Most SME owners who need to contact Companies House are in the middle of something time-sensitive — a filing deadline, a name dispute, or a director change that's blocking a loan application. The process is more straightforward than it looks, but only if you know which channel to use and what information to have ready.
This article covers every way to contact Companies House, what each channel is actually good for, and how SMEs running Google Ads can use their business registration details to keep campaigns compliant and credible.
How to Contact Companies House: The Main Options
Companies House is an executive agency of the UK government responsible for incorporating companies, registering limited liability partnerships, and maintaining the public register of UK businesses. It is not a regulator in the traditional sense, but it does have enforcement powers for filing failures.
To contact Companies House, you have four primary options: telephone, webchat, email, and the online enquiry form via the Companies House website. Each has a different purpose, and using the wrong one wastes time. Their main contact number for general enquiries is 0303 1234 500, available Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 6pm. Webchat is available through the Companies House website during the same hours and is often faster for straightforward questions.
For written enquiries, the postal address is Companies House, Crown Way, Cardiff, CF14 3UZ. If you're based in Scotland, the Edinburgh office handles Scottish company registrations specifically. For Welsh language enquiries, there is a dedicated Welsh-language service.
Understanding which channel suits your query saves a significant amount of time. A question about whether a company name is already registered, for example, is answered faster by searching the Companies House register directly at find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk than by calling.
What You Can and Cannot Do When You Contact Companies House
This is where many SME owners hit a wall. Companies House is a registration and filing body, not an advisory service. When you contact Companies House, the team can help with filing queries, account access issues, rejected documents, and name availability. They cannot give legal advice, mediate disputes between directors, or override a court order.
If your annual confirmation statement has been rejected, that's a filing query — call or use webchat. If you're disputing another company's use of a name similar to yours, that is handled through a formal objection process, not a phone call. If you've forgotten your authentication code, that's account access — use the webchat service or the online reset process.
One thing worth knowing from running a marketing agency for nine years: a surprising number of SMEs only contact Companies House when something has gone wrong. Filing deadlines, dormant account notifications, and director change confirmations are all things you can track proactively through the Companies House email reminder service, which is free and genuinely useful.
For dissolution queries — closing a company — there is a specific voluntary strike-off process, and Companies House has guidance pages for this. Do not attempt to begin dissolution over the phone without having your company number and authentication code to hand.
Companies House Contact Channels: A Direct Comparison
| Channel | Best For | Response Time | Available Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telephone (0303 1234 500) | Urgent filing issues, account access | Immediate (hold times vary) | Mon–Fri, 8:30am–6pm |
| Webchat | Quick queries, name checks | 5–15 minutes | Mon–Fri, 8:30am–6pm |
| Online enquiry form | Non-urgent written queries | 2–5 working days | 24/7 submission |
| Post (Cardiff) | Formal documents, objections | 7–14 working days | N/A |
| Companies House WebFiling | Self-service filings and changes | Instant | 24/7 |
The WebFiling service handles the majority of what SMEs actually need — confirmation statements, accounts, officer changes — without needing to contact anyone at all. If you're not already registered for WebFiling, that's the first thing to fix.
Why Your Companies House Registration Matters for Google Ads
This connection is not obvious, but it matters. When SMEs run Google Ads, particularly in regulated categories or industries where Google requires business verification, your Companies House registration number is often part of the verification process. Google's advertiser identity verification programme requires businesses to confirm their legal identity, and for UK-registered companies, that means your registration details need to match.
If your registered address or trading name has changed and isn't updated at Companies House, it can create mismatches that slow down or block Google's verification process. We've seen this happen with rebranded businesses — the Google Ads account reflects the new trading name, but the Companies House record still shows the old one. That inconsistency causes friction.
This is also relevant for ad copy. Using your full registered company name or number in display URL paths or in service-based ads builds trust signals that improve Quality Score over time. It's a small thing, but small things compound. For a deeper look at what Google Ads actually costs SMEs, the ad cost guide covers the mechanics of how Quality Score affects your spend.
Keeping your Companies House record current is, in practical terms, part of maintaining a credible Google Ads presence. The two systems talk to each other more than most SME owners realise.
How to Update Your Details After You Contact Companies House
Once you've resolved a query or need to update your registration, the process for most changes goes through the WebFiling portal rather than via a call. Director changes, registered office updates, and share capital changes all have specific forms — AP01, AD01, SH01 respectively — that can be submitted online.
For 2026, Companies House has been implementing reforms under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, which means identity verification requirements for directors and persons with significant control are becoming mandatory. If you haven't checked your obligations under these changes, do that now. The reforms affect every company on the register, and non-compliance carries financial penalties.
The authentication code, which you need for WebFiling, is sent by post to your registered address. If you've moved and not updated your address, you may not receive it. This is one of the most common reasons SMEs end up needing to contact Companies House — they've moved offices, not updated their registered address, and are now locked out of WebFiling.
If you're running Google Ads while dealing with this kind of administrative backlog, your campaigns don't pause themselves. That's where Overtime's approach to AI-managed Google Ads becomes relevant — having an AI agent adjusting bids and pausing underperformers while you handle back-office compliance means neither task has to wait for the other.
Filing Deadlines, Fines, and What Happens If You Miss Them
Companies House issues automatic late filing penalties. For private limited companies, the penalty for filing accounts late starts at £150 for delays of up to one month and rises to £1,500 for delays over six months. If the accounts are late two years in a row, the penalty doubles. There is no waiver for first-time lateness unless you have an exceptional circumstance with documented evidence.
The confirmation statement deadline is 14 days after your review period ends, and the review period runs 12 months from either incorporation or the last confirmation statement date. Missing it is a criminal offence, not just a financial penalty — though in practice, prosecution is rare and Companies House typically issues reminders first.
When you contact Companies House about a penalty, they will tell you plainly that late filing penalties exist to ensure companies comply, not as a revenue stream. Appeals are considered, but only on grounds of genuine error or circumstance — not on the basis that you were busy or unaware of the deadline.
For SMEs trying to manage both their business admin and their marketing budget simultaneously, this is genuinely difficult. Understanding how to manage Google Ads spend effectively matters as much as keeping on top of Companies House deadlines — both have financial consequences if neglected.
Before You Contact Companies House, Try These First
The Companies House website has improved significantly. Before calling, check the following: the company search tool (free, instant), the WebFiling service (handles 80% of what people call about), the help articles within your WebFiling account, and the Companies House blog, which publishes updates on policy changes and new requirements.
If you need to contact Companies House specifically about a dissolution query, the GOV.UK guidance on voluntary strike-off is thorough and answers most questions without needing to speak to anyone. Similarly, the guidance on registered office requirements and the rules around using a virtual address are all publicly available.
Overtine, as an AI agent that manages Google Ads for SMEs, operates best when the business it's working for has clean, verified registration details — because that's what Google's verification systems check against. Keeping your Companies House record accurate is, indirectly, part of keeping your ad account in good standing.
If your Google Ads are being managed reactively — you check in when something looks wrong — that's a separate problem. AI-driven PPC management changes that dynamic by monitoring campaigns continuously, not just when a human remembers to log in.
Knowing how and when to contact Companies House is part of running a compliant UK business. It doesn't need to be complicated, but it does need to be on your radar alongside every other operational priority.
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FAQ
What is the phone number to contact Companies House?
The main Companies House contact number for general enquiries is 0303 1234 500. Lines are open Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 6pm. For Scottish company enquiries, the Edinburgh office can also be reached through the Companies House website.
How long does Companies House take to respond to an enquiry form submission?
Online enquiry form submissions typically receive a response within 2 to 5 working days. For urgent matters — particularly filing issues with imminent deadlines — telephone or webchat is faster and more appropriate.
What information do I need before I contact Companies House?
Have your company registration number, registered company name, and authentication code ready before you call or use webchat. Without these, the team cannot access your record or make changes on your behalf.
Can Companies House help me with a director dispute?
No. Companies House registers information but does not adjudicate disputes between directors or shareholders. For director disputes, you would need to seek legal advice or apply to the courts. Companies House can only reflect what is formally filed with them.
Should I call or use webchat to contact Companies House about a rejected filing?
Webchat is often faster for filing rejections because you can share reference numbers in text and get a written response to keep. Telephone is better if the issue is complex or time-critical, such as a filing rejection with fewer than 48 hours before a penalty deadline.
For more on this, see our guide: Companies House Certificate of Incorporation: What It Means.
For more on this, see our guide: How to Find Company Registration Number (UK Guide).
For more on this, see our guide: Certificate of Incorporation Companies House: What It Means.
For more on this, see our guide: Companies House Contact Number: What SMEs Need.
For more on this, see our guide: Companies House Contact Number: What SMEs Need.
For more on this, see our guide: Call Companies House: What SMEs Actually Need.
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