Missed domain name renewals & how to avoid this stress
Domain names are not something anyone can own, rather they are leased by Registries for varying lengths of time. Often corporate brands will have hundreds to thousands of domain name and each one can have a unique renewal date. In some cases, brands will have domain names renewing every day of the year.
Managing large domain name portfolios and keeping up with varying renewal dates requires robust and carefully organised systems. It requires dedicated personnel with very strong attention to detail… Who never go on vacation.
Accidentally dropping a domain because someone forgot to renew it can be catastrophic for a business. It can bring down an entire online operation: web, email, applications, e-commerce, traffic, revenues, reputation etc.
Common reasons domain names accidentally expire
- Domains with multiple Registrars. Having to access multiple accounts, keep track of multiple log in details etc can often see renewals missed.
- Incorrect email associated with domains. If the whois information is wrong, then important information about your domain is not going anywhere (including your renewal reminders).
- Many hands create many risks. Some brands will have multiple people involved in managing their domains. In theory that should mean more people are keeping their eyes on renewals, but often it just sees the function owned by everyone, but managed by no one.
- Expired credit card. Some brands just auto renew their domain names through their credit card and therefore don’t pay attention to notices, but when a card is not updated, domain names will not be renewed.
- Domain expired while staff on holidays. The problem with people reliant systems is that when people go on leave (or move on), there is not the same continuity of attention to detail on the function.
- Staff turnover. A common fact of business is that staff come and go. Sometimes function handovers don’t go as planned, and critical business such as assets slip through the cracks causing them to expire.
- Functional Handball. The responsibility for managing domain names often shifts between teams, for example, from IT to Marketing or between business units. Much like staff turnover, if the handover process is incomplete or poorly managed, there’s big risk that critical domains could be overlooked and unintentionally allowed to expire.
Avoid Missed Domain Renewals - Best Practice Domain Name Management
Losing a domain name because of a missed renewal can cause major disruption — from website and email outages to reputational damage and even permanent loss of the domain. The good news is that missed renewals are entirely avoidable when domain name management is treated as a critical business function. Implement the following best practices to ensure your domains are protected and renewed on time:
- Enable auto-renew rather than relying on manual renewals — most registrars offer this as a safeguard.
- Outsource to a dedicated domain name management specialist who can monitor and act on renewals.
- Consolidate all domains under a single provider to simplify administration and reduce the risk of oversight.
- Work with a corporate domain management provider who invoices in arrears, avoiding reliance on individual credit card payments that can fail.
- Audit your portfolio regularly to confirm that ownership details, contact information, and technical settings are accurate and up to date.
- Assign ownership at a senior level within the business, with a documented succession plan and clear “actions on” for leave or role changes.
- Set early renewal reminders — ideally 90, 60, and 30 days before expiry — to catch issues such as failed auto-renewal or expired payment methods.
- Maintain accurate registrar login credentials in a secure, centralised location accessible to authorised personnel only.
Domain names are valuable digital assets, and losing one through an avoidable oversight can have long-term consequences. By embedding domain management into business continuity planning, consolidating responsibilities, and leveraging both automation and specialist expertise, you can ensure your domains remain secure and operational — without last-minute scrambles or costly recoveries.
About brandsec
brandsec is a team of highly experienced domain name management and online brand protection experts. We provide corporate domain name management and brand enforcement services, helping brands eliminate phishing platforms across the internet. Supporting some of the largest brands in the region, we offer innovative solutions to combat threats across multiple industries.
