When you form a company using Inform Direct, a name check is carried out with Companies House to see if your proposed company name is available.
When choosing a name for a new company, it cannot:
- Be the same as another registered company's name
- Be too similar to another registered name (unless you have permission, i.e. part of the same group)
- Contain a 'sensitive' word or expression (unless you have permission)
- Suggest a connection with government or local authorities
- Be offensive
Note: The same rules apply when changing the name of an existing company.
Inform Direct will automatically check any proposed name against the first 3 criteria using the Companies House website,
To check a name:
1. Enter the proposed name. Do not include Limited in the company name and instead select the relevant ending from the drop down. The name will automatically capitalise in line with Companies House formatting.
Note: If the company's registered office address is in Wales you can choose the standard english endings or the welsh variants.
2. When you click the green 'Continue' button, Inform Direct will check the proposed name. If the name does not fail any of the criteria above, then you will then be asked to enter the Registered Office address. If the name does fail any of the criteria, then Inform Direct will detail this.
Note: Some names will be failed by Companies House if they include a word containing a sensitive word. For example you cannot use the word 'King' without permission; you may find that Companies House will fail a company name such as 'Kingswell' or 'Storking'. It is not always possible to determine at this stage that a name will be unacceptable - sometimes it will be picked up by the Companies House team upon submitting the incorporation. See Can I use a sensitive or restricted company name? or Can I Use a Similar Name to an Existing Company when Forming a Company?