Can I check a sole trader?

No. Sole traders and ordinary partnerships aren't on the Companies House register, so there's no public record of this kind to read. If they gave you a company number, it's a company; try that.

Why doesn't it show how fast a small company pays?

Only large companies have to report their payment practices. For a small company, overdue accounts and registered charges on the register are the nearest public signals.

Is this a credit check?

No. It reads the public registers and says what they show. A credit reference agency also sees private data such as payment histories; this doesn't.

Free tool

Check a company before you work for them

Before you quote, give credit or sign a supplier: one search reads seven public registers (Companies House, payment practices, public contracts, the Environment Agency, the UK Sanctions List and more) and tells you what’s worth knowing first. Free, no sign-up.

About the Company Check

What it actually checks

It finds the company on the Companies House register (by number, or the closest registered name) and reads its profile: status, age, and whether its accounts and confirmation statement are up to date.
It reads the register for signs of trouble: insolvency cases, a proposed strike-off, overdue filings, charges; and whether its directors and PSCs show a verified identity against their deadline.
For large companies it adds how fast they report paying suppliers, ranked against every other reporter, and their gender pay gap report.
It adds the public-sector contracts it has won (Contracts Finder and Find a Tender, last two years), its Environment Agency registrations in England, and whether it appears on the UK Sanctions List.

How to read your result

Everything comes from public registers, which record things after they happen and can lag. A clean record is not a guarantee, and a flag is a reason to ask, not a verdict.
We say a company is on the UK Sanctions List only when it definitely is: its company number, or its exact registered name and address, match a UK entry. Otherwise we say we didn't match it, which isn't a clearance: companies owned or controlled by someone on the list aren't named on it. The official list is the one to rely on, and relying on ours doesn't replace your own checks.
It describes what the records show, not the company's finances or anyone's conduct. It isn't a credit rating.
Free with no sign-up: five checks a week across all our free tools, then a free account. Names of individual directors aren't shown here; the counts are.

Questions people ask

Can I check a sole trader?: No. Sole traders and ordinary partnerships aren't on the Companies House register, so there's no public record of this kind to read. If they gave you a company number, it's a company; try that.
Why doesn't it show how fast a small company pays?: Only large companies have to report their payment practices. For a small company, overdue accounts and registered charges on the register are the nearest public signals.
Is this a credit check?: No. It reads the public registers and says what they show. A credit reference agency also sees private data such as payment histories; this doesn't.