Business rates bailiffs: what to do
A letter from an enforcement agent is not something to sit on. There are three things worth doing straight away, and one of them is checking whether the bill behind the debt was ever right in the first place.
- The debt might be wrong
- We check the bill behind it
- The sooner you act, the cheaper
The cost of waiting
ACT EARLYSort it at the notice stage
Acting before an agent visits costs the least and stops it escalating.
Current statutory fees for England & Wales. Larger debts add 7.5%. Fees are set in regulations and can change.
- RICS regulated surveyors
- IRRV members
- 30 years reducing business rates
- Honest advice
What to do right now
If a notice has landed, these are the first steps. The clock has usually already started.
Pay it or arrange to pay it.
Contact the enforcement agent and either settle the debt or ask about a payment plan. Ignoring a notice only adds cost and brings a visit closer, and paying does not stop you challenging the valuation afterwards.
Tell the council an appeal is coming.
Let your local authority know you are appointing an agent to look at the rateable value. It does not pause the debt, but it puts on record that the figure is disputed.
Check the bill behind it.
Arrears are only as right as the bill they came from. If the rateable value is too high or a relief was missed, you owe less than the demand says.
Get debt advice if you need it.
We are rating surveyors, not debt advisers. If paying at all is the problem, Business Debtline offers free independent advice for businesses, and early advice keeps more options open.
How business rates arrears reach a bailiff
Enforcement is the last step, not the first, and there are chances to act before it.
When a payment is missed, your council sends a reminder. If it stays unpaid, you can lose the right to pay in instalments and the full year becomes due. If it is still not paid, the council asks the magistrates’ court for a liability order.
Only once it has that order can the council instruct enforcement agents, the firms most people still call bailiffs, such as Newlyn or Equita. Each step is a chance to check the bill and sort things out before costs climb.
What happens, and what it costs
Enforcement agents follow a set process with fixed fees at each stage. Acting early keeps the cost down.
Compliance: the notice
The agent sends a notice of enforcement and adds a fixed fee. You get at least seven clear days, not counting Sundays or bank holidays, before anyone can visit. This is the cheapest, calmest point to sort things out, by paying, arranging payment, or challenging the bill.
Enforcement: the visit
If nothing is agreed, an agent visits your premises. On a first visit they cannot force entry, only come through an unlocked door, and they can only attend between 6am and 9pm. They may draw up a controlled goods agreement, a list of items that could be removed later, which gives you a final chance to pay.
Removal and sale
If the debt is still unpaid and a controlled goods agreement is broken, listed goods can be removed and sold at auction to cover the debt and fees. In practice, only a small share of cases ever reach this stage, most are settled long before.
Your rights when an agent visits
Enforcement agents have real powers, but strict rules too. Knowing them takes some of the fear out of the letter on your desk.
If anything about a visit does not look right, you can raise it with the enforcement firm and, if needed, the council.
- They must be certificated, and you can check the register
- At least seven clear days’ notice before any visit
- No forced entry on a first visit, and only between 6am and 9pm
- They cannot take essential tools of the trade up to a set value
- They cannot take goods that belong to someone else, or are leased
Before you pay more, check the bill is right
This is the step most people skip. We check the rateable value your arrears are built on, and whether any relief was missed. If the value is too high or a relief was overlooked, we challenge it, and a lower bill can mean a smaller debt, sometimes much smaller.
We are rating surveyors, so this is the part we handle. We cannot stop enforcement or arrange your payments, that sits with you and your council or the agent, but getting the bill right is the move that often gets missed.
- We check the rateable value behind the arrears
- We check for reliefs that should have been applied
- Where the bill is wrong, we challenge it to reduce the debt
- Honest advice on where you stand and what is worth doing
Struggling to pay, not just checking the bill?
Contact your council as soon as you can to ask about a payment arrangement. For free, independent debt advice for businesses, speak to Business Debtline, a charity service. Getting advice early keeps more options open.
Not sure the debt is even right?
Send us your details and we will check the bill behind it, quickly.
Sometimes the debt was wrong all along
A couple of examples of what checking the bill behind enforcement can do.
Summons quashed
A council summons turned into a full refund once the rateable value behind it was corrected, and the bill was cleared.
RETAIL PREMISES
Debt reduced
Arrears came down after a relief that should have been applied was claimed and backdated, cutting what was owed.
SMALL BUSINESS
Notice from a named enforcement agency
Two of the firms councils use most for business rates. See what they can do and how to respond.
Newlyn
Had a letter or visit from Newlyn about business rates? See what the notice means and the right way to respond.
Newlyn bailiffs help →Equita
Contacted by Equita over business rates arrears? Understand your position and what to do next.
Equita bailiffs help →Business rates bailiff questions, answered
Can I stop the bailiffs?
We cannot stop lawful enforcement. But if the debt is wrong, because the rateable value is too high or a relief was missed, challenging the bill can reduce or even clear what you owe. Paying, or agreeing a payment arrangement with your council or the enforcement agent, also stops it escalating. Act quickly, and get free debt advice if you are struggling.
Can bailiffs force their way into my business?
On a first visit to take control of goods, an enforcement agent cannot force entry. They can only come in through an unlocked door. Force may be used on a later visit if you have a controlled goods agreement in place and break it. They can only visit between 6am and 9pm.
What can enforcement agents take?
Goods belonging to the business named on the liability order, up to the value of the debt and fees. They cannot take tools of your trade up to a set value, essential items, goods that belong to someone else, or leased or rented equipment. Most cases are settled by payment before any goods are removed.
Do I pay the bailiff or the council?
Once your account is with the enforcement agent, you should pay the agent, not the council, unless you dispute that you owe the debt at all. Contact them straight away to discuss it.
Can the business rates debt be wrong?
Yes. Business rates arrears are only ever as right as the bill they come from. If your rateable value is too high, or a relief was missed, the debt is inflated. That is exactly what we check.
What if I cannot afford to pay?
Contact your council quickly to ask about a payment arrangement, and get free, independent debt advice from Business Debtline. In some cases arrears can be written off on hardship grounds, and a debt adviser can help you make that case.
Start by checking the bill
It costs nothing to find out whether your rateable value, and the debt built on it, is right.