Companies House is to make all of its digital data available free of charge, this is planned to take effect from April 2015.
Currently Companies House information is available for a small fee, removing this fee will make it easier for businesses and members of the public by Companies House own admission to research and scrutinise the activities and ownership of companies and connected individuals.
Free Information from Companies House should give the UK economy a boost and “open up opportunities for entrepreneurs to come up with innovative ways of using the information.”
How does this effect you and your business?
Don’t disclose more than you need to
All Limited companies are required to submit their accounts and Annual Return each year which puts information about the company into the public domain.
We recommend that all SME’s ensure that they take full advantage of the reporting exceptions available to SME’s; this will ensure that you are not putting more information into the public domain than is absolutely necessary; you can provide further information to third parties on your terms.
If SME’s take advantage of the exemptions and file Abbreviated Accounts the information provided is of limited use.
Use the information to access new customers
Use the information available to your advantage. If you are dealing with a new customer you can check what information is available from Companies House, this could help determine the size of their business, their credit worthiness and what connections they have to other businesses.
Get further information on your competitors
Review your competitors accounts, if full accounts have been disclosed you can determine how they are performing and benchmark against your own company’s performance. Further information may be given on their plans or highlight any challenges they may be facing.
If you would like to discuss how this will impact on your business please get in touch.
