number

Thanks ctfc - I have forwarded that link to the estate agents. Hopefully that will dispell any ideas that I am a wackjob who is making this whole IBAN thing up...

OK, so I told the estate agents Meow said they were talking nonsense, and I sent them the link to the Wikipedia page. Just got the following email from them:

"... Please be advised with the IBAN number we can do the transfer but only paying in the bank directly however we cannot do international transfers via online banking.

Therefore I can advise you that we can do the payments monthly direcntly in the bank but a fee of GBP 25 has to be deducted from the rent amount. As Barclays charges this fee for international transfers."

Is this correct, or are they chancers?

Tis true, Barclays charge either £40 or £25 per international transfer depending on the time frame within which the money needs to arrive.

Were you not having the payments made into this account previously, how have things changed since then?

Yeah, we were, but I had a 'proper' Sort Code then, as opposed to this new-fangled IBAN malarkey.

IBAN is nothing new....

I'm all in favour, my salary clears in the account 1-2 days earlier than previously!

Presumably you will be receiving the money in a different currency than GBP. charges will typically be £25 for sending bank, £10 for receiving bank and depending whether the currency transfer is made in foreign currency or received in GBP and changed to foreign currency on receipt 2 to 4% loss on the exchange rate.

UK banks do not allow for international bank transfers via internet banking, this is true and really really lame..

OK, so next problem is, I need to transfer some money to the US very urgently. i thought (God, I'm naive), that I could just transfer it from my Debit Card to the bank account of the company in the US via Western Union.

However, I have just been on the Western Union site, and it says you can only do this if you have a Visa/Mastercard from one of a list of countries. None of those countries are the UAE.

Any ideas, folks?

take cash to a UAE exchange