ABOUT US

Sterling (UK) Associates is a professional organisation specialising in the field of business rates. Our dedicated teams of specialists provide an exceptional service to business occupiers throughout the United Kingdom. We possess the commitment to ensure that our clients rate liabilities are minimised for a variety of businesses.

Sterling (UK) Associates are based in an office in London. The exceptional service we provide through our dedicated team of specialists, combine professional advice with the highest quality of Client welfare. Not only are our team committed to ensuring that our Clients’ rate liabilities are minimised, we ensure that all possible opportunities of securing reductions and refunds are explored. We do this by negotiating with the Valuation Office and Local Authorities. Our aim is to bring the amount you pay in business rates down and ensure that any back-dated repayments in over charged business rates are repaid to you direct. Our team here at Sterling (UK) Associates holds excellent local knowledge of many areas throughout the UK and can provide instant and direct assistance. Overall, Sterling (UK) Associates are highly professional in the rating industry and appeal process. We will work on your behalf, to enable your rateable value to be set as low as can be for the foreseeable future and kept that way. Sterling (UK) Associates seek to help ratepayers throughout the country to negotiate and reduce their business rates responsibly.

Here we provide a brief overview of VOA and how new rateable values are calculated

Valuation Office Agency is liable for assessing all businesses throughout England and Wales, which gives each property a rateable value. This is a substantial factor in the calculation of business rates, but this is an estimate. The rateable value is an estimated figure based on your annual rent for your property. If it was available to let on a set date. Every one of the current rateable values are calculated on rental figures from the valuation date of the 1st April 2008. The rateable value of your business is used at your local council with a factor called the multiplier, to calculate the basic rate, the multiplier is used for each property. This is before any necessary discounts or reliefs are put into place. The local councils are in charge of sending out bills and the rates that need to be paid. The multiplier, also known as UBR, determines the percentage of your rateable value on your property – you will pay this in your business rates. If your business only occupies one single property and you have a rateable value below a specific threshold then you are likely to be eligible for small business rates relief. Small business relief is available to the majority of properties with a rateable value below £15,000. However, if you have multiple properties then said relief is only applicable if the rateable value is less than £2,600. Properties with a rateable value below £6,000 are entitled to up to 100% relief and properties with a rateable value between £6,001 and £12,000 will be calculated on a sliding scale. Small business relief multipliers are available for businesses with a rateable value below £51,000 in England. Businesses meeting the requirements will be entitled to a lower multiplier which is then used to calculate your rateable value. Since April 2005 the small business rates scheme has been in operation, using the small businesses multiplier. Your business, if applied through local authority, can be calculated. Depending on your rateable value, you may also qualify for further discount on your bill and backdated payments.

The next revaluation

The next UK business rates revaluation will come into effect on 1 April 2026 with rateable values based on rental levels at 1 April 2023. The last business rates valuation took place on 1st April 2023, after the height of the COVID Pandemic, with rateable values in place since 1st April 2017. At revaluation, all properties are given a new rateable value and multipliers are revised. New values will not necessarily incur higher bills. Some areas within the UK are predicted to see reductions. Economic recovery however, particularly in London and the South East, will fuel a business rates increases, which are likely to cut into businesses’ profits.