Companies House is warning about the rising risk of unsolicited payment requests from fraudsters holding themselves out as being from Companies House.

The fake invoices are often detectable when the paperwork is examined, but it is essential to be ‘vigilant about misleading requests for payments, sent by organisations not affiliated with government’, Companies House warned.

Invoices are usually posted to the company’s registered office address but can be sent by email too. Receiving an invoice in the post should be an immediate red flag, so make sure these are checked carefully, particularly demands for payment for standard Companies House services and trade mark renewals.

Companies House warned: ‘These invoices may request payment at a highly inflated price for services available for a much lower fee, or free of charge, directly from the legitimate sources such as Companies House.”

If you receive a suspect letter or email asking for payment:

• Check any website addresses included in the letter or email, and email addresses from generic domains – official Companies House and IPO services are provided through gov.uk;
• Check emails cited on the letters as they are usually quite similar to gov.uk official addresses but will contain giveaway mistakes, typos, and/or poor English;
• Look for disclaimers stating the organisation is not affiliated with the government;
• Do not click on URL links requesting payment, as these are often phishing and contain damaging computer viruses.
• Contact Companies House directly to verify any requests.