// OWNERSHIP

Google Business Profile owner left the company? Get ownership back

When the Google Business Profile owner left the company, the profile, its reviews and every Google notice about it stay with their account. Getting it back means finding who owns it, asking for ownership the right way, and verifying at the business if Google asks. If it comes to a video, we run it on site, on the day, on a phone that’s physically there.

Updated October 2026

5.0 from 16 Google reviews

Help me get my profile back How ownership requests work

From $490 + GST, confirmed in writing before we start. Ownership ends up on an account your business controls.

Ownership map: now, the primary owner is an old staffer’s Gmail; after, a table shows the primary owner is the business account, a second trusted person is an owner, and the agency is a manager that can be removed — **Example:** who holds the profile before and after we get it back. Illustration with fictional data.

// STEP 1

First, find out who owns it now

The usual suspects: a former office manager’s personal Gmail, a family member, the old web designer, or a marketing agency you’ve stopped paying. Check the inboxes you can still reach, including old staff email. If Google’s notices go to an inbox nobody reads, a business can miss a suspension for months.

// STEP 2

Asking for ownership, and what happens if nobody answers

Four-step flow when the old owner cannot be reached: 1 request access with the form, 2 Google emails the current owner, 3 they have 3 days to respond, 4 no answer, you may be able to claim and verify — **Example:** the request ownership route when the old owner cannot be reached. Google says the claim option is not always available. Illustration, not a Google screen.

If you can reach the old owner, the quick route is for them to add your business account as an owner from the profile’s People and access screen.

If you can’t, Google’s request ownership process is:

Go to business.google.com/add, enter the business name and address, and pick the business from the list.
Choose Request access, fill in the form and submit it.
Google emails the current owner, who has 3 days to respond.
If they don’t, you may be able to claim the profile from the confirmation email and verify it. Google says that option isn’t always available.

That flow is for businesses with a physical location. A service-area business without one has to contact Google and ask for a transfer of ownership. If a request is denied, Google lets you appeal.

// VERIFICATION

If the claim goes to a video

We text the owner the link and they film four shots, on site, on their own phone, in one take, then submit it straight away.

Illustrated shot list on four phone screens recording one take: 1 the road with the street sign and letterbox number, 2 the vehicle with the business name, 3 the door sign, 4 the desk with the computer on and the invoice numbers covered — **Example:** the four shots as one unbroken take, timer running from the road to the desk. No faces in frame, document numbers covered. Illustration with a fictional business.

The road. Start at the street: the street sign, your letterbox and the house or unit number in frame.
A vehicle with the business logo on it. Walk around it so the name can be read. Skip this shot if your work vehicle has no logo.
The door with the business logo, or the sign on the window. Close enough to read the name. Skip it if there is no permanent sign.
The office desk. Computer on with your business software or email open, and a business document such as an invoice or licence with the numbers covered. Someone can be at the desk, but keep faces out of shot.

Google's rules for the recording

One unedited, complete recording with no breaks, at least 30 seconds long. Film it as one walk from the road to the desk.
Recorded live through your Business Profile on your phone, at the business. Google doesn't accept a video recorded earlier and uploaded later.
The business name on any sign or vehicle has to match the name on the profile.
No bank, tax or ID numbers, no customer details on screen, and no other people's faces.

Never borrow a vehicle or put up a sign for the camera. Source: Google's video verification help, checked October 2026.

More on what makes a video fail: video verification failed. Profile suspended as well? See appeal denied.

// STEP 3

Setting it up so this never happens again

The business is the primary owner on an account the business controls, not a staff member’s personal Gmail.
A second trusted person is an owner too. Google only lets primary ownership pass to an existing owner or manager.
Agencies, including us, are added as managers you can remove at any time. Google’s help on roles says managers can’t add or remove people or remove the profile.
Old users come off only once your business holds ownership.

// PRICING

Profile Ownership Recovery: from $490 + GST

One fixed price, from $490 + GST, confirmed in writing before we start. We find the current owner, request ownership, run verification if needed, move ownership to your business account and tidy the user list. It costs more only when the old owner can’t be found and Google’s request process has to run, and we tell you that before you pay.

Once it’s back, keeping it current is Google Business Profile management. Other profile problems are on our Google Business Profile help page.

Help me get my profile back

// QUESTIONS

Questions owners ask

Not sure which of these is yours? Ask us and we will give you a straight answer, including when you can fix it yourself.

Help me get my profile back

Can I get my Google Business Profile back if the owner left?

Often, yes. Either the old owner adds you as an owner, or you request access through Google. Google gives the current owner 3 days to respond, and after that you may be able to claim and verify the profile, though Google says that option isn’t always available.

We’re a service-area business with no shopfront. Does the same process apply?

Not quite. Google’s request-ownership flow is for businesses with a physical location. A service-area business without one has to contact Google and ask for a transfer of ownership instead.

Will I lose my reviews?

Not if you recover the existing profile. Starting a new profile instead leaves the reviews behind and creates a duplicate.

Our old agency won’t hand the profile back. What can we do?

Ask in writing first. If they don’t respond, the same request-access process applies, because it’s the business Google is verifying, not the agency.

What’s the difference between an owner and a manager?

Owners have full control. Google’s help says managers have mostly the same access, but can’t add or remove people or remove the profile.

Why should a second person be an owner?

So the profile isn’t stuck again the next time someone leaves. Google also only lets primary ownership pass to someone who is already an owner or manager.

// WHEN YOU ARE READY

Get the profile back onto your account

Tell us the business name and who you think owns the profile now. We’ll check what Google shows and tell you the route before you pay.

Help me get my profile back