company not listed on companies house website.

[betterman]

I am trying to find information on a company that my wife works for, we have been offered the business which has been running since 2005 for a price, the buisness is run from home.

When i searched companies house website the company is not even listed, also on another website i entered the name of the company offered to me and it said I could register that name.

whats going on?

[justmetoo]

you can search using the number they registered with, try that....

[betterman]

Hi, thanks for that.

I know the director, i will try searching by her name.

Somethings just not adding up though.

[justmetoo]

good luck....

[betterman]

oh and another thing, the cheques are always made payable to the name of the company director, never the business name.

[buildersmate]

That's not on (making payments to a director for a business debt) - in that is not lawful. The credit has to go through the books of the business. Smells of fraudalent accounting.
Are you sure it IS a limited company? - not one just pretending to be.

[kempie]

Nowhere in the original question or any of the follow-ups is there mention that the business is a limited company. If the business has been set up with unlimited liability as a sole trader (or partnership) then it has not been incorporated and therefore would not need to register with Companies House - instead a declaration of self-employment by the owner to HMRC is required.

Is the "director" in reality the owner of the business?

[buildersmate]

You're probably right, Kempie. Because the questioner is using the terms 'company', 'director' and 'companies house' I assumed he/she at least knew that these terms only align to a limited liability company.

[betterman]

not sure whether the business is a limited company, but all cheques for the service they provide are made to one person and she is the director of the company. the name of the business does not contain the LTD that is associated with a limited company, it is the company name followed by CO.
for example, anon cleaning co.
my wife has worked for this company for 16 months and collects upto 6 cheques a day but none are ever made payable to the company and a lot of payments are cash.

[Tom Braider]

Doesn't sound like a limited company. The word "company" doesn't necessarily mean there's a legal entity - you can call yourself "The trading company" even if you're a sole trader. What exactly would you be buying?

[betterman]

a domestic cleaning business.

[redcrx]

have you looked at the accounts for the business? They will be the first thing youll want to see if youre considering buying the company and youll soo find out if money is being skimmed off.

I think you may find that this is not a limited company and is just a sole trader.

[missspeedy23]

Definitely doesn't sound like a ltd co to me - if you are seriously thinking about buying them out then I would go and see an accountant with their accounts for the last few years and see if it is worth buying it as a going concern.

Doesn't matter that they are not ltd, some people just choose not to do it.

[Skyline D]

It's not a Limited Company. The word "company" in the business name doesn't mean it is. The fact that payments are made to the business owner personally should have told you that anyway but if it was a company then it would have its registered number on letterheads and invoices.

You can't search Companies House for directors incidentally. At least not for free.