Legal question re CV19 grants to small businesses
Discussion
There's a chap in Cornwall whose wife opened a small coffee shop in Feb 2018. The premises are leased by her in her name. She's never received a rates demand and has therefore not applied for Small Business Rates Relief which she would certainly have qualified for.
They've applied for the £10K grant but been refused by Cornwall County Council for the quoted reason-
...If a business is not registered for business rates, they will not get funding through the Central Government COVID19 Business Rate grant schemes. Any changes made to the rating list (rateable value or to the hereditament) after this date, will mean that these ratepayers will not be eligible for this funding. Also authorities are not required to adjust, pay or recover grants where the ratings list is subsequently amended retrospectively to 11 March 2020.
As it stands, based on the address information you have provided I am unable to locate any records to confirm that (our business name here) were registered for business rates as at 11 March 2020 therefore they are not eligible for a grant. Should Mr X be able to provide information in relation to the previous account holder which he mentions in his email we could investigate this further for him...
The rules are set out here
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/governmen...
Extract of what seems to be the relevant section-
Who is eligible for these schemes?
Small Business Grant Fund Eligibility
11. Businesses with a property that on the 11 March 2020 were eligible for Small Business
Rate Relief (SBRR) Scheme (including those with a Rateable Value between £12,000
and £15,000 which receive tapered relief).
12. Businesses which on 11 March 2020 were eligible for relief under the Rural Rate Relief
Scheme are also eligible for this scheme.
13. Eligible recipients will receive one grant per property.
It seems to me that the business was eligible for SBRR on the 11th March because it was liable for rates on that date. The fact that the business hadn't been asked for those rates surely doesn't mean that it wasn't liable?
A closely linked question would be whose responsibility is to inform the authorities that a business is occupying rateable premises? Landlord? Tenant? somebody else?
They've applied for the £10K grant but been refused by Cornwall County Council for the quoted reason-
...If a business is not registered for business rates, they will not get funding through the Central Government COVID19 Business Rate grant schemes. Any changes made to the rating list (rateable value or to the hereditament) after this date, will mean that these ratepayers will not be eligible for this funding. Also authorities are not required to adjust, pay or recover grants where the ratings list is subsequently amended retrospectively to 11 March 2020.
As it stands, based on the address information you have provided I am unable to locate any records to confirm that (our business name here) were registered for business rates as at 11 March 2020 therefore they are not eligible for a grant. Should Mr X be able to provide information in relation to the previous account holder which he mentions in his email we could investigate this further for him...
The rules are set out here
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/governmen...
Extract of what seems to be the relevant section-
Who is eligible for these schemes?
Small Business Grant Fund Eligibility
11. Businesses with a property that on the 11 March 2020 were eligible for Small Business
Rate Relief (SBRR) Scheme (including those with a Rateable Value between £12,000
and £15,000 which receive tapered relief).
12. Businesses which on 11 March 2020 were eligible for relief under the Rural Rate Relief
Scheme are also eligible for this scheme.
13. Eligible recipients will receive one grant per property.
It seems to me that the business was eligible for SBRR on the 11th March because it was liable for rates on that date. The fact that the business hadn't been asked for those rates surely doesn't mean that it wasn't liable?
A closely linked question would be whose responsibility is to inform the authorities that a business is occupying rateable premises? Landlord? Tenant? somebody else?
There is no obligation on a business to notify a Council they are in occupation. It is up to the Council to find them. See Encon Insulation v Nottingham City Council and subsequently North Somerset Council v Honda.
There is a danger that the money in this case has gone to whoever is the registered ratepayer, but the occupier needs to prove they are or should be the ratepayer
There is a danger that the money in this case has gone to whoever is the registered ratepayer, but the occupier needs to prove they are or should be the ratepayer
Ian Geary said:
Though I take it that up to the point that small businesses could get free cash, they weren't overly concerned that the Council hadn't "found" them for the purposes of nndr liability...
What goes around comes around etc.
Not really, as there wouldn't have been any rates to pay anyway.What goes around comes around etc.
Hi all,
I have just found this thread, and wanted to say I was thankful for Singlecoil for starting this and asking the questions. I am very much appreciative of this and for your replies as it was myself who asked the question initially on behalf of my better half.
We are still battling with the council - it wasn't that we didnt want to inform them of the need to pay rates, we simply didn't realise we needed to...unless you "know" how do you "know"?! Theres no checklist when starting a business that says don't forget to give the council a call specifically about rates and in fact I do remember a passing conversation about them to our landlord who I recall saying you dont have to pay those anyway....but I should have thought about this in detail and contacted the council on the off chance I needed to do something.
As mentioned on the other thread, we've been in communication with Cornwall council over loads of things - alcohol licences, event licences, waste management, Health and safety inspections....and all they say is "different department mate". you'd have thought the databases could have been linked!
I have just found this thread, and wanted to say I was thankful for Singlecoil for starting this and asking the questions. I am very much appreciative of this and for your replies as it was myself who asked the question initially on behalf of my better half.
We are still battling with the council - it wasn't that we didnt want to inform them of the need to pay rates, we simply didn't realise we needed to...unless you "know" how do you "know"?! Theres no checklist when starting a business that says don't forget to give the council a call specifically about rates and in fact I do remember a passing conversation about them to our landlord who I recall saying you dont have to pay those anyway....but I should have thought about this in detail and contacted the council on the off chance I needed to do something.
As mentioned on the other thread, we've been in communication with Cornwall council over loads of things - alcohol licences, event licences, waste management, Health and safety inspections....and all they say is "different department mate". you'd have thought the databases could have been linked!
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