Frequently Asked Questions

ePostcode is the UK's leading postcode and address lookup service, established in 2006 as part of the Etellect Group. We provide comprehensive address data solutions including:

• Postcode Lookup API - Access 30M+ UK addresses with type-ahead autocomplete
• Address Validation - Real-time verification against PAF certified data
• Data Cleansing - Batch processing to clean and standardize address databases
• Geocoding - Latitude/longitude coordinates for addresses
• UPRN Enrichment - Unique property reference numbers

All our services use Royal Mail PAF certified data and come with 99.9% accuracy, sub-50ms response times, and 24/7 technical support.

PAF (Postcode Address File) certification means we are officially licensed by Royal Mail to provide UK postcode and address data for commercial use.

Look for the "Powered by PAF" certification logo when choosing an address data provider. Providers offering significantly cheaper services may not be properly licensed.

ePostcode serves hundreds of clients across diverse sectors including:

• E-commerce Platforms - Checkout address lookup and validation
• Banking & Finance - KYC compliance and account opening
• Insurance Companies - Policy holder verification
• Healthcare (NHS) - Patient record management
• High Street Brands - Retail address validation
• Logistics & Delivery - Route optimization and address accuracy
• Government & Local Authorities - Citizen data management
• SMEs - Small to medium enterprises across all sectors

From startups to enterprise organizations, our services scale to meet any requirement.

Key Differentiators:

• Better Value - Up to 43% savings vs competitors (Ideal Postcodes, Postcoder, Data-8, Fetchify)
• Simpler Pricing - 1 credit = 1 lookup (competitors charge 2 credits per lookup)
• No Subscriptions - Pay-as-you-go credit packs, no monthly commitments
• Credits Don't Expire - Use 1,000+ per month and credits never expire
• 18+ Years Experience - Established 2006, proven track record
• ISO Certified - ISO 9001:2015 & ISO 27001 certified infrastructure
• Part of Etellect Group - Financial stability and long-term support
• Price Match Guarantee - We'll match any legitimate PAF certified competitor

See our price comparison page for detailed competitor analysis.

Yes! ePostcode services scale for any business size:

• Startups & Small Businesses - Start with as little as 500 lookups (£17.50). No setup fees or monthly minimums
• Growing Businesses - Scale seamlessly as your volume grows. Automatic volume discounts apply
• Enterprise Organizations - High-volume discounts, dedicated account managers, custom SLAs available
• Public & Third Sector - Special pricing for government, NHS, education, and charities with Royal Mail PSL

Our flexible credit pack model means you only pay for what you use, with no long-term commitments.

ePostcode uses a flexible credit pack pricing model with volume discounts:

• 500 lookups - 3.8p per lookup = £19
• 10,000 lookups - 2.9p per lookup = £290
• 50,000 lookups - 2.6p per lookup = £1,290
• 100,000+ lookups - 2.4p per lookup = £2,400+

All prices exclude VAT. Visit our pricing calculator for detailed quotes.

No hidden fees. What you see is what you pay.

• ✅ No setup fees - Start immediately with zero upfront costs
• ✅ No monthly fees - Only pay for lookups you use
• ✅ No API access fees - Full API access included
• ✅ No support fees - Technical support included free
• ✅ No cancellation fees - Stop using anytime, no penalties
• ✅ No contract exit fees - No lock-in periods

The only cost is the credit pack purchase. All features and services are included in that single price.

Credit Expiry Policy:

• Standard - Credits expire 12 months after purchase
• High Usage - Credits NEVER expire if you use 1,000+ lookups per month

This is more generous than many competitors who enforce strict monthly expiry or require ongoing subscriptions.

We accept multiple payment methods for your convenience:

• Credit/Debit Cards - Visa, Mastercard, American Express
• Direct Debit - For regular payments
• Bank Transfer - For larger purchases or enterprise clients
• Purchase Orders - For government and enterprise organizations

All payments are processed securely through our payment gateway. For specific payment requirements, please contact our sales team.

We offer a satisfaction guarantee for our services:

• Free Trial - Test our API with sample data before purchasing
• Money-back Guarantee - Within first 14 days if unused credits and service doesn't meet expectations
• Partial Refunds - Unused credits may be refunded on case-by-case basis

Please contact our support team to discuss refund eligibility and process.

Volume Discounts:

• Automatic discounts apply as volume increases
• Save up to 43% at high volumes (100,000+ lookups)
• No negotiation needed - discounts built into pricing

Enterprise & Custom Pricing:

• 500,000+ lookups - Contact us for custom enterprise pricing
• Annual contracts - Additional discounts available
• Multi-service bundles - Combine services for better rates

For enterprise pricing discussions, please contact our sales team.

Integration is simple with our RESTful API:

• RESTful API - Simple HTTP requests, works with any programming language
• JavaScript SDK - Quick integration for web applications
• PHP Library - Server-side integration for PHP applications
• Documentation - Comprehensive guides and code examples
• Postman Collection - Test API endpoints before coding

Basic integration steps:

1. Sign up and get your API key
2. Make API requests to our endpoints
3. Parse JSON responses in your application
4. Handle errors and edge cases

Average integration time: 2-4 hours for experienced developers. For detailed guidance, please contact our technical team.

Performance Metrics:

• Average Response Time - Sub-50ms (typically 30-40ms)
• Type-ahead Search - Real-time suggestions as users type
• Global CDN - Low latency worldwide
• 99.9% Uptime SLA - Reliable service availability

Our infrastructure is designed for speed and reliability, with redundant servers and automatic failover to ensure consistent performance.

The API returns data in JSON format, which is easy to parse in any programming language.

Typical response includes:

• Building name/number
• Street name
• Town/city
• County
• Postcode
• Latitude/longitude coordinates
• UPRN (Unique Property Reference Number)
• Delivery point information

For detailed API specifications and example responses, please request our API documentation.

Rate Limits:

• Standard Accounts - Up to 100 requests per second
• Enterprise Accounts - Higher limits available on request
• Burst Capability - Handles traffic spikes gracefully

These limits are designed to accommodate virtually all use cases. If you have specific high-volume requirements, please contact us to discuss custom rate limits.

Yes! ePostcode works perfectly with mobile applications:

• iOS Apps - Compatible with Swift and Objective-C
• Android Apps - Works with Java and Kotlin
• React Native - Cross-platform mobile apps
• Flutter - Google's UI toolkit for mobile
• Xamarin - Microsoft's mobile development platform

Our RESTful API works with any platform that can make HTTPS requests. Type-ahead autocomplete provides an excellent user experience on mobile devices.

Comprehensive Documentation Available:

• API Reference - Complete endpoint documentation
• Code Examples - JavaScript, PHP, Python, C#, Java
• Integration Guides - Step-by-step tutorials
• Best Practices - Optimization tips and recommendations
• Error Handling - How to handle edge cases
• Postman Collection - Pre-configured API testing

Access documentation through your account portal or request documentation before signing up.

Enterprise-Grade Security:

• HTTPS Encryption - All API calls use TLS/SSL encryption
• API Key Authentication - Secure key-based access control
• ISO 27001 Certified - Information security management
• GDPR Compliant - Full data protection compliance
• Regular Security Audits - Continuous security monitoring
• DDoS Protection - Protected against attacks

Your API keys should be kept secure and never exposed in client-side code. For security best practices, please refer to our documentation.

30+ Million UK Addresses

Our database includes comprehensive coverage of:

• Residential Addresses - Houses, flats, apartments
• Commercial Addresses - Businesses, offices, retail
• Rural Addresses - Farms, cottages, remote properties
• New Builds - Recently constructed properties
• PO Boxes - Post Office boxes
• BFPO Addresses - British Forces Post Office

Our data covers England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland with 99.9% accuracy.

Daily Updates from Royal Mail PAF

As a PAF certified provider, we receive:

• Daily Updates - New addresses added every day
• Change Notifications - Property modifications tracked
• Deletion Updates - Removed addresses flagged
• Postcode Changes - New postcodes and boundary changes

This ensures you always have access to the most current address data available in the UK.

99.9% Accuracy Rate

Our high accuracy is achieved through:

• PAF Certification - Data directly from Royal Mail
• Daily Updates - Always current and accurate
• Validation Algorithms - Multiple verification checks
• Quality Assurance - Regular data audits

This accuracy rate is significantly higher than non-PAF certified alternatives, which may use outdated or incomplete data sources.

Yes! Geocoding is included with all lookups at no extra cost.

What's Included:

• Latitude/Longitude - Precise coordinates for each address
• Eastings/Northings - British National Grid coordinates
• Accuracy Level - Property-level or postcode-level precision
• Use Cases - Mapping, distance calculations, route planning

Geocoding is particularly useful for logistics, delivery services, store locators, and mapping applications.

UPRN availability depends on your use case and license requirements.

UPRNs are regulated by Ordnance Survey and GeoPlace, requiring specific licensing for certain commercial uses.

Options:

• Public Sector - Full UPRN access with Public Sector Licence
• Commercial - UPRN access available with appropriate licensing

Please contact us to discuss UPRN requirements for your specific use case and licensing needs.

Currently, ePostcode specializes in UK addresses only (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland).

For international address validation requirements, please contact us to discuss available options and partner solutions.

New build address validation:

• PAF Registered - New addresses appear within days of Royal Mail registration
• Pre-registration - Addresses not yet in PAF cannot be validated
• Developer Notification - Developers must register with Royal Mail

If you're working with new developments, ensure developers have registered addresses with Royal Mail. Once registered, addresses typically appear in our database within 24-48 hours.

Comprehensive Support Included:

• 24/7 Technical Support - Email support with fast response times
• Integration Assistance - Help with API setup and integration
• Documentation - Detailed guides and tutorials
• Code Examples - Sample implementations in multiple languages
• Account Management - Dedicated support for enterprise clients

Support Channels:

• Email: hello@epostcode.com
• Phone: +44 (0)20 4577 0019
• Contact Form: Get in touch

Response Time Targets:

• Critical Issues - Within 1 hour (service outages, major bugs)
• Standard Support - Within 4 business hours
• General Inquiries - Within 24 hours

Enterprise clients receive faster response times and dedicated account managers. For urgent technical issues, we prioritize responses to minimize business impact.

Yes! We provide various levels of onboarding support:

• Self-Service - Comprehensive documentation and video tutorials
• Email Support - Technical guidance via email for all clients
• Onboarding Calls - Scheduled calls for enterprise clients
• Custom Training - Tailored training sessions for large organizations

Most developers can integrate our API within 2-4 hours using our documentation. For more complex requirements or team training, please contact us to arrange personalized onboarding.

Service Level Agreement (SLA):

• 99.9% Uptime Guarantee - Less than 9 hours downtime per year
• Redundant Infrastructure - Multiple servers and automatic failover
• Monitoring - 24/7 system monitoring and alerts
• Incident Response - Immediate response to service issues

In the rare event of service disruption:

• Automatic failover to backup systems
• Status updates via email and status page
• Priority restoration efforts
• Post-incident analysis and prevention measures

Absolutely! We encourage you to reach out with questions:

• Sales Inquiries - Discuss pricing and features
• Technical Questions - Ask about integration and capabilities
• Custom Requirements - Discuss specific business needs
• Free Trial - Test the API before purchasing

Contact us:

• Phone: +44 (0)20 4577 0019
• Email: hello@epostcode.com
• Form: Get in touch

Reporting Technical Issues:

Please provide the following information for fastest resolution:

• Description of the issue
• Steps to reproduce the problem
• Example API request (with sensitive data removed)
• Error messages or response codes
• Timestamp of when issue occurred
• Your account ID or API key (first few characters only)

Report via:

• Email: hello@epostcode.com (fastest)
• Contact Form: Submit issue

Critical bugs are prioritized and typically addressed within hours.