The crimes follow a similar pattern. Gangs ‘hijack’ details of registered companies by filling in fake documents with Companies House. They then impersonate the companies, using their details to order goods. The first thing the genuine business owner normally knows about it is when the bills for the goods land on their doorstep.

Following pressure from the Metropolitan Police, Companies House has introduced electronic filing and email alerts to notify companies about the receipt of documents, but the FSB believes that the system is still fundamentally flawed.

In a letter of complaint Carol Undy argues that Companies House is failing "to put the necessary safeguards in place to protect firms from ID theft" because it only keeps a record that documents have been received, rather than checking the accuracy of those documents.

She also complains that companies cannot get fraudulent information removed from their file without a legal judgement, "even if there is overwhelming evidence that identity theft has taken place."

FSB member David Waterman, managing director of I Waterman Box Makers, a family-owned packaging manufacturer from London, is one of a growing number of victims of company identity fraud.

He explains what happened, "Someone filed a fraudulent form at Companies House changing the registered address of our company from Whitechapel to another location. They even had the audacity to steal the nameplate from the front of our building.

"Our company is now faced with a significant legal bill to have the incorrect address removed from the Companies House records.

"It is unfortunate that Companies House, under the authority of the Companies Act, is compelled to register any properly completed form which is presented for filing.”