How a bank recall can help

What a bank recall is

A bank recall is a request your bank sends to the bank that received your transfer, asking for the funds to be returned or held. It is not automatic and depends entirely on cooperation from the receiving bank.

For transfers made through DuitNow or standard bank transfer, this is usually the first practical step once you suspect a scam. It works alongside, not instead of, a report to the National Scam Response Centre on 997.

A recall request does not undo the transfer by itself. It simply asks the other bank to act before the money moves further.

How fast you need to act

Speed decides almost everything here. If you contact your bank within hours of the transfer, there is a real chance the receiving account still holds some or all of the funds.

Once a day or more has passed, the funds are usually moved through more accounts or converted, which makes a recall far less effective. This is why reporting fast matters more than gathering every detail first.

Call your bank’s fraud line directly, not the general customer service number, to reach the right team faster.

What the bank can and cannot do

Your bank can send the recall request, flag the receiving account, and support a police investigation with transaction records. What it cannot do is force another bank to release funds that have already been withdrawn.

Banks also cannot promise an outcome or a timeline, since the process depends on the receiving bank’s own checks. Some cases resolve within days, others take much longer or do not resolve at all.

The hold on the receiving account

If your bank can act quickly enough, it may ask the receiving bank to place a hold on the account, freezing what remains inside it. This buys time for the police to investigate who controls that account.

A hold is not the same as recovering your money. It simply stops the funds from being moved further while a police report and any claim against the scammer proceed.

What to do next

If you have not already, read the full first actions after a scam to make sure nothing has been missed, including the police report and the 997 call. Keep every reference number your bank gives you.

If the recall does not succeed and the amount is significant, a lawyer can help you assess whether a civil claim against the receiving account holder is worth pursuing.