Using Your Home Address As Your Registered Office? Here’s Why It’s a Bad Idea.

A registered office address is the ‘official’ address of your limited company or LLP. If you own a business in the UK you are legally required to have a registered office address and supply it to Companies House. when you form your company. 

Most first-time business owners use their home address for their registered office, however, this can open your business, and yourself, to privacy issues.

In this blog, we’ll explain why using your home address as a registered office can be a bad idea and an alternative idea for your registered office address.

Issues of using Your Home Address For Your Registered Office.

Earlier we mentioned that using your home address as your registered office address can open you up to privacy issues, this is particularly concerning in today’s digital landscape. In fact, privacy is just one reason why using your home address as your business's address is problematic.

Here are some reasons why using your home address might not be the best choice:

Privacy Concerns

When you register your home address as your company’s official address, it is listed in the Companies House public register alongside information like your full name, date of birth and company name. This means that anyone can easily find out where you live. This can lead to unsolicited mail, unwanted visitors, and potential safety concerns.

You can’t avoid putting your personal details, like your name or date of birth, on the Companies House register, but you can avoid putting your home address there.

Professional Image

First impressions matter, and your business address can impact how professional your company appears. Using a residential address might give the impression of a new, small or less-established business, which could influence how potential clients and partners see you. A commercial address can lend credibility and professionalism to your business.

Mail Handling

All official correspondence from HMRC, Companies House, and other governmental bodies will be sent to your registered office address. Using your home address means you’ll be responsible for sorting and managing this mail, which can be overwhelming. If you’re frequently out of the house, important documents might be delayed or missed altogether.

Secondly, following the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, all official mail must be recorded as delivered. This means that a PO Box is no longer suitable as a registered office address.

Rental Home Issues

If you rent your home you may be violating your tenancy agreement by listing your home address as a registered office. This could lead to legal complications or penalties like eviction if your landlord disagrees with the use of your home address.

Alternatives to Using Your Home Address

Fortunately, there is a good alternative to using your home address as your registered office:

Registered Office Address Services

A registered office service is a perfect solution for those wishing to protect their privacy, and it also comes with multiple benefits such as mail sorting and an enhanced professional image.

With a registered office service you pay a provider to use their office address. In turn, the provider will securely sort and scan your post and send you all official government correspondence. This includes any letters from official government bodies like Companies House, UK Courts, HMRC etc. For an additional fee, your provider can forward all post sent to your company, such as bank letters, this service is called mail forwarding.

Once your service is activated you can list that address on Companies House and on your website and other official communications. Often, a registered office provider will be based in big cities like London, which can add a level of prestige to your company’s comms.

Benefits of a Registered Office Service 

While privacy is the main reason business owners opt for a registered office service, there are multiple benefits to using one.

• Professional Image: You can use the registered office address on all official correspondence, which gives the impression that your business is established and lends credibility to your business. 
• Non-UK Residents: If you are based outside of the UK but hoping to start a company here, you must have a UK registered office. A registered office service allows you to use a UK address, without moving here or paying rent for an unused office space. 
• Your Post Sent to You Anywhere: A registered office will securely scan and send you your post via email. This means you can access your important correspondence instantly and from anywhere. 
• Less Spam Mail: As your post is sorted and scanned by a dedicated post team, your spam and junk mail gets automatically filtered out. This means you only see your essential mail and spend less time on fussy admin. 

Why use our Registered Office Service? 

Our registered office service comes with all the benefits listed, plus a few more. Alongside your registered office address, you must also provide a director’s service address which is also on the public register. Most services require you to buy a separate registered office and director’s service address.

However, with Companies MadeSimple, your director’s service address is included in our registered office service. Protect your registered office address, director’s service address, shareholders and PSC(s) address from appearing on the Companies House public register.