Colliers International has reacted angrily to news that the Valuation Office Agency is applying to the Supreme Court for permission to appeal its recent defeat over the rating of ATM sites, branding it “a kick in the teeth for retail” in the weeks before Christmas. The move could delay hundreds of millions of pounds in rates refunds said to be at stake.
Last month, supermarket chains including Tesco and Sainsbury’s won their legal battle at the Court of Appeal over how cash machines in their stores are rated. The Court of Appeal ruled that ATMs located both inside and outside of stores should not be assessed for additional business rates.
But now the VOA is seeking to take the issue to the country’s highest court, which global real estate adviser Colliers has described as a “petulant action” that could – if the Supreme Court grants permission – result in a further two-year delay before the resolution of the case.
High stakes
Colliers estimated that around £500m was at stake, and said that, had the decision gone the other way, many retailers may have reacted by ripping the ATMs out of their stores, which would be bad news for customers. It said, had the VOA been successful in this case, it could have opened up the possibility of 430,000 vending machine sites also attracting separate business rates.
John Webber, the firm’s head of business rates, said: “Not only is this an enormous waste of taxpayers’ money, but it will snatch away from hard-pressed retailers the much-needed refunds they have been waiting for.
“It beggars belief that not only is the VOA continuing to flog this dead horse, but illustrates how out of touch it and the government are when retailers are closing shops daily and jobs are being lost. Yet they continue to play fast and loose with public finances.”
“If anyone needed evidence that the government isn’t listening to retail concerns, this action illustrates it.”
He added: “What we really need is for the VOA to get back in its box and, instead of chasing the supermarkets, get on with dealing with the outstanding appeals that have snarled up the system since the start of this case. We estimate that there are approximately 50,000 cases in the system concerned with the ATM business rates issue that have not been dealt with and now we will only see further delays.”
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