Owners of business property need to make sure they check their rateable values in anticipation of the new business rates due to come into force at the start of April.
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA), which sets the rates based on data provided by local councils, has urged those with such properties in their portfolios to make sure their details are correct and to get in touch with the body if any amendments need to be made.
"It's important that businesses check their rateable values to make sure the details are correct and contact us if they have any concerns. If the details are wrong we want to correct the now," remarked revaluation project manager Steve Bliss.
He urged owners to check the VOA's website to see their rateable values and compare them with others.
Commercial properties in England and Wales are revaluated every five years and Simon Harris, partner in the rating department of property consultancy firm Montagu Evans, highlighted the importance of not only making sure the new rates are correct, but checking to see if any claims can be made for the last five-year period.
March 31st is the "last chance" business property owners have to retrospectively appeal against the amount they have been paying from 2005 onwards.
"Such an appeal may already have been made," he stated, but added that it is "still possible and quite permissible to make a retrospective claim against specific circumstances that may have materially affected your enjoyment of your premises" during the period.
Mr Harris added that checking business rates is especially important in the current economic climate, when many enterprises are focusing on bringing down their costs as much as possible.
Opportunities for doing this through reducing rents and services charges are limited, he said, but business rates is one area where savings can be made, providing people "act fast".
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