Rural Payments Agency
The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has announced that over 51,000 farmers in England received their 2016 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) money over the first two days of the payment window.
The payments made between 1-2 December to some 59% of eligible claimants, worth 660 million, include a range of 2016 BPS claim types and sizes, including those inspected and farmers with common land.
The RPA remains focused on paying 90% of eligible claims by the end of December.
BPS payments are made direct to bank accounts via BACS transfer so farmers should make sure RPA has the most up-to-date account details. Details can be changed on the Rural Payments service. Once a payment has been made a remittance advice is sent in the post, confirming the amount paid.
Support
More information on BPS 2016, including scheme rules and details of how payments are calculated, is available at www.GOV.UK/rpa/bps2016.
Avoiding fraud
Farmers are urged to be vigilant against fraud. Remember:
- Your bank, police or the RPA will never ask you to reveal your online password, PIN or bank account details or ask you to make a payment over the telephone.
- Never enter into a conversation with someone you dont know or open unknown or unexpected computer links or emails.
- If in doubt, call the organisation back, ideally on a different telephone, using a number you are familiar with or you know to be official. You can usually find this on the organisations website, correspondence or statement. Contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 without delay for advice and to register your concern.