Providers of company registered offices have both a professional and legal responsibility to be vigilant against fraud. Whilst in the majority of situations a registered office service is used to add prestige to a company or to protect the home address of a director, they can also be subject of abuse and used for fraudulent purposes.

Just as it might be the situation that an individual wishes to hide their residential address for general privacy, it could also be the case that they plan to commit fraud and thus wish to place distance between themselves and where they live.

Those who therefore offer registered office address facilities (predominantly company formation agents) require additional levels of diligence when determining whether and if so how they intend to provide and monitor the service.

One common method employed is to require identity documents and proof of address from the company’s directors and shareholders as apart of the company’s anti money laundering procedures. Typically a passport and utility bill would satisfy this requirement provided they appear genuine.

An additional level of verification could be applied by requiring these documents to be notarised or attested by an independent authority. This is typically requested where the physical address of the directors is abroad where a certified English translation of the material might also be requested.

Credit checks, particularly for UK bases customers can be undertaken to establish that the information contained in the documents is genuine and accurate. Most credit reference agencies provide money laundering facilities which providers of company registered office services would subscribe to in order to counteract fraud.

They might apply credit checks globally to all customers or to those which specifically arouse their suspicions.

Another method of both verifying a director’s identity and minimising the incidence of fraud in using a registered office is to insist that any mail received for customers is despatched to them by post.

Often those with the intension of committing fraud and who are using a third party registered office address will subscribe to services where they can collect their mail, thereby not needing to be at the address they stated as living at in order to collect post.

Limited payment options to credit and debit cards can also warn off potential fraudsters as online transactions result in a paper trail which can be followed should be registered office provider be contacted by the Police.

Cash payments again suggest they a customer might wish to avoid leaving a paper trail and this can heighten suspicions.

Whilst no company formation agent can guarantee that their service will not be provided to someone intent of committing fraud, having checks in place can diminish the possibility of it happening. In situations where fraud is reporting, supplying the authorities with money laundering documents can help to bring the perpetrator to justice.

When seeking to register a company for the purpose of managing a block of flats the decision exists on what type of business incorporation is suitable for that purpose.

Dedicated flat management company formation services do exist for this specific purpose whereby the memorandum and articles of association are tailored towards this type of registration.

The property address is typically entered on these documents and as companies limited by guarantee, the non profit and distribution clauses are included as standard.

An alternative format to registering a company limited by guarantee and thus incorporating a definitive flat management company is to setup a company limited by shares.

Whilst most companies limited by shares are profit making enterprises they too can be used to facilitate the incorporation of a flat management company.

One concept which is universally understood in the field of company formation is that of share ownership. Most people or in this instance lessees can comprehensive a situation where there are ten flats, ten shares in issue and each property occupier is given one share unit.

Due to this understanding of the division of the company’s equities companies limited by shares is sometimes the favoured option when registering a flat management company.

In terms of how the company might operate, the memorandum and articles documents can be arrange to encompass the company objects thereby removing the default profit making slant. In specifying the company’s objects the dedicated purpose of the incorporation and existence of the flat management company can be articulated, removing any uncertainty as to the raison d’être of the registered entity.

As with any adjustment to a company’s constitutional documents, extra time and expense might be incurred to affirm the language and to ensure compliance to the current Companies Act 2006 legislation.

An additional consideration in determining the most effective means of incorporating a flat management company is of course the cost. Most company formation agents charge a premium for this type of business registration, although others with enhanced company setup systems are able to cater for all types of formations as standard and therefore do not levy supplementary fees.

There are a number of ways of getting rid of a company that is no longer required. The exact method chosen will be determined by several factors including whether the company has traded, whether it owes money to suppliers or other creditors and how orderly the directors wish to leave affairs.

One obvious means of getting rid of a company, particularly if it is trading is to sell it to an interested party. A potential buyer might be interested in buying an existing company for various reasons including its trade, assets, name and goodwill.

Valuations and due diligence reports of the company would precede final negotiations before a sale is agreed and the transaction carried out.

Dormant companies increase the possible options available for getting rid a company. The entity can be sold just as a trading can, for its attractive name for example.

In addition to this option dormant companies can be dissolved by completing and filing the appropriate documents at Companies House. The rules which state that the company must not have traded for three months prior to the dissolution would automatically be satisfied by a company which has been dormant since its business incorporation date.

In other instances, whether deliberately or otherwise, incorporated businesses are dissolved (struck off) by Companies House themselves without this specifically being requested by the directors. This is usually as a result of non-compliance with the company’s statutory requirements; namely the annual return and accounts.

All incorporated businesses are required to produce and submit these documents. Even in situations where the business has never traded, dormant company accounts are still necessary.

The method of getting rid of a company is viewed as untidy and might not present the directors in a favourable light should they wish to register another company in the future.

Ironically however, having a company dissolved due to the non filing transgression does open the gateway to restoring the company via an administrative restoration at a later date. Closing down the company in the orderly dissolution fashion by completing the correct forms and making the required payment means that an administrative restoration would not then be possible in the future.

Instead restoration by court order would be needed resulting in greatly increased costs to bring the company back into existence.