CONTACT US
Share: Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn I recommend visiting cushmanwakefield.com to read:%0A%0A {0} %0A%0A {1}
office leasing (image) office leasing (image)

Services

Business Rates

Business rates represent a major cost for both occupiers and owners of non-domestic property. 

Introduction

Managing business rates is a crucial yet complex undertaking for property occupiers, owners, and developers in the United Kingdom. Business rates represent one of the largest costs associated with non-domestic properties, and without expert guidance, your organisation could be overpaying or missing critical saving opportunities.

At Cushman & Wakefield, we provide a fully integrated approach to business rates advisory, leveraging our expertise and insight to minimise liabilities and maximise cost savings.

Our Approach

Why Choose Cushman & Wakefield for Business Rates Advice?

Our team of rateable value experts operates across the UK with a deep understanding of local and national property markets. From London to Glasgow, we combine on-the-ground market insight with specialised expertise in rating and valuation. With a forward-thinking approach, we continually adapt to changes in the legislative and property landscape, ensuring your organisation stays ahead of potential challenges and opportunities.

Here’s how we help:

  1. Comprehensive Support – From rateable value assessments to identifying cost-saving measures, we offer a tailored solution for your business.
  2. Proven Results – Our expertise in challenging and reducing business rates ensures significant savings, even in complex valuation cases.
  3. Future-Proofing – We anticipate market and legislative dynamics to secure long-term savings.

Approach to Business Rates

Navigating complex business rates legislation, ensuring accurate liability assessments, and uncovering savings opportunities demand deep expertise. Without specialist knowledge, businesses often overpay rates or fail to recover refunds they’re entitled to.

Cushman & Wakefield’s team of business rates agents offers both tailored and fully outsourced solutions to help your organisation achieve savings. Whether addressing existing properties, managing newly occupied spaces, or negotiating relief on vacant properties, we ensure you pay only what’s necessary.
Key Benefits of our Service:

  • Maximum Savings: Achieve significant reductions in your business rates liability with expert support throughout the appeal and exemption processes.
  • Customised Service: Choose between a fully managed rates service or a bespoke solution tailored to specific requirements.
  • End-to-End Financial Management: From budgeting to refunds, we handle the financial complexities of business rates for stress-free management.
  • Proactive Compliance: Stay up-to-date with regulatory changes and anticipate the implications of revaluations or legislative shifts.
  • Empowered Decision-Making: Benefit from actionable insights based on market intelligence, case law, and rental evidence.

Services

Business Rates Advisory Services

Business Rates Review and Appeal

Business rates can be a significant financial burden. Our business rates valuation services carry out detailed reviews of Rateable Value assessments to ensure they’re accurate and fair. Where assessments are higher than they should be, we manage the entire appeals process to achieve reductions and backdated refunds.

  • Opportunities to Appeal: Whether your property is in England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland, we navigate strict deadlines and manage the appeal process on your behalf.
  • Expert Advocacy: If necessary, we represent your interests at Valuation Tribunals or other legal forums to maximise savings.

Rates Relief and Exemptions

Our specialists have extensive knowledge of statutory reliefs available for vacant properties, properties undergoing redevelopment, or phased entry into newly occupied spaces. We identify all possible exemptions, including void relief, Section 44a phased relief, and intermittent occupation strategies.

  • Vacating a Property: Minimise liability during lease ends or void periods by leveraging statutory reliefs or phased occupancy strategies.
  • Moving to a New Property: Ensure reduced rates liability during fit-out and phased occupation by applying for appropriate reliefs.

Rates Management and Audit

Comprehensive rates management is critical for reducing liability and administrative costs. Our service ensures that budgets, payments, refund recovery, and exemptions are handled seamlessly:

  • Demands, Payments and Refund Recovery: We validate every demand, handle payments, and expedite refunds due to your organisation.
  • Historic Rates Audit: Business rates legislation is complex. Our team conducts forensic audits to recover overpayments, often uncovering significant funds owed to your organisation.

Innovative Strategies for Cost Reduction

We utilise cutting-edge tools like our Rating App, which allows clients to quickly notify us of material property changes affecting their Rateable Value. This ensures fast action to secure potential savings.

Sector-Specific Experience

Business rates liabilities vary significantly across property types. Our expertise spans offices, retail, industrial, logistics, leisure, healthcare, education, and specialist assets like public sector facilities. No matter the sector, our specialists deliver precision-focused strategies tailored to your needs.

Contacts

Contact

Mike Flecknoe
Mike Flecknoe

International Partner • Birmingham

Insights

UK-Govt-image-750px.jpg
Insights • Government / Public Sector

Will the government’s Plan for Change drive regional office market growth?

The 2025 Spending Review reaffirmed the government’s Plan for Change, which aims to fundamentally reshape the Civil Service’s property footprint by relocating roles from London to regional hubs.

30/06/2025
UK Economy & Housing Marketbeat Reports
MarketBeat

UK Economy & Housing Marketbeat Reports

Access the latest quarterly commercial real estate results for the investment market nationally. MarketBeat reports analyse quarterly market activity including, supply, demand and pricing trends.
Daryl Perry • 20/06/2025
London Big Ben Westminster Bridge sunset
MarketBeat

UK MarketBeats

Our Marketbeat reports provide quarterly commercial real estate market activity data covering supply, demand, and pricing trends. Explore our UK Marketbeat reports which cover office, life sciences, retail, industrial, investment, and specialist market sectors.
Edward Bavister • 11/04/2025

Stories

Abstract (image)
ArchCo Portfolio Valuation • Industrial & Retail
Valuation of an extensive portfolio encompassing 18 million square feet, consisting of 5,285 rental spaces distributed across the UK, with approximately 80% located in London.
Learn More
Fredericksburg Square
Valuations for Multi-Let Industrial Assets • Industrial
Secured Lending services provided for 5.9 million square feet across 59 assets in the UK.
Learn More

News

Birmingham, UK
Cushman & Wakefield Welcomes Senior Hire To UK Capital Markets Team

Global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield has appointed Rob Woods as a Partner to its UK Capital Markets team.

Richard Coleman • 18/02/2025

Frederic-Le-Fichoux-Webcard
Cushman & Wakefield Promotes Frederic Le Fichoux To Head of Hotel Transactions EMEA

Real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield has promoted Frederic Le Fichoux to Head of Hotel Transactions EMEA.

Vikki McCrindle • 10/04/2024

WANT TO KNOW MORE?

If you would like to find out more about our specific expertise, or discover how we could work with your company, please contact a member of our team – we’d be delighted to hear from you.
With your permission we and our partners would like to use cookies in order to access and record information and process personal data, such as unique identifiers and standard information sent by a device to ensure our website performs as expected, to develop and improve our products, and for advertising and insight purposes.

Alternatively click on More Options and select your preferences before providing or refusing consent. Some processing of your personal data may not require your consent, but you have a right to object to such processing.

You can change your preferences at any time by returning to this site or clicking on Cookies.
MORE OPTIONS
Agree and Close
These cookies ensure that our website performs as expected,for example website traffic load is balanced across our servers to prevent our website from crashing during particularly high usage.
These cookies allow our website to remember choices you make (such as your user name, language or the region you are in) and provide enhanced features. These cookies do not gather any information about you that could be used for advertising or remember where you have been on the internet.
These cookies allow us to work with our marketing partners to understand which ads or links you have clicked on before arriving on our website or to help us make our advertising more relevant to you.
Agree All
Reject All
SAVE SETTINGS