One in six losing out on rate relief

About one in six pubs in England and Wales are failing to claim £6.9m of Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR).

Data from Leaseholders United (LU), a small business campaign group, shows that more than 9,000 pubs are each missing out on rate relief of up to £1,100 per year.

The figures reveal that around 50% to 60% of eligible pubs are failing to claim their SBRR.

Kirklees Council in the Yorkshire Pennines is listed as having the largest amount of money going unclaimed — a massive £113,000, or 145 pubs out of a possible 243.

Properties with a rateable value of less than £5,000 can get 50% relief on their liability. Relief is available for properties of up to £10,000 rateable value, but this decreases by 1% for every £100 over £5,000. Only ratepayers who have one property and do not receive any other relief are eligible.

The Department of Communities and Local Government has confirmed that businesses have until the end of September 2010 to claim three-years' worth of relief. This follows recent confusion among councils about the due date.

The LU data was compiled using the National Non-Domestic Rating List from the Valuation Office, the 2006 Local Government Association Report on numbers claiming SBRR, details from communities and written answers from John Healey, minister for local government, on the amount of relief claimed.

The Conservatives — campaigning to make small firms aware of SBRR — said the reason for the unclaimed relief is "either because they don't know about it or because applying for it is a complicated process".

Calculate your SBRR​

To work out if you're missing out on rate relief, go to www.leaseholdersunited.com​ and follow the steps outlined on the site to discover your eligibility.

Basically, you input your contact and property details to calculate whether you are eligible for any rate relief, and if so, how much you can legitimately claim back.

Print out the form, sign it, post it off — and hopefully, a cheque should arrive.