Help and frequently asked questions
Straight answers about our service, our reports and the information we use.
Searching and viewing the company summary is free. The £14.99 PDF report is optional.
- Is Company Search UK part of Companies House?
- No. Company Search UK is an independent commercial service. We are not Companies House, not part of the UK Government, and not affiliated with or endorsed by either. Companies House provides the public register and its own free search service.
- Is searching free?
- Yes. Searching for companies and viewing the company summary on this site is free and unlimited, with no account and no sign-up. You only pay if you order a prepared, professionally formatted report document.
- What is in the free summary and what is in the paid report?
- The free summary covers the registered company name and number, status, incorporation date, company type, jurisdiction, registered office address, previous names and SIC codes. The paid report adds officers, persons with significant control, accounts and confirmation statement position, registered charges, insolvency information where it exists and a filing history summary, in one dated PDF.
- What am I actually paying for?
- You are paying for data retrieval, organisation, report preparation, professional presentation and PDF generation. The underlying public data remains freely available from Companies House.
- How much does a report cost?
- The UK Company Information Report costs £14.99 as a one-off payment. There is no subscription and no recurring charge.
- How quickly do I get the report?
- Your report is prepared automatically once payment succeeds, usually within a minute. A download link appears on your order confirmation page.
- I closed the page. How do I get my report back?
- Your order confirmation link contains a secure access token that lets you download the report again, so keep it. If you no longer have it, contact us with your order reference and the email address used at checkout and we will help.
- Can I see the report before I buy it?
- Yes. The sample company report page shows the document section by section and links to a real sample PDF you can open in a new tab.
- Can I search by company registration number?
- Yes, and it is the most reliable way to find the right company. Numbers are unique and never reused, including Scottish numbers beginning SC and Northern Irish numbers beginning NI.
- Does the search cover Scotland and Northern Ireland?
- Yes. The search covers companies registered in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Companies registered in the Republic of Ireland are on a separate register and are not covered.
- Is the report a credit report?
- No. The report presents information recorded on the public register. It contains no credit score, credit limit, county court judgment search or creditworthiness assessment, and it is not legal, financial or accounting advice.
- Is the report an official or certified document?
- No. It is independently prepared by Company Search UK and is not certified, not an official Companies House document and not issued, approved or endorsed by Companies House or the UK Government. Certified and apostilled documents must be obtained from Companies House directly.
- How current is the information?
- Information is retrieved from the public register at the time you view a company or order a report, and the retrieval date and time is printed on the report. Recent filings may not yet be reflected on the register.
- Why can I not find a company?
- Check the spelling, try fewer words, or search by the exact company registration number including any SC or NI prefix. Trading names differ from registered names, so a business may be registered under a name you do not recognise. Dissolved and very recently registered companies can also behave differently on the register.
- What if I order a report for the wrong company?
- Please check the company name and registration number carefully at checkout, where you are asked to confirm your selection. If something goes wrong, contact us with your order reference and we will look at your order under our refund policy.
- Can I get a refund?
- Reports are digital products prepared and delivered immediately, so the statutory 14-day cancellation right does not apply once delivery has begun and you have agreed to that. We still put things right where a report fails to deliver, is corrupted or is materially wrong through our error. See our Terms and Conditions for full details.
- Can I ask for my personal data to be deleted?
- Yes. You can contact us to exercise your data protection rights over the personal data you give us, such as your email address. Information about company officers comes from the public register and is maintained by Companies House, not by us.
Useful pages
- How it works — the process from search to download, step by step.
- Company reports — what the £14.99 report includes, and how it compares with the free summary.
- Sample company report — see the actual document before ordering.
- Companies House report — how a formatted PDF differs from an official filing.
- UK company extract — what to do when someone asks for a certified extract.
- Data sources and updates — where the information comes from and how current it is.
Still need help?
Email us at help@companysearchuk.co.uk and include your order reference if you have one.
Go to the contact page