How business rates are calculated

If you are experiencing difficulties in paying your non-domestic rates, please contact us. We may be able to help by restructuring your instalments to make them more manageable. Our team can also advise you regarding any discount and reductions for which you may be eligible. 

What happens if I do not pay on time?

If you do not pay your bill in full and on time, you will be sent a reminder.

The terms of a reminder are that you must bring your account up to date within 7 days of receiving it. If, in a further 7 days your account is still in arrears, you should pay the whole of the business rates remaining for the year and you lose your right to pay by instalments. If payment of the reminder is made you can continue to pay monthly.

Any further delay in payment will result in a court summons being issued at a cost of £60. This also means that the whole balance of your account becomes due immediately.

If you pay in full, including the court summons costs, nothing further will happen. The magistrates' court will be informed that you have paid and the case is automatically stopped.

If any debt remains on your account on the hearing day, the case will go ahead. If you agree that you owe the amount due on the summons, there is no need for you to attend the court. You only need to appear if you have a valid defence to put to the magistrates as to why you consider you are not liable. Please note: the court is not able to take account of your financial situation or discuss payment with you.

In the vast majority of cases the magistrates' court will issue a liability order and an additional cost of £50 will be added to your account. We will be able to take formal recovery action to enforce payment.
We can use any or all (but only one at a time) of the following methods of recovery:

• Enforcement Agents (EAs): previously known as bailiffs, the enforcement agents will write and call to enforce payment on you. If necessary, the enforcement agents will take control of your goods to the value of the debt outstanding, together with any further costs incurred including an immediate non-negotiable compliance fee of £75

• Bankruptcyinsolvency/winding up: we can instigate insolvency and winding up proceeding against you or your company

Payment arrangements

Our team are here to help and can provide a number of alternative payment arrangements. It is important that you contact us as soon as possible if you are unable to make a payment.

If a Liability Order is granted, we would prefer to agree a payment arrangement with you rather than proceed with one of the recovery options listed above. Please contact us to discuss the available options.

Appealing a decision

You can appeal a decision by the Valuation Office Agency or Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council via the Valuation Tribunal Service. To make an appeal, please visit the Valuation Tribunal Service web site.