02/09/2026
Companies House default address – Why is my address there?
If your company uses a paid registered office service, you need to be aware of this. A client recently discovered that their director's service address had been changed to the Companies House default address – and getting it corrected has proved far from straightforward.
What happened?
The company used a registered office service. The provider moved premises and correctly filed the AD01 to tell Companies House that the company's registered office had changed. But they didn't update the director's service address.
If the director's service address is the company's registered office, changing the registered office doesn't necessarily mean that all the other relevant records have been updated as you might expect.
If Companies House correspondence sent to the old address is returned, it will consider the address ineffective and can take action, including changing the service address to the Companies House default address.
Once that happens, getting your address restored isn't necessarily as simple as submitting another form.
So, if your company changes its registered office, don't just check that the AD01 has been filed.
• Check the company's registered office address
• Check every director's service address
• Check the service address of any People with Significant Control (PSCs)
• Make sure the changes actually appear on the Companies House register
And if you're using a registered office service, don't assume that the provider has updated everything that needs updating - Check the Companies House record yourself!
