You can revoke an ACH authorization at any time, even if the company’s contract says nothing about how to cancel. Do it in two steps: send the company a written notice that you’re withdrawing permission to debit your account, then tell your bank to stop the payments at least three business days before the next scheduled transfer.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693e – Preauthorized Transfers Both steps matter. Skipping either one is how people end up still watching money leave their account weeks after they thought they’d stopped it.
The right to revoke comes from the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and applies to preauthorized recurring debits from a consumer bank account: monthly subscriptions, loan payments, insurance premiums, gym dues, and similar charges that recur at regular intervals. It applies whether or not your original authorization form explained how to cancel.2Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. I Was Asked to Sign an ACH Authorization to Allow Electronic Access to My Account to Repay a Payday Loan. What Is That? One-time debits that you authorized for a single transaction work differently; a bank may still be able to block one before it posts, but the three-business-day stop-payment right under federal law covers recurring transfers.
Step 1: Send the Company a Written Revocation
Write to the company and tell them clearly that you are revoking their authorization to debit your account. Include your name, the account number they have on file, and a statement specifying whether you’re canceling all future debits or only the next scheduled payment. The CFPB publishes a sample revocation letter you can adapt.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Stopping Automatic Debit Payments – Sample Letter to Company
Send it by certified mail with return receipt requested. The delivery date on that receipt is the single most useful piece of evidence you have if the company keeps charging and you need to dispute it later. If the company also offers an online cancellation portal or a dedicated email address, use it on top of the letter, and save screenshots or confirmation emails. Belt and suspenders here is the point.
Step 2: Tell Your Bank and Place a Stop Payment Order
Call your bank, tell them you’ve revoked the company’s authorization, and ask them to place a stop payment order on that company’s debits. The CFPB recommends contacting both the company and the bank, not one or the other.4Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Do I Stop Automatic Payments from My Bank Account?
To block the next scheduled debit, your bank needs the stop payment order at least three business days before the payment date.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693e – Preauthorized Transfers You can give the order by phone, but the bank may require written confirmation within 14 days. If you don’t follow up in writing in that window, the oral order expires and the bank can start honoring the company’s debits again.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Regulation E Section 1005.10 – Preauthorized Transfers When you call, ask whether written confirmation is required and get the address to send it to.
Technically, revoking authorization and placing a stop payment order are two different things at the bank level. Telling your bank that you’ve revoked the company’s permission entirely means any later debit should be treated as unauthorized, which triggers stronger protections than a routine stop payment on a single transaction. Say both: you’ve revoked, and you want a stop payment on anything that comes through.
How Long the Block Lasts
A written stop payment order usually runs for six months and can be renewed for another six.6HelpWithMyBank.gov. Can the Bank Pay a Check After I Place a Stop Payment on It? An oral order that isn’t confirmed in writing expires in 14 calendar days. People get caught by this. Mark the six-month expiration on your calendar and renew it before it lapses, because a company that still has your account number on file can resume debiting the moment the order drops off.
Stop Payment Fees
Most banks charge a fee to place a stop payment, commonly $15 to $36. Some waive it for premium accounts or online submissions. Ask before you place the order so the charge doesn’t catch you off guard.
If the Company Keeps Debiting Anyway
Any debit the company takes after you’ve revoked authorization is an unauthorized electronic fund transfer. Tell your bank right away.4Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Do I Stop Automatic Payments from My Bank Account? That starts the federal error resolution process.
Your bank has 10 business days to investigate. It can take up to 45 days instead, but only if it provisionally credits your account for the disputed amount within the first 10 business days.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693f – Error Resolution You get full use of the money while the investigation runs. If the bank asks for written confirmation of your oral notice, send it within 10 business days or you may lose the right to provisional credit.
The 60-Day Deadline to Report
You have 60 days from the date your bank sends the statement that first shows the unauthorized charge to report it. Miss that window and you lose federal protection against liability for later unauthorized transfers from the same source.8eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1005 – Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) – Section 1005.6 Check every statement for several months after you revoke, even if the company confirmed the cancellation.
Filing a CFPB Complaint
If the debits keep coming and your bank isn’t resolving the dispute, file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB forwards complaints to the company, which generally responds within 15 days. Include the revocation date, the delivery date on your certified mail receipt, the amount of each unauthorized debit, and copies of your correspondence. File at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or call (855) 411-2372.9Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Submit a Complaint You generally can’t submit a second complaint about the same problem, so put everything in the first one.
Revoking Does Not Erase What You Owe
Cutting off the company’s access to your account does not cancel the underlying debt or contract. If you owe money on a loan, subscription, or balance, the company can still bill you, charge late fees, report missed payments to credit bureaus, send the account to collections, or eventually sue.10Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Can I Stop a Payday Lender from Electronically Taking Money out of My Bank or Credit Union Account? If you’re revoking because you can’t afford the payment, call the company and try to negotiate a payment plan at the same time. Revoking to buy breathing room is legitimate; treating it as a way to walk away from the debt tends to cost more in fees, interest, and credit damage than it saves.
Business Accounts Are Not Covered the Same Way
Everything above assumes a consumer bank account. The Electronic Fund Transfer Act generally does not apply to business accounts. Those ACH transactions fall under UCC Article 4A, which governs commercial funds transfers.11Legal Information Institute. UCC Article 4A – Funds Transfer Protections are thinner: a cancellation is only effective if the bank receives it before accepting the payment order, and after acceptance cancellation requires the bank’s agreement.12Legal Information Institute. UCC 4A-211 – Cancellation and Amendment of Payment Order There is no automatic provisional credit, no federally mandated error resolution clock, and no 60-day safety net. If you’re revoking on a business account, work the problem directly with your bank and the company and expect less regulatory backup.
What to Keep
Hold onto your written revocation letter, the certified mail receipt, any portal confirmations or emails, your written stop payment order to the bank, and notes from phone calls with the date, time, and name of the person you spoke with. Keep the file for at least a year after the last debit, longer if the underlying account is still open. If a disputed charge ever lands on your statement, the certified mail delivery date is what proves the company knew you’d revoked and debited you anyway.