Access recovery means getting your domain, hosting, Google Business Profile, ad accounts and analytics back under your business's control. It's often the first job when an owner leaves an agency, loses a staff member who managed the website, or discovers the domain was registered in a freelancer's name years ago. We work through each account using the platform's official process, and finish with a written register so it doesn't happen again.
Why ownership matters more than the website
Your website can be rebuilt. Your domain name, your Google reviews and the history in your ad account are much harder to replace.
If someone else owns the domain, they control where it points and whether it renews. If an agency is the only owner of your Business Profile, they can lock you out of the listing your reviews are attached to. If your Google Ads account sits under their manager account with their billing, you may lose years of conversion data when you leave. None of this requires bad intent; it's often just how a setup was done at the start. Fixing it is still essential.
What we recover and register
- Domain registration. Confirm the registrant is your business, update contact details, set auto-renew to a business card.
- DNS. Identify where DNS is hosted, which is sometimes a different company from the registrar, and record it.
- Hosting and site admin. Move the hosting account into your name or confirm you're the account holder; remove unknown admin users.
- Google Business Profile. Make sure your business holds primary ownership and that former staff and agencies are removed or downgraded.
- Google Ads and Meta. Confirm your business owns the ad accounts and billing, with agencies added as users rather than owners.
- Analytics, Search Console and call tracking. Restore access and confirm tracking numbers still forward to the right phone.
- Business email. Check who administers it, because it's often tied to the same domain and hosting.
How the process works
- Inventory. We list every account we can find from your website, invoices, old emails and your memory.
- Ownership check. For each one: who owns it, who has access, what email it's tied to.
- Request in writing. Where a former provider holds an account, we help you send a clear, polite written request for transfer.
- Official recovery. If that doesn't work, we follow each platform's own ownership or recovery route with you.
- Clean up and record. Remove old users, turn on two-step verification, and deliver an account register: platform, owner, login email, renewal date, who has access.
Where a previous agency relationship has left a real mess, our sister site Trade.Repair explains a fuller rescue process.
Who this is for, and how we measure it
This suits owners who have changed providers, lost a staff member who "handled the internet", or simply can't answer "who owns our domain?" without guessing. It also suits businesses preparing to sell, where a buyer will want clean ownership of digital assets.
We measure recovery by a simple checklist: every account in the register shows your business as owner, two-step verification is on, renewal details are current, and anyone who shouldn't have access no longer does.
What you'll need to hand
Recovery goes faster when you can lay hands on a few things: old invoices from the registrar or host, the addresses used when accounts were first created, your business registration details, and a business phone that can receive verification codes. Some platforms also post a code to your business address. Don't worry if you have only some of these; we start with what you have.
Mistakes that make recovery harder
- Creating a new Business Profile because you can't get into the old one. Duplicates confuse Google and can split your reviews.
- Letting the domain expire to "get it back". Expired domains can be bought by someone else.
- Arguing by phone only. Keep requests in writing so there's a record.
- Sharing one login among the whole office. Use individual users so access can be removed when someone leaves.
Read the full access and ownership audit guide to check your own accounts, then see maintenance plans for keeping the register current, or contact us to start.
Frequently asked questions
Our old agency won't give us the logins. What can we do?
First, ask in writing for ownership transfer of each named account, and keep a copy. Many platforms also have their own ownership request or recovery processes that don't depend on the agency's cooperation. We guide you through those and handle the paperwork where you authorise us.
Can you recover an account without my involvement?
No, and you should be wary of anyone who says they can. Platforms verify ownership with the business itself, often through your business email, phone, documents or a code sent by mail. We prepare and manage the process; you confirm your identity.
How long does recovery take?
It depends on the platform and the evidence you have. Some recoveries are done in an afternoon; others wait on the platform's review queue for days or weeks. We tell you which situation you're in after looking at each account.
Will you keep admin access afterwards?
Only if you want us to support those accounts, and only as a separate user that you can remove at any time. You stay the owner.