What to do if you can't pay your business rates
Find out about the help available if you're having trouble paying your business rates, and what happens if you don't pay.
Contact us
Contact us as soon as possible to report a change, or if you're struggling to pay your business rates. We can change your payment date or arrange a payment plan to help you.
You should also check if you can get:
- Small Business Rate Relief if your business property has a rateable value of £15,000 or less
- other business rates discounts - for example if your business is a charity, pub or local newspaper
When you miss a payment
If you miss a payment, the following steps happen automatically:
- We'll send you a reminder within 12 days of a missed payment
- If you don't respond to the reminder within 7 days, you'll get a court summons that includes extra costs of up to £100
- If you still don't pay, the Magistrates Court may give you a Liability Order with extra costs of £31.50, bringing the total costs to £131.50
- Your debt is then passed to our enforcement team and could lead to further increased costs, removal of goods or business insolvency