Chartered business & Xero accountants and advisors

Chartered business and Xero accountants and advisors

The Privacy Perk of a Virtual Office

Are you running your business from home and worried about your privacy? The reality is that your details are public record, making it easy for anyone to find your home address. But there’s a simple solution: a Virtual Office.

Linda Carrington

MA(hons) GDipLaw

Practice Management Director

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

If you run your business from home, you’ve probably felt that slight hesitation when it comes to filling out your details for Companies House.

The reality of being a company owner in England is that your details are public record. If you use your home address as your Registered Office, anyone from a disgruntled customer to a persistent cold-caller can find out exactly where you live with just a few clicks.

It’s a common privacy headache, but there is a very simple fix: a Virtual Office.

By using a professional registered office address, you keep your front door private. You can use this address for Companies House and HMRC, and it should go on your website and your invoices too.

At Wessex Commercial, we often help our clients find the right provider in the South West. We have excellent partners in Taunton, Exeter, Plymouth, and Bristol. For a small monthly fee, you get:

  • Privacy: Your home stays off the public record.
  • Professionalism: A town or city-centre presence on your letterhead and website.
  • Local Trust: Customers value seeing that you’re rooted in the local area you serve.
  • Room to grow: We prefer to refer to providers who can also offer meeting rooms and physical office space as your business expands.

What is the process?

The best time to do this is before you officially set up your company.

  1. Ask us about our referral partners: We can introduce you to trusted providers.
  2. Agree the plan: Call us before you set up your company. We can often do the company formation for you.
  3. Launch: Once everything is set up, you put that address on your official documents (including invoices) and your website.
  4. Stay updated: Your mail is simply forwarded from the virtual office to you.

If you’re looking to tidy up your business setup or you’re about to launch something new, drop me a message. We can point you in the right direction.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Registered Office?

Every company registered in England must have an official address. This is the ‘legal’ home of your company where official mail from HMRC and Companies House is sent. It doesn’t have to be where you actually do your daily work, but it must be a physical address where documents can be delivered.

As a director, you also need to provide a correspondence address. This is what is displayed on the public register at Companies House. By linking this to your Registered Office address, you ensure your home address remains private and is not published online.

Yes. You are still legally required to tell Companies House your residential address and keep it updated if you move. However, as long as you have a separate Registered Office and Correspondence Address, your home address stays on their “protected” list and isn’t visible to the general public.

The main benefit is peace of mind. It prevents your home address from being harvested by marketing databases and ensures that business life and home life stay separate. It also means you don’t have unexpected visitors showing up at your family home!

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Linda Carrington

MA(hons) GDipLaw

Practice Management Director

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