7th August 2019
The April 2017 Rating Revaluation has been castigated by retail and office companies bringing hefty increases in rates payable for many London occupiers.
As has the much more convoluted “Check, Challenge, Appeal” (CCA) procedure for appealing against rate increases .The virtually impenetrable Appeal system has resulted in an 80% drop in the number of appeals compared with the 2010 Revaluation (with only 5% of the 1.9m eligible properties having been successfully listed to date).
However occupier clients of BBG have benefitted from rate reductions negotiated as a result of a “Material Change of Circumstance (MCC).” Claims can be made most particularly for the noise and disruption caused by adjacent or nearby demolition and building works clearly a frequent occurrence within central London.
In a typical instance a claim was made by BBG rating consultant Rob Purkiss on behalf of banking clients due to the adverse effect of an adjoining large scale redevelopment in a central City location . Successful negotiations with the VO resulted in a very healthy 10% reduction in liability for a 3 year period.
If your company are interested to consider the prospects for reducing your rates liability via a MCC claim please contact David Alcock or Rob Purkiss
