Published in the dying days of Parliament, the Treasury Select Committee report on business rates, whilst acknowledging that the system is unfair and that piecemeal modifications have made the system even harder to understand, fails to recommend fiscal alternatives. Proposals such as sales tax are insufficiently modelled, and there needs to be further consultation by the Treasury on serious, sustainable, alternative forms of taxation. Commercial Property Advisors (CPA) believes that, with the prospect of a general election and the bedding-in of a new, possibly minority, government, businesses should not wait for rates reform from Government. Rather, it recommends firms to consider appealing their present rates bills, by means of its no win no fee service, including surveys, where necessary.
The grounds for successful appeals and rebates running into the thousands may not be immediately obvious to the inexperienced eye.
A simple request for help from CPA is all that is necessary for a worry-free, professional evaluation of a firm's rating position, and the real prospect of immediate savings and a sounder rates base for the future.