Business rates

We often receive Freedom of Information (FOI) requests for information related to business rate accounts.

We now publish spreadsheet data which will be updated at quarterly intervals and covers the most requested information such as:

• property reference
• account name
• property address
• current rateable value
• liability start date
• current valuation description
• relief awarded and start date of this
• gross liability

We have removed accounts relating to individuals and partnerships as this information is exempt under section 40 of the FOIA 2000

Empty property details have been withheld in accordance with Exemption 31(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act, as the release of large numbers of empty properties can, and have been attempted to be, used to perpetrate fraud or for other criminal purposes. The public interest in this case is to withhold the information in order to prevent the attempted criminal actions.

Following the Information Commissioner Decision Notice for Wandsworth Borough Council in February 2017 [FS50619844] we do not supply information relating to business rates credits since it is considered that the exemption under Section 31(1)(a) applies  as disclosure of the information would be likely to prejudice the prevention or detection of crime.