Make as many enquiries as you can to check no-one is using an identical or similar name already (including phonetically similar names, eg if you want to use 'Photomagic', check for 'Fotomagic' and 'Fotomagik').
You can check various public registers to see if identical or similar names are already registered. Searching is free - but detailed checking for similar names is a skilled task. Seek help from your lawyers if in doubt. But if there is an obvious problem with another business, these checks can flag it up early, while you can still take control of the situation.
The Companies House register tells you if a business has registered your name, or a similar name, as a UK limited company or LLP name. If it has, you can click on the company number to see basic details like when it was registered, its official address, whether it's trading and when it last filed accounts or an annual return.
The UK Intellectual Property Office register tells you if a name is registered as a UK trade mark. For European Union trade marks (that can be enforced anywhere in Europe, including the UK), search at oami.europa.eu.
You can check for names registered as domain names at the websites of official registries www.nominet.org.uk for UK domain names (use the 'whois' field in the top right hand corner) and www.internic.com for .com domain names. You can find information for other country codes (such as .fr) at www.iana.org.
There may be business or brand names in use in your market that have not been registered - for example, unincorporated businesses. Search for identical or similar names on the web using search engines like Google. Check trade directories, trade associations, telephone directories, Yellow Pages and trade fairs. Make enquiries of suppliers and others who know your intended sector. If in doubt, take legal advice.
