Anyone can call themselves a business rates consultant, adviser or surveyor. The words are not protected, and the Valuation Office Agency has publicly refused to deal with several firms for misrepresenting themselves. So the choice matters, and the good news is that the checks are simple. Most of what follows comes from the government's own guidance on choosing a business rates agent, with the questions we would ask if we were the client.
Consultant, adviser, agent or surveyor?
In rating these are the same job. "Agent" is the Valuation Office's word for anyone appointed to act for a ratepayer; "consultant" and "adviser" are what firms call themselves; "surveyor" describes what the work actually involves. What matters is not the title but whether the person is regulated, named and competent to measure and value your property. A Check, Challenge and Appeal is a statutory process with deadlines and evidence rules, and it is lost on process as often as on merit, so it is not something to hand to a sales operation.
Five checks before you sign anything
1. Are they a member of a professional body? The government guidance names three: the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the Rating Surveyors' Association (RSA) and the Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation (IRRV). Members are bound by the Rating Consultancy Code of Practice. Check the membership list yourself rather than taking a logo on a website as proof. Ours is on RICS Find a Surveyor, firm number 897221.
2. Who will actually handle the case? Ask for the name and qualifications of the person who will inspect the property, prepare the evidence and deal with the Valuation Office. With some firms the person who sells the service never sees the file again. If the answer is "the team", ask again.
3. What does it cost, and for how long? The usual arrangement is a share of the saving with nothing up front, or a fixed fee. Either is fine. What to watch is the length of the contract, whether the share runs for the whole rating list, what happens if the rateable value goes up, and whether fees are payable on a reduction in rateable value or on money you actually save. Those are not the same thing: your bill depends on the multiplier, transitional arrangements and reliefs, so a lower rateable value can save less than the fee.
4. Will they tell you when there is no case? A Challenge puts the whole valuation back on the table, and the Valuation Office can revise it upwards. A good adviser gives you a written view on the merits first, and sometimes that view is "leave it alone". If every property is a winner, be careful.
5. Check the company. Companies House shows previous names and periods of dormancy. The government guidance warns that some agents rename or buy dormant companies to leave complaints behind.
Warning signs
The guidance lists the behaviour the Valuation Office sees from the firms it has refused to deal with:
- claiming to act for, or be endorsed by, the Valuation Office, or using its logo;
- forwarding emails they say are from the Valuation Office;
- inventing deadlines to pressure you into signing;
- asking for your business rates valuation account login. An agent must have their own account and be appointed by you through yours.
Cold calls are not on the government's list, but in our experience they are the most reliable sign of the lot. Nobody who is busy with real cases is phoning around industrial estates.
Questions we are happy to be asked
Who inspects the property? Oliver Hamblin MRICS, who also prepares the evidence and runs the case. What are the credentials? Twelve years in business rates at Altus Group, four as a Director, and an RICS-regulated firm. What does it cost? The initial review is free and comes with a written view; after that a share of the saving or a fixed fee, agreed in writing. What if there is no case? We say so.
If you are looking for a business rates adviser in Surrey, or anywhere across the South of England and London, send us the bill and we will start with that written view.
Chartered Surveyor. Twelve years in business rates at Altus Group (now Ryan), four of them as a Director, and more than fifteen years of rating work across the South of England and London. RICS-regulated firm no. 897221.
Not sure whether your assessment is right?
Send us the rates bill or just the property address. We will look at the published assessment and tell you honestly whether there is a case worth pursuing. There is no charge for that first view.
Get in touchThis article is general information about how business rates work in England, written for ratepayers. It is not advice on any particular property, and the rules change. If a decision turns on it, take advice on the facts of your own case.