Have you ever received a letter asking for money to stay on a register and not sure if the letter is from us? We provide advice on what to do.
Occasionally there’s a raft of letters and emails sent to people registered at Companies House claiming they need to pay a fee to remain on a register. The people sending the communications may have a register, but it is not the official registry for limited companies in the UK.
What does the letter or email contain?
The letter or email will more than likely ask you to pay a fee to remain on a register. Because the company may have used your Companies House registration number and other publicly available details, it can look like it’s from us – but it is not.
Who are the registries?
What should you do if you receive a letter or email?
If you receive a letter or email from anyone asking for a fee to remain on a register – unless you want to be on their register too – don’t pay this fee.
If you’ve received a letter you should see if it’s listed on our site to find out if it’s known to us or not. If it’s not, send the details to fraud@companieshouse.gov.uk so we can add them to our list.
Similarly, if you’ve been emailed by the company you can check if they’re known to us too. Emails of this nature may not only be misleading but it may have a malicious virus attached. We advise that you forward the email to phishing@companieshouse.gov.uk, then delete it. Do not open any attachments.
How does Companies House communicate with you?
We’ll send out letters or emails to the addresses you provided to us at registration. These letters and emails will feature our logo with the official Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom. If the letter or email you have received doesn’t have this logo, you are not receiving an official communication from us. If you’re still unsure, you can always contact us to double-check.
Known frauds and scams
On our site we have advice on known frauds and scams, in addition to the information on unofficial registries. You can refer to this page if you’re unsure if a communication is genuinely from us.
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2 comments
Comment by J manson posted on
How do we find the name of the owner of a business
Comment by Jac Bond posted on
Hi, you can use Companies House Service to search for the information we hold about a business, including officer names: https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk