In the last week a couple of clients have asked me what and how they can find out about companies they are either considering working with or are having issues with. For registered companies information is held at Companies House and the usual documents you would expect to find annually would be:
- Annual accounts prepared up to the company year end
- Annual return – an annual record of who runs and owns the company
One of the options is to pay for a credit check but there are a few things you can do yourself with little or no cost. All Companies House documents are available for inspection and there is a good search facility at Webcheck. Once you have opened it you can search by company number or name and these should be disclosed on any official company documents or on the website.
The first screen then shows some basic information:
- Company name
- Registered office address
- Company number
- Status – whether the company is active or dissolved
- Date of incorporation – the date the company started
- Country of origin – usually UK
- Company type – eg Ltd, Plc or LLP
- Nature of business – what the company does
- Accounting reference date – the year end for the annual accounts
- Last accounts made up to – the last accounts prepared, these are due within 9 months of the year end for Ltd companies
- Next accounts due – the date the next accounts must be submitted by
- Last return made up – when the last annual return was submitted, usually on the anniversary of incorporation
- Next return due – the date the next return must be submitted by
- Previous names – if there have been any changes the old names are shown
By selecting the Order information on this company button you can then see a little more information on the history:
- The dates each of the annual returns and accounts were submitted – if the records are submitted promptly or at least in the same period each year it implies the company is being efficiently run. If accounts are submitted late it raises the question as to the reason, and a worsening situation is of greater concern
- Changes of address of company registered office, directors and company secretary
- Appointments and resignations of directors and secretaries
- Changes of year end date
There are no one specific indicator but this does show a picture of how well and efficiently a company is run. You can download documents for £1 each and current appointments for free providing you are a registered user and these may provide more information but probably limited for smaller companies as the requirements are small.
This is only a brief guide and if you have a specific query relevant to your circumstances please seek professional advice before taking any further steps. If you would like advice in this or other areas feel free to call. Alastair Wood, AW Accounting, Gravesend – Accountants who “speak your language”