How to stop automatic payments from a checking account In order to stop an ACH (Automated Clearing House) or automatic payments from your checking account, you should take the following steps: 1. Contact the company 2. Contact your credit union or bank 3. Monitor your accounts First, you should contact the company, municipality or lender that you have automatic payments with and follow their cancelation policy. Make sure to allow ample time for the transaction to be canceled (minimum three business days is typically required). Next, you can cancel an upcoming ACH transaction in your credit union or bank’s online or mobile banking. You can also contact your credit union or bank to tell them that you’ve “revoked authorization for the [company name] automatic transaction”. It’s helpful to have the past transaction dates, amounts and names in front of you during that conversation so your financial institution knows exactly what to block. A “revoked authorization” should stop all recurring future payments for that dollar amount from the company. A “stop payment order” stops a payment for a single transaction but not future transactions. If you want to block one transaction, you can contact your credit union or bank for a “stop payment order.”
