Overpayment map

Where English businesses are most likely overpaying

All 296 English billing authorities, ranked by the share of properties whose rateable value suggests they are overpaying against genuine comparables. 180,978 of 1,894,057 properties are flagged — about 9.6% — worth £961.2m a year if every one were corrected.

Reclaimable a year£961.2mEnglish businesses could be reclaiming

Overpaying1 in 10businesses in England

Properties flagged180,978of 1,894,057 analysed

Typical reclaim£1,322a year, mid-ranked authority

The headline findings

Across the VOA 2026 Rating List (England), 180,978 of 1,894,057 English business properties (9.6%) look over-assessed or borderline against similar nearby properties — a combined £961.2m a year.

The worst-affected authority is Rochdale, where 15.2% of properties look to be overpaying — more than 7 times the least-affected, Isles of Scilly (2%).

This is not a big-city problem. None of the ten worst-affected authorities is in London — northern industrial boroughs and rural districts dominate the top of the table.

In the median authority a flagged property’s typical reclaim is £1,322 a year — and because a successful challenge can be backdated, the one-off recovery is often several times that.

The map

Green, amber and red show each authority’s band. Use the toggle on the map to switch between share overpaying, total reclaim pot and typical claim.

Top % of props overpaying

Rochdale15.2%
Salford14.7%
Maidstone13.8%
Kirklees13.7%
Mid Suffolk13.7%

Bottom % of props overpaying

Isles of Scilly2.0%
Cheshire East4.3%
Barking & Dagenham5.2%
Stevenage5.3%
Hammersmith & Fulham6.1%

Largest overpayment pots

Westminster£89.7m
City of London£80.8m
Camden£38.9m
Tower Hamlets£21.1m
Birmingham£17.0m

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run separate rating systems and are out of scope.

The ten authorities with the highest share overpaying

Ranked by percentage of properties flagged, not by cash total.

Authority	Properties	Overpaying	% overpaying	Median claim	Potential a year
Rochdale	8,609	1,308	15.2%	£1,037	£2.9m
Salford	13,150	1,932	14.7%	£976	£5.4m
Maidstone	4,969	687	13.8%	£1,492	£2.9m
Kirklees	15,389	2,112	13.7%	£1,059	£6.0m
Mid Suffolk	3,293	451	13.7%	£1,189	£0.8m
Wyre Forest	3,305	438	13.3%	£1,251	£1.3m
Herefordshire	7,748	1,024	13.2%	£1,168	£2.3m
Maldon	2,434	318	13.1%	£1,062	£0.6m
Ashford	5,138	666	13.0%	£1,322	£1.8m
Blaby	2,272	295	13.0%	£1,228	£1.3m

18 September 2026 · Source: VOA / businessratechecker.com

Download all 296 as CSV See all 296 in the table

All 296 billing authorities

Sort on any column; click again to reverse.

English local authorities ranked by the share of business properties that look over-assessed for business rates. Click any column heading to re-sort; click again to reverse the order. Sorted by % overpaying, high to low, by default.
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1	Rochdale	8,609	1,308	15.2%	£1,037	£2.9m
2	Salford	13,150	1,932	14.7%	£976	£5.4m
3	Maidstone	4,969	687	13.8%	£1,492	£2.9m
4	Kirklees	15,389	2,112	13.7%	£1,059	£6.0m
5	Mid Suffolk	3,293	451	13.7%	£1,189	£816,197
6	Wyre Forest	3,305	438	13.3%	£1,251	£1.3m
7	Herefordshire	7,748	1,024	13.2%	£1,168	£2.3m
8	Maldon	2,434	318	13.1%	£1,062	£607,417
9	Ashford	5,138	666	13%	£1,322	£1.8m
10	Blaby	2,272	295	13%	£1,228	£1.3m
11	Basildon	4,692	605	12.9%	£1,945	£3.2m
12	Tandridge	2,651	341	12.9%	£995	£696,416
13	Test Valley	4,652	589	12.7%	£1,507	£2.8m
14	Cherwell	4,839	611	12.6%	£2,116	£5.4m
15	Derby	8,027	995	12.4%	£1,044	£3.0m
16	Somerset	21,120	2,621	12.4%	£1,097	£7.3m
17	Central Bedfordshire Council	6,660	820	12.3%	£1,837	£4.5m
18	Tonbridge & Malling	3,434	421	12.3%	£2,365	£2.1m
19	West Berkshire	5,578	688	12.3%	£1,411	£3.1m
20	West Northamptonshire	11,288	1,387	12.3%	£1,403	£8.4m
21	North West Leicestershire	3,297	403	12.2%	£1,257	£2.7m
22	Walsall	7,789	947	12.2%	£1,237	£3.7m
23	Brentwood	2,412	291	12.1%	£1,927	£1.1m
24	Buckinghamshire	14,775	1,787	12.1%	£1,916	£9.1m
25	Tameside	7,326	886	12.1%	£1,188	£2.5m
26	Wealden	6,378	770	12.1%	£1,023	£1.5m
27	West Lancashire	3,232	391	12.1%	£1,442	£1.3m
28	Redditch	2,442	292	12%	£1,940	£1.3m
29	Sevenoaks	4,113	492	12%	£1,091	£1.1m
30	Stoke on Trent	8,936	1,073	12%	£1,072	£4.0m
31	Wiltshire	15,340	1,841	12%	£1,214	£6.7m
32	Bromsgrove	3,185	379	11.9%	£1,386	£1.2m
33	East Hertfordshire	4,640	554	11.9%	£1,310	£1.8m
34	Sandwell	10,335	1,229	11.9%	£1,918	£7.5m
35	Gedling	2,510	296	11.8%	£1,190	£960,272
36	Swale	4,585	541	11.8%	£1,409	£2.1m
37	Wychavon	4,788	567	11.8%	£1,404	£1.7m
38	Pendle	3,778	442	11.7%	£1,012	£1.1m
39	Tunbridge Wells	3,786	444	11.7%	£1,853	£1.6m
40	Braintree	4,919	569	11.6%	£1,617	£2.6m
41	Winchester	4,797	557	11.6%	£1,549	£2.0m
42	Chesterfield	4,196	482	11.5%	£1,069	£1.4m
43	Erewash	3,520	405	11.5%	£943	£772,967
44	Hinckley & Bosworth	3,102	358	11.5%	£1,022	£993,299
45	Oldham	7,521	862	11.5%	£990	£1.9m
46	South Oxfordshire	4,342	501	11.5%	£1,563	£2.0m
47	Tewkesbury	2,949	339	11.5%	£2,079	£1.6m
48	Bassetlaw	4,112	470	11.4%	£967	£1.3m
49	Dudley	9,964	1,140	11.4%	£1,298	£3.8m
50	Eastleigh	2,977	340	11.4%	£2,539	£3.4m
51	Rochford	2,923	333	11.4%	£1,142	£1.1m
52	Stafford	4,123	472	11.4%	£1,071	£1.8m
53	Stratford on Avon	5,466	625	11.4%	£1,263	£1.9m
54	Uttlesford	3,204	365	11.4%	£1,115	£960,666
55	Bolton	10,691	1,205	11.3%	£1,188	£3.4m
56	East Staffordshire	3,849	436	11.3%	£1,018	£1.5m
57	Knowsley	2,864	321	11.2%	£1,912	£1.8m
58	Rugby	2,760	310	11.2%	£1,389	£1.8m
59	Sheffield	17,893	2,006	11.2%	£1,256	£7.2m
60	Basingstoke and Deane	4,176	463	11.1%	£2,346	£3.6m
61	Fareham	3,098	344	11.1%	£1,874	£1.2m
62	High Peak	3,554	395	11.1%	£776	£827,427
63	Malvern Hills	2,776	308	11.1%	£1,152	£890,029
64	North Kesteven	3,233	358	11.1%	£943	£789,806
65	South Kesteven	4,216	469	11.1%	£1,102	£1.2m
66	Tamworth	2,009	223	11.1%	£1,965	£1.2m
67	Harborough	3,063	338	11%	£1,150	£1.1m
68	Newark & Sherwood	4,015	443	11%	£1,113	£943,683
69	Trafford	10,497	1,159	11%	£1,502	£4.3m
70	Bradford	19,029	2,066	10.9%	£1,113	£5.7m
71	Breckland	4,188	457	10.9%	£1,292	£1.6m
72	Calderdale	9,340	1,014	10.9%	£955	£2.1m
73	East Devon	7,087	775	10.9%	£904	£1.6m
74	East Hampshire	3,801	416	10.9%	£1,608	£1.1m
75	Forest of Dean	3,108	338	10.9%	£1,030	£699,239
76	West Lindsey	2,615	284	10.9%	£998	£593,864
77	Charnwood	4,584	495	10.8%	£1,240	£1.9m
78	Gloucester	3,994	430	10.8%	£1,395	£1.7m
79	Hyndburn	3,237	351	10.8%	£978	£625,934
80	Ashfield	3,809	407	10.7%	£1,311	£1.9m
81	Bolsover	2,286	244	10.7%	£754	£948,837
82	Broadland	3,571	382	10.7%	£1,039	£1.1m
83	Mole Valley	2,926	312	10.7%	£2,207	£1.6m
84	New Forest	7,099	762	10.7%	£1,292	£2.4m
85	North East Lincolnshire	5,220	558	10.7%	£971	£1.5m
86	North Warwickshire	2,316	248	10.7%	£923	£1.6m
87	Wolverhampton	8,519	913	10.7%	£1,272	£3.8m
88	Wyre	3,838	411	10.7%	£1,023	£674,320
89	Darlington	3,821	405	10.6%	£974	£1.1m
90	Guildford	4,168	442	10.6%	£2,388	£2.9m
91	Horsham	4,673	495	10.6%	£1,277	£1.5m
92	Lewes	3,480	370	10.6%	£1,161	£950,511
93	Mid Sussex	4,383	465	10.6%	£1,325	£2.3m
94	North Northamptonshire	11,131	1,178	10.6%	£1,424	£6.6m
95	Rotherham	7,380	782	10.6%	£1,249	£3.0m
96	Runnymede	2,643	279	10.6%	£2,346	£1.7m
97	South Derbyshire	2,228	236	10.6%	£958	£533,406
98	Staffordshire Moorlands	2,861	302	10.6%	£998	£469,654
99	Stroud	4,019	426	10.6%	£1,099	£1.2m
100	Waverley	3,798	402	10.6%	£1,594	£1.2m
101	Worcester	2,955	314	10.6%	£1,501	£1.5m
102	City of Leicester	12,061	1,264	10.5%	£1,158	£4.0m
103	Crawley	3,558	373	10.5%	£3,923	£4.3m
104	Southend-on-Sea	5,471	575	10.5%	£977	£939,995
105	Warrington	6,582	689	10.5%	£1,565	£3.8m
106	West Suffolk	6,021	632	10.5%	£1,289	£2.6m
107	Amber Valley	3,694	385	10.4%	£1,101	£1.4m
108	Chelmsford	4,941	514	10.4%	£1,474	£1.5m
109	Melton	1,539	160	10.4%	£887	£292,432
110	Norwich	6,671	692	10.4%	£1,181	£2.7m
111	Nuneaton & Bedworth	2,998	312	10.4%	£2,010	£2.0m
112	Shropshire	11,856	1,235	10.4%	£905	£3.3m
113	South Holland	2,635	274	10.4%	£1,209	£547,494
114	Wigan	9,151	956	10.4%	£1,110	£3.0m
115	Bath and North East Somerset	6,368	654	10.3%	£1,441	£2.3m
116	Bedford	5,168	530	10.3%	£1,775	£3.0m
117	Bristol City	15,867	1,640	10.3%	£1,966	£10.5m
118	Broxtowe	2,547	262	10.3%	£996	£765,033
119	Bury	5,823	599	10.3%	£1,143	£1.3m
120	North Lincolnshire	5,209	539	10.3%	£1,070	£1.5m
121	North Somerset	6,086	626	10.3%	£1,458	£2.1m
122	Stockport	11,065	1,144	10.3%	£1,283	£4.3m
123	Vale of White Horse	3,666	378	10.3%	£1,965	£2.8m
124	Cheshire West and Chester	11,507	1,169	10.2%	£1,184	£5.7m
125	Chichester	5,132	523	10.2%	£1,359	£1.4m
126	Epping Forest	4,433	453	10.2%	£1,566	£1.4m
127	North Hertfordshire	4,439	452	10.2%	£1,686	£2.0m
128	Windsor and Maidenhead	4,557	464	10.2%	£2,297	£2.3m
129	Chorley	3,480	353	10.1%	£952	£817,851
130	Exeter	4,788	485	10.1%	£1,555	£2.2m
131	East Suffolk	12,488	1,247	10%	£675	£2.3m
132	Gravesham	2,164	217	10%	£1,436	£656,704
133	Ribble Valley	2,457	245	10%	£971	£384,034
134	Rushcliffe	2,833	284	10%	£1,086	£890,993
135	Blackburn with Darwen	8,076	796	9.9%	£1,145	£2.1m
136	Dover	4,013	396	9.9%	£1,079	£719,541
137	Fenland	2,828	279	9.9%	£1,307	£1.1m
138	Huntingdon	5,303	523	9.9%	£1,694	£3.1m
139	Lancaster	4,933	488	9.9%	£1,145	£1.1m
140	Leeds	30,405	2,999	9.9%	£1,614	£14.4m
141	South Cambridgeshire	5,154	509	9.9%	£1,603	£5.2m
142	West Oxfordshire	4,060	403	9.9%	£1,573	£1.2m
143	Wokingham	4,074	403	9.9%	£2,118	£2.2m
144	City of London	17,383	1,699	9.8%	£7,601	£80.8m
145	Oadby & Wigston	1,398	137	9.8%	£1,365	£383,673
146	St Helens	4,412	432	9.8%	£1,678	£2.4m
147	Telford and Wrekin	5,131	501	9.8%	£1,437	£2.3m
148	Wakefield	11,278	1,108	9.8%	£1,264	£3.9m
149	City and County of Kingston upon Hull	9,011	876	9.7%	£1,609	£4.0m
150	Cumberland	11,462	1,114	9.7%	£922	£3.3m
151	Fylde	2,826	274	9.7%	£859	£459,314
152	South Ribble	3,152	307	9.7%	£1,217	£814,848
153	Thurrock	4,172	405	9.7%	£1,967	£3.2m
154	Cannock Chase	3,522	339	9.6%	£1,340	£1.5m
155	Cheltenham	3,919	376	9.6%	£1,423	£1.3m
156	Islington	11,640	1,118	9.6%	£4,580	£15.5m
157	Medway	6,090	582	9.6%	£1,715	£2.3m
158	Milton Keynes	8,454	811	9.6%	£2,129	£8.5m
159	South Norfolk	4,415	423	9.6%	£943	£821,390
160	Harlow	2,274	215	9.5%	£2,855	£1.8m
161	Preston	6,015	573	9.5%	£1,038	£1.9m
162	Rutland	1,582	150	9.5%	£821	£375,969
163	Hart	2,159	204	9.4%	£1,391	£1.0m
164	Hastings	3,520	330	9.4%	£856	£575,771
165	Ipswich	4,553	428	9.4%	£1,869	£1.7m
166	Lichfield	2,838	267	9.4%	£1,253	£1.0m
167	Plymouth	7,463	705	9.4%	£1,373	£2.4m
168	Welwyn Hatfield	2,815	264	9.4%	£2,817	£2.1m
169	Coventry	8,271	767	9.3%	£1,487	£4.5m
170	Dorset Council	17,310	1,606	9.3%	£1,064	£4.5m
171	Gosport	1,881	175	9.3%	£1,279	£792,190
172	Mansfield	3,205	298	9.3%	£1,148	£784,909
173	South Gloucestershire	7,372	684	9.3%	£1,542	£4.0m
174	Wirral	7,991	746	9.3%	£1,248	£2.3m
175	Ealing	10,711	988	9.2%	£2,634	£7.9m
176	Gateshead	6,489	597	9.2%	£1,576	£2.4m
177	Hartlepool	2,761	253	9.2%	£958	£557,381
178	Hertsmere	3,026	277	9.2%	£1,713	£1.5m
179	Lincoln	3,416	315	9.2%	£1,459	£1.1m
180	Nottingham	11,147	1,024	9.2%	£1,282	£3.9m
181	Swindon	5,308	490	9.2%	£2,016	£4.4m
182	Warwick	5,132	473	9.2%	£1,591	£2.6m
183	Babergh	3,391	307	9.1%	£1,110	£822,974
184	Boston	2,299	209	9.1%	£1,070	£714,329
185	East Cambridgeshire	2,394	217	9.1%	£1,253	£803,697
186	Newcastle upon Tyne	11,281	1,021	9.1%	£1,523	£4.7m
187	Reigate & Banstead	3,418	310	9.1%	£2,069	£1.6m
188	Sefton	7,512	685	9.1%	£1,224	£2.8m
189	Slough	3,308	300	9.1%	£4,112	£4.2m
190	Dacorum	4,026	363	9%	£1,951	£2.1m
191	Havering	5,714	515	9%	£2,037	£3.1m
192	Hillingdon	8,503	763	9%	£2,109	£7.5m
193	Kingston upon Thames	4,343	393	9%	£2,741	£2.5m
194	Mid Devon	3,273	293	9%	£1,071	£547,104
195	Hackney	12,123	1,074	8.9%	£2,296	£6.2m
196	Kings Lynn & West Norfolk	6,128	543	8.9%	£1,354	£1.5m
197	Peterborough	5,962	533	8.9%	£1,315	£3.7m
198	Redcar and Cleveland	4,134	368	8.9%	£744	£789,440
199	Teignbridge	5,188	461	8.9%	£1,062	£1.0m
200	Doncaster	9,195	807	8.8%	£1,080	£2.4m
201	East Riding of Yorkshire	11,053	974	8.8%	£1,196	£3.4m
202	Manchester	26,281	2,302	8.8%	£1,782	£15.3m
203	Merton	5,141	451	8.8%	£3,137	£3.5m
204	Burnley	5,248	457	8.7%	£894	£866,659
205	Durham County	14,622	1,268	8.7%	£1,144	£4.9m
206	Halton	3,577	310	8.7%	£1,470	£2.0m
207	North Yorkshire	30,709	2,679	8.7%	£933	£7.5m
208	Southampton City	6,370	556	8.7%	£1,810	£2.6m
209	Bexley	5,099	438	8.6%	£2,163	£2.5m
210	Elmbridge	3,580	307	8.6%	£1,874	£1.8m
211	Enfield	6,875	589	8.6%	£2,286	£3.6m
212	North East Derbyshire	2,707	233	8.6%	£796	£437,899
213	South Hams	6,215	535	8.6%	£984	£697,707
214	Bracknell Forest	2,388	204	8.5%	£3,717	£2.0m
215	Reading	5,346	455	8.5%	£2,634	£4.1m
216	Shepway	3,987	340	8.5%	£947	£632,921
217	Solihull	4,957	421	8.5%	£1,499	£1.7m
218	Stockton-on-Tees	5,515	468	8.5%	£1,406	£2.3m
219	Surrey Heath	2,765	236	8.5%	£1,642	£1.2m
220	Birmingham	45,388	3,810	8.4%	£1,401	£17.0m
221	Brighton & Hove	11,156	941	8.4%	£1,435	£3.8m
222	Broxbourne	2,202	184	8.4%	£3,816	£1.3m
223	Cambridge	4,073	341	8.4%	£3,638	£4.3m
224	Southwark	12,246	1,031	8.4%	£3,705	£9.8m
225	Spelthorne	2,267	190	8.4%	£2,304	£1.5m
226	St Albans	3,664	306	8.4%	£2,355	£1.6m
227	Three Rivers	1,912	161	8.4%	£3,274	£755,941
228	Westminster	34,363	2,873	8.4%	£8,683	£89.7m
229	Camden	17,727	1,480	8.3%	£5,679	£38.9m
230	Colchester	5,886	487	8.3%	£1,549	£2.0m
231	Derbyshire Dales	4,307	359	8.3%	£747	£502,371
232	Isle of Wight	7,342	613	8.3%	£885	£906,451
233	Northumberland	13,222	1,099	8.3%	£926	£2.4m
234	Westmorland and Furness	14,020	1,165	8.3%	£907	£2.2m
235	Bromley	7,083	579	8.2%	£2,342	£2.9m
236	Canterbury	6,231	509	8.2%	£1,391	£1.7m
237	Richmond upon Thames	5,364	438	8.2%	£2,143	£2.3m
238	Castle Point	1,982	161	8.1%	£1,318	£380,824
239	South Staffordshire	2,587	210	8.1%	£1,087	£1.1m
240	Brent	8,943	712	8%	£2,385	£5.1m
241	Harrow	5,420	435	8%	£1,271	£1.3m
242	Thanet	5,445	435	8%	£1,173	£1.2m
243	Hounslow	7,461	593	7.9%	£2,848	£5.2m
244	Rushmoor	2,516	200	7.9%	£1,811	£1.8m
245	Torbay	5,286	415	7.9%	£908	£932,000
246	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	15,600	1,214	7.8%	£1,294	£6.1m
247	Havant	3,045	236	7.8%	£2,146	£1.4m
248	Liverpool	18,673	1,456	7.8%	£1,271	£5.2m
249	Sutton	3,717	286	7.7%	£2,541	£2.6m
250	Wandsworth	8,109	627	7.7%	£2,442	£5.6m
251	Kensington & Chelsea	8,538	648	7.6%	£3,635	£7.4m
252	Portsmouth City	6,489	490	7.6%	£1,985	£2.2m
253	Sunderland	7,817	592	7.6%	£1,098	£2.6m
254	Woking	2,701	204	7.6%	£2,341	£979,856
255	Cotswold	5,281	397	7.5%	£1,476	£1.1m
256	Dartford	3,301	248	7.5%	£2,617	£1.7m
257	East Lindsey	6,547	488	7.5%	£878	£808,589
258	Newcastle under Lyme	3,329	251	7.5%	£1,413	£1.1m
259	Barnet	7,818	576	7.4%	£1,435	£2.5m
260	Cornwall	34,434	2,542	7.4%	£891	£5.4m
261	Greenwich	5,863	431	7.4%	£1,817	£2.1m
262	Lambeth	8,679	644	7.4%	£2,657	£5.3m
263	Rossendale	2,650	197	7.4%	£1,060	£312,006
264	Arun	4,601	338	7.3%	£1,118	£896,658
265	Barnsley	8,571	628	7.3%	£1,018	£2.0m
266	City of York	6,660	486	7.3%	£1,507	£2.0m
267	Great Yarmouth	4,781	347	7.3%	£876	£733,310
268	Middlesbrough	4,411	323	7.3%	£1,254	£856,485
269	North Tyneside	6,111	438	7.2%	£1,142	£1.6m
270	Oxford	4,188	301	7.2%	£2,178	£1.9m
271	Rother	4,304	309	7.2%	£886	£527,325
272	Tower Hamlets	17,408	1,261	7.2%	£1,843	£21.1m
273	North Norfolk	7,555	535	7.1%	£713	£571,732
274	Torridge	3,562	246	6.9%	£738	£259,359
275	Waltham Forest	6,718	461	6.9%	£1,519	£2.3m
276	Eastbourne	3,000	205	6.8%	£1,322	£629,570
277	Redbridge	6,513	445	6.8%	£1,002	£1.1m
278	Blackpool	6,310	421	6.7%	£1,033	£1.2m
279	North Devon	6,002	403	6.7%	£909	£852,374
280	Watford	2,834	191	6.7%	£4,126	£1.7m
281	Haringey	7,088	469	6.6%	£1,507	£2.4m
282	Tendring	8,256	549	6.6%	£880	£790,384
283	Adur	2,198	140	6.4%	£1,782	£606,658
284	Luton	5,354	344	6.4%	£1,805	£2.3m
285	Croydon	7,857	494	6.3%	£2,647	£4.3m
286	Newham	7,702	485	6.3%	£2,118	£3.0m
287	South Tyneside	3,590	227	6.3%	£1,203	£850,550
288	West Devon	2,228	141	6.3%	£792	£139,581
289	Worthing	3,172	200	6.3%	£1,104	£552,734
290	Lewisham	5,985	374	6.2%	£1,722	£1.8m
291	Epsom & Ewell	1,659	102	6.1%	£1,978	£439,008
292	Hammersmith & Fulham	9,113	552	6.1%	£3,421	£4.6m
293	Stevenage	2,118	112	5.3%	£2,302	£1.1m
294	Barking & Dagenham	4,366	227	5.2%	£1,342	£986,688
295	Cheshire East	14,614	634	4.3%	£1,326	£2.4m
296	Isles of Scilly	501	10	2%	£468	£5,327

18 September 2026 · Source: VOA / businessratechecker.com

How this is worked out

Every rateable property in England

1,894,057 properties from the VOA 2026 Rating List (England), refreshed several times a week.

Compared on a rate per square metre

Each property is measured against genuine comparables — same use class, same valuation scheme, nearby — rather than on its headline rateable value.

Flagged where it sits above its peers

Properties meaningfully above the comparable median are flagged as overpaying. The reclaim figure is what a successful alignment to that median would be worth in a year.

Aggregated to the billing authority

Authority totals are the sum of their flagged properties. The claim figure quoted is the median, not the mean — a handful of very large properties would otherwise distort it.

What this is not

Not a valuation. A flag means the published evidence merits a closer look, not that a property is definitely over-assessed.
Not a guarantee. Challenges fail, and a rateable value can rise on review as well as fall.
Not endorsed by the VOA or HMRC. We use published rating-list data under licence; they do not verify this analysis.
England only. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run separate rating systems.
Pubs and most hospitality venues are excluded — they are valued on trade rather than floor area, so a per-square-metre comparison does not apply.

Using this data

Free to read and free to quote. Please cite businessratechecker.com and link to this page. The CSV carries every authority with the same columns as the table above, and the figures are as at 18 September 2026 against the VOA 2026 Rating List (England).

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