Business rates

If you miss a payment or pay late, we will send you a reminder giving you seven days to pay. If you don't pay the reminder on time, you will be sent a cancellation notice. If you pay at reminder stage, then fall behind again, you will be sent a cancellation notice.

A cancellation notice means that you have lost the right to pay your business rates in instalments and you will have to pay the full outstanding balance within seven days.

If you cannot pay the balance in full, please contact our Customer Services department immediately.

If you fail to pay a cancellation notice, we will issue a summons notice for you to appear in the Magistrates Court. This means you will have to pay any summons costs incurred.

If you don't pay the summons balance in full, the Magistrates Court will issue a Liability Order against you. We will then be able take further recovery action which could involve the use of enforcement agents (we use Rundles (opens new window), Rossendales bailiffs (opens new window) and Jacobs (opens new window)), a bankruptcy order or even imprisonment to recover the money. If you contact us after you have been summonsed, we may be able to come to an arrangement with you.