Own the domain, whoever builds the site

A designer or agency registers the domain to get the site live. Years later the relationship ends, or the company folds, or the person stops replying — and the address your customers know, the one on your van and your invoices, belongs to somebody else.

Recovering it ranges from awkward to impossible. Prevention is a ten-minute job.

What to check

• The domain is registered in your business name, with your email as the contact.
• You can log into the registrar yourself, today, without asking anyone.
• The billing card is yours, so it cannot lapse quietly when someone leaves.
• The same is true of hosting and your business email.

This is not distrust

Good agencies prefer it this way — it removes an awkward dependency from the relationship, and a professional will hand it over without a conversation. Reluctance to transfer control is itself the answer to whether you should.

Anyone can build the site. Only you should own the address.

Check it now rather than when you need it. The moment you need it is always the worst moment to find out.