It happens more than anyone admits. The emails stop, the site still runs, and you have no idea who controls it. Here is the order to do things in.
Secure the domain first
Before anything else, find out who controls the domain name. For a .co.za, a WHOIS lookup shows the registrar. If the domain is registered in your developer’s name rather than yours, that is the most urgent thing to fix — everything else can be rebuilt, but a domain you do not control can be held. Contact the registrar directly and ask what proof of ownership they need.
Then hosting, then email
Hosting is usually recoverable with proof you paid the invoices. Email matters more than people expect: if your mail runs on the same account, losing it costs more than losing the site. Get billing moved into your own name and card even if you keep the same provider.
What you are actually entitled to
Whatever your agreement says. Most small projects have no written agreement at all, which is why this goes badly. In practice, if you paid for a site to be built, expect to receive the files, the database and access. Custom code someone wrote may be a different question — but a WordPress or Shopify site you paid for should come to you.
Getting it back on stable ground
- Take a full backup the moment you have access, and store it somewhere the previous developer cannot reach.
- Change every password, including the ones you did not know existed. Check for extra admin accounts.
- Move billing to you. Domain, hosting, and any plugin or theme licences.
- Get it documented. A written state-of-the-build, so the next person is not guessing.
Preventing the repeat
The next arrangement should hand you everything by default: domain in your name, hosting in your account, code in a repository you own, and documentation written for someone who has never seen the project. We audit sites in this situation and write up what is actually there before recommending anything — and there is no drama about the previous developer. If you are locked out right now, send us what you do have access to.