# Leaving Your Web Agency? A Safe Handover Checklist for Your Website

> Changing agencies shouldn't put your website at risk. What to collect, which accounts to move and how to secure them — a practical handover checklist.

Source: https://www.webzosh.in/blog/leaving-your-web-agency-handover-checklist

_Web Zosh Team · 16 October 2026_

Many businesses discover, only when they want to change agencies, that they don't really own their website. The domain is registered in someone else's account, the code lives on a developer's laptop, and the server bill goes to an email address nobody at the business can open.

We recently moved a café and private-theatre business's platform from its previous agency into its own accounts. The steps below are the checklist we follow — use it before you switch, or even if you're happy with your agency today.

## 1. Collect everything that makes up the website

Ask your current agency for these, in writing:

- **Source code** — the complete project, ideally as a repository (for example on GitHub), not just a zip of today's files.
- **Database backup** — the most recent full export, so orders, enquiries, users and content aren't lost.
- **Media files** — images and documents, wherever they are stored (on the server or in cloud storage such as Amazon S3).
- **Admin access** — logins for the content management system (WordPress, Strapi or similar), with you as an owner, not a guest.
- **Third-party accounts** — anything the site depends on: email sending, payment gateway, maps, analytics, CRM.

Check each item before you say goodbye: open the backup, browse the media, log in to the admin.

## 2. Move every account into your business's name

The rule is simple: **every account that runs your website should belong to an email address your business controls.**

- **Domain name** — transfer it to a registrar account in your name. This is the one asset you can never afford to lose.
- **DNS** — manage it in an account you own (your registrar or a service like Cloudflare).
- **Hosting / cloud** — the server or [cloud account](https://www.webzosh.in/services/cloud-devops) (AWS, Hostinger, others) should be billed to you.
- **Code repository** — the project should live in your organisation's GitHub (or similar), with the agency invited as a collaborator rather than the owner.
- **Email and business tools** — mail, CRM and support tools under the same business email.

## 3. Secure each account on day one

Moving accounts is the perfect moment to lock them down:

- Turn on **two-factor authentication** everywhere, using an authenticator app.
- Save **backup codes** somewhere safe and offline — not in a shared folder or a screenshot.
- Add a **recovery email and phone number** that belong to the business.
- Remove old users and agency logins you no longer need, and rotate any passwords or API keys they had.

A password manager makes this painless and gives you one place to hand over access when people change roles.

## 4. Plan the move of the website itself

Once you own everything, decide where the site will run and how it will be updated:

- Pick hosting that fits your size and budget, and note what it costs every month.
- Keep the code in version control, so every change is tracked and can be undone.
- Put a security and performance layer in front of the site where it helps (for example DNS-level protection and caching).
- Schedule the switch for a quiet time, lower DNS TTLs a day before, and keep the old site running until the new one is confirmed.

## 5. Write it down

Finish with a one-page record: which accounts exist, who owns them, where backups are kept and how to restore them. It takes an hour and saves days the next time something changes.

## The short version

| Before you switch     | Make sure you have                                       |
| --------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| Code                  | A full repository in your organisation's account         |
| Data                  | A tested database backup and all media files             |
| Domain & DNS          | Transferred to an account you own                        |
| Hosting, email, tools | Billed to and owned by your business                     |
| Security              | Two-factor authentication and safely stored backup codes |

If you'd like help with a handover — or just a check of who owns what today — [talk to us](https://www.webzosh.in/contact). It's usually a few days' work and it protects the most important digital asset your business has.