Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer when you visit a website. They are mainly used as a way of improving the website functionalities or to provide more advanced statistical data.
Claiming Small Business Rate Relief
Newsletter issue - December 08.
Are you missing out on a reduction in your business rates? The small business rate relief scheme (SBRR) can reduce your business rates by over 50% if your building has a rateable value of less than £5,000. The SBRR provides smaller discounts in business rates for properties with rateable values of up to £15,000, or £21,500 in Greater London.
Business rates are collected by local authorities, but the amount due is set nationally using a standard multiplier for all commercial properties. This multiplier is 46.2p in England for the tax year 2008/09. Scotland and Wales set separate multipliers and have slightly different versions of the SBRR that give different reductions. The Northern Irish Assembly still operates the pre-1990 old rates system for all domestic and business properties.
SBRR applies a lower multiplier (45.8p for 2008/09) to businesses that qualify and gives additional reductions as shown below:
| Rateable value of building | Relief given |
| Less than £5,000 | Lower multiplier + 50% reduction in resulting figure |
| £5,000 - £9,999 | Lower multiplier + 1% reduction from 50% for every £100 of rateable value above £5,000. |
| £10,000 - 14,999 (£21,500 in London) |
Lower multiplier only |
Example
A business using a property with rateable value of £6,000 would pay £2,772 in business rates at the full rate of 46.2p for 2008/09. If it successfully applied to use the SBRR it would pay £6,000 x 45.8p = £2,748 x 60% = £1,648.80. That's a reduction of 41% from the original bill of £2,772.
The catch is you have to apply to use the SBRR from the billing authority that collects your business rates. You can now make one application to cover all the years from 2007/08 to 2009/10, and reclaim any excessive business rates paid for those earlier years. Contact your billing authority for their claim form. Each authority has a different form, but some authorities have not updated their information to show the extended deadline for claims, which is now 30 September 2010 for the current valuation period.
What our clients say about us...
"Paul has provided accountancy services to my company for 2 years now. I can recommend Paul very highly; his skills as an accountant are highly detailed and professional and he is always available to provide advice. One aspect of the way Paul works that I greatly appreciate is a preference to meet face to face when there is a detailed conversation to be had. I personally find this more productive and is a benefit of working with a small accountancy firm that you wouldn't get with the large faceless providers."
ALISTAIR FAIRWEATHER - PROGRAMME & PROJECT MANAGER, DELIVERING/RESCUING I.T. 7 BUSINESS CHANGE WITH BUDGETS UPTO £50M INC SUPPIER MANAGEMENT
"I couldn't ask for more from Paul as an Accountant. Paul has been accountant to Work Relief Charity Recruitment for just over a year now and is proving an invaluable asset. Accurate, knowledgeable, flexible with an emphasis on service delivery, I would recommend Paul's services to any organisation looking for an accounts professional."
Neil Price - Managing Director at Work Relief Charity Recruitment
"Paul was a referral from a family member when I started my business 2 years ago. As this was the first time I had ever run my own company I was totally clueless over the financial side of matters and was worried that I may have made mistakes in any of my accounting. I needn't have worried as after enaging Paul for a set monthly fee he was always there on the end of the phone for all sorts of questions I had and no matter how trivial they were Paul gave me all the information I required and more and did an excellent and painless job at the end of my first year! Couldn't ask for any better to be honest. Just two words - hire him!!!"
Lee Westrap MBCS - Director - Bulldog IT Services
Please complete our form
to request a callback
Competitive fixed quotes
for agreed services
Increase your profit and
reduce tax liabilities
Expert advice for your
business size
