Business Rate Checker is a project with a simple aim: to help small businesses in England find out whether they are overpaying business ratesThe tax most non-residential properties in England pay to their local council, similar to council tax but for shops, offices, warehouses and other business premises. — and, where they are, to help them claim that money back.
Most business-rates bills are built on a single figure, the rateable valueThe official estimate of a property's annual rental value on a fixed valuation date. Your rates bill is based on this figure, not on what you actually pay in rent., which is set in bulk from historic data and rarely based on a visit to your actual premises. When that figure is too high, you overpay — often for years — without ever knowing. Very few businesses check, partly because the traditional rating agents charge large percentages and tie you into long contracts.
We think that is the wrong way round. So we built a free tool that compares your rateable value against similar properties nearby using the official published rating data, and shows you plainly where you stand — no login, no card, and no pressure.
The site is run by Mirror Mountain Ltd. (registered in England and Wales, company number 15478792), a small company founded by Rupert Spiegelberg. We are an independent service — we are not the council, HMRC or the Valuation Office, and we are not one of the big rating agents.
Where a case is worth taking further than the free check, we work with independent RICS-qualified chartered surveyors rather than pretending to do everything ourselves. We are a new service, currently free to use, and building openly — shaped by feedback from real business owners.
Ready to see where you stand? Check your business rates — it takes about two minutes.
Business Rate Checker is an independent service. The Valuation Office AgencyThe government body that sets every property's Rateable Value. From April 2026 the VOA is part of HMRC (see below), but 'VOA' is still the common name for the valuation side of the work. (now part of HMRCHis Majesty's Revenue and Customs — the UK tax authority. Since 1 April 2026 it also includes the VOA's valuation function.) does not endorse, back or verify this site, and our estimates are not official VOA figures. This page is general information, not financial or legal advice.