Companies Act 2006

Service addresses

1139Service of documents on company

(1)A document may be served on a company registered under this Act by leaving it at, or sending it by post to, the company’s registered office.

(2)A document may be served on an overseas company whose particulars are registered under section 1046—

(a)by leaving it at, or sending it by post to, the registered address of any person resident in the United Kingdom who is authorised to accept service of documents on the company’s behalf, or

(b)if there is no such person, or if any such person refuses service or service cannot for any other reason be effected, by leaving it at or sending by post to any place of business of the company in the United Kingdom.

(3)For the purposes of this section a person’s “registered address” means any address for the time being shown as a current address in relation to that person in the part of the register available for public inspection.

(4)Where a company registered in Scotland or Northern Ireland carries on business in England and Wales, the process of any court in England and Wales may be served on the company by leaving it at, or sending it by post to, the company’s principal place of business in England and Wales, addressed to the manager or other head officer in England and Wales of the company.

Where process is served on a company under this subsection, the person issuing out the process must send a copy of it by post to the company’s registered office.

(5)Further provision as to service and other matters is made in the company communications provisions (see section 1143).

1140Service of documents on directors, secretaries and others

(1)A document may be served on a person to whom this section applies by leaving it at, or sending it by post to, the person’s registered address.

(2)This section applies to—

(a)a director or secretary of a company;

(b)in the case of an overseas company whose particulars are registered under section 1046, a person holding any such position as may be specified for the purposes of this section by regulations under that section;

(c)a person appointed in relation to a company as—

(i)a judicial factor (in Scotland),

(ii)a receiver and manager appointed under section 18 of the Charities Act 1993 (c. 10), or

(iii)a manager appointed under section 47 of the Companies (Audit, Investigations and Community Enterprise) Act 2004 (c. 27).

(3)This section applies whatever the purpose of the document in question.

It is not restricted to service for purposes arising out of or in connection with the appointment or position mentioned in subsection (2) or in connection with the company concerned.

(4)For the purposes of this section a person’s “registered address” means any address for the time being shown as a current address in relation to that person in the part of the register available for public inspection.

(5)If notice of a change of that address is given to the registrar, a person may validly serve a document at the address previously registered until the end of the period of 14 days beginning with the date on which notice of the change is registered.

(6)Service may not be effected by virtue of this section at an address—

(a)if notice has been registered of the termination of the appointment in relation to which the address was registered and the address is not a registered address of the person concerned in relation to any other appointment;

(b)in the case of a person holding any such position as is mentioned in subsection (2)(b), if the overseas company has ceased to have any connection with the United Kingdom by virtue of which it is required to register particulars under section 1046.

(7)Further provision as to service and other matters is made in the company communications provisions (see section 1143).

(8)Nothing in this section shall be read as affecting any enactment or rule of law under which permission is required for service out of the jurisdiction.

1141Service addresses

(1)In the Companies Acts a “service address”, in relation to a person, means an address at which documents may be effectively served on that person.

(2)The Secretary of State may by regulations specify conditions with which a service address must comply.

(3)Regulations under this section are subject to negative resolution procedure.

1142Requirement to give service address

Any obligation under the Companies Acts to give a person’s address is, unless otherwise expressly provided, to give a service address for that person.