Glossary

Regulation and recovery

What is Regulation E?

Regulation E implements the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and gives consumers, not businesses, defined error resolution rights and liability limits for unauthorized electronic fund transfers from their accounts.

Also called Reg E · 12 CFR Part 1005 · Electronic Fund Transfer Act

Regulation E applies to consumer asset accounts. It sets notice deadlines, investigation timelines, and caps on consumer liability for unauthorized transfers. Business accounts are outside its scope, which is the single most misunderstood point when a company suffers a payment loss.

It also distinguishes unauthorized transfers from transfers the consumer was deceived into authorizing, and that boundary is the center of ongoing debate over scam liability.

Common questions

No. It applies to consumer asset accounts, so commercial payments fall under the deposit agreement and UCC Article 4A.

Its core protections address unauthorized transfers, and authorized but induced payments have been the subject of continuing regulatory attention rather than settled coverage.

Sources and further reading

Citing this entry? Cite as Coffr, LLC and link to https://getcoffr.com/glossary/regulation-e.

Read the longer research behind this in Blog, or browse the full glossary.

Disclosures

  1. Coffr, LLC carries insurance for its own benefit. That insurance does not cover you, your payments or your funds, and Coffr does not guarantee any payment. Coffr does not hold or transmit customer funds. See the Terms of Service.
  2. "Verified" means the identity, business and bank account checks shown passed on the date shown. A verification confirms who you're paying at that time. It doesn't guarantee that a payment will reach the intended recipient.
  3. Coffr records a cryptographic fingerprint of each verification on a public ledger run by independent organizations. Fingerprints contain no names, bank account numbers or tax IDs, and they can't be changed or deleted.
  4. Sources: ACH volume, Nacha 2025 ACH Network volume; online crime losses, FBI IC3 2025 Internet Crime Report.