Business Rates Mitigation: A Landlord Guide
Written by Scott Jones, founder of CommercialPropertyKiln · Last updated
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There are legitimate ways to reduce a business rates bill, particularly on empty property. This guide pulls the main strategies together, and flags where the line into unlawful avoidance lies.
Reliefs first
Make sure you are getting every relief you are entitled to: Small Business Rate Relief, retail, hospitality and leisure relief, charitable relief, and transitional relief. These are the simplest savings.
Check the rateable value
An inflated rateable value overcharges you for the life of the list. Checking it, and challenging it where justified through Check, Challenge, Appeal, is the most fundamental mitigation.
Empty property
On voids, use the rate-free window and the exemptions, such as the low-value and listed-building exemptions. A short-term let to a qualifying charity can also relieve an empty property. But note the 13-week reoccupation reset since April 2024, which has curtailed rapid cycling strategies.
Where the line is
Legitimate mitigation uses reliefs, exemptions and accurate valuations. Artificial schemes designed purely to avoid rates have been increasingly challenged and curtailed by anti-avoidance rules and the courts. Aggressive schemes carry real risk of the relief being denied, plus reputational cost.
Take advice
A reputable rating surveyor can identify genuine savings. Be wary of schemes that sound too good, or firms demanding large upfront fees. This is guidance, not advice on a specific property.
What are legitimate ways to cut a business rates bill?
Claiming every relief, checking and challenging an inflated rateable value, and managing empty-property exposure with the reliefs and exemptions.
Are aggressive rates avoidance schemes safe?
No. Artificial schemes have been curtailed by anti-avoidance rules and the courts, and carry real risk of the relief being denied.