UPI Payment Sent to the Wrong Person Who Refuses to Refund? Here Is What to Do

Who this guide is for

This guide is for anyone who sent money over UPI to the wrong recipient and now cannot get it back. That usually means one of these situations:

• You typed one wrong digit in the mobile number or UPI ID and the money went to a stranger.
• You selected the wrong saved contact and paid the wrong person.
• You scanned an old or wrong QR code, or paid a person who had the same name as your intended receiver.
• The receiver has seen your money arrive but is refusing to return it, ignoring your messages, or claiming the amount is theirs.

It is useful whether the amount is small or large, and whether you used Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, BHIM, or your bank's own UPI app. The steps are similar across apps because they all run on the same UPI network operated by NPCI.

Who this guide is NOT for

This guide does not cover online fraud where a scammer tricked you into paying — for example a fake seller, a fake job, a lottery scam, or a phishing link. Those are cyber-fraud cases with a different, faster route built around the 1930 helpline and the cyber-crime portal. For that, see our guide on a UPI fraud complaint closed without a refund. It also does not cover NEFT or RTGS bank transfers sent to a wrong account number — for that, see wrong NEFT or RTGS transfer recovery. And it does not cover a wrong payment to a merchant QR code, which is covered in QR code payment to the wrong merchant.

What you can do this weekend

Friday evening

Stop and capture proof before anything else. Open the payment in your UPI app and take clear screenshots of the full transaction page. You need the UPI transaction ID, the 12-digit RRN (Retrieval Reference Number, sometimes shown as UTR), the exact amount, the date and time, and the receiver's VPA or masked account number. Also note your own account number and the app you used. Then, in the same app, find the option to raise a concern or report a problem on that specific transaction and start a complaint for a wrong or unintended transfer. Save the complaint reference number it gives you. If you have the receiver's phone number, send one polite message asking them to return the money — and screenshot any reply, especially a refusal.

Saturday

Contact your own bank. Call the bank's customer-care number and report the wrong UPI transfer, quoting the transaction ID and RRN. Ask the bank to log a formal complaint and to write to the receiver's bank (the beneficiary bank) so it can approach its own customer for consent to return the amount. Banks are expected to help in genuine wrong-credit cases, but they need the receiver's consent to debit that account. Follow up the call with a written complaint by email or in branch (use the template below) so there is a dated record. If the amount is large, also note the receiver's bank name from the masked details so you can refer to it.

Sunday

Organise everything into one folder. Keep the transaction screenshots, the app complaint reference, the bank complaint reference, your written complaint, and any messages from the receiver. Write a short timeline: when you paid, when you noticed, when you complained, and what each party said. If the receiver has clearly refused in writing, start preparing for the legal route — read the legal-notice and police sections below so you are ready to act on Monday. Decide, based on the amount and the receiver's attitude, whether this is worth a legal notice and possible court case, or whether the bank and app route is your realistic ceiling.

Documents and evidence checklist

Step-by-step action plan

Step 1 — Capture the transaction proof immediately

The first minutes matter. Open the wrong payment in your UPI app and screenshot the complete details: the UPI transaction ID, the RRN or UTR number, the amount, the date and time, and the receiver's VPA or masked account number. These identifiers are what banks use to trace the money. Do not delete or clear your transaction history. If the app shows the receiver's name or a partial number, capture that too. Save the screenshots in a dedicated folder so you do not lose them. Without these details, no bank or app can investigate properly.

Step 2 — Raise a complaint inside the UPI app

Every major UPI app has a way to report a problem on a specific transaction — often labelled "Raise concern", "Report a problem", or "Help" on the transaction page. Choose the option that fits a wrong, unintended, or wrong-recipient transfer. The app routes this through the UPI dispute system, which can ask the receiver's bank to check the credit. Note the complaint reference number. This step records that you used the official channel and starts the clock, but remember: the app cannot debit the receiver's account on its own. It can only investigate and request a return.

Step 3 — Complain to your own bank in writing

Call your bank's helpline the same day and report the wrong transfer with the transaction ID and RRN. Then submit a written complaint by email or at the branch, so you have a dated record and a reference number. Ask your bank to formally contact the beneficiary bank (the receiver's bank) and request that it approach its customer for consent to reverse the wrong credit. The Reserve Bank's customer-protection guidance expects banks to assist in recovering money credited to a wrong account, with the beneficiary's consent. Your written complaint is also what you will rely on if you later approach the RBI Ombudsman for any deficiency in how your bank handled it.

Step 4 — Push the beneficiary bank to seek the receiver's consent

The receiver's bank holds the key, because the money sits with its customer. Ask your bank to write to the beneficiary bank with the transaction details, and request that the beneficiary bank contact its account holder to seek consent to return the funds. If the receiver agrees, the reversal usually happens quickly. If the bank's records show the credit clearly came from your account in error, that supports your case. Keep following up in writing and note every reference number. The beneficiary bank cannot share the receiver's identity with you directly, and it cannot debit the account without consent — but it can apply pressure and document the refusal.

Step 5 — Escalate to the RBI Ombudsman if your bank fails to act

If 30 days pass and your bank has not acted on your complaint, or has handled it poorly, you can file a free complaint against your bank at cms.rbi.org.in under the Reserve Bank-Integrated Ombudsman Scheme. The toll-free helpline is 14448. Be clear about what you are complaining about: the Ombudsman can act on your bank's deficiency in handling the dispute, but it cannot order a stranger to return money. Attach your transaction proof, the app and bank complaint references, and your written complaint. This route addresses your bank's service, not the receiver's conduct.

Step 6 — Use the legal and police route if the receiver refuses

If the receiver clearly knows the money is not theirs and dishonestly refuses to return it, that can amount to a criminal offence such as cheating or criminal breach of trust. Your options are to send a legal notice demanding return within a set time, to file a police complaint or a complaint on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, and to consider a civil recovery suit for the amount. The police can direct the bank to share the receiver's details for investigation, which you cannot obtain yourself. For amounts large enough to justify the cost, consult a lawyer before filing. Learn the basics of filing an information request where a public authority is involved at how to file an RTI online in India.

Escalation ladder

Copy-paste complaint template

Replace the text in square brackets with your own details before sending. Send this to your own bank, by email or at the branch.

When RTI can help

A wrong UPI transfer is mostly a private dispute, so the RTI Act, 2005 has a narrow role. RTI works only against public authorities, so it can help at the edges where a public authority holds records connected to your complaint:

• If your own bank or the receiver's bank is a public sector bank (such as SBI, PNB, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, or Union Bank of India), you can file an RTI with that bank's Public Information Officer asking for limited records of your complaint and the action taken on it.
• If you filed a police complaint or a cyber-crime complaint, you can use RTI to ask the police for the action-taken status on your complaint, subject to the exemptions that protect an ongoing investigation.
• You can ask a public authority whether your complaint was received and registered, and what steps were taken — useful when you suspect your complaint has been quietly ignored.

Read our full guide on how to file an RTI online for the step-by-step process, and see how to file a first appeal under Section 19 if a public authority does not respond in time. Our guide on CPGRAMS and RTI for government service complaints explains how to use a grievance portal alongside RTI for a PSU bank.

When RTI will not help

Private apps and private banks: Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, and other UPI apps are private companies and are not public authorities under the RTI Act. Private banks such as HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank are also not public authorities. You cannot file an RTI against them. For these, your route is the in-app complaint, the bank's grievance channel, and the RBI Ombudsman.

The receiver's identity: RTI will not get you the wrong recipient's name, full account number, or contact details. That is another person's personal information, which banks protect, and which an RTI cannot force out. To compel disclosure of the receiver's identity, you need a direction from the police during investigation or an order from a court — not an RTI application.

What RTI cannot do: RTI gives you information; it cannot order anyone to return your money. Even where it applies, it only tells you what a public authority did. The actual recovery still depends on the receiver's consent, a police case, or a civil court order.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Waiting before you complain. The biggest mistake is delay. Every hour gives the receiver more time to withdraw or spend the money. Raise the app complaint and call your bank the same day, ideally within minutes.
• Not saving the transaction ID and RRN. Without the UPI transaction ID and the RRN or UTR, banks cannot trace the transfer. Screenshot these before doing anything else, and never clear your transaction history.
• Only calling, never writing. A phone call to customer care does not create a strong record. Always follow up with a written complaint by email or at the branch so you have a dated reference for any later escalation.
• Expecting the bank to "reverse" it automatically. A successful UPI payment cannot be clawed back without the receiver's consent. Banks can request a return; they cannot force a debit on another customer's account.
• Treating an innocent typo case like fraud, or fraud like a typo. If a stranger willingly returns the money, it is a simple mix-up. If the receiver dishonestly keeps it, that is a different, more serious matter that can justify a police complaint. Match your response to the situation.
• Filing an RTI against a private app or private bank. They are not covered by the RTI Act, so this wastes time. Use the in-app and bank grievance channels instead, and keep RTI for public-authority records only.
• Threatening or harassing the receiver. Do not abuse, threaten, or publicly shame the person, even if you are sure they have your money. Keep your messages polite and factual, and let the legal process do the rest, or you may end up facing a complaint yourself.