Is your employer in trouble? Free checks

1. Check the company status on Companies House

Go to Companies House, search for your employer by name, and look at the company status. Anything other than “Active” is a red flag:

• Administration – the company cannot pay its debts; an administrator has been appointed.
• In liquidation – the company is being wound up.
• Proposal to strike off – a notice has been filed to remove the company from the register, usually because it is dormant or failing to file.
• Active proposal to strike off – the process is under way. If your employer stops trading, wages stop too.
• Dissolved – the company no longer exists. You are almost certainly dealing with a former-trading-name situation or a scam.

2. Look for overdue accounts

On the Companies House page, find the “Filing history” tab. Companies must file annual accounts within nine months of their accounting reference date (six months for PLCs). If the latest accounts are overdue by more than a month, the company is either neglecting its statutory obligations or unable to finalise accounts – both are warning signs.

Look specifically at the “Next accounts made up to” and “Next accounts due by” dates. If the due-by date has passed, the Registrar will eventually issue a notice and may begin compulsory strike-off. A company that cannot file its accounts on time may also be struggling to pay its staff or suppliers.

3. Check for charges (secured debts)

On the same Companies House page, open the “Charges” tab (under “More”). A charge is security a lender has registered against the company’s assets – typically a bank loan secured on property, equipment or book debts. One or two charges from a high-street bank are normal for most trading companies.

What to look for: charges registered by invoice-finance providers, asset-based lenders, or lenders you do not recognise. Multiple charges, or charges described as “fixed and floating” over “all property and undertaking,” can indicate the company has borrowed heavily and pledged everything it owns as collateral. A newly registered charge while the company is overdue on its accounts is a strong signal of distress.

4. Search The Gazette for insolvency notices

The Gazette is the UK’s official public record. Search for your employer’s exact company name. It publishes winding-up petitions, appointments of administrators, notices of creditors’ meetings, and final dissolution notices. A winding-up petition (WUP) means a creditor has asked the court to force the company into liquidation – often the last stop before closure.

5. Search for County Court Judgments (CCJs)

County Court judgments are registered against a company when a creditor sues and wins. They are public and searchable through the Registry Trust (Trust Online) for a small fee of £10 per search. Multiple CCJs above a few hundred pounds, or recent ones, indicate the company is not paying its bills and is being pursued in court.

6. Check director history – are directors leaving?

On the Companies House page, open the “People” tab to see current and past directors. If several directors have resigned in a short period, or if the company secretary has gone and not been replaced, the leadership may have lost confidence in the business. Also check whether any current director has a history of dissolved companies in the “Other directorships” list – a pattern of dissolved companies can indicate serial insolvency.

What to do if you see warning signs

One overdue account or one charge is not proof your employer is about to close. But if you see two or three of these signals together – overdue accounts plus a newly registered charge plus departing directors – take it seriously.

• Keep a personal copy of your employment contract, payslips and P60 outside the company’s systems.
• Know your notice period and your right to redundancy pay if you have been employed for two years or more.
• If you are worried about unpaid wages, contact ACAS (free, confidential) for advice before taking formal action.

Sources: Companies House public register; The Gazette; Registry Trust Ltd; ACAS statutory guidance. All checks described are free at the point of use except the Trust Online CCJ search, which charges £10 per name. Last reviewed 1 Nov 2026.