Before any company can be registered, it needs to have a name, and this is something that shouldn’t be left to luck of the draw, impulse or last-minute decision making.
The name of your company needs to be memorable, simple and relevant in regards to what your company offers, or the people operating it.
If you have found a company name that reflectss everything that your company is about, you won’t be pleased to find out that another company already operating has an identical name; rendering your well-thought-out company name useless.
In terms of company formation and registration, it is common knowledge that the name of your company cannot be the same as any other company appearing in the index of company names.
However, as of October 2009, there are certain circumstances in which this rule can be sidestepped.
If you are adamant that you do not wish to change your desired company name during the company registration process, there are some steps you can take to make sure that your preferred name stay as close to the original ideal as possible.
If your preferred company name is ‘Johnson & Sons Limited’, for example, you can retain the essence of this name and get it registered even if it is identical to one already in the index, simply by changing it to ‘Johnson & Sons (UK) Limited’.
The company already in the index will need to be contacted, and consent will need to be gained from them for this to be possible, but for budding companies determined to retain their name in the purest form possible, this new ‘loophole’ will prove incredibly useful.
