XBert Type: Standard
Accounting Software: Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks
Country Restriction: GB only
Risk Type: Tax Risk
Business Function: Sales
Overview
The “Unpaid Income with a Cancelled Business” XBert alerts you when you have outstanding invoices issued to a business that is dissolved or cancelled according to Companies House records. This helps you identify and address potential risks of non-payment from customers that are no longer trading.
What it does
XBert scans your unpaid sales invoices and checks if the business associated with the invoice has a cancelled Company Registration Number (CRN) or cannot be matched to an active company on Companies House. If the CRN is dissolved or unregistered and the invoice remains unpaid, XBert flags it so you can follow up or take corrective action.
How it works
This XBert:
Looks at UK-based businesses with CRNs recorded in Xero
Checks if the CRN has been matched as dissolved or not found in Companies House
Identifies unpaid invoices that are not marked as deleted, voided, paid, draft, or submitted
Flags any such invoices with an outstanding balance, indicating risk of non-payment
Example / Use Case
Steve runs a newsagency. He invoices Dave's Plumbing for £85 worth of pens and office supplies. Three weeks later, he realises the business is no longer trading — their CRN shows as dissolved in Companies House. The invoice remains unpaid. Luckily, Steve acted quickly, contacted Dave, and settled the payment before the business closed its affairs.
Had he not checked the business registration status, Steve could have permanently lost that income.
Accounting software
Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks
Which countries it supports
United Kingdom only
Processes
This XBert is part of the Sales (AR) process and is designed to help you manage credit risk and improve cash flow oversight.
To resolve this alert:
Verify the CRN provided by the customer using the Companies House Register
Update the contact record in your accounting software with the correct and active CRN
Follow up on outstanding payments and communicate directly with the customer or receiver if the business is in liquidation
Avoid issuing future invoices to customers with cancelled or dissolved CRNs
Re-issue invoices if the customer details change due to mergers, acquisitions, or restructuring
Staying on top of your debtor list and ensuring your customer data is accurate helps reduce the risk of unpaid income and protects your business from avoidable financial loss.