Is WorldRemit safe? [AU]

WorldRemit offers payments in 70+ currencies, to over 130 countries around the world, with a focus on helping immigrants working overseas to send money home safely and cheaply. If you’re thinking of using WorldRemit, you probably have one key question: Is WorldRemit legit? This guide has you covered.

Quick Summary

• Large, safe and established international transfer service
• FCA regulated under payment service and electronic payment regulations
• Strict account verification processes in place
• Secure website and app service
• Dedicated team of anti fraud analysts to protect customers

Is WorldRemit safe?

We’ll move into more detail about WorldRemit’s approach to customer safety and security in just a moment. To start us off, here are some key facts and figures about WorldRemit

Regulators: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK

Established in: 2010

Customer numbers: 5.7 million

Volume of transfers: 26.7 million USD/year

As a global business, World Remit is also licensed and regulated according to local laws in any other country in which they operate. In the US, WorldRemit is licensed by the Colorado Division of Banking as a money transmitter, while other regulatory bodies around the world include FINTRAC in Canada, or AUSTRAC in Australia.

How is WorldRemit regulated?

In the UK, WorldRemit is authorised and regulated by the FCA as a payment service provider and electronic money issuer.

The FCA regulates and authorises most financial companies in the UK. FCA rules are designed to keep customers and their money safe, and offer reassurance that a provider is well run with good processes in place.

FCA regulated firms in the UK must take a range of steps to protect customer funds. These include safeguarding client money by holding it in a dedicated account separately from the company’s own operating capital, and being regularly audited to check processes are being implemented properly. Payment companies like WorldRemit are also required to hold capital on hand so that it could be easily released back to customers in the unlikely event that the business gets into financial difficulties.

Is WorldRemit safer than traditional banks?

Sending money through WorldRemit is safe.

Banks often offer a bigger range of financial products and services compared to money transfer services, including things like credit cards and loans. That may mean they’re subject to a broader range of regulations, too. However, when it comes to international payments you can rest assured that WorldRemit is as safe as using a bank to send money – and often cheaper and faster, too.

Customer reviews on Trustpilot

Here’s a summary of what customers say about WorldRemit on Trustpilot:

The majority of customers are positive about WorldRemit – in fact 75% give the best possible rating on Trustpilot. However, there are also a minority of people (8%) who have posted Bad reviews – the worst score available.

Where security is commented on in negative reviews, the issue is often that customers have had to provide additional verification documents, or had accounts locked. This can happen if a money transfer service is concerned about fraudulent activity.

In both cases, verification processes are used to double check all transactions are legitimate, and comply with legislation – this is common to all money transfer services, and regular banks.

It’s worth noting that there are the odd couple of customers who claim to have been caught out by fraudsters through WorldRemit. We’ll look in more detail about how to stay safe and away from scams, in just a moment.

WorldRemit security measures

WorldRemit puts customer security measures in place for all payments and accounts. There’s a verification process used to make sure accounts are kept safe, and a dedicated anti-fraud team which will monitor accounts for unusual transactions. If they spot anything out of character, they’ll be able to pause a payment until they’ve checked it is legitimate.

Additionally, WorldRemit suggests customers take a few sensible steps of their own to stay safe when sending money:

• Choose a strong account password and don’t share it with anyone
• Learn to spot and avoid fraud and scams
• Maintain your devices – keep them password protected and use anti-virus software if you can
• Check the website you’re using is secure (the padlock symbol in the browser shows this)

Is WorldRemit legit?

WorldRemit is a global company with a large user base and an agent network around the world. They’re fully FCA regulated and have been in business for over a decade already.

Choosing a credible, trusted provider when you opt to send a payment through a specialist service is crucial. WorldRemit has the required licences in the UK and beyond, a strong reputation among customers, and also takes additional steps to protect customers through account verification and anti fraud monitoring.

Is WorldRemit safe to transfer money?

Using WorldRemit is safe. Once your payment has been set up online or in the WorldRemit app, you’ll fund it by card or with Apple Pay. Once the money arrives in WorldRemit’s account, they’ll pass it right on to your recipient. 95% of WorldRemit transfers are available for the recipient in just a few minutes.

Is WorldRemit safe to keep money with?

Typically, WorldRemit won’t hold customer funds. Once the money arrives it will be passed on quickly to the recipient. However, if there is ever any reason to hold customer money – for example pending verification checks – customer funds will be kept separately to WorldRemit’s own funds for safety.

Is WorldRemit safe for large amounts?

WorldRemit has maximum send limits in place, which help to keep customers safe. You’ll be able to send up to 50,000 GBP a day.  If you’re paying with a card or Apple Pay you can send up to 8,000 GBP in a single transaction, and if you pay using a bank transfer, the transaction maximum is 50,000 GBP.

Before you make a large payment with WorldRemit it’s worth checking you’re fully verified. Because WorldRemit has to stick within legislation both in the UK, and in the destination countries it sends to, you may be asked to provide additional documents when you make a larger payment. Getting this step out of the way before you get started can help the process run smoother.

Can you get scammed on WorldRemit?

Fraudsters and scammers can look for victims through a range of financial service providers, including WorldRemit. It’s important to stay vigilant when you use any money transfer service, to make sure you’re not caught out. Usually, all you need to do is take some simple and sensible precautions to avoid WorldRemit frauds.

WorldRemit advises customers to consider the following pointers when trying to spot fraud:

• They create panic – if someone, for example, is suggesting your account has been compromised or locked – double check it’s genuine before replying
• You should never feel pressured into sending money or handing over personal data
• If someone is being overly helpful when trying to arrange a payment or resolve a problem, double check their credentials and details
• Fraudsters may text, email and call to try to demonstrate credibility – you still need to check you’re talking to a genuine member of WorldRemit staff before sharing any information with them

Services which offer cash collection services, like WorldRemit, are also targeted by fraudsters because cash payments can be received in minutes and are usually impossible to get back once collected.

Scams include people posing as a friend or relative and asking you to send a payment, or asking for money in order to release a larger amount – as an administration payment to get an inheritance or lottery prize for example.

Can I avoid falling victim to fraud?

To stay safe, it’s best to use WorldRemit only to send money to friends and family, and people you trust.

World Remit also has a handy online security centre which covers some common types of scam and fraud to look out for. If you have questions or need to check if a message purporting to be from WorldRemit is real, you can get in touch via Twitter on @WorldRemitHelp.

Is your personal data safe on WorldRemit?

WorldRemit takes the security of customers’ personal data seriously. All data collected in the UK by WorldRemit is covered by General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules, and any other applicable legislation.

There are a number of reasons why WorldRemit will collect information about customers – to comply with legislation, to process transactions, and to improve their services, for example. Customers can’t opt out of some types of data collection, but can ask to stop their data being used for marketing. You can do this easily by sending an email to dataprivacy@worldremit.com with URGENT – UNSUBSCRIBE REQUEST in the subject line and the email address that you wish to be removed within the email.

Customer data is kept securely, and WorldRemit will not sell, rent or disclose information to unaffiliated third parties. It will share data with other companies in the same group, though, and may also use customer data for analysis purposes. This is pretty standard among companies which need to collect customer data in person and online.

What personal data does WorldRemit collect?

The types of data WorldRemit may collect about you include:

• Your personal and contact information – name, email, phone number
• Demographic information about your age, gender, and interests
• Bank and payment details
• Information from other social media services if you give consent
• Technological information – your IP address, browser or device type for example
• Information about third parties – such as the personal information of anyone you send money to

Any information WorldRemit collects about you will be kept for as long as is legally or practically required. This usually means it will be held for 6 years after you close your WorldRemit account or stop processing transactions.

How to get started on WorldRemit?

You can create a WorldRemit account online on the desktop site or by downloading the WorldRemit app on your mobile device.

1. Select Sign Up
2. Confirm the country you’re sending from
3. Enter your email address and set a password
4. Follow the onscreen prompts to add your personal details
5. You may be asked for verification documents depending on the transfer type you want to make

For customer safety and to comply with global legislation, you’ll need to get verified to use WorldRemit. This may not happen the first time you send money, as the processes used depend on the types of payments being made.

However, at some stage all customers are likely to be asked to provide evidence of their identity and in some cases their address. Usually this means you upload a photo of your passport, driving licence or other government issued ID paperwork; and proof of address like a utility bill or bank statement in your name.

When you need to verify your account, WorldRemit will guide you through the processes and confirm the acceptable documents based on the situation.

Conclusion

WorldRemit is a popular and long established provider  of international payments and remittances. The business is fully authorised and regulated in the UK and in the destination countries it covers, making it a safe way to send and receive international payments.

WorldRemit keeps customers safe using account verification steps, and dedicated analysts behind the scenes looking for unusual or suspicious activity which could be fraudulent.