[2] Commissioned into service in the Royal Navy as the frigate HMS Rutherford (K558) on 16 December 1943 simultaneously with her transfer,[1][2][4] she underwent acceptance trials in Casco Bay in Maine and, upon finishing them in January 1944, proceeded to Bermuda for shakedown and crew training afloat and ashore.

Completing shakedown and training in March 1944, she departed Bermuda bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, suffering damage during the voyage when she struck submerged wreckage.

She underwent repairs at Halifax and, upon completing them, proceeded to Belfast, Northern Ireland, where on 26 March 1944 she entered a shipyard for modifications to meet Royal Navy requirements.

Although not involved in the assault phase of the landings, Rutherford was assigned later in June to escort convoys from the Thames Estuary bringing reinforcements to the beachheads, and she carried out these duties until August 1944.

In December 1944, she shifted the focus of her activities to waters off the coasts of Belgium and the Netherlands, engaging German motor torpedo boats reported by Allied aircraft and hitting several of them with gunfire.