The short answer
To check a UK company, find its eight-character company number at Companies House, then review its status and filing history, its officers and persons with significant control, its accounts, any registered charges and insolvency cases; look for insolvency and corporate notices in the London Gazette; check its directors against the disqualified-directors register; and, if it does financial business, check the FCA register and warning list. Finish with sanctions screening on the company, officers and owners, and an adverse-media search.
At a glance
- Identifier
- Eight-character Companies House number
- Registers
- Companies House, the London Gazette, disqualified directors, FCA
- Ownership
- Persons with significant control (PSC)
- Financing
- Registered charges
- Distress
- Insolvency cases and Gazette notices
- Cost
- Free to search
Checking a UK company, step by step
- 1
Find the company number
Search Companies House by name and confirm the registered office and incorporation date. Use the company number from then on.
- 2
Check status and filing history
Is it active, in administration, liquidation or dissolved? Are accounts and confirmation statements filed on time? Late filing is a warning sign.
- 3
Review officers and PSCs
Who are the directors, when were they appointed, and who has significant control? Check the officers’ other appointments.
- 4
Look at charges and insolvency
Outstanding charges show secured lenders. Insolvency cases show formal distress. Cross-check the London Gazette for notices.
- 5
Check for disqualified directors
Search the disqualified-directors register for each director.
- 6
Screen sanctions and adverse media
Screen the company, officers and owners against the UK Sanctions List and other major lists, check the FCA warning list for financial firms, and search the news.
What can UK accounts tell you?
Most UK companies must file annual accounts at Companies House, increasingly in iXBRL so the figures are machine-readable. Small companies can file limited accounts with little or no profit and loss detail, so the absence of revenue figures is normal for many private companies — not necessarily a red flag.
How does MarketPrior check a UK company?
MarketPrior reads UK Companies House officers and PSCs, the company dossier (iXBRL accounts, PSC, insolvency and filing status), the London Gazette, the disqualified-directors register, FCA final notices and the FCA warning list, plus global sanctions, PEP and adverse-media screening — and cites every finding. New UK companies, officer changes and registered charges also feed the lead trigger feed.