.CO.UK -- which registrar is best?

[Gerrit]

I am about to buy my first .co.uk domain.

I asked around with a few friends, and someone advised by 123-reg.co.uk , they'd offer UK domains for only 3 GBP/year with free webmail added. The company would be linked directly to Pipex, which is a well established ISP in the United Kingdom, so it does look reliable to register a domain through them.

But before taking any action: does anyone know if another registrar is better or more reliable?

Of course I rather keep things not too pricy, but price is not the most important. I rather pay 3 or 4 pounds more per year for a very reliable service then going with the cheapest but having barely any features and bad support...

 

[aidman]

I've been with 123-reg for years, however they have recently "lost" 2 of my domains and are still to "find" them - they are still under my name in the whois, they just seam unable to put them back in my account.

 

[simon]

i would also recommend 123reg.co.uk
good luck

 

[aidman]

Been on the phone to 123-reg for most the day (premium rate i might add) they refuse to give ownership of my domains back to me as they have landed in 2 accounts that don't belong to me... even though my name is on the invoice for the domains and the whois shows they belong to me!!

When i asked why they hadn't replied to the 8 emails i've sent over the past 6 days, they replied... "we've got a 3 week backlog of support emails to get through"

When i asked to speak to a manager to make a complaint, they hung up on me!!

It makes me sick... I contacted pipex (their parent company) and they said they have no involvement with 123-reg and I can't make a complaint with pipex as 123-reg have their own complaint procedure... I said "i know, they just ignore you or hang up on you". The lady contacted 123-reg and told me the usernames that the domains were under... so i have that as ammo... but i'm still no closer to getting my domains back!!

 

[Gerrit]

So you'd avise against using 123-reg then? Any alternatives that you would recommend as being reliable and trustworthy?

 

[petrosc]

cheapdomainnames.co.uk is where i have my names and i am satisfied

 

[LizzeyDripping]

I have never had a problem with 123-reg.co.uk. The only issue I have with them is that their support line charges 50p per minute - so I email them instead.

That said, I have been using them for quite a while and I have definitely noticed a drop off in service recently - it has been taking a couple of days to get a response to my query instead of a couple of hours. I would recommend 1and1.co.uk - support is good (very quick response to email, 24/7 phone lines and calls charged at national rate) and they have a comprehensive control panel that is easy to use.

Now I'll sit back and wait for hundreds of people to tell me what is wrong with what I have just said!!!

 

[jaspersen]

try telivo.com, 5pounds for 2 years registration.

 

[maxo]

I use 123-reg.co.uk as well. Have to say they have the worst support than any other Registrar I have been dealing with, I am talking about E-mail support. Takes 5-7 days to get a reply from them. Other than that, it's ok.

 

[ChrisJP]

I completely agree with above poster. I've recently moved all my UK domains to UKReg.com. I found that 123-reg.co.uk's support is horrible. Also, I entered a survey about 4 or 5 months ago for a £50 adwords coucher. The voucher came last week. I emailed them about a month after I took the survey to ask when I could expect my voucher but didn't even get a reply.

Never had a problem with UKreg though, and their support is much quicker, at least by email anyway. And both registrars have basically the same prices on their UK domains, give or take a few pence.

UKReg boast on their homepage they are the UK's 1st choice. On their Company Info page the boast they have the best features and highest level support. 123-Reg don't even seem to have a page about their company, at least I couldn't find one. In fact the only thing I know about them is that they're owned by Pipex...

 

[nWo]

*[Post removed]

 

[paulc]

just stay away from 1and1.co.uk bloody cr*p, fasthosts.co.uk is good

I agree. Stay away from 1and1..