Many company directors prefer to keep their personal address away from the public eye. More companies are formed now with directors using a service address than we have seen in previous years.
It was not that many years ago that it was necessary for all directors to display their personal addresses on the Companies House Register. However, since the changes introduced by the Company Law Act came into effect in 2009 that stance has changed. The law now allows for greater protection of personal details as well as increased privacy for those involved in a company.
How to keep your address from the public records?
Companies House are duty bound to hold and display certain details for Directors. As this is a legal requirement it doesn’t conflict with the Data Protection Act. Therefore, it is still necessary for Companies House to hold the personal address of all Directors on their protected records that are not available to the general public. However, you can now chose to elect a “Directors Service Address [DSA]” to be seen on the public register. This can be any genuine address of your choosing, whether it be the same as your registered office or separate. However, the address needs to be a “real” address, so PO Boxes can only be used as long as you provide the complete physical address.
How to remove an existing address from Companies House?
For existing directors who already have their residential address on the register, you can switch your address to a DSA. In order to do this you will need to submit Form CH01 either using the WebFiling service or by post. However, it is important to note that although the DSA will then be the most immediately available address on the public record, due to the very nature of the internet, the chances of removing it entirely from all records are almost none. You can request and pay Companies House to supress your address details from previous documents. However, this may not remove your details from websites that have ‘scraped data from Companies House in the past.
New company directors
As a new director, the best way to protect your personal information is to use a service address. This can be done when registering a new company or adding a new director to an existing company. The address may be your office, your factory, your accountants or a virtual address provided by a business like Simple Formations. We are pleased to help hundreds of company directors keep their home address private. In addition, our service addresses are professional and reputable, giving a better impression to any future clients searching your company details online.
