Somebody says they paid and you cannot find it

Work down this in order. Most of them end at step two.

1. Match on amount and time first

Open the pending row. Note the amount and when it was claimed. Search your bank app for that amount around that time. The four character code is a tiebreak, not the way in, and plenty of banks never show it.

2. Check the note is not simply hidden

Some banks put the payment note only in the transaction detail inside the app, not in the message they send. Tap the transaction and look for remarks, description or narration.

3. Check the clock

They may have claimed a while after paying, or paid a while after claiming. Widen your search to the whole day before deciding it is not there.

4. Check the right account

If you have several UPI IDs, the money went to the one their screen showed. Look at that one.

5. Ask them for a screenshot

Their app's transaction detail shows the amount, the time and the payee. If the payee is not you, the money went elsewhere and their bank is the only place that can act.

6. Ask them to check their own balance

A payment that failed and briefly debited is put back. If the money is back with them, there is nothing to find.

If it is genuinely not there

Reject the claim. It is a statement about the money, not about the person, and it keeps your total honest. If it turns up later they can send a fresh message, or you can put a line on your wall yourself.

If you approve it anyway

That is your call to make and it is sometimes the right one for somebody you know. Be aware that it counts towards your goal and your total, so those numbers then describe something other than money that arrived.