Adding a trading name to your bank account? How did you do it?

[ryanmweb]

Want to be able to take cheques/payments named to my trading name instead of my LTD company. As i am getting queries from customers why is the name different even though on my invoice it does state ABC is a trading name of XYZ Ltd. I phoned the bank and they said i have to pay and register it with companies house. I can't find where to do this on their website.

When i was a sole trader they just added it over the phone. I am with HSBC but i have a friend that is with barclays and they just required an agreement from all directors to say that they use the trading name.

Any ideas?

 

[FirstClassVirtualOffice]

Just a short letter asking to add the trading name to the account and sign it off by account holder. Send to the branch address on your bank statement. Your Ltd Co is already formed with Companies House (I can only presume) so you are only adding a trading name of that company so you don't also have to form Ltd Co's for the trading name as well.

Maybe they misunderstood....it's not hard to confuse bank staff with a simple straightforward request!

 

[ryanmweb]

Just a short letter asking to add the trading name to the account and sign it off by account holder. Send to the branch address on your bank statement.

Have you done that with HSBC?

 

[FirstClassVirtualOffice]

No was Natwest who do have a proper form but they have accepted a letter.

Just send the letter and ring up in 3 days to see if they got it. Tell them you are already ltd and are only adding a trading name to the account.

You can then pay in cheques in the name of Ltd Co or trading name, so doesn't matter if customer writes either name on cheque, etc. If you're customer's don't understand ABC Ltd trading as XYZ then don't worry about that. Just put on invoice who to make cheques payable to. That's all we do and nobody ever gets it wrong but we have both names on the account just in case.

 

[StevensOnln1]

My LTD company banks with HSBC and I was able to add a trading name to the account just by asking in the branch.

Sent from my GT-P1000 using UK Business Forums

 

[amac]

As others have said, write to your bank. Changing your name with companies house is pretty easy also if you wish to do this as well.

 

[Christine Hough]

I set this up with them (HSBC) when I moved my account to them. My cheques say "Music Teacher Support LTD TA Hofnote" and I can bank cheques made out either to 'Music Teacher Support LTD' or to 'Hofnote'.

I certainly did not need to notify companies house.

I had the same arrangement with Santander before that. But when they changed their systems they lost my instruction and bounced some very important cheques in at a crucial time. No-one there knew where the cheques had gone to although I did get them back after a couple of weeks, and they would not believe me at all although finally admitted it was their mistake. Part of why I moved.

 

[FirstClassVirtualOffice]

Does the bank, for some reason, think that the main business is not already Ltd?

Makes you wonder why they are saying you have to form the name first.

Unless they just got confused over what was being asked. Like I say, it's not hard to do that with them. They're terrible at actioning things.