WITH just over five weeks to go before the shutters come down – for five years – on the ability to appeal the new rateable values set from April this year, the SLTA’s rating adviser, Martin Clarkson of Gerald Eve, encourages all ratepayers not to miss the deadline.
In reality, Friday, September 29 is the D-Day deadline. We have now lodged appeals for all existing clients but the procedure can be cumbersome and there are points for clarification which come back in a number of cases – so anyone considering an appeal should not delay.
Please be clear that there is no leeway whatsoever and if the deadline is missed then the opportunity to have the 2017 RV reviewed will almost certainly have gone.
From central discussions and negotiations with the Scottish Assessors Association there is now new flexibility being made possible in how pubs, hotels and restaurants have been assessed but the assessors are under no duty to amend rateable values retrospectively which are already in place.
The only way to ensure that any sense check or, better still, reduction is possible is to have a valid appeal in place before September 30, 2017.
As the Barclay Review report findings now confirm that no material reform will be implemented prior to the next revaluation in 2022, the current appeal route is the only feasible mechanism to have rateable value reconsidered in the intervening period.
Other than appeals, a reminder on the need to submit applications for all forms of relief is also being issued. The single year transitional relief, capping increases in 2017/18 to 14.75%, will require an application to each local authority’s rates billing section before March 31, 2018. Annually available reliefs such as the small business bonus relief also require to be applied for each year.
In terms of the latter, the Scottish Government has made a commitment that the small business relief will continue over the life of the 2017 revaluation. However, ratepayers cannot rely on the relief being granted automatically.
For information on how Gerald Eve can help your business, call today on 0845 1288 952 or send an email to one of their property tax saving experts at rating@geraldeve.com
Martin Clarkson BSc MRICS is a Partner at Gerald Eve LLP