This article is for Requesters and provides guidance on how to select and assign DUNS numbers to organizations in your Request list, as well as how to troubleshoot common DUNS-related issues. To successfully submit a Request list, every organization included must have a valid DUNS number associated.
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What is a DUNS number?
A DUNS number, or Data Universal Numbering System number, is a unique nine-digit identifier assigned to businesses by Dun & Bradstreet, a global data provider. It serves as a universal standard for identifying organizations and is widely used across the business world.
By providing a standardized identifier, DUNS numbers enable CDP to accurately identify and verify legal entities across different systems and platforms. This ensures data integrity, reduces the risk of duplicate entries or discrepancies, and allows for more efficient processes for companies requesting disclosure or responding through CDP. For additional information about DUNS numbers and CDP’s relationship with Dun & Bradstreet, please refer to the relevant section at the bottom of our Request Data page.
Important: Requesters are encouraged to carefully check whether a company already exists in CDP’s system before submitting their Request list. This includes reviewing previous years’ request lists and CDP’s list of publicly scored organizations. Taking these steps helps avoid duplication and further ensures data accuracy.
Finding missing DUNS numbers
Once you have created your Request list in the CDP Portal, you may find that after navigating back to your current disclosure cycle Request list a warning banner titled ‘Missing DUNS numbers’ has appeared, and you are unable to submit your Request list.
To verify if this is the case and identify the missing DUNS number(s):
Click ‘Manage organizations’ from the navigation sidebar and then select ‘View’ on the current disclosure cycle list.
At the top of your Request list, the following warning banner will be displayed. To view all the missing DUNS organizations in your Request list, click on the ‘MISSING DUNS’ tab.
Within this tab, to find the DUNS number of an organization in your Request list, click the ‘Find’ button on the relevant organization under the ‘DUNS number’ column.
This will open the ‘DUNS number lookup’ window. The ‘Organization name’ and ‘Country’ fields will be pre-populated with the organization information but can be edited to refine the search as you require. You can also add the address of the organization to provide a more accurate search result; please use the registered organization’s headquarters address when doing so.
Once any additional information has been filled in, click the red ‘-> Search the DUNS database’ button at the bottom. The ‘DUNS number lookup’ window will then show all the organizations that have come up as a match for your search.
There may be multiple results. Check that all the information provided for an organization matches your records to ensure you select the right one for your Request list. Please see the next section below for more guidance.
Once you have assessed the organization details and found the correct DUNS number for the organization, click ‘+ Add DUNS number’. This adds the DUNS number to the record in your Request list and assigns the DUNS number to the organization in the database.
Selecting the correct organization
When selecting a DUNS number for an organization on your Request list, there may be multiple potential matches for each company.
To ensure you select the correct DUNS number, we recommend:
Comparing the name, country, and address details of the organization in the DUNS number lookup window to your records. The address information may help to differentiate between organizations with similar names. You may be able to verify this information with the organization directly or via their website.
Tip: You can resize the columns to show the full address of the organization.
If multiple organizations in the search match your records, choose the top-most search result.
If you are unsure which organization to select in a list of potential subsidiaries, you can consider requesting the parent organization. You can find the parent organization in the column called ‘Ultimate Parent’ by scrolling right on the DUNS number lookup window.
To request the parent organization, navigate back to the ‘ALL ORGANIZATION’ tab and open the ‘Add organization’ page after clicking the ‘+ Add organization’ button at the top of your Request list. Use the appropriate text boxes and filters to find the desired parent organization and finally click ‘+Add’ to complete the addition.
Please see the add organization section of our creating, managing and submitting your Request list article for further instructions, and also our article on requesting parent or subsidiary companies for additional guidance and information on our parent-subsidiary reporting policy.
Common issues and resolutions
Requesters may occasionally encounter issues when searching for and assigning DUNS numbers to organizations in their Request list. These issues are typically related to missing records, incorrect company details or discrepancies in the Dun & Bradstreet database.
The following sections outline the most common scenarios and provide guidance on how to resolve them efficiently.
Duplicate DUNS number
When attempting to assign a DUNS number to an organization in your Request list, you may see the following warning message.
This means that the DUNS number you tried to assign to an organization in your Request list is already associated with another organization in the CDP database and cannot be reassigned.
To find the organization to which this DUNS number is assigned and add it to your Request list, navigate to the ‘Add an Organization’ page and search the DUNS number in the ‘Unique organization ID or DUNS number’ text box within the filters. You will need to select ‘DUNS number’ in the ‘Organization ID type’ dropdown beforehand, to do this. Then, click ‘Search’ to display the results.
Please refer to the recommendations above when selecting the organization, and for any additional guidance on the process please view the add organization section of our creating, managing and submitting your Request list article.
Incorrectly assigned DUNS number
If you find that a DUNS number for an organization on your list does not match our records, either from copying a previous year’s list or after searching in the ‘Add an Organization’ page on the CDP Portal, please check your records and our search tips above.
If the DUNS number appears to be incorrectly assigned, please contact our Customer Support Team via the CDP Help Center. More details on raising a case can be found at the end of this article.
Missing DUNS number in database
When assigning a DUNS number to organizations in your Request list or adding a new organization to your list, there may be a scenario in which an organization appears to be missing from the database. If this happens, you will be presented with a pop-up that informs you that no organizations match your search.
Search tip: use the most simplified version of the organization’s name as it may be slightly different than your records. For example, instead of searching 'Company ABC Limited' try 'Company ABC' or instead of 'ABC CO. LLC.', try 'ABC'.
If you are still unable to find the DUNS number for organizations on your Request list, please contact our Customer Support Team via the CDP Help Center. More details on raising a case can be found at the end of the article.
Unable to add DUNS number
When adding DUNS numbers or organizations to your Request list, you may be faced with the following error message.
This may occur because an organization in the CDP database has the exact same name as the one you are trying to add to your Request list.
To resolve this, navigate back to your Request list after selecting ‘Manage organizations’ from the navigation sidebar and clicking ‘View’ on the current disclosure cycle list. Next, click the ‘+Add an organization’ button at the top to open the ‘Add an organization’ page. Within the filters, input the name of the organization and click ‘Search’. Once you have found the desired organization, click the ‘+Add’ button on the far right to add it to your Request list.
How organizations can apply for a DUNS Number
If the organizations you are requesting do not have a valid DUNS number, they can follow the steps below to request one:
First, please check for an exisiting DUNS number.You can use thelookup tool available on Dun & Bradstreet’s website to verify whether your organization already has a registered DUNS number.
If this is not the case, you can then submit an online application to recive a new DUNS number. To do this, visit Dun & Bradstreet'sofficial portal, select your region and then start the application.
Within the application, provide the required business details, such as your organization’s legal name, physical address, contact phone number, business structure, industry classification, and number of employees.
Next, you will need to wait for the verification process to be completed. Standard processing is free of charge and may take up to 30 business days. Dun & Bradstreet may contact you to validate the submitted information.
Once your application is approved, the DUNS number will be issued and sent to your organization via email.
Optional: Request expedited processing.Paid expedited services are available and can reduce the processing time to about eight business days.
How to raise a case for queries relating to DUNS numbers
If you are unable to resolve a DUNS related issue in your Request list after using the guidance in this article, please contact our Customer Support Team using the ‘Contact Support’ button at the end of this article.
This will take you to our My Support page in the CDP Help Center and pre-populate the case category and subcategory relevant to your situation. If this does not occur, please choose the category ‘Requester Support’ and the subcategory ‘Request List & DUNS Number related Support’ to ensure your case goes to the right team.
Note: You need to be signed in to be able to access the CDP Help Center.
To help us with our investigations, please raise one case per issue type listing all requested organizations with that issue. For example, one case for any missing DUNS numbers, one for incorrect numbers and so on, listing all organizations with that issue in one case. Please also provide as much additional information as possible, including the organization’s address and website.
Additionally, please make use of our Excel Template and attach this to your case. This template allows you to easily populate the DUNS number of the supplier (if you have them), the organization’s name, the organization’s email domain, their full address, what the issue is, and what change you expect to see. This will help the Customer Support Team better address the issue you encountered in the CDP Portal.
When raising a case about DUNS number issues using the Excel template, please do not:
add columns in the sheet,
remove the columns in the sheet,
edit the headers of the columns,
place the address of the parent or the subsidiary-level of your Discloser’s company in this sheet.
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