Bare .uk domain names

Why have I been directed to this page?

This is a holding page for a bare .uk domain name. In most cases the owner holds both example.co.uk and the bare variant example.uk

What is a bare .uk domain name?

Bare .uk names were made available in 2013. Prior to that most UK domain names ended .co.uk (or a few others like .gov.uk, .org.uk), the bare version removes the .co element.
The intention was to increase the number of names available.  In practise anyone with a .co.uk name would be at risk of a scammer or competitor buying the variant and using it to their detriment.
The result was that most owners of a .co.uk chose to buy the corresponding “bare .uk” variant to protect their interests. Most have chosen not to use the variant because doing so has no benefit and may cause confusion.

I got here by accident, how do I get to the “correct” site?

You may have entered a name in the format honest-john-motors.uk, you simply need to insert the .co element, the correct address would be honest-john-motors.co.uk

Are bare .uk names any use?

The stated aim of increasing the number of names available was achieved but for the most part it simply means owners of .co.uk names now have to buy the variant to protect themselves.

Another supposed advantage was to save the 3 keystrokes .co

Some chose not to buy the variant, in that case a third party can buy the bare variant and use it but they risk legal challenge from the owner of the .co.uk variant.  Even if not used for passing-off there’s scope for confusion and legal dispute.
Large numbers of unused bare .uk names have been bought by speculators but to what end is not clear.

Why do the owners bare .uk names have them redirected here rather than to their .co.uk site?

If the bare .uk name becomes a known route to the .co.uk site then it precludes the possibility of dropping the bare .uk name in future (for a small annual cost saving) as visitors might be sent to a different web site or get a “not found error”.

In some instances owners do choose to route a bare .uk name to their web site, for example peakdistrictleadminingmuseum.co.uk use pdmm.uk as a shorter variant to include on printed material so it’s easier to type.

Might the name be for sale?

It’s unlikely but possible,  if they are not using the .co.uk variant or if they want to sell both. We can pass an enquiry on to the name owner.