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Guides for owners.
Straightforward notes on the law, the records, and how an introduction with McKays works. General information, not legal advice.
Published 13 November 2026.
Plain-English notes for UK owners — and for Irish owners where we say so — who are thinking about licensing digital business records. They are general information, not legal advice, and they are written for McKays’ introduction model: you pay nothing; the buyer pays our introduction fee; NDAs, samples and files are agreed between you and the buyer.
If you want the fee position in one place, start with how we’re paid. For a first look, describe your records — no files, no logins. Or try the fit check, which sends nothing.
- Law and regulation
UK data protection and your business records
Business records are full of people. This is a plain-English outline of how UK data protection law comes into it, with links to the ICO. It isn’t legal advice.
- Preparing records
Preparing records: personal and confidential details
If a copy of your records is going to be licensed, what comes out, who does the work, and who pays for it should be written down first. McKays does not do that work for you.
- What buyers want
What buyers of company records usually look for
Buyers are looking for a record of how real work got done, not a polished brochure. Here is what that usually means, and what it does not.
- Value
What affects the value of a business archive
There is no price list, and we won’t invent a figure for your records. Value depends on what you have, what you’re free to license, and what a buyer actually needs.
- Process
If someone has offered to buy your company’s data
An approach out of the blue is not a reason to hurry, and it is not a reason to send anyone your files or your logins. Here is a calm way to look at it.
- Closures and insolvency
Digital records when a company closes
The old server is easy to wipe and hard to put back. Who may decide what happens to the records depends on where the company stands in law.
- Law and regulation
Re-identification and UK law
UK law treats re-identification of de-identified personal data as a serious matter. Here is the official wording’s outline, and why it comes up in a licensing conversation.
- Rights
Are you free to license these records?
A buyer can only license what you are actually entitled to grant. That sounds obvious, and it is where many conversations spend their time.
- Process
What to settle in a written data licence
A licence is only as clear as the document you sign. These are the points that usually need a written answer. They are not McKays’ standard terms, because we don’t publish any.
- Getting started
Questions firms often have before they start
Most of the hesitation we hear is reasonable. Here are the questions that come up most often, with a straight answer to each.
You may also want the FAQ, how licensing works, trust and rights, the insolvency procedure guides, and the rest of our resources.
Sellers pay nothing. The first look is free. How we’re paid.