What should I do if a seller keeps changing bank account details right before payment is due?

Why this specific pattern is a well-known scam tactic

Fraudsters sometimes compromise email accounts or impersonate a legitimate seller specifically to redirect a payment to their own account right before it’s due — repeated bank detail changes shortly before payment is a documented pattern associated with exactly this kind of fraud.

Why independent verification matters so much here

If a fraudster has compromised the seller’s communication channel, simply replying to confirm the new details doesn’t actually verify anything, since you’d be confirming with the same compromised channel — calling a phone number you’ve independently confirmed as genuine, not one provided in the suspicious message, is the meaningful verification step.

What to do if you can’t get independent confirmation

If you can’t reach the seller through a verified, independent channel to confirm the change, pause the payment entirely rather than proceeding based on unverified new details — the cost of a short delay is minor compared to the risk of sending payment to a fraudulent account.

How ScrapTrade Makes This Easier

Payments processed through ScrapTrade’s escrow system use verified, established payment details rather than requiring you to trust last-minute bank detail changes communicated directly by a seller.