<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Chapter 1>1
<2INTRODUCTION>2
<2General meaning of Rate and Rateable Value>2
1.1 A rate is a tax, and its distinguishing feature lies in the
approach of the rating authority to the problem of raising revenue.
With taxation by rates the amount of revenue required is first
decided and this total liability is then distributed among the
taxpayers--or ratepayers as they are called--according to some
definite standard. On the other hand, when any other kind of tax is
levied the total revenue is the sum of the individual payments and
this amount cannot be known precisely at the time when the tax is
imposed. Modern methods of estimating the yield of taxes are such
that the certainty of the amount produced is no longer a special
advantage of rates, but when the machinery of assessment and
collection was crude this characteristic made rates a favourite form
of tax, particularly for local purposes.
1.2 At the present time various kinds of rates are levied, for
example, general, water and land drainage rates, but this book is
only concerned with the general rate imposed by local authorities
in England and Wales. This is easily the most important rate and is
popularly--if somewhat inaccurately--referred to as "the rates".
1.3 The basis of assessment of the general rate is the rateable
value of land and buildings. With some exceptions, each property
in a rating area has a rateable value which is derived from its yearly
letting value. The amount of the rate is found by dividing the sum
to be raised by the aggregate rateable value of the area, the rate
being expressed in pence per pound of rateable value. For
example, if #7,500,000 is the amount required by a rating authority
and the total rateable value of its area is #10,000,000 then a rate of
75p in the pound would be levied to raise the necessary revenue.
Thus, if a shop has a rateable value of #1,400, the occupier, who is
generally liable for rates, will have to pay #1,050. (Rateable Value
#1,400 x Rates in the Pound 75p = Rates Payable #1,050.)
1.4 Subsequent chapters are devoted to questions of liability,
exemptions, assessment of rateable value and administration, but
before proceeding further it is desirable to look briefly at some
historical aspects of rating. Rates have very ancient origins, and
the present system will probably be more easily understood if
--something is known of what has happened previously.
1
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<2Historical Background>2<s1>s
<1(a) Assessment>1
1.5 The easiest form of tax to assess is the poll tax. With this tax
everybody pays the same amount. The disadvantage of the tax is
that the total amount which can be raised from a community is
limited by the sum which the poorest members of the community
can afford to pay. With a poll tax some members of the community
will be paying the maximum that they can afford, whilst others
could pay more. In order to raise larger sums of money, it is
necessary to adopt a method of taxation which takes into account a
person's ability to pay. Such a system is rating.
1.6 The simplicity of rating together with the certainty of yield
make a rate particularly suitable for societies in which there is no
machinery for collecting a more elaborate tax. Thus, rates were
being levied at least seven hundred years ago, and although the
earliest on record--raised to maintain a sea-wall--required pay-
ment by labour service instead of cash, it was not long before rates
were collected in money.
1.7 from the beginning a ratepayer's land seems to have been
used to determine the amount of his contribution. Liability for the
earliest rates was often measured merely by area, but by the
fourteenth century a more complex basis of assessment was in use
which in practice led to an assessment on the value of land. It was
then generally accepted that rates should be levied according to
the ability or substance (capital) of the ratepayer, and since there
were virtually no large incomes which were not derived from a
stock of capital, ability and substance really meant the same thing.
At this time land was the principal form of holding wealth, so that
it became customary to use the value of property as a yardstick for
measuring ability or substance.
1.8 Once this practice was established, the impression gradually
formed that it was land which was rated and not persons. The
eventual result was a spirited resistance to any attempts to apply
the original principle. Landlords objected to assessments based on
their capital, on the grounds that rates on their property had
already been paid by tenants, and tradesmen and salaried workers
pleaded custom to deny liability for rates on stock-in-trade or
<s1>s In this section extensive use has been made of "The History of Local Rates in
England", E. Cannan; "The Problem of Valuation for Rating", J. R. & U. K.
Hicks, has also provided much useful information; page references to these works
have been omitted for the sake of simplicity.
2
<1Introduction>1
salaries. As the rating authorities could be tolerably certain of
collecting rates from the occupiers of land, they were no doubt
content in many cases to tax only those persons. The basis of
assessment thus came to be the value of the land occupied, without
much, if any, regard to ability or substance.
1.9 Occupation was, for example, held to be a conclusive test of
rateability in <1Jeffrey's Case,>1 1589. A rate was levied on the
parishioners of Hailsham, but Jeffrey lived elsewhere and claimed
that although he was in possession of land in Hailsham, he could
not be rated without a residential qualification. This contention
was rejected because his occupation of land in the parish was
regarded as sufficient in itself to make him a parishioner in law;
the place where he lived being regarded as irrelevant. The
judgment also made it clear that ownership without occupation
would not have made Jeffrey a parishioner nor therefore rateable.
1.10 The failure of ownership without occupation to give rise to
liability was confirmed in <1Sir Anthony Earby's Case,>1 1633, in
which it was held that if rates had already been levied on
occupiers, then their landlords could not be rated. Here is an
example of the courts' reluctance to confirm assessments made
strictly according to ability or substance, for on such a principle it
would not have been inconsistent to have levied rates on both
tenants and landlords in respect of the same land. Another issue
decided in this case was that under the Poor Relief Act, 1601, a
parish poor rate could be levied on property within that parish and
a ratepayer could not be assessed in respect of property occupied
outside the parish boundaries.
1. 11 But the Act of 1601--often known as the Statute of
Elizabeth--must be accorded more than a passing reference since
it is usually regarded as the foundation of the present rating
system. It differs from all previous legislation in this field in
providing for a local tax to be levied in <1every>1 parish in the country
at <1regular>1 intervals. The volume of rating which resulted and the
national application of the Act naturally produced a great store of
experience and a comprehensive code of law which made it easy to
create other rates on the same pattern. The general rate itself is
one of these.
1.12 The list of those liable for the poor rate was comprehen-
sive, being "every inhabitant, parson, vicar and other, and . . .
every occupier of land, houses, tithes, impropriate, or propriations
of tithes, coal mines or saleable underwoods in the . . . parish";
but no basis of assessment was laid down and the Act would have
covered many kinds of tax apart from a rate. In fact, the local
3
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
citizens who were appointed to rise the revenue generally did so
by means of a rate levied on the ccupiers of land according to its
value. This is not surprising in view of the long-established practice
of raising money for local purposes in this way, and the lack of
specific directions may perhaps be taken as an indication that the
possibility of any other form of tax never occurred to those
responsible for the Act.
1.13 Although the poor rate was widely assessed on the occupa-
tion of land, the desire to rate according to ability or substance had
<2not>2 completely disappeared. In Boston, for example, attempts had
been made to rate Sir Anthony Earby on his property outside the
parish as well as on rents from lands on the value of which the
occupiers had already been rated. Again, a judgment at the end of
the seventeenth century declared that there ought to be regard to
ability or substance. This principle coupled with the word "inhabi-
tant" in the Statute of Elizabeth was responsible for the occasional
practice of rating such things as stock-in-trade, wages and salaries.
The difficulties of assessment were considerable and finally, in
1840, the poor rate really came to be a rate on the occupiers<s2>s of the
land by virtue of the Poor Rate Exemption Act. This Act made it
illegal for any inhabitant to be taxed for the relief of the poor in
respect of stock-in-trade or other property, but the liability of
occupiers was specifically not affected.
1.14 four years previously a definite basis of assessment had
been prescribed by the Parochial Assessment Act, 1836, thus
making good the omission in the Statute of Elizabeth. It was
provided that a poor rate was valid only if it were made on an
estimate of the net annual value of the property rated. Net annual
value meant "the rent at which (the property) might reasonably be
expected to let from year to year, free from all usual tenant's rates
and taxes, and tithe commutation rent-charge, if any, and deduct-
ing therefrom the probable average annual cost of the repairs,
insurance and other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain (it) in
a state to command such rent".
1.15 Attention is drawn to the adoption of the expected rent
from year to year rather than rent actually paid, and the deduction
of the probable annual average cost of the repairs, insurance and
other expenses instead of those actually incurred. These features
have been preserved in substantially the same form, and clearly
make for more uniform assessments between one property and
<s2>s This is subject to qualification, since today there are a few occasions when the
owner is rateable, and not the occupier.
4
<1Introduction>1
another than would be the case if the assessment were calculated
directly from the rent paid.
1.16 The desire to achieve uniformity of assessment both be-
tween one property and another in the same rating area, and
between one area and another is a rating problem which persisted
throughout the nineteeth century and has not yet been completely
solved. Uniformity within a rating area is important in order that
the burden of the rate shall be fairly spread. It is important also
between one area and another when rateable values are part of the
formula on which central government grants to local authorities,
are calculated.
1.17 Although the Parochial Assessment Act, 1836, ensured
that there was a common basis of assessment, many obstacles to
uniformity remained. For example, there was no obligation to
make new valuations which, if values were not reasonably stable,
produced wide variations in the assessment of properties that were
similar in all respects except as to the year in which they happened
to be valued. The deduction for "probable average annual cost of
repairs, etc", was capable of widely different interpretations and
there was no definite method for a ratepayer to discover at what
figure his neighbour's property was assessed.
1. 18 The Union Assessment Committee Acts, 1862--1864, made
some improvement by establishing assessment committees
charged with supervising valuations within a union of parishes.
Valuation lists also had to be prepared for each parish, containing
the name of the owner and occupier, the address of the property,
its area and its "gross estimated rental" and "rateable value".
Gross estimated rental for this purpose was "the rent at which the
hereditament might reasonably be expected to let from year to
year free of all usual tenant's rates and taxes and tithe commuta-
tion rent-charge, if any".
1.19 The assessment committees had a discretionary power to
require a new valuation list to be made from time to time, and
could also appoint a person to prepare a valuation list of all or
certain of the rateable hereditaments within a union of parishes.
Ratepayers were given the right to inspect these lists.
1.20 These measures were steps in the right direction, but apart
from a series of unsuccessful attempts by various reformers
nothing more was done until the Rating and Valuation Act 1925.
The two major criticisms of rating assessments at the time of this
Act were the differences in the deductions allowed from gross
estimated rental, for repairs and the frequency of revaluation
between one area and another. The former defect Was remedied
5
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
by laying down a scale of deductions related to the value of the
hereditament and the latter by providing for universal quinquen-
nial valuations.<s3>s
1.21 Furthermore, a county valuation committee was appointed
for every county with the object of securing greater uniformity
within that area, and a central advisory committee was appointed
for the whole of England and Wales whose principal function was
to promote uniformity of valuation practice throughout the coun-
try. The basis of assessment also received attention and in its
revised form was similar to that provided for London by the
Valuation (Metropolis) Act, 1869. The ideas of a scale of deduc-
tions for repairs and quinquennial valuations were borrowed from
this Act as well.
1.22 But in spite of these changes certain features of the system
remained which were something of an obstacle to uniformity of
assessment as between one area and another. The rating author-
ities were still responsible for making the valuations on which the
assessments were made, and although the Act of 1925 substantially
reduced their numbers more than 1,700 were left in being. Even if
all of them had been completely disinterested, fairly wide varia-
tions in the level of assessments would have been inevitable, but in
fact some authorities were disposed to regard rating valuations as
an instrument of policy for a variety of purposes; this was a serious
impediment to uniformity.
1.23 The Local Government Act, 1948, sought to improve this
situation by transferring the function of valuation from rating
authorities to the Inland Revenue.<s4>s This step made the county
valuation and central advisory committees largely redundant and
they were consequently disbanded.
1.24 Since the responsibility for rating valuation is now concen-
trated in far fewer hands and the persons concerned are all part of
the same department, the change should bring about an improve-
ment and indeed this had been proved to be so.
1.25 Following the 1963 revaluation it became apparent that
rates bore more heavily on people with low incomes than on the
rest of the community. With a view to remedying this, the Local
Government Act 1966 introduced a "rate rebate" scheme for
residential occupiers of limited means. The Local Government
Act 1974 extended this scheme.
<s3>s For the history of revaluations see paragraphs 1.45a-c see also 14.2 and 14.32.
<s4>s The centralisation of valuation had been recommended as long ago as 1913 by the
Kempe Committee, which is an indication of the speed of rating reform.
6
<1Introduction>1
1.26 Rating was established, by early court decisions, as an
occupier's tax and so it followed that when a property was
unoccupied, rates could not be charged. This basic principle was
upset by the Local Government Act 1966 which gave rating authori-
ties a discretionary power to charge half rates on unoccupied
buildings.<s5>s Because a vacant property has no occupier, the owner
is made liable for the rates.
1.27 It may be argued, that to charge rates on <1unoccupied>1
buildings is justified, because vacant buildings enjoy the provision
of some of the services which are paid for out of the rates. For
example police protection, fire services, provision of roads and
sewers.
1.28 The 1974 Local Government Act made the owner of
<1unused>1 "commercial buildings" liable for a "progressive rating
surcharge". The surcharge is 100% of the normal rates in the first
year, 200% in the second year, 300% in the third year and so on
indefinitely. This surcharge was described by the Government
which introduced it as "penal" and it would seem to have more to
do with achieving the Government's aim of seeing that commercial
buildings do not remain empty, than it has to do with raising local
revenue.<s5-1>s
1.29 Rating has thus become an instrument for achieving Gov-
ernment policy as well as a method of raising money for Local
Government.
<1(b) Administration>1
1.30 It has already been stated that the Statute of Elizabeth is
often regarded as the foundation of the modern rating system, and
while this generalisation requires considerable qualification if
applied to the basis of assessment, it is well-founded so far as
administration is concerned. By rating administration is meant the
power to make valuations and assessments, to collect the rate, and
for convenience, the ratepayer's right of appeal is also considered
under this head.
1.31 Prior to 1601, it would have been impossible to point to
any local rate which was regularly and universally levied in every
part of the country; administration was, therefore, on a purely
<s5>s The Local Government Act 1974 gave rating authorities power to charge up to
full rates on unoccupied buildings but see General Rate Act 1967 schedule 1
paragraph 1 (2C).
<s5-1>s The rating surcharge has now been suspended by Local Government, Planning
and Land Act 1980 section 41 and the Rating Surcharge (Suspension) Order 1980
No. 2015.
7
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
local basis and depended on the nature of the rate. But whereas
the Act of 1601 was extremely vague about the basis of assessment
and even the kind of tax which was to be levied, it was much more
precise concerning collection and appeals. Since it provided for a
regular local tax on a national basis, the history of administration
starts at this point.
1.32 The object of the Act was to provide for the relief of the
poor in every parish, and to this end the Churchwardens, together
with two to four substantial householders of the parish (nominated
by the J.P.s), were appointed as "overseers of the poor".
The overseers were charged with administering relief and in
particular <1"for setting to work the children of all such whose parents>1
<1shall not by the said church-wardens and overseers,>1 . . . . . <1be>1
<1thought able to keep and maintain their children,- and also for>1
<1setting to work all such persons, married or unmarried, having no>1
<1means to maintain them, and use no ordinary and daily trade of life>1
<1to get their living by: and also to raise weekly or otherwise (by>1
<1taxation of every inhabitant, parson, vicar and other, and of every>1
<1occupier of lands, houses tithes impropriate, propriations of tithes,>1
<1coal-mines, or saleable underwoods in the said parish, in such>1
<1competent sum and sums of money as they shall think fit) a>1
<1convenient stock of flax, hemp, wool, thread, iron and other>1
<1necessary ware and stuff, to set the poor on work.- and also>1
<1competent sums of money for and to wards the necessary relief of the>1
<1lame, impotent, old, blind, and such other among them, being poor>1
<1and not able to work, and also for the putting out ofsuch children to>1
<1be apprentices, to be gathered out of the same parish, according to>1
<1the ability of the same parish, and to do and execute all other things,>1
<1as well for the disposing of the said stock as otherwise concerning>1
<1the premisses, as to them shall seem convenient".>1<s6>s
1.32a The method of assessing this tax has already been discus-
sed, and the points to be made here are that the parish became the
unit of rating administration and that the oveseers were given
power not only to make the assessments but to collect the rate and
to spend it. These three functions remained undivided for many
years.
1.33 The ratepayer's remedy when aggrieved by an act of the
overseers was to appeal to quarter sessions.
1.34 Although the parish was a convenient unit of administra-
tion in Elizabethan England, it was an obstacle to efficiency after
the rapid increase and migrations of population which took place
<s6>s Section 1, Poor Relief Act 1601.
8
<1Introduction>1
some two hundred years later. By the end of the eighteenth
century a few tentative attempts had been made to increase the
size of the unit by permitting unions of parishes, but nothing
substantial was done until the Poor Law Act, 1834. This Act
divided the country into unions of parishes and placed the control
of poor relief in each union into the hands of boards of "guardians
of the poor".
1.35 These boards and the overseers within the parishes con-
tinued to have jurisdiction over poor relief and the making of
rating assessments for nearly half a century, the only relevant
change to the system being the appointment of "assessment
committees" from the boards under the Union Assessment Com-
mittee Acts, 1862--64. Apart from their other work, these commit-
tees had appellate functions in that no appeal could be brought
against a rate made in conformity with the valuation list unless an
objection to such list had first been made to the assessment
committee.
1.36 In the meantime, the range of local government activity
was widening and the increased expenditure had to be financed
out of rates. Although many of these rates, such as the general
district rate of the Public Health Act, 1875, were levied on the
basis of the poor rate, they were collected by different authorities
in areas which were seldom the same for each rate. The result has
been described as "a chaos of areas, a chaos of authorities, and a
chaos of rates".
1.37 Some improvement was effected by the Local Government
Acts of 1888 and 1894 in that thereafter there was only the poor
law administration on the one hand and the council system,
comprising the administrative counties, the county and non-county
boroughs, and the urban and rural district councils, on the other.
Even so, duties still overlapped, the boundaries of rating areas did
not coincide, the unions of parishes had in turn become inconve-
niently small units of administration, and in many areas there was
not yet a single consolidated rate levied for all purposes.
1.38 This dual system was brought to an end in the nineteen-
twenties. The Rating and Valuation Act, 1925 transferred the
rating powers of the overseers to the county boroughs, non-county
boroughs and the urban and rural district councils; in so doing it
reduced the number of rating authorities from over 15,000 to less
than 1,800. The rating area was also changed from the parish to
the district of the council levying the rate.
1.39 The Act made some changes to the procedure for objec-
tions and appeals against the valuation lists. New "assessment
9
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
committees" were appointed in place of those of the guardians of
the poor, and the new assessment areas usually included more
than one rating area. Appeals against the valuation list were to be
made in the first instance to the assessment committee, from which
an appeal lay to quarter sessions, and then, on point of law only, to
the High Court.
1.40 The separate poor law system survived for four more
years. In 1929, the Local Government Act abolished the boards of
guardians and transferred the administration of poor relief to
administrative county and county borough councils. The only
feature of the administrative machinery of the 1601 Act which then
remained was the hearing of rating appeals by quarter sessions.
This last link was severed by the Local Government Act, 1948.
1.41 By this Act the assessment committees were swept away
and objections to the valuation list are now first considered by the
valuation officer. Appeals then lie to the local valuation court and
thence to the Lands Tribunal. The findings of the Lands Tribunal
on fact are final, but appeals may be made on points of law to the
Court of Appeal and, if leave is granted, to the House of Lords.
1.42 This new procedure is a manifestation of the view that
rating law and valuations are now so complex that the hearing of
rating appeals is really a specialised function. In place of asessment
committees with numbers that were frequently unwieldy, there is
the "local valuation court" which comprises only two or three
members. Then in place of quarter sessions, which had no special
competence to deal with technical problems of valuation and was
apt to pay scant attention to decisions of similar courts elsewhere,
there is the Lands Tribunal. The members of the Tribunal are
either barristers of surveyors who are able to bring particular
knowledge to bear on the cases before them, and it is apparent
that their decisions are much more consistent than those made by
the various courts of quarter session.
1.43 In addition to being able to appeal against entries in the
valuation list it is also possible to appeal against the rate.<s7>s For
example that the rate has not been made correctly or that it has not
been made in accordance with the valuation list. The appeal is to
the Crown Courts (previously Quarter Session) with a further
appeal to the High Court. It is important to note that it is not
possible to appeal to the Crown Court on any matter which can be
dealt with in the Local Valuation Court.<s9>s
<s7>s Section 7(1) General Rate Act 1967.
<s8>s Section 7(1) General Rate Act 1967 as amended by the Courts Act 1971.
<s9>s Section 7(2) General Rate Act 1967.
10
<1Introduction>1
<2Present Rating Organisation>2
<1(a) Valuation List and Valuation Officers>1
1.44 With certain exceptions (notably agricultural land and
buildings), all properties have to be entered in the valuation list for
the rating area in which they are situated. The purpose of the
valuation list is to show the value of each hereditament, the total
rateable value of a rating area (which the rating authority must
have in order to calculate the amount of the rate) and to provide
that authority with the information required for assessing each
ratepayer and collecting the sum due.
1.45a In order to preserve uniformity of assessment, between
one property and another and one area and another, it was
provided (by the Rating and Valuation Act 1925) that new
valuation lists were to be prepared every five years. This process
was referred to as the <2"quinquennial revaluation".>2
1.45b New valuation lists came into force in 1933/4, 1956, 1963
and 1973. The revaluation due to take effect in 1978 was post-
poned, more than once, and then abandoned.
1.45c As far as England and Wales are concerned the provision
requiring quinquennial revaluations has not been repealed. In
future new valuation lists will be prepared for each rating area
when ordered by the Secretary of State.<s9-1>s
1.46 Since February, 1950, and subject to rights of objection
and appeal, the preparation and amendment of each valuation list
has been in the hands of a "valuation officer" who is an official of
the Inland Revenue. The whole of England and Wales is divided
into districts with a valuation officer in charge of each but these
districts must not be confused with rating areas (see below). A
valuation officer is not necessarily appointed for each rating area.
One valuation officer may be responsible for several rating areas
or, on occasions, for only part of a rating area.
1.47 One intention underlying the transfer of valuation duties
to the valuation officer is that ratepayers may, in the first instance,
discuss the value of their hereditament informally with an impar-
tial officer in the same way that taxpayers discuss their income tax
assessments with inspectors of taxes. These informal discussions
reduce the number of formal hearings before the Local Valuation
Court and thereby save time.
<s9-1>s See General Rate Act 1967 section 68 as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act 1980 section 28. See also paragraphs 14.32 to 14.32g.
11
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1(b) Rates, Rating A uthorities, Rating Areas and Rating Districts>1
1.48 A <1"rate">1 is defined in section 115 of the General Rate Act,
1967, and means the "general rate".
A rate does not include:--
(a) any rate which is assessed under any commission of sewers
or in respect of any drainage, wall, embankment, or other
work for the benefit of the land;
<1(b)>1 any rate of the description commonly known as a church
rate, a tithe rate, or a rector's rate, or any other rate of a
similar character;
<1(c)>1 any rate which is leviable by the conservators of a common;
<1 (d)>1 any rate payable by consumers for a supply of water;
<1(e)>1 any rate of the description commonly known as a garden
rate or square rate, if levied by any persons other than a
rating authority.
(a) to (e) are referred to in the General Rate Act, 1967, as
<1"expected rates".>1
1.49 The <1"rating authorities",is10 outside Greater London, are>1
the metropolitan or non-metropolitan "district councils". The
rating authorities inside Greater London, are the London
Borough Councils. The Common Council of the City of London,
the Sub-Treasurer of the Inner Temple and the Under-Treasurer
of the Middle Temple are also rating authorities. The <1"rating area">1
is the area presided over by that council. Rating areas may be
subdivided into <1"rating districts"i>1<s1>s.
1.50 By section 1(2) <1"every rating authority shall have power in>1
<1accordance with this Act to make and levy rates on the basis of an>1
<1assessment in respect of the yearly value of property in their rating>1
<1area, for the purpose of applying the proceeds thereof to local>1
<1purposes of a public nature.">1
Several important points should be noted:--
1. Only "district"<s12>s councils have the right to make and collect
rates.
<s10>s Section 1(1) General Rate Act 1967 & Sections 1, 2, 20, 21 & 179 Local
Government Act 1972.
<s11>s Section 115 and para. 8(1)(b) Sched. 4 General Rate Act 1967 as amended by
Section 172 and para. 28(6) Sched. 13 Local Government Act 1972.
<s12>s District Councils which are within "metropolitan" county council areas, are
called "metropolitan districts". The powers and duties of these district councils are
slightly greater than those of non-metropolitan districts. This is so particularly in
relation to education, libraries, personal social services and youth employment.
Certain district councils are, with the perm1ssion of the Crown entitled to call
themselves Boroughs or Cities. This is purely a status symbol and does not give
them greater power than any other district council.
12
<1Introduction>1
2. The rate burden is shared amongst the various ratepayers
according to the rental value of their properties.
3. The income from rates to be spent on the provision of local
services.
1.51 County councils, the Greater London Council, parish
councils and parish meetings (in Wales community councils and
meetings)<s13>s also provide services but they have no power to make
or collect rates.
The way in which they obtain a share of the rate income is to
"precept" on the rating authority.
1.52 A precept is an order for the levying of a rate to raise the
sum demanded, and the rating authority must thereupon increase
the general rate by the necessary amount. For example, if a county
council issued a precept to a rating authority for #2,000,000 and a
penny rate in that rating area produced #400,000 then 5p would
have to be included in the general rate to satisfy this demand.
1.53 When a county council issues a precept for general county
purposes the rate levied to cover the precept must be the same
throughout the whole country. If the precept is to meet special
county expenditure, the rate must be uniform throughout that part
of the county which is charged.
1.54 When a parish council or parish meeting (in Wales a
community council or meeting) issue a precept, the general rule is
that the rate is levied only on that parish. However in the case of
expenses incurred by a "common" parish or community council
the rate may be charged on the parishes or communities within
that group.<s14>s
1.55 Some other public bodies have power to precept on rating
authorities. For example the Receiver for the Metropolitan Police
may precept on London Borough Councils. Quite apart from
precepts, rating authorities may collect water and sewerage
charges<s15>s on behalf of "water authorities".<s16>s
<s13>s In Wales there are no parish councils or parish meetings, instead there are
"community councils" and "community meeting", Section 27, Local Government
Act 1972.
<s14>s Sections 11, 29, 150, Local Government Act 1972.
<s15>s The Water Authorities (Collection of Charges) Orders S1 1978 No. 285 also see
<1Daymond v. Plymouth City Council & South West Water Authority>1, 1975 House of
Lord5 (payment of sewerage charge where the property was not connected to the
sewer).
<s16>s The Water Act 1973 established ten "water authorities" throughout England and
Wales. Their functions include the supply of water, conservation, sewerage and
sewage disposal (previously a function of district councils) fisheries, land drainage
13
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
1.56 Local authorities have three main sources of income:--
1. Rates.
2. Central Government Grants.
3. Miscellaneous (which includes rents, tolls, fees and interest).
1.57 The proportions vary from year to year but in very
approximate terms, one quarter of local government income stems
from rates whilst a half comes from central government grants and
another quarter from miscellaneous sources.<s1>s
1.58 Whilst rates and government grants are to all intents and
purposes net income, the miscellaneous income may have ex-
penses set against it. For example a local authority which owns a
lot of houses could receive a large rent income. However the
annual cost of providing and maintaining the houses may well
exceed the rents collected. In such a case, what would appear at
first sight to be a source of finance, is quite the opposite.
1.59 There is a strongly held view in some quarters that the
dependence of local authorities on government grants, gives
central government too much control over local government.
and recreation and amenity in connection with water. The charges for these
services are usually itemised as follows:
water-rate, general sewerage charge, environmental charge (none of which is a rate
within the meaning of section 115(1) General Rate Act 1967).
<s17>s Annual Abstract of Statistics H.M.S.O. and Local Government Financial
Statistics (England and Wales) H.M.S.O.
14
<1Chapter 2>1
<2RATEABLE OCCUPATION>2
<2Unit of Assessment>2
2.1 Although it is common practice to say that a property is
rated, it is, strictly speaking, incorrect to do so. In the words of
Lord Russell: "The occupier, not the land, is rateable; but the
occupier is rateable in respect of the land he occupies".<s1>s This
section is concerned with the land occupied, but preoccupation
with its limits and the problem of finding its value must never be
allowed to obscure the basic principle. The question which must be
answered is, "who is to be rateable and for what."
2.2 Before rates can be collected there must be:--
<11. a rateable hereditament;>1
<12. a rateable occupier,>1<s2>s <1or a rateable owner.>1<s3>s
If in any given case there is no rateable occupier/owner or no
rateable hereditament, then no rates are payable.
<2Rateable Hereditament>2
2.3 "Hereditament" is defined by section 115 of the General
Rate Act, 1967 and <1"means property which is or may become liable>1
<1to a rate, being a unit of such property which is, or wouldfall to be,>1
<1shown as a separate item in the valuation list".>1
2.4 Deciding what is or is not a hereditament may occasionally
give rise to difficulty. The one thing which is certain is that <1one>1
<1hereditament has one rating assessment.>1
2.5 Frequently, it is a simple matter to identify the
hereditament; for example, where a house and garden accommo-
dates a single family, the householder is clearly in occupation of
the property within the curtilage of the house and garden, and that
comprises the hereditament. But what is the hereditament when,
although there is a single occupier, the property is capable of
occupation in several parts? Is there then one person occupying
<s1>s <1Westminter Council v. The Southern Railway Co. Ltd.,>1 and others, 1936, see also
section 16 General Rate Act, 1967.
<s2>s See paragraph 2.31 onwards.
<s3>s See chapters 3 and I3.
15
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
one hereditament, or the same person occupying several? The
matter is of some consequence because the aggregate value is
unlikely to be the same in each case, but unfortunately the law on
the subject is meagre and at times confusing.
2.6 However, a few guiding principles emerge. It would seem
that as a general rule in order to be a single hereditament the
property must be:--
(i) within a single parish, rating area and rating district;
(ii) have a single rateable occupier;
(iii) be a single geographical unit;<s4>s
(iv) be put to a single use;
<1(v)>1 have a single definable position.
lf a particular piece of property fails on any of the above tests,
then it will not be a rateable hereditament.
<1(i) Within a Single Parish, Rating Area or Rating District>1
2.7 The Poor Relief Act, 1601, contained the words <1"in the said>1
<1parish">1 so that if a property is not within a parish the occupation of
it may not be rateable.<s5>s ("Parish", means a local government
parish.) The boundary of a parish extends to low-water mark on
these grounds, for example, the occupation of the part of a mine
under the sea or piers below low-water mark may escape liability.
But section 72 of the Local Government Act, 1972, requires any
"accretion" from the sea to be added to the parish adjoining it,
and in consequence if property is such an accretion, it will be
capable of rateable occupation. A wooden pier resting on iron
piles has been held not to be an accretion from the sea in this
sense.<s6>s It must also be remembered that land below the low-water
mark may have been included in the adjoining parish by a
Government order.
2.8 If a property, which would otherwise be a single heredita-
ment, is divided by a parish, a rating district or a rating authority
boundary, it becomes two separate hereditaments. lt is quite
possible to have a house divided by a rating authority boundary, so
that the house forms two separate hereditaments with two sepa-
rate assessments. The occupier of the house would pay rates to one
rating authority for one half of the house and to another rating
<s4>s For an exception to this general rule see paragraph 2.18.
<s5>s See section 1(2) General Rate Act 1967 for the current legislation.
<s6>s <1Blackpool Pier Co. v. Fylde,>1 1877.
16
<1Rateable Occupation>1
authority for the other half. Frequently the rates in the pound are
different for each half of the house.
2.8a Fortunately valuers are not called on to value half a house.
In the case where a property is divided by a local government
boundary, the valuer assesses the property as a whole and then
apportions the gross value (or where no gross value, the net annual
value) between the two halves.<s7>s
<1(ii) A Single Rateable Occupier>1
2.9 If a piece of land is occupied by one rateable occupier it will,
on the face of it, be one hereditament. But if that piece of land is
divided into two and each part is occupied by a separate rateable
occupier, then there will be two hereditaments.
2.10 The rule is that a single hereditament has a single rateable
occupier. For this purpose a firm or a partnership is counted as a
single rateable occupier.
2.11 At one time it was thought necessary for property to be
structurally severed before two hereditaments could be formed.
However, in the case of <1Allchurch v. Hendon Union,>1 1891, the
court made it clear that structural severance was not necessary to
the creation of separate hereditaments. As long as the different
pieces of property in different occupations can be clearly identi-
fied, then separate hereditaments can be formed.
2.12 Before two hereditaments can be formed it must be shown
that each hereditament is capable of separate occupation. If two
parts of a property are so bound together that they cannot be
separately let, then separate hereditaments cannot be formed.<s8>s
<1(iii) A Single Geographical Unit>1
2.13 The general rule is that to be a hereditament the property
must be a single geographical unit. This general rule is illustrated
in <1University of Glasgow v. Glasgow Assessor,>1 1952 (not binding
on English Courts). The case raised the problem of a number of
buildings scattered about the town but in the same occupation. In
addition the University occupied several buildings contained with-
in a ring fence, which for convenience of reference will be called
the University centre. The Court had to decide how many
hereditaments there were. The University centre was declared to
be a single hereditament, and each of the scattered buildings
outside the centre was also found to be a separate hereditament.
<s7>s <1R. v. West Middlesex Waterworks Co.,>1 1859, <1Eton College v. Lane (V.O.)>1 and
Eton Rural District Council, 1971.
<s8>s <1Gilbert (V.O.) v. Hickinbottom & Sons Ltd.,>1 1956, and <1Comely v. Jones,>1 1954.
17
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
2.14 The same question arises where a block of offices is let out
in suites. If Messrs. Snodgrass occupy the ground and first floors
then it is most probable that the two floors will be assessed as one
hereditament. Even if Messrs. Snodgrass cannot get from one
floor to the other<s9>s without using a staircase shared by other
tenants, nevertheless the two floors are <1"contiguous">1<s10>s (i.e.
touching) and so form one geographical unit and consequently one
hereditament. If Messrs, Snodgrass occupied the ground floor and
the fifth floor then, in all probability, the two floors would be
assessed as separate hereditaments because the two units are not
contiguous (but see footnote 10a).
2.15 In trying to decide whether or not a unit of occupation
forms a single hereditament, it may help to ask the question,
"Could I enclose the unit in a ring fence?"<s11>s If it is possible to
enclose the property by an imaginary fence, then the probability is
that the property will form a separate hereditament.
2.16 Two otherwise separate properties occupied by the same
person could be joined into one hereditament by connecting them
with a bridge over which the occupier had exclusive rights to pass,
or by means of a tunnel. Telephone wires or even pipes 24 inches
in diameter are not enough to connect two otherwise separate
hereditaments;<s12>s nor is a mere right of way over another's land or
over a private road.<s13>s
2.17 The ownership of land sometimes extends under the
highway and up to the centre of the road. This does not mean that
properties on opposite sides of a road are contiguous for rating
purposes. If however properties on opposite sides of a road have
cellars and these cellars run under the road so that they touch,
then it could be argued that the properties are contiguous.
2.18 An exception to the general rule that, to be a hereditament
the property must be a geographical unit, occurred in the leading
<s9>s <1Hudson Bay Co. v. Thompson (V.O.),>1 1957.
<s10>s In ordinary language the meaning of "contiguous" includes "adjoining", "neigh-
bouring" or "being in close proximity". For rating purposes contiguous means
"touching", <1Spiller's Ltd. v. Cardiff Revenue Officer,>1 1931.
<s10a>s Doubt has now been cast on this interpretation of the law, by the Lands
Tribunal's decision in <1British Railways Board v Hopkins (V.O.)>1 1981. The case
concerned an office building let out in parts. In its decision the Tribunal seemed to
imply that the Valuation Officer had a choice, as to whether to assess all the parts,
in the occupation of one person, as a single hereditament or as a number of
separate hereditaments, (regardless 0f whether or not the parts were contiguous).
<s11>s <1Goodwin (V.O.) and Waltham forest London Borough Council v. London>1
<1Electricity Board.>1 1975 but see <1Holdsworth v. Cocksedge (V.O.)>1 1977 and <1Pollard>1
<1(V.O.) v. Lambert (2)>1 1973 and <1Gilbert (V.O.) v. Hickinbottom & Sons Ltd.,>1 1955.
<s12>s <1Newbold (V.O.) v. Bibby & Baron Ltd.,>1 1959.
<s12>s <1Butterley Co. Ltd. v. Tasker (V.O.)>1, 1961.
18
<1Rateable Occupation>1
case of <1Gilbert (V.O.) v. Hickinbottom,>1 1955; when it was decided
that two properties in the same occupation but on opposite sides of
a public road were to be treated as one hereditament. One of the
properties was a mechanical bakery where bread was made by
machinery, whilst the buildings on the other side of the road
included a workshop which was used to keep the machinery in the
bakery running. If the workshop had been taken away the bakery
would not have been able to continue production. The workshop
was <1"functionally essential">1 to the bakery. It seems that the
principle applied in this case will only operate where the properties
are divided by a public road, not where they are divided by other
land.<s14>s
2. 19 Following <1Gilbert (V.O.) v. Hickinbottom,>1 a number of
cases were brought, in which it was claimed that various properties
on opposite sides of a road should be treated as one hereditament.
Many of these cases failed. For instance in the case of a canteen
one side of a road and a factory on the other, it was shown that
some of the employees brought packed lunches, others went home
to lunch and others went to local cafes.<s15>s If the canteen had
suddenly blown up, the factory would have continued to operate,
because what some of the employees did, others could do. The
same argument was applied in the case of a car park on one side of
the road and a factory on the other.<s16>s The car park was not
"functionally essential" to the factory, because all the employees
could come by public transport.
2.20 However, in the case of <1Stamp (V.O.) v. Birmingham>1
<1Roman Catholic Archdiocesan Trustees,>1 1974 the Lands Tribunal
decided that a church hall on one side of a road and its car park on
the opposite side, formed a single hereditament.
2.21 In the Birmingham case planning permission for the hall
was granted on the condition that car parking spaces would be
provided before the hall was occupied; that thereafter they would
be maintained to the satisfaction of the local planning authority
and would not be used for any purpose otherwise than for the
parking of vehicles attracted to the new building. In the event the
parking spaces were provided opposite the hall, on the other side
of the road. It was contended that the car park was functionally
essential to the hall because had the parking spaces not been
<s14>s For an exception to this see <1Hughes (V.O.) v. Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd.>1 ,
1958 but see also <1Edwards (V.O.) v. B.P. Refinery (Llandarcy) Ltd.,>1 1973.
<s15>s <1Dickinson & Co. v. Presland (V.O.)>1, 1958.
<s16>s <1Standen (V.O.) v. Glaxo Laboratories Ltd.,>1 1957.
19
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
provided the local planning authority would have served an
enforcement notice to stop the hall from being used.
2.22 In deciding that the hall and the car park were one
hereditament the Tribunal said that the planning permission was
not only relevant but "decisive" and that "the provision and use of
the appeal car park were . . . vital to the continued use of the new
hall, since without that provision and use and enforcement notice
could be expected and the new hall could not therefore be used at
all." This decision throws new light on the importance of planning
control in rating.
2.23 In the case of <1Edward (V.O.) v. B.P. Refinery (Llandarcy)>1
<1Ltd.,>1 1974 the Lands Tribunal was asked to give some guidance on
the general principles to be followed in assessing pipe lines either
as a separate hereditament or as included in the assessments of
other hereditaments. Although this is not an everyday problem the
guidance which the Tribunal gave is of general interest because it
was of the opinion that the law which applied in the case of pipe
lines was no different from that in general application. After
quoting from <1Gilbert v. Hickinbottom>1 and <1Butterley v. Tasker,>1 it
went on to say that "Consideration of these two cases leads us to
the conclusion that two separate properties which are not directly
and physically contiguous could not properly be regarded as a
single hereditament for rating purposes unless firstly, there is an
essential functional link between the two parts and secondly, that
there is also a substantial degree of <1propinquity.>1<s17>s One might
perhaps consider the analogy of a sparking plug where the gap
between the two parts is so small that it can physically be
transversed in the course of the functioning of the whole. It might
also be true to say that the stronger the spark the greater the gap
which can be transversed."
<1(iv) A Single Use>1
2.24 The general rule is that if part of a continuous area of
property in one occupation, is used for wholly different purposes
from the rest, and that part is capable of separate occupation, then
it will form a separate hereditament.
2.25 In the <1North-Eastern Railway Co. Ltd. v. York Union,>1
1900, the station engine sheds, carriage and workshops, and
various other buildings at York, as well as lines and sidings, were
<s17>s Propinquity is defined in the Concise Oxford Dictionary as: nearness in place;
close kinship; similarity.
20
<1Rateable Occupation>1
treated as one hereditament, and an attempt was made to turn
them into separate ones. It was laid down that the question of
whether there was one hereditament or several was one of fact,
and as the various parts were adapted for use by the railway
company (although capable of separate occupation) they did not,
with one exception, form separate hereditaments. The exception
was the hotel and refreshment rooms, and it will be noted that
these were used for a wholly different purpose from the rest of the
property.
2.26 A more recent case which illustrates the same principle is
the decisiOn of the Court of Appeal in <1Dick Hampton (Earth>1
<1Moving) Ltd. v. Lewis (V.O.),>1 1975. In this case the rate payers
were subcontractors building a motorway and they needed addi-
tional soil to build the embankments. They obtained this soil from
a "borrow pit" which immediately adjoined the motorway and was
outside the line of the motorway. In nine months, from a borrow
pit of ten acres they took out 700,000 tons of soil. In doing so they
completely obliterated the boundary with the motorway. The
borrow pit and the motorway were just one big excavation with
nothing to show on the ground between them. The subcontractors
occupied the borrow pit and the motorway together as one. It was
agreed by the parties that the motorway was not in rateable
occupation.<s18>s
2.27 The rate payers contended that the borrow pit and the
motorway were one hereditament and that since the motorway
was not in rateable occupation neither was the borrow pit. They
supported this argument on the basis that no one looking at the
land could say "This is the boundary of the borrow pit: this is the
boundary of the motorway." The diggers and earth movers cross it
as one, so that there is but one occupation of the whole.
2.28 The Court held that the borrow pit was a separate here-
ditament. In his judgment Lord Denning said ". . . the authorities
show that there are exceptional cases where an apparent single site
may be treated as two or more hereditaments, see <1Gilbert (V.O.)>1
<1v. S. Hickinbottom & Sons Ltd.,>1 1956 . . . This is I think an
exceptional case. The contractors occupy the two sites in two
different capacities. They occupy the site of the motorway in their
capacity as contractors doing the work of constructing the motor-
way, and therefore exempt from rating. But they occupy the site of
the borrow pit in their capacity as suppliers of material, like the
occupiers of a quarry supplying material for use elsewhere. These
<s18>s <1Arbuckle Smith & Co. Ltd. v. Greenock Corporation,>1 1960.
21
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
two different capacities mean that there are two separate heredita-
ments, the motorway site is not rateable, but the borrow pit is
rateable."
2.29 Before separate hereditaments can be created, the uses
must be substantially different. The following are cases in which
despite a difference in the use to which the property was put, the
whole property was held to be one hereditament:--a shop on the
ground floor with a workshop above approached by a separate
access,<s19>s a business premises with living accommodation
adjoining,<s20>s and finally a warehouse and sports ground both used
in conjunction with a nearby factory.<s21>s
<1(v) A Single Definable Position>1
2.30 Finally, a hereditament must have a fixed location. For
example, a person rented two stalls in a market, but no particular
place was set aside for them; he was held not rateable since it was
impossible to identify a particular piece of ground of which he was
the occupier <1(Spear v. Bodmin,>1 1880). However a limited degree of
movement within the boundary of a hereditament will not prevent
the whole from being rateable, (see paragraph 2.108a).
2.30a Similarly a golf club which had a licence to use part of the
New Forest was held not rateable. This was because amongst other
things, the land which it had a right to use could not be clearly
defined <1(Peak v. Burley Golf Club,>1 1960).
<2Rateable Occupier>2
2.31 Before rates can be collected there must be a rateable
occupier or a rateable owner,<s22>s as well as a rateable hereditament.
2.32 "Rateable occupier" is not defined, and its meaning must
be deduced from case law.
2.33 At this point a word of warning may not be out of place.
No case can be properly appreciated unless the whole of the
evidence is heard or read and is properly understood. Much can be
learnt about a case by the study of a lengthy law report, but the
evidence is not set out. A large text book will convey but a slight
<s19>s <1Murdock (V.O.) v. Lanes (Costumiers) Ltd.,>1 1959.
<s20>s <1Heath v. Mitcalfe>1 (V.O.), 1959.
<s21>s <1Burton Latimer U.D. C. v. Weetabix Ltd. & Lee (V.O.), 1958, but see Brook>1
(V.O.) <1v. National Coal Board,>1 1975 (spoil pit).
<s22>s See Chapters 3 and 13.
22
<1Rateable Occupation>1
impression of the law and a short summary may tend to be
misleading.
2.34 One of the best summaries of the law as to what constitutes
occupation is to be found in the decision of Lush, J., in <1R. v. St.>1
<1Pancras,>1 1877, of which the following is an abstract: "It is not easy
to give an accurate and exhaustive definition of the word "occu-
pier". Occupation includes possession as its primary element, but
it also includes something more. Legal possession does not of itself
constitute an occupation. The owner of a vacant house is in
possession, and may maintain trespass against any one who
invades it, but as long as he leaves it vacant, he is not rateable for it
as an occupier. If, however, he furnishes it, and keeps it ready for
habitation whenever he pleases to go to it, he is an occupier,
though he may not reside in it one day in a year."
2.35 "On the other hand, a person who, without having any
title, takes actual possession of a house or piece of land, whether
by leave of the owner or against his will, is the occupier of it.
Another element, however, besides actual possession of the land,
is necessary to constitute the kind of occupation the Act contem-
plates, and that is permanence. An itinerant showman who erects
a temporary structure for his performances, may be in exclusive
actual possession, and may, with strict grammatical propriety, be
said to occupy the ground on which his structure is placed, but it is
clear that he is not such an occupier as the statute intends. As the
poor rate is not made day by day, or week by week, but for months
in advance, it would be absurd to hold that a person who comes
into a parish with the intention to remain there a few days or a
week only, incurs a liability to maintain the poor for the next six
months. Thus, a transient temporary holding of land is not enough
to make the holding rateable."
2.36 The law of rating does not stand still and by 1949 the Court
of Appeal in the case of <1J. Laing & Sons Ltd. v. Kingswood>1
<1Assessment Committee>1 and others identified four essential ingre-
dients for rateable occupation.
2.37 The essential ingredients are:
(a) actual possession;
(b) exclusive occupation;
(c) beneficial occupation;
<1(d)>1 occupation not too transient (a degree of permanence).
2.38 If when trying to decide whether a particular person is in
rateable occupation, one of the above ingredients is absent, then
that person is not in rateable occupation and it will be necessary to
look elsewhere for the rateable occupier.
23
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1(a) Actual Possession>1
2.39 Should there be any difficulty in deciding whether a person
is in actual possession, it is perfectly plain from the St. Pancras
judgment quoted above that legal title is largely irrelevant. It is
pointed out that the owner of an empty house is in legal possession
but not in actual possession; similarly, the owner of a piece of land
which he was trying to let and to which end he displayed a board
on the land was found not to be in actual possession although his
legal possession was indisputable.<s23>s
2.40 The question of title is not, however, absolutely
immaterial.<s24>s Where the use made of land is consistent with either
the right to full occupation or a mere easement, then the title may
be examined to ascertain whether the person using the land is the
occupier. For example, if a man walks through a wood from time
to time, it is not clear from this act alone whether he does so
because he occupies the wood--and therefore has actual posses-
sion of it---or because he has an easement of way. But it is only in
such cases that the title is relevant since there is sufficient authority
for saying that, where there is clear evidence of actual possession it
does not matter by what manner of right, if any, it is enjoyed. The
rule expressed by the learned editors of Ryde<s25>s is:--"Title may be
looked at to enlarge, but not to cut down, the apparent character
of the use made of the land; it may be looked at to see whether acts
(which <1prima facie>1 may be done under a right to an easement or a
licence) are done in the exercise of a right to possession, but title
may not be looked at in order to show that the person <1de facto>1 in
possession enjoys a mere easement."
2.41 It is well-established that whether or not a person is an
occupier is a question of fact and not of law, from which it follows
that actual possession is possible without any estate or interest in
the land. Thus, in the extreme case, a trespasser may be rateable,
and in more usual circumstances licenses and easements may give
rise to occupation.
2.42 A good illustration of licensees in rateable occupation is to
be found in <1Westminister Council v. Southern Railway Co. Ltd.,>1
1936. The case concerned the occupation of bookstalls, kiosks,
shops and similar properties at Victoria Station, and sites in the
yard at Beckenham Station; some of these properties were held
under licence by the persons using them but nevertheless they
were found to be in occupation. It was laid down by the House of
<s23>s <1Crowther-Smith v. New Forest Union>1 (1890).
<s24>s Ryde on Rating, 13th Ed., pages 23-26.
<s25>s Ryde, 13th Ed., page 24.
24
<1Rateable Occupation>1
Lords in clear terms that the test of rateability is the fact of
occupation itself and not whether the title to occupy is derived
from a lease, licence or easement. Actual possession, therefore,
does not depend on title; it is a question of fact, and if particular
facts clearly point to some person being in actual possession
further discussion is unnecessary.
2.43 Although the obvious form which actual possession takes
is the physical presence of the occupier on the land, this is not the
only means by which such possession can arise. There may be
some use made or control exercise over the land sufficient to
amount to actual possession even though the use or control is of a
kind which does not require the presence of any person on the
property. It was for these reasons that a warehouseman was held
to be in actual possession of a vacant warehouse and rateable in
respect of it.<s26>s In <1R. v. Melladew,>1 1907, the essential facts were
that, at a time when business was slack, the owner of a warehouse
used for storing goods for customers removed all his chattels and
cut off the water during the whole period for which a rate was
levied, but his intention was to make use of the warehouse
whenever there was sufficient demand to make it worthwhile. It
was held in the circumstances that the owner of the warehouse was
rateable during the whole period, and considerable emphasis was
laid on the owner's intention to use the premises for the purpose of
his business whenever the opportunity offered.
2.44 The view that intention to occupy was the governing factor
in this case is reinforced by comparing it with <1Overseers of Bootle>1
<1v. Liverpool Warehousing Co.,>1 1901. There the facts were similar
except that the owner had no intention of occupying the premises
during the rating period and had definitely withdrawn the ware-
house from his business; the owner was held not to be rateable.
2.45 So far, attention has been concentrated on the existence of
intention, but mere intention itself is not sufficient. In <1Associated>1
<1Cinema Properties Co., Ltd. v. Hampstead B. C.>1 , 1944, during the
1939-1945 war, a company took a lease of a group of houses,
intending to use them as offices only if their permanent premises
were destroyed; as it happened the houses were never used but it
was contended that the company's intention was sufficient to
constitute actual possession. The judgments in the Divisional
Court and the Court of Appeal did not support this view, on the
ground that no fixtures or chattels had been put on the premises
<s26>s But see paragraph 2.44.
25
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
and there must be something more than just an intention to occupy
on the happening of a future uncertain event. It appears that
previous physical possession might be necessary before intention
can amount to actual possession.
2.46 A further example of intention to occupy amounting to
actual possession is given in <1Hewson, Chapman & Co. Ltd. v.>1
<1Grimsby C. B. C.>1, 1953. The appellants were timber merchants
who owned some sheds in Grimsby Docks which were used for
storing timber. In the intervals between shipments the sheds were
sometimes empty, and the appellants claimed they were not in
occupation during these periods although it was not disputed that
the sheds would be used whenever the size of the stocks of timber
made it necessary to do so. The High Court, however, held that
there was occupation--"timber merchants must have contem-
plated the occupation of some part of their business for some
period for spare room, and so long as the sheds were used for the
purposes of their business they were in occupation, even if not
actually storing timber". The following passage from the judgment
of Farwell, L J., in <1R. v. Melladew>1 was quoted as being exactly in
point, and it also gives an excellent summary of the law: "Rateable
property has many varieties; of some the normal use is by personal
occupation, e.g. a dwelling house, of others by occupation by live
or dead stock, e.g. a linhay used as a shelter for cattle, or a barn;
and the nature of the property and its mode of use must be
considered in each case. The test, in a case like the present, of
business premises appears to me to be: Has the person to be rated
such use of tenement as the nature of the tenement and of the
business connected with it renders it reasonable to infer was fairly
within his contemplation in taking or retaining it? In many trades,
and certainly in a warehouseman's the trader must necessarily
contemplate the occupation for considerable periods of parts of his
premises as spare room. If and so long as he uses the premises for
the purposes of his business, he is in occupation of them for rating
purposes . . ."
2.47 Timber merchants require space from time to time and fall
within the trades referred to, hence they were in occupation of
seemingly vacant property. This suggests that whether or not a
particular trader requires space for the purpose of his business is a
useful test in deciding whether property is in actual possession
although vacant.
2.48 It will be noted that the timber merchants' intention to
occupy could be considered in relation to physical possession in
the past, and the prospects of such possession in the future
26
<1Rateable Occupation>1
depended on an event far more certain than in <1Associated Cinema>1
<1Properties v. Hampstead,>1 1944.
2.49 Two other cases which are concerned with the occupation
of a hereditament for part of a rate period are <1Southend-on-Sea v.>1
<1White,>1 1900 and <1Gage v. Wren,>1 1903. The former relates to a
seaside shop and the latter to a seaside boarding house. In each
case the property was in use for the summer, but during the winter
months the tenants went away, the stock and furniture were
removed, and only a few fixtures and chattels were left. The
tenants, however, had every intention of returning in time for the
next season when their business would be lucrative once more. On
these grounds it was found that the tenants were still in occupation
during the winter. In both cases the tenant had been in occupation
in the past and intended to re-occupy in the future. This was
apparently sufficient to cause the "rateable occupation" to con-
tinue throughout the period that the building was physically
empty.
2.50 In certain circumstances, which inevitably must be rare, a
hereditament may be vacant and by keeping it vacant some person
is making use of it which is sufficient to amount to actual
possession. There is no intention to occupy physically here, in fact
just the reverse. An illustration of this kind of possession is given
in <1Liverpool Corporation v. Chorley Union,>1 1913.
2.51 The corporation owned reservoirs for water supply which
were fed by the water from a gathering ground, partly agricultural
and partly moorland, and belonging to others. For the purpose of
obtaining increased purity of water the corporation purchased
about 1,100 acres which they fenced in, turned out all of the
inhabitants, pulled down the buildings, planted about 300 acres
with trees, but otherwise rendered the land vacant. They let the
sporting rights to a shooting tenant. The corporation contended
that, with the exception of the planted area, the land was not
occupied, was not in their occupation, and that they were not
rateable in respect of it. The House of Lords, confirming the
decision of the court below, held that they were rateable in respect
of the whole of the land.
2.52 The object of buying the land was to preserve the purity of
the water by keeping the land vacant and the corporation thereby
enjoyed "the benefit for which they bought the land" which is
sufficient to amount to actual possession. The test to be applied
may be inferred in the passage from the judgment in <1R. v.>1
<1Melladew,>1 1907.<s27>s ""Has the person to be rated such use of the
<s27>s Paragraph 2.43
27
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
tenement as the nature of the tenement and of the business
connected with it renders it reasonable to infer was fairly within his
contemplation in taking or retaining it?" If this is put to the facts
described there is no difficulty.
2.53 The above test was applied by the House of Lords in the
case of <1Arbuckle Smith & Co. Ltd. v. Greenock Corporation,>1
1960.<s28>s Arbuckle Smith were warehousemen who purchased pre-
mised which they intended to use as a bonded warehouse. Before
the premises could be used as such, permission had to be obtained
from H.M. Customs & Excise and this depended on certain
alterations being carried out to improve the security, (e.g.: the
bricking up of windows and doors and the fixing of bars at
windows). The appellants made no use of the premises as a
bonded warehouse or for the purpose of their business prior to the
completion of the alterations. The question for the court to answer
was whether the appellants were in rateable occupation of the
premises during the carrying out of the alterations. The court
decided that "the premises were not being applied to the purposes
for which they existed but were in an antecedent stage". They
were being prepared for future occupation. Accordingly Arbuckle
Smith were not in rateable occupation of the premises during the
period that the alterations were being carried out <s28a>s
2.54 In direct contrast to the case where property visibly vacant
is nevertheless found to be in someone's actual possession and
occupation, there is property physically occupied by some person
but for the purposes of rating regarded as being in no one's actual
possession. Such a situation may arise when the owner of an empty
house installs a resident caretaker until such time as he finds a
purchaser or a tenant. The caretaker is not in possession in his own
right but on behalf of his employer, and since the owner of an
empty house is not in actual possession of it, no one is rateable.<s29>s
2.55 Where an employee (servant) lives in premises belonging
to his employer (master), the question arises as to whether the
servant or the master is in rateable occupation.
2.56 There would appear to be two occasions on which the
master will be rateable and not the servant:--
(i) "if it is essential to the performance of the duties of the
<s28>s House of Lords decision, but not binding on the English Courts.
<s28a>s See also <1Wirral B. C. v. Lane,>1 1979 (Q.B.D.).
<s29>s <1Yates v. Chorlton-on-Medlock,>1 1883, but see the rating of unoccupied property
and rating surcharge, chapter 13.
28
<1Rateable Occupation>1
occupying servant that he should occupy the particular house"
or live within a closely defined perimeter.<s30>s
(ii) ". . . where it it not essential for the servant to occupy a
particular house or live within a particular perimeter, but by
doing so he can better perform his duties as servant to a
material degree" then, provided that there is "an express term
in the contract between master and servant that he shall
reside," the occupation for rating will be treated as that of the
master.<s30>s
2.57 In (i) there is no need for an express condition that the
servant "shall live in the house because such a condition is
implied."<s30>s
2.58 Applying the above tests the House of Lords held that six
schoolmasters were rateable occupiers. They lived in houses
owned by the school, but they were not required to live in the
houses as part of their contract, nor was it essential for the
performance of their duties. But in the same case the Court held
that the school was the rateable occupier of the house in which the
vice-principal lived.<s30>s
2.59 Other cases where the master was held to be in rateable
occupation include, for example, the instance of a man who was
employed to live in two rooms in a lighthouse in order to look after
the light.<s34>s Also, where a builder's foreman was required to live in
a house for the purpose of letting it and generally looking after the
estate, it being understood that when the house was let he should
move to another at twenty-four hours' notice.<s35>s A more recent
case in which the employer was held to be in rateable occupation
was that of a warden on a nature reserve.<s36>s
However, where a master provides a house for his servants,
merely because the servant must live somewhere, the servant is
rateable.
2.60 A factory that has ceased production through a trade
recession or other similar cause, but which contains the fixed plant
and machinery, is a special example of the case where there is not
<s30>s <1Northern Ireland Commissioners of Valuation v. Fermanagh Protestant Board of>1
<1Education,>1 1969. See also <1Glasgow Corporation v. Johnson,>1 1965, both House of
Lords decisions but neither binding on English Courts.
31
32
33
34 <1R. v. Tynemouth,>1 1812.
<s35>s <1Bertie v. Walthamtow Overseers,>1 1904.
<s36>s <1Royal Society for the Protection of Birds v. Hornsea Urban District Council,>1
1975. See also paragraphs 4.7 and 4.8 (police houses).
29
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
actual possession even though a use is made of the property in that
it remains, as it were, fully furnished. The reason for this cannot
be understood properly except in relation to the rateability of
plant and machinery, and the leading case on this point, <1Townley>1
<1Mill Co.>1 (1919) <1Ltd. v. Oldham A. C.,>1 1937, is therefore consi-
dered in paragraph 5.81.
<1(b) Exclusive Occupation>1
2.61 It is well-established that an essential element of rateable
occupation is that the occupation shall be exclusive, but this
requirement has given rise to difficulty when there is a number of
persons who seemingly have rights of occupation, as is the case,
for example, where a house contains lodgers. But "exclusive" in
this context does not mean that the occupier has the right to keep
all other persons from coming onto his hereditament, it means
instead that his position in relation to the occupation of the land
must be <1paramount for the purpose for which the land is used.>1
2.62 The principal case on this subject is <1Westminster Council v.>1
<1Southern Railway Co. Ltd.,>1 1936 which concerned the occupation
of shops, offices, kiosks, bookstalls and show cases at Victoria
Station, and specific parts of the goods yard at Beckenham
Station. In some instances these properties formed part of the
main station buildings, but in others, such as the bookstalls, they
were merely wooden structures resting by their own weight. The
persons who used these properties for the purpose of their
business held them either under a tenancy agreement or under a
licence. The terms of these documents varied but all provided that
the traders should pay an annual sum to the railway company and
should also be bound by the company's bye-laws; certain rights of
entry were reserved to the company and other restrictions were
imposed in particular cases. Access to the properties let out could
only be obtained from inside the main gates of the station which
were locked during certain hours and at such times the traders had
to secure permission from the company before they could obtain
admittance.
2.63 The point at issue was whether the railway company or the
traders were in occupation. The House of Lords was unanimous in
holding that all the premises let out by the railway company were
in the separate occupation of the traders and such occupation was
exclusive notwithstanding the restrictions imposed. These restric-
tions were likened to the restrictive covenants in a lease which, it
was stated, did not prevent the tenant from being in rateable
occupation.
30
<1Rateable Occupation>1
2.64 Having pointed out the effect of control on the nature of
the occupation was a question of fact an indication was given on
how the facts were to be examined--what has to be scrutinised is
the extent to which the degree of control interferes with the
enjoyment by the occupant of the premises in his possession <1for the>1
<1purpose for which he occupies them,>1 and whether that control
would be inconsistent with the occupant's enjoyment of the
premises to the substantial exclusion of all other persons. On the
results of this test, the occupier is he whose position in relation to
occupation of the property in question <1is paramount for the>1
<1purpose for which it is used.>1 Thus, in the case under discussion the
matter to be decided was not who was in paramount occupation of
the station, but who was in paramount occupation of the parts let
out.
2.65 <1R. v. Morrish,>1 1863 is a good illustration of the use of part
of a hereditament which was not exclusive. Caterers at an exhibi-
tion were given the right to sell refreshments subject to their fitting
out the rooms set aside for this purpose; these fittings then became
the property of the organisers who, in addition to the
control imposed by their bye-laws and regulations, had the power
to require the dismissal of any of the caterer's servants guilty of
misconduct. At any time during the day the organisers and their
friends had the right to walk through the rooms, and at night
the premises were locked and the keys kept in the possession
of the organisers. The caterers had no control of the access either
to the exhibition or to the part which they used, and they were
held not to be rateable occupation since they were not intended to
have exclusive occupation of the rooms used.
2.66 The <1Westminster Case>1 emphasises that rateable occupation
does not depend on title and is a clear illustration of the separate
occupation of parts of a property which is itself in the occupation
of someone else. For these reasons it is quite possible for an
easement, or even a right to make some use of land, to give rise to
occupation.
2.67 Generally, of course, an easement or other right over land
will not give any right to possession, but in exceptional circum-
stances its character may require actual and exclusive possession
and in these circumstances there will be occupation. For example,
where mineral operators diverted a stream so that it flowed in an
artificial channel through the land of another person (for which
payment was made) they were held to be in occupation of
watercourse.<s37>s In <1Electric Telegraph v. Salford,>1 1885, it was held
<s37>s <1Talargoch v. St. Asaph,>1 1868.
31
that the erection of telegraph posts by the side of the railway was
sufficient to amount to the occupation of land, for which the
telegraph company were rateable, even though the railway com-
pany, who were separately rateable in respect of the track, could
require the posts to be moved elsewhere if they interfered with the
working of the line. Again, in <1Roads v. Trumpington,>1 1870, the
owner of a farm let it but reserved the right to dig for coprolites.
Subsequently, R. was given permission to take coprolites provided
the land was restored afterwards and made available to the tenant.
R. was found to have sole and exclusive possession of the land,
and to be in rateable occupation.
2.68 The question of whether a particular use of land amounts
to occupation, which is often difficult to answer when several
persons are using the same property, should be considered in the
light of the rule suggested by the learned editors of Ryde: "an
occupation of one kind by one person may still be regarded as
"exclusive occupation', for the purpose of rating, if it excludes all
other persons from using the land in the same way, although other
persons may use the land in some other way, and may even use it
in such a way as to render themselves liable as rateable
occupiers".<s38>s If this rule is remembered a good many difficulties
disappear, and it becomes readily apparent, for example, why
persons may be rated in respect of such things as tramway lines in
the highway, water mains and cables and wires attached to
buildings.
2.69 Residential accommodation is the most common type of
rateable hereditament and before leaving the question of exclusive
occupation it is desirable to look at some of the cases which have
concerned this type of property. Houses frequently contain a
number of persons who are not members of the same family and
consequently it is not always easy to identify the rateable occupier.
At one extreme there is the mere lodger, and at the other the
tenant of a self-contained flat which has been created out of the
house. The former is not in occupation for the purpose of rating
but the latter certainly is, while cases in between have to be
considered on their merits.<s39>s
2.70 A leading case on lodgers is <1Bradley v. Baylis,>1 1881, in
which possible methods of identification were considered. The
crucial test is that of control (the <1Westminster Case>1 supra)--if the
landlord or his servants live on the premises and the landlord has
<s38>s Ryde on Rating, 13th Ed., page 51, see also <1Holywell Union v. Halkyn District>1
<1Mines Drainage Co.>1, 1895.
<s39>s See paragraph 3.2 and section 24 General Rate Act, 1967.
32
<1Rateable Occupation>1
retained a general control over the whole house with the right to
turn out trespassers and so on then the landlord will be considered
to be in occupation of the whole house. But if the landlord lets out
in parts all of the house capable of being let and retains no control,
the "inmates" are tenants and are capable of being in rateable
occupation in respect of the parts they occupy. Such considera-
tions as the possession of keys to the outer door, the contractual
liability for repairs, rates and taxes were held to be immaterial in
deciding where control lay.
2.71 <1R. v. St. George's Union>1 (the <1Westminster Chambers>1
<1Case),>1 1871, illustrated the distinction between the tenant of a flat
and a lodger. The chambers consisted of seven blocks of buildings
divided into numerous sets of rooms separate from each other but
to which access was gained by one of the common staircases.
Porters were employed and paid by the landlords and each porter
had a key to all the sets of rooms in his block "for the purpose of
general superintendence and as servant of the occupiers" some of
whom paid the porter to take care of the rooms. The landlords
provided gas for the halls and staircases, paid for all water
consumed and paid all rates and taxes. Coals were exclusively
supplied to the tenants by the landlords at a fixed charge. It was
held that there was a separate occupation of each set of rooms, and
that each set of rooms should be separately assessed and inserted
in the valuation list.
2.72 In the course of his judgment, Cockburn, C. J. said that
the test of whether the inhabitant of a part of a building was a
lodger or a tenant was the control of the outer door. If the landlord
retained control he thereby showed he had control over the whole
premises and the inmates of the house were lodgers, but if he did
not have control of the outer door then the inmates were the
occupiers of separate hereditaments within the building. In view of
the decision in <1Westminister Council v. Southern Railway,>1 1936,
however, it is extremely doubtful if control over the entrances to
the building is a conclusive test; what has to be established is
whose control of the part let-out is <1paramountfor the purpose for>1
<1which it is used.>1 Where the inmates are lodgers the landlord
exercises control of this kind, for it was pointed out in <1Allan v.>1
<1Liverpool Overseas,>1 1874, that a lodger does not have exclusive
possession of his rooms since the landlord in the course of his
business of letting has a continual right of access to them, (i.e. the
landlord occupies the whole of the property for the purpose of his
business). This is the type of control which is decisive and it did not
exist in the <1Westminister Chambers Case>1 even though the porters
33
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
had a key to each set of rooms. The porter was found to be on the
premises for the convenience and benefit of the tenants and not for
the purpose of securing to the landlord the entire control over the
whole premises.
2.73 Another case which involved two possible rateable occu-
piers, had to do with caravans on a commercially run caravan site.
- In <1Field Place Caravan Park Ltd. v. Harding (V.O.),>1 1966 the site
contained some caravans which had been in position for more than
a year and some for less than a year. The case concerned those
which had been in position for more than a year. The caravans
stood in their own small gardens and were connected in a
temporary way to electricity and drainage, but they still-had their
wheels on. It was necessary to decide whether the person who
lived in the caravan or the proprietor of the site, was the rateable
occupier. It was decided that the person who lived in the caravan
was the rateable occupier of the caravan and its garden. In the
Court of Appeal Lord Denning M.R. said, "you have to look at
the enjoyment by the occupier of the premises for the purpose for
which he occupies, and the extent to which the controller (site
proprietor) can interfere with that enjoyment. In this case, the
caravan dweller seems to me quite plainly to enjoy this caravan
and the pitch around it as his dwelling . . . Here are people
occupying caravans much as a person would occupy a dwelling-
house."
2.74 This case can be distinguished from that of the lodger,
where it is the landlord who has paramount control of the whole
house including the lodger's room.
2.75 Where part of a commercial site is set aside for caravans
which will stay for less than a year, the proprietor of the site is
usually assessed as the rateable occupier of that part. He is
deemed to be in paramount control of the land for the purpose of
letting it out to caravans. (the caravans in this case are not part of
the hereditament).
2.76 It is not necessary for part of a building to be structurally
severed from the remainder before it can be separately occupied.
<1Allchurch v. Hendon Union,>1 1891, concerned a house in which the
ground and first floors were each separately let. The tenants had
the joint use of the back yard and lavatory, and although an
outside staircase made it possible for each tenant to have a
separate entrance the house was not structurally severed. The
landlord did not reside on the premises nor did he render any
services. The tenants were held to be separately rateable.
2.77 But the presence of the landlord on the premises may
34
<1Rateable Occupation>1
make a difference. In <1Helman v. Horsham and Worthing>1
<1A. C.,>1 1949, the owner-occupier of a house let part of it together
with the right in common with himself to use the bathroom and
lavatories, there was no structural alteration and the house re-
mained just as it was built. The landlord's continued residence on
the premises was found to raise the presumption that he intended
to retain control over the whole house, and in the absence of
any evidence to the contrary he therefore remained in occupation
of the whole.
2.78 As a general approach to the question of who is in
paramount control, properties can be divided into residential and
commercial.
2.79 In the case of residential properties, if the owner (or his
servant) live on the premises, the initial presumption would seem
to be that he is there to maintain paramount control and is in
consequence the rateable occupier of the whole property. How-
ever, the contrary may be proved by showing that in fact the owner
does not exercise any control over the premises.
2.80 In the case of commercial property, if the owner or his
servant occupies a part, the initial presumption is that he is not
there to maintain paramount control. In consequence the indi-
viduals who occupy the premises will each be rateable for there
own part. But here again it may be shown that in the case of a
particular property, the owner does exercise paramount control,
and in consequence is rateable for the whole property.
2.81 If a building is structurally subdivided so that each part is
completely self-contained, then even if the owner or his servant
resides on the premises, each occupier will, in the normal way, be
rateable for his own part.
2.82 In two special cases parliament has stepped in to make the
owner liable for rates where otherwise the individual occupiers
would be rateable. The two cases concern:--
(i) Hereditaments which were constructed or adapted as a single
dwelling but which are occupied in parts.<s39>s
(ii) leisure caravans.<s40>s
2.83 It would seem that the reason for making the owner
rateable in these two cases is the administrative difficulty of
assessing and collecting rates from the individual occupiers.
<s40>s See paragraph 3.8 and Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976.
35
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1(c) Beneficial Occupation>1
2.84 The third requirement of rateable occupation is that the
occupation shall be of value or beneficial. In this context beneficial
occupation means that someone must be willing to pay a rent for
the property, it does <1not>1 mean that the occupier must necessarily
make a profit from his occupation. If this distinction is remem-
bered the concept or beneficial occupation is not difficult to
understand, but until the proposition was established there was a
good deal of confusion.
2.85 Before discussing some of the cases on this issue, attention
must be drawn to the fact that it is not necessarily the actual
occupier who must be willing to pay rent but the "hypothetical
tenant". The hypothetical tenant is a person who would take the
property if it were vacant and to let for the same purpose as it is
actually being used.<s41>s Although the actual occupier may be
regarded as a possible hypothetical tenant the rental bid which he
would make does not necessarily set an upper limit to the amount
of rent which the premises are capable of yielding.
2.86 The ordinary private house is easily the most common type
of property which yields no profit to its occupier, but the occupa-
tion is certainly of value and the occupier would--and in some
cases does--pay a rent which is the measure of that value. No
difficulties have arisen here, but in the past the failure to apply the
same reasoning led to the erroneous view that property occupied
for public purposes was not rateable if it was of a type incapable of
profitable occupation, e.g. a sewage disposal works. There was
even doubt when the occupation itself was profitable, if control
was exercised over the way in which the profits were used. In the
<1Mersey Docks Case,>1<s42>s the dues received by a Dock Board were of
much greater amount than the maintenance costs but the net
income was used for the purposes laid down in certain special
Acts; in spite of this the Board were held to be in beneficial
occupation. The judgments in the House of Lords do not make
absolutely clear the difference between profitable and valuable
occupation but the point begins to emerge and is made more
precisely in later decisions.
2.87 At one time it was thought that School Boards were not in
beneficial occupation of elementary schools because they were
barred by statute from making a profit. On this ground it was
<s41>s Or for a different purpose, provide that (i) it falls within the same mode of
occupation (ii) planning permission could be obtained (if needed) and (iii) no
structural alteration of the premises is necessary (see paragraphs 6.64 to 6.97r).
<s42>s <1tones v. Mersey Docks,>1 1865.
36
<1Rateable Occupation>1
argued in <1West Bromwich School Board v. West Bromwich Over->1
<1seers,>1 1884, that there could be no beneficial occupation and the
length to which this argument would be taken is shown by the fact
that in some cases the Board was actually paying rent for the
schools in its occupation. It was held, however, that the occupa-
tion of both freehold and leasehold schools was rateable, the
former because there was a power to let them and the latter
because it was obvious that they could be let. In <1R. v. School>1
<1Board for London,>1 1886, an attempt was made to limit the value of
such schools to the rents which tenants other than the Board might
give, but the arguments failed because it was declared that the
Board itself might be the hypothetical tenant as well as the actual
occupier, and therefore the rent which they would be prepared to
pay should properly be taken into account.
2.88 Even when the hereditament in question is really only
suitable to the needs of the actual occupier and the occupation is
unprofitable, the occupation may still be beneficial if it can be
shown that the occupation would be prepared to pay a rent. A
situation of this kind is illustrated by the facts in <1Mayor, etc. of>1
<1Burton-on-Trent v. Burton-on-Trent Union,>1 1889, where the issue
was whether the corporation was rateable for the unprofitable
occupation of a sewage farm and pumping station. It was pointed
out that there was no place at which the corporation could have
fulfilled itst statutory duties of drainage more cheaply, and if the
property had been in the hands of a private owner the corporation
would have been prepared to have paid a rent; this was sufficient
to substantiate beneficial occupation.
2.89 From this decision it is a short step to the formulation of a
rule; where an authority has a duty to perform and must occupy
land to do so, then such occupation may be beneficial even though
it is commercially unprofitable.
2.90 The Lands Tribunal has extended the operation of this rule
to cover cases where there has been the exercise of a statutory
power rather than the performance of a statutory duty. A local
authority exercised a statutory power to erect and maintain a
public lavoratory which was a source of expense. In spite of the
absence of any duty, the Tribunal found the fact of spending
money from the rate fund on the provision of the lavoratory
sufficient to support the view that if the premises had been vacant
and to let the local authority would have been willing to pay a rent,
since they would thereby have obtained the facility to exercise
their statutory powers.<s43>s The occupation was therefore beneficial.
<s43>s <1Erith B.C. v. Draper (V.O.),>1 1952.
37
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
2.91 Once occupation has been proved, it is not usually difficult
to find that it is of value, for the great majority of occupiers are
either freeholders or tenants and this fact itself is normally enough
to show that they would be prepared to pay a rent for the
premises. The estimation of that rent is the subject of many of the
later chapters of this book.
2.92 The discussion thus far has centered on the uses of land for
public purposes, and it is now necessary to distinguish between this
and the case where the entire use of land is vested in the public as
happens, for example, when land is a public highway. Strictly
speaking, the problem which arises is one of occupation rather
than of beneficial occupation, but the distinction in the leading
cases is not particularly clear and it is convenient to discuss it at
this point.
2.93 Generally, where the entire use of land is vested in the
public there is no occupier since the public cannot be in rateable
occupation, and the owner of the land, having no use or possession
of it except as a member of the public, is not in occupation either.
There is no difficulty in the case of land dedicated as a public
highway, but problems have arisen where land has been vested in a
public authority and maintained by them for public use.
2.94 When Putney Bridge, which had been a toll bridge and
rateable as such, was acquired by the Metropolitan Board of
Works and thrown open to the public free of charge, it ceased to
be rateably occupied, for it was held that the Board were not the
occupiers of the bridge. This case in analogous to that of a public
street, but the issues are not resolved quite so readily when the
rights of the public over the land are less extensive.
2.95 Consider the case of a pleasure ground maintained out of
public funds and dedicated to public use in perpetuity. There must
be an authority responsible for the upkeep of the land, in the
common interest this authority must make rules governing the way
the land is to be used and also may have to provide amenities such
as refreshment rooms, putting greens and so on for which a charge
is made. Subject to these limitations the public has a wide right of
use for the purpose of recreation and exercise. If the authority
responsible for the administration did not provide the park as a
statutory duty, it will not be immediately apparent whether the
authority is in rateable occupation or not.
2.96 In the <1Brockwell Park Case,>1<s44>s the London County Council
were enabled by a special Act to purchase a park and maintain it
<s44>s <1Lambeth Overseers v. L.C.C.,>1 1897.
38
<1Rateable Occupation>1
for exercise and recreation. There were refreshment rooms,
bandstands, park keepers' houses and other miscellaneous build-
ings in the park and the gates were locked at night by the order of
the County Council. Some revenue was derived from the refresh-
ment rooms and so on, but it was greatly exceeded by the expenses
of upkeep. The question to be decided was whether the L.C.C.
were in rateable occupation. The Court of Appeal and the House
of Lords were certain there was no rateable occupation, either of
the park itself or the various buildings in it, but not quite so clear
whether the reason was that there was no occupation at all or no
<1beneficial>1 occupation.
2.97 Both reasons were put forward in the decision namely
(a) that there was no occupation by the L.C.C. since the rules
and byelaws which were made merely emphasised the position of
the Council as trustee and were, in fact, made to increase the
enjoyment of those using the land and (b) that the rights of the
public were so extensive as to render occupation by any other
person highly improbable and that no one would pay a rent for the
park.
2.98 In contrast to the <1Brockwell Park Case>1 there is <1North>1
<1Riding of Yorkshire C. V. C. v. Redcar Corporation,>1 1943. The
corporation has acquired the foreshore under powers given in the
Public Health Act, 1875 and laid out the land for public recreation.
Swimming pools, a boating lake, a concert hall, shops, putting
greens and a car park were made and on the foreshore itself sites
were let to showmen and caterers, with the result that the whole
venture yielded a small profit. In the conveyance of the land was a
convenant that it should be used for the public benefit, subject
only to such rules as might be necessary to ensure its orderly use,
and not used except for public recreation and sea-bathing. The
point at issue was whether the corporation were severally in
rateable occupation of the swimming baths, shops, concert hall,
and foreshore, etc.
2.99 The High Court held that the corporation was in rateable
occupation of the various hereditaments described, and this deci-
sion calls for the <1Brockwell Park Case>1 to be distinguished. The
facts are similar in that neither council had any statutory obligation
to provide the pleasure ground, in each case rules were made to
govern the manner in which the land was used and emenities were
provided for which charges were made, although these were far
more elaborate on the foreshore at Redcar than in Brockwell
Park. But the vital difference is that while Brockwell Park could be
described as land of which <1the public hadfree and unrestricted use,>1
39
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the foreshore at Redcar was merely <1used for the public benefit.>1
Land used in the former way is akin, say, to Putney Bridge and the
trustees and managers of the land are no more in occupation of it
than were the Metropolitan Board of Works of the bridge, but the
land used for the public benefit may well be in the rateable
occupation of the authority concerned. Where a public pleasure
ground taken as a whole yields a profit this will raise the
presumption that it is used for the benefit of the public rather than
is land over which the public have free and unrestricted rights, but
it by no means follows that the absence of profit will raise the
contrary presumption. If part of a park produces a profit such part
may or may not form a separate hereditament in separate
occupation; the test is whether it is ancillary to the use of the
whole. If it is ancillary then it will not be a separate hereditament,
but if it is not ancillary it will be a separate hereditament and will
be dealt with as such on its merits.<s45>s
2.100 In addition to a number of Lands Tribunal decision
relating to public recreation grounds, there is the case of <1Burnell v.>1
<1Downham Market U. D. C.,>1 1952, the facts of which help to clarify
the difference between the two categories of pleasure ground
under discussion.
2.101 Land had been conveyed to the local authority on trust
for the perpetual use by the public as a playing field comprising
football and cricket pitches, tennis courts and a putting green. The
pitches were let and the clubs using them were permitted to make
an admission charge during part of the period of play, but the
council ran the field at a loss. Under the Settled Land Act, 1925,
and the Town and Country Planning Act, 1947, the Council had
the right to dispose of the land and it was contended this right
meant that there was no obligation to maintain the land as a public
park in perpetuity.
2.102 The Court held that the letting of the pitches did not
seriously impair the free and unrestricted use of the land by the
public, since watching organised sport may now be fairly regarded
as a form of public recreation; and as the power to dispose of the
land could only be exercised in conformity with the trusts the
obligation to maintain the land for the use of the public could be
regarded as sufficiently permanent. On these grounds it was held
that the council were not in occupation.<s46>s
<s45>s <1Sheffield Corporation v. Tranter (V.O.),>1 1957-- refreshment rooms in a park
were held not to be rateable. <1London County Council v. Robinson (V.O.) and>1
<1Lambeth M.B. C.>1, 1955-a restaurant in a park was held to be rateable.
<s46>s In view of this finding it was not necessary for the Court to consider the question
40
<1Rateable Occupation>1
2.103 In contrast to the Downham Market case, a bowling
green in a public park at Hendon was held to be rateable.<s47>s The
green was used exclusively by members of a private club who paid
an annual subscription (it was not possible to join the club for a
day and play on the green). Despite a spirited attempt to show that
the members of the club played bowls in order to entertain the
public using the park, it was held that the green was occupied for
the benefit of the club rather than the benefit of the public and as
such was rateable.
2.104 At this juncture it is convenient to give the meaning of the
phrase <1"land snuck with sterility".>1 This description is given to any
land over which the public has free and unrestricted use, for even
if it could be said that the land is in occupation, nevertheless, no
one would give a rent for it because the rights of the public are so
extensive as to render it devoid of value. Thus, a public highway,
or Brockwell Park or Putney Bridge might be said to be struck
with sterility, and it will be observed that the phrase is used even
although, strictly speaking, the reason that there is no rateable
occupation might be the absence of occupation rather than bene-
ficial occupation. But notice, for example, the effect of laying
tram-lines in a public street; the land occupied by the lines is part
of the highway but it ceases to be struck with sterility since the
public does not have any right to run trams and the occupier of the
track with the exclusive right to operate a tramway service may be
rated.
2.105 A building under construction is a further example of a
hereditament which is in occupation (by the building owner), but
is not in rateable occupation because that occupation is not
beneficial. This covers the case of building on a small scale, but it
must be remembered that if the work is extensive and the
contractor has to erect stores and other buildings which are on the
site for an appreciable time, the contractor himself may be in
rateable occupation of those buildings (see <1Laing v. Kingswood>1
<1A. C.>1, paragraph 2. 106.)
<1(d) Degree of Permanence>1
2.106 The fourth element necessary to constitute occupation is
permanence. In the extract from the decision in the <1St. Pancras>1
of beneficial occupation. The rating of parks is now covered by s.44 of the General
Rate Act, 1967.
<s47>s <1Blake (V.O.) v. Hendon Corporation No. 2>1, 1965.
41
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Case,>1 quoted (in paragraph 2.34), it is pointed out that an itinerant
showman is not a rateable occupier of his booth, even though he
may be in actual and exclusive possession, because his occupation
is not permanent. But permanent occupation means continuous
possession of the hereditament as opposed to a mere temporary
and casual holding of land, and it must not be confused with the
period for which the occupier may have the right to possession.
Thus, it cannot be pleaded successfully that the tenancy for a short
period, e.g. at will or weekly or monthly is not permanent, for
regard must be had not to the legal term but to the <1de facto>1
occupation which has occurred and is likely to occur. In <1Cory v.>1
<1Bristow,>1 1877, some moorings to which derricks were made fast
had been in position in the bed of the Thames for a number of
years, but although the moorings were subject to removal at one
week's notice they were nevertheless found to be capable of
occupation. Again, in <1Laing v. Kingswood A. C.,>1 1948, a contrac-
tor had erected a number of huts which were only required during
the time work was carried out to an aerodrome; these huts were on
the site for two years and were held to be in the contractor's
occupation.
2. 107 These circumstances are clearly different from those
which surround a travelling showman's use of land. In the one case
the user of land is continuous over a reasonably long period
notwithstanding that someone has the right to bring it to an end at
short notice; in the other there is the use of land for a matter of
days with no intention on either side that it shall be more than
temporary.
2.108 In <1Field Place Caravan Park Ltd. and Others v. Harding>1
<1(V.O.),>1 1966, the Court of Appeal confirmed the Lands Tribunal
decision that caravans standing on a site for a year had attained
sufficient degree of permanence to become rateable together with
the land on which they stand. The caravans still had their wheels
on, had small gardens laid out around them, were connected in a
temporary way to electricity and drainage, but could in event of a
fire be towed away within minutes.<s47a>s
2.108a <1Field Place Caravan Park Ltd. v. Harding (V.O.)>1 is an
interesting case because it not only throws light on the period of
time necessary to create rateable occupation but it shows that a
<s47a>s Scottish cases are not binding on the English courts but are nevertheless
informative. See <1Thomson & Thomson v. Dumfries and Galloway Assessor>1
(seasonal lettings giving rise to rateable occupation). <1Angus Assessor v. Allan and>1
<1Others>1 (seasonal lettings, where caravans towed to storage area in winter, not
giving rise to rateable occupation).
42
<1Rateable Occupation>1
chattel can, under certain circumstances, combine with a piece of
land to become a rateable hereditament.<s48>s
2.108b The above principle was carried a step further in the
case of <1Thomas (V.O.) v. Witney Aquatic Co. Ltd.,>1 1972 where the
hereditament was a lake used for water skiing. The club house was
constructed on floats and was normally moored at a fixed point on
the bank. However, for security purposes in the winter, the club
house was moved and moored to an island in the lake. The Lands
Tribunal held that the lake was the hereditament and that the club
house was part of that hereditament, despite the fact that the club
house was moved twice a year.
2. 109 A succession of cases concerning builders huts<s48>s and
caravans led to a general "working rule" on permanence. Namely
that if a hut or caravan had been (or was likely to be) on a site for
more than 12 months, it was rateable, whereas if it was there (or
likely to be there) for less than 12 months, it was not rateable. In
the cases of <1Dick Hampton (Earth Moving) Ltd. v. Lewis (V.O.),>1
1975 and <1United Gravel Co. Ltd. v. Sellick (V.O.),>1 1975, both
ratepayers were engaged in removing hundreds of thousands of
tons of soil from "borrow pits", to be used in the building of
motorway embankments. In the period of 9 and 6 months respec-
tively each ratepayer succeeding in removing more rock, than was
extracted from local quarries in the course of a full year. The
Lands Tribunal applied the 12 month working rule and decided
that the occupation of the borrow pits was too transient to be
rateable. The Court of Appeal overruled the Lands Tribunal
decision and Lord Denning M.R. said "I do not think that those
cases about temporary structures have any application at all to
these borrow pits. If some degree of "permanence" is necessary
these borrow pits are as permanent as anything could be. The
landscape has been changed for ever. Huge slices have been dug
out of the hillside. They have left gaping voids which will never be
filled up. They are far more permanent than the most massive
buildings. It has all been done in a few months. But I cannot
believe that that is a ground for exemption from rates. It cannot
depend on how many machines the contractors have available; or
whether they do it in 11 months or 13 months. I cannot accept
the supposed "working rule" of 12 months. No matter whether the
extraction only takes 6 months or 9 months, they are in the
rateable occupation of the contractors."
<s48>s See also <1London County v. Wilkins>1 (V.O.), 1956 (H.L.) and <1Sir Robert>1
<1McAlpine & Sons Ltd. v. Payne (V.O.)>1, 1969, (both concerning builders huts).
43
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
2.110 The Court of Appeal did not say that the 12 month
working rule was wrong in the case of builders huts and caravans,
but quite clearly there are cases, such as borrow pits, where the
rule is inappropriate. Lord Justice Roskill said "In the present
class of case I regard the period of occupation as of vastly less
importance than its quality and consequences."
2.110a So it would seem, that when considering whether an
occupation has sufficient degree of permanence it is necessary to
look not only at the time element but also the quality and
consequences of the occupation.
2.111 It is important to draw a clear distinction between two
different types of permanence:--
<1(i)>1 the permanence needed before a chattel can become part of
a hereditament, and
(ii) the permanence needed before a person can become the
rateable occupier of a hereditament.
This important distinction can be illustrated by a series of
examples involving caravan sites.
<1Example 1>1
2.111a P is the proprietor of a caravan site used exclusively for
touring caravans. H is a holiday-maker who towed a caravan to the
site, and after staying for a three week holiday, will tow the
caravan away again.
2.111b In this case the caravan (which is a chattel) will not stand
on the land and be enjoyed with the land, for a long enough period
for the caravan to become part of the hereditament. There is a lack
of permanence and so the hereditament will comprise only the
land.
2.111c As far as rateable occupation is concerned, H does not
intend to occupy the hereditament for long enough to become a
rateable occupier. There is a lack of permanence in his occupation.
But there is no lack of permanence as far as P is concerned. He has
been the proprietor of the site for many years and occupies it for
the purpose of letting pitches to holiday makers. P is therefore the
rateable occupier of a hereditament, which comprises only land.
<1Example 2>1
2.111d P is the proprietor of a caravan site. Standing on the site
is a number of caravans which he lets out only to holiday-makers.
All the caravans have been in position for at least a year. H is
spending a three week holiday in one of the caravans.
44
<1Rateable Occupation>1
2.111e In this case the caravans (which are chattels) have been
enjoyed with the land for a longish period and thus have a
sufficient degree of permanence to become part of the heredita-
ment.
2.111f As far as rateable occupation is concerned H does not
intend to spend long enough in the hereditament to become a
rateable occupier. However, there is no lack of permanence in P's
case. Year after year he lets the caravans to holiday-makers. P is
therefore the rateable occupier of a hereditament which comprises
land and caravans.
<1Example 3>1
2. 111g P is the proprietor of a caravan site on which stand
caravans used as homes. Each caravan has a small garden round it.
2.111h All the caravans have been in position for at least a year.
H has one of the caravans as his home, and he intends to continue
to live there in the foreseeable future.
2.111i In this case the caravans (which are chattels) have been
enjoyed with the land for a longish period and thus have a
sufficient degree of permanence to become part of the heredita-
ment.
2. 111j As far as rateable occupation is concerned, there is a
sufficient degree of permanence associated with H's occupation, to
cause him to become the rateable occupier. The hereditament in
this case will be the caravan with its garden.
2.111k It will be seen from the above examples, that intention is
an important ingredient of permanence and thus of rateable
occupation.
<2Other Matters to do with Rateable Occupation>2
<1(a) Ratepayer Specified by Statute>1
2.112 There are a number of properties where, instead of
deciding who is the rateable occupier by means of the above tests,
Parliament has specified the person who is to pay the rates. The
properties include leisure caravans, dwelling-houses occupied in
parts, advertising stations, sporting rights, and properties subject
to the unoccupied rate or rating surcharge (see chapters 3 and 13).
<1(b) Occupation ofPart of a Hereditament>1
2.113 The general rule is that if a person occupies only part of a
hereditament he will be deemed to be in rateable occupation of the
45
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
whole hereditament and liable to pay rates on the whole
hereditament.<s49>s
2. 114 Thus if a large mansion house and grounds form one
hereditament and the occupier chooses to live in only two rooms,
he will still have to pay rates on the whole hereditament. Or if a
householder chooses not to use the top floor of his house,
provided the house is one hereditament, he will be liable for rates
on the whole building.
2. 114a The maxim "occupation of part is occupation of the
whole" can result in injustice. An example of this occurs when the
occupier of part of a hereditament is neither the owner of an
interest in, nor legally entitled to occupy, the other part. He may
never-the-less be asked by the rating authority to pay the rates on
the whole hereditament.
2.114b Such a situation arose in the case of <1Camden L.B.C. v.>1
<1Herwald.>1 1978 (C.A.). Mr Herwald was sub-tenant and occupier
of a one room office and factory A, (together with use of kitchen),
comprised within a hereditament which included two factories and
a three storey house and shop. The tenant of the whole heredita-
ment had died leaving the remainder of the hereditament vacant.
2.114c The rating authority tried to collect rates for the whole
hereditament from Mr. Herwald (this was because the rating
authority had no power to apportion rates as between different
parts of the hereditament). Mr. Herwald argued that rates can
only be levied on the <1occupier>1 of property and since he did not
occupy part of the hereditament he was not liable to pay rates on
that part.
2.114d In its decision the Court of Appeal quoted with approval
from an earlier decision:<s49a>s
"It is right that a person is only liable to be rated in respect of
property of which he is the occupier: [see s.16 of the General Rate
Act 1967]. But it does not follow that merely because he can show
that he does not in fact occupy part of premises in respect of which
a rate had been made, a distress warrant should not be issued. To
resist the issue of a warrant, he must show that the description of
the rated property in the valuation list includes on its face property
which he does not occupy."
2.114e The hereditament, part of which Mr. Herwald occupied
was described in the valuation list as "workshop and store." The
Court of Appeal said: "Factory A, which he occupies can fairly be
<s49>s But see <1Camden L. B. C. v. Herwald 1978>1, (C.A.).
<s49a>s <1Manchester Overseers v. Headlam & London & North Western Railway Co.,>1
(1888) (Q.B.D.).
46
<1Rateable Occupation>1
described as a "workshop," but on the findings of fact he does not
occupy anything which can be described as "store." Further, he
does occupy the office in the house, which is not covered by the
description in the list." In consequence Mr. Herwald was not
liable to pay on the hereditament as a whole or (because the rating
authority had no power to apportion rates) on the part. However,
where it is not possible, from the description in the valuation list,
to distinguish between the part of a hereditament which a person
occupies and the part which he does not occupy, then a person
who occupies only part of a hereditament may have to pay rates on
the whole.
2.114f Thus if in a multi-storey office block a person occupies
four floors, described as "offices" in the valuation list, but the
valuation officer by mistake includes five floors in the heredita-
ment, then that person may very well end up paying rates on the
five floors. This is because it would not be possible, from the entry
in the list, to show that he does not occupy the fifth floor. This is
why it is good practice in multi-occupation properties to include
the floor number or some other means of identification as part of
the description, in the valuation list.
2.115 Cases frequently arise where, for instance, there is a shop
with a flat above, both assessed as one hereditament, despite the
fact that the flat has a separate entrance opening on to the street.
The shopkeeper moves out of the flat, which remains empty, but
still the shopkeeper has to pay rates on the flat, because it forms
one hereditament with the shop. In order to avoid paying the
occupied rate on the flat it would be necessary for the shop and flat
to be assessed separately. Unfortunately it is not possible for a
ratepayer to choose how his property will be assessed. The rules
which prescribe what is to be included in a hereditament are quite
firm and are set out in the earlier part of this chapter.
2.116 In order to provide the circumstances necessary for the
formation of two separate hereditaments, it would be necessary
for the shopkeeper to show that he had abandoned the occupation
of the flat and did not intend to resume occupation in the future.
Thus if the shopkeeper genuinely offered the flat on the market
with a view of letting it, this might be sufficient evidence to justify
the flat and shop being assessed as separate hereditaments.<s50>s
2.117 At first it would appear that the above difficulties have
been overcome by the provisions of section 25 of the General Rate
Act 1967. Section 25 provides that "if it appears to the rating
<s50>s But see <1Moffatt (V.O.) v. Venus Packaging Ltd.,>1 1977.
47
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
authority that part of hereditament included in the valuation list is
unoccupied but will remain so for a short time only, the authority
may request the valuation officer to apportion the rateable value
of the hereditament between the occupied and unoccupied parts".
The rating authority may, if they agree the apportionment, charge
the occupier rates on the occupied part only.
2.118 In practice, section 25 does not overcome the occupier's
difficulties because the power to request the valuation officer to
make the apportionment is discretionary, and rating authorities
are advised to use it only when the occupied and unoccupied parts
of the hereditament would in the normal course of events be
capable of separate assessment. Section 25 would therefore appear
to be operated as a device to save the authorities the trouble of
making proposals, rather than for assisting occupiers.<s50>s
48
<1Chapter 3>1
<2RATING OF OWNERS>2
3.1 Rating is basically an occupiers tax but in certain cases a
statute may provide for the rating of the owner or some other
person, in place of the occupier. These cases include:--
<1(A)>1 Dwelling houses occupied in parts;
(B) Caravan sites for leisure caravans;
<1(C)>1 Advertising stations;
<1(D)>1 Sporting rights;
<1(E)>1 The compulsory or voluntary compounding of owners;
<1(F)>1 Unoccupied buildings;*
(G) Unused buildings;*
(H) Rent paid inclusive of rates
It should be noted that the definition of "owner" is not the same in
every case.
<2(A) Dwelling Houses Occupied in Parts>2
3.2 Valuation Officers and the rating authorities can experience
difficulty in assessing and collecting rates on houses which are in
multi-occupation. The difficulties occur where the house has not
been converted into self-contained flats and where the owner or
the owner's servant is not on the premises. In such circumstances,
case law requires the valuation officer to make a separate assess-
ment for each occupier. But experience shows that the occupiers
frequently exchange roorns, necessitating a change in the valuation
list, and are continually moving to and from the property. Once an
occupier has moved away it may be very difficult to trace him and -
collect the rates.
3.3 In order to overcome these difficulties section 24, of the
General Rate Act 1967 enables the valuation officer, <1at his>1
<1discretion,>1 to assess the whole house as a single hereditament; in
which case the owner will be liable to pay rates. The legislation
only operates where the building was constructed or has been
adapted
(a) for the purpose of a single dwelling; or
<1(b)>1 as to part thereof for such purpose and as to the remainder
* This topic is dealt with in chapter 13.
49
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
thereof for any purpose other than that of a dwelling, and in
either case
(c) where it is occupied in parts
It follows that section 24 applies, not only to a normal dwelling-
house but also to a dwelling-house which is itself part of a building,
the other portion of which is used for some non-residential
purpose. An example of this would be the living accommodation
attached to a shop.
3.4 A purpose built block of flats is not within the scope of the
section, nor even a house converted into self-contained flats,
because these are buildings constructed or adapted for use as
several dwelling-houses and not a single dwelling-house.
3.5 The person to be rated under section 24 is not necessarily
the same as the owner for other rating purposes; it is "the person
who receives the rents", as compared with the person entitled to
do so, and whereas the former would include an agent the latter
would not.
3.6 Before deciding to assess the dwelling as a single heredita-
ment the valuation officer must have "regard to all the circum-
stances of the case, including the extent, if any, to which the
parts separately occupied have been severed by structural alter-
ations, . . ." This would suggest that he should not assess a
dwelling-house as a single hereditament, if the parts have been
structurally separated to a substantial extent.
3.7 Whether or not to assess a dwelling-house as a single
hereditament is entirely at the discretion of the valuation officer.
"Any person who is aggrieved" by the entry of the dwelling-house
in the valuation list, as a single hereditament, may make a
proposal to alter the valuation list.<s1>s However, when considering
the proposed alteration, the Court cannot use its discretion in
place of the valuation officer's discretion.<s2>s All they can do is to
decide whether the valuation officer has complied with the terms
of the section. For example, has he established that the building was
constructed or adapted as a single dwelling-house and has he had
regard to "all the circumstances?"
<2(B) Caravan Sites for Leisure Caravans>2
3.8 Difficulty in assessing and collecting rates is also experi-
enced in the case of leisure caravans. Since the decision in <1Field>1
<s1>s Section 69(1) General Rate Act, 1967 see paragraph 14.39.
<s2>s <1tones v. William (V.O.) and Cardiff City Council,>1 1970.
50
<1Rating of Owners>1
<1Place Caravan Park Ltd. v. Harding (V.O.)>1, 1966, a caravan
standing on a commercial caravan site for a year or more is
rateable as a separate hereditament. The person who is rateable, is
the person who lives in the caravan or who occupies it for leisure
purposes. This is so even if the person who occupies the caravan
for leisure purposes is prevented by some licensing or planning
restriction, from using it during the winter months.<s2a>s
3.9 The Field Place decision did not distinguish between a
caravan which is occupied throughout the year as a home and a
caravan which is only occupied for part of the year for leisure
purposes. Both types have in practice been assessed as separate
hereditaments. Because of the problem of contacting the rateable
occupier, it is more difficult to assess and collect rates from leisure
caravans than from caravans which are used as homes. To help
overcome this problem the Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976 gave
the valuation officer a discretionary power to "treat all or any of
those pitches as forming a single hereditament together with so
much, if any of the site as is in the occupation of the site
operator."<s3>s Before the valuation officer can exercise his discretion
certain conditions have to be met:--
<1(i)>1 there must be pitches for <1leisure>1 caravans.<s4>s
(ii) the area of the caravan site<s5>s must not be less than 400
square yards.
(iii) there must be a planning or licencing restriction which
prevents the caravan site from being used during the whole
year.
(iv) the pitches must be separately occupied by persons other
than the site operator, so that each pitch would (apart from
the Act) be a separate hereditament.
<2Note:>2 "Pitch" for this purpose includes the caravan on the pitch
but only if it would have been part of the rateable hereditament in
the normal way (see paragraphs 2.108 and 2.111).
3.10a If all these conditions are met and the valuation officer
exercises his discretion to assess the pitches together as a single
<s2a>s <1Stout v. Capstick (V. O.),>1 1978 but see <1Angus Assessor v. Allan and Others,>1 1976;
<1Thomson & Thomson v. Dumfries & Galloway Assessor,>1 1974; (Scottish cases not
binding on the English and Welsh courts).
<s3>s Section 1(1) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976, see also section 1(2).
<s4>s "Pitch for a leisure caravan." is explained in section 6(c) Rating (Caravan Sites)
Act, 1976. Caravan is defined in section 29 Caravan Sites and Control of
Development Act, 1960 as amended by section 13 Caravan Sites Act, 1968.
<s5>s Defined in section 6(b) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976.
51
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
hereditament, then the site operator<s6>s will be the rateable occupier.
This should make the assessment and collection of rates easier.
The single hereditament in this case is to be valued direct to net
annual value despite the fact that it includes caravans.
3. 10b For the purposes of determining whether (under the
provisions of section 48, General Rate Act, 1967) reduced rates in
the pound are to be levied on the single hereditament, any caravan
pitches which are included in the single hereditament but which
are separately occupied (by some person other than the site
operator), are to be treated as used for the purposes of private
dwellings.
3.11 The valuation officer must give notice to the site operator
stating the number of caravans included in the hereditament and
their aggregate value. This notice must be displayed on the site.
3.11a Under certain circumstances the occupier of a pitch for a
leisure caravan can make a proposal to have his caravan assessed
separately,<s7>s but he cannot object to the valuation officer's pro-
posal to assess the pitches as a single hereditament.<s8>s
3.12 It is interesting to note that where the pitches are assessed
as a single hereditament, the site operator will pay rates not only
on the value of the land which he lets out but also on the value of
caravans which he, in all probability, neither owns nor occupies.
3.12a The valuation of caravans is examined in paragraphs 9.83
to 9.90.
<2(C) Advertising Stations>2
3.13 In the past, difficulties have arisen over the assessment of
advertising stations. For example, a small end-of-terrace cottage
has a very prominent advertisement painted on its end wall. The
advertisement is more valuable than the cottage. The cottage is let
to one person but the owner has let the advertising rights on the
end wall to another person. This situation raises a number of
questions. Should the rating assessment of the cottage include the
value of the right to advertise on the side wall, and, if so, who
should pay the rates, the tenant of the cottage, the licensee of the
advertisment, or the owner? Or should the cottage and the
advertisement form two separate assessments, and, if so, who is
liable to pay the rates?
<s6>s Defined in section 6(d) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976. See section 1(3)
Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act, 1960.
<s7>s Section 1(7) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976.
<s8>s Section 1(5) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976.
52
<1Rating of Owners>1
3.14 Various attempts have been made over the years to solve
the problems created by advertising, in a logical way and without
causing hardship. The law has now been consolidated in section 28
of the General Rate Act, 1967.
3. 15 <2Subsection (1)>2 Where the <2right>2 to use any land for the
purpose of exhibiting advertisements is:--
(a) let out or reserved to
<1(b)>1 any person other than the occupier of the land or where the
land is not occupied for any other purpose, to any person
other than the owner of the land then the right shall be
deemed to be
(i) a separate hereditament
(ii) in the occupation of the person entitled to the <2right.>2
3.16 For the above purposes the word land includes any struc-
ture or sign erected or to be erected on the land. also any wall or
other part of a building. When the advertising <2rights>2 form a
separate hereditament, the assessment must include the value of
any structure or sign erected for the purpose of exhibiting advertis-
ments, no matter who erected it, or whether it was erected before
or after the right was let out or reserved.
3. 17 <2Subsection>2 (2) The separate hereditament referred to in
subsection 1 is an incorporeal hereditament and will be treated as
coming into existence when either:--
(a) any structure or sign is erected (after the right has been let
out), or
(b) any advertisement is exhibited, whichever is the earlier.
3. 18 <2Subsection>2 (3) (applies only if subsection (1) does not
apply). Where land is used temporarily or permanently:--
<1(a)>1 for the exhibition of advertisements or for the erection of
any structure used for the exhibition of advertisements,
<1(b)>1 the land is not otherwise occupied, then
<1(i)>1 the value of the <2land>2 shall be the value for that use
(ii) the person permitting the <2land>2 to be used shall be liable
for rates on that <2land>2 (or if that person cannot be
ascertained the owner of the <2land).>2
3.19 <2Subsection>2 (4) (applies only if subsection <1(1)>1 does not
apply) .
Where land:--
(a) is rateable in respect of its occupation for other purposes
53
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(b) is used temporarily or permanently for the erection of any
structure used for the exhibition of advertisements, then
<1 (i)>1 the value of that <2hereditament>2 shall include any increase
in value due to the advertising.
3.20 In section 28 the word "structure" includes a hoarding,
frame, post, or wall. "Owner" is defined in section 115 of the
General Rate Act, 1967.
3.21 Subsection (1) above does not apply to any right to use for
the purposes of exhibiting advertisements any land forming part of
a railway or canal premises within the meaning of section 32 of the
General Rate Act, 1967.
3.22 In the case cited at the beginning of this part of this
chapter, the advertising right is let out to someone other than the
occupier of the house. It follows from subsection <1(1)>1 above that
the advertising <2right>2 will form a separate hereditament and its
assessment will reflect the value of the wall on which the advertise-
ment is exhibited. The person to whom the advertising right has
been let will be the rateable occupier of the hereditament. The
cottage will be assessed in the normal way and the tenant will be
rateable.
<2(D) A Right of Sporting>2
3.23 A right of sporting means any right of fowling, of shooting,
of taking or killing game or rabbits or of fishing.<s9>s The right of
sporting may be exercised by the occupier of the land, over which
the sporting rights exist, or by some other person.
3.24 A right of sporting may be:--
A. assessed together with the land over which it is exercised
(where that land is rated)<s10>s
B. exempt together with the land over which it is exercised
(where that land is exempt from the rates, e.g. agricultural
land)
C. assessed separately.ii
3.25 A. Few problems arise where the occupier of the land also
exercises the sporting rights. In these cases the assessment of the
land is enhanced by the value of the sporting rights and the
occupier of the land is liable for the rates.
<s9>s Section 16, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s10>s Section 29 General Rate Act, 1967.
<s11>s Sections 16 and 29 General Rate Act, 1967.
54
<1Rating of Owners>1
3.26 B. Where the land is agricultural land, and the occupier
also exercises the sporting rights, then because there is no assess-
ment for the land (it being exempt) the occupier does not have to
pay rates on the sporting rights.
3.27 It should be noted that if agricultural land or woodland is
"kept or preserved mainly or exclusively for the purpose of sport
or recreation"<s12>s it looses its exemption from rates. In such a case
the land would be rateable and its assessment would be increased
by the value of the sporting rights.
3.28 C. The rules for assessing rights of sporting, where the
occupier of the land does not exercise the right of sporting, are as
follows:--
(a) The general rule is that, when the right of sporting is
"severed" from the occupation of the land, the right is to be
assessed as a separate hereditament.<s13>s
(b) The exception to this general rule occurs where:--<s14>s
<1(i)>1 the right is severed from the occupation of the land
(ii) the land is not agricultural land and
(iii) the right is not let and
(iv) the owner of the right receives the rent for the land, in
which case the value of the right of sporting will be
included in the assessment of the land. The result of
this exception is that the occupier of the land will be
called on to pay rates on sporting rights which he is not
entitled to exercise. To correct this injustice it is
provided that, in the above case, where the assessment
of the land has been increased by the value of the right
of sporting, then the occupier may deduct the increase
from his rent.<s15>s The valuation officer if requested by
the occupier will certify the value attributable to the
sporting right.
The sporting right is severed from the land but not let,
where, for instance, the owner lets the land but reserves the
sporting rights for himself.
3.29 Other than in the exception mentioned above, the person
liable for the rates will be:--
(a) where the right is
(i) severed from the occupation of the land, and
<s12>s Section 26(3)(a) General Rate Act, 1967.
<s13>s Section 16 General Rate Act, 1967.
<s14>s Section 29(1) General Rate Act, 1967.
<s15>s Section 65 General Rate Act, 1967.
55
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(ii) let
then, at the rating authority's discretion, either the
owner or the lessee of the land may be rated.
(b) subject to <1(a)>1 above, where the right is
<1(i)>1 severed from the occupation of the land, then the owner
of the right may be rated.
3.30 Owner is defined as:--
(a) where the right is not let--the person entitled to exercise
the right;
(b) if the right is let--the person entitled to receive the rent.
The exact meaning of the words "severed" and "let" is of
importance when applying the provision of the General Rate
Act, 1967.
3.31 Severance can occur in one of two ways:--
<1(a)>1 by the owner of the land letting the land and reserving the
sporting rights to himself (the letting of the land does not
have to be by deed)i<s6>s or
<1(b)>1 by the owner-occupier of the land letting the sporting rights
by deed.<s17>s
3.32 It follows that, if the sporting rights are let otherwise than
by deed, they are not treated as being severed from the land.
Where section 29 of the General Rate Act, 1967 refers to the
lettin of sporting rights, it means let by deed.<s18>s
<2(E) Compounding>2
3.33 When an owner agrees with an occupier to pay the rates,
the agreement does not affect the occupier's liability to the rating
authority, and if the rate is not paid action for recovery <1may18a>1 be
taken against the occupier; although he would have the right to
proceed against the owner for failing to observe the agreement.
There are, however, statutory provisions which, in certain cir-
cumstances, make the owner instead of the occupier liable to the
rating authority. Here again the legal liability will not be affected
<s16>s <1Cleobury Mortimer R. D. C. v. Childe,>1 1933.
<s17>s <1Towler v. Thetford R.D.C.,>1 1929.
<s18>s <1Swayne v. Howelis & Another,>1 1927.
Note.---Because a right of sporting is an incorporeal hereditament it can only be let
by deed. Any attempt to let a right of sporting other than by deed will operate as
the grant of a licence.
<s18a>s But see paragraphs 3.50 to 3.54.
56
<1Rating of Owners>1
by any agreement between owner and occupier as to who should
pay the rate.
3.34 The system whereby an owner is made liable to the rating
authority for the rate is known as "compounding", and the present
law is contained in section 55 and 56 of the General Rate Act,
1967. For the purpose of these sections an owner is "the person
who is, or if the hereditament were occupied would be, entitled to
receive the rent payable in respect thereof, or where the heredita-
ment is occupied free of rent the person by whose permission it is
so occupied".<s19>s
3.35 An owner-occupier does not fall within the above
definition.<s20>s It, therefore, follows that an owner-occupier cannot
be compounded, nor is he entitled to any allowance.
3.36 There are two kinds of compounding--compulsory and
voluntary--and as each kind is subject to different rules it is
necessary to consider them in turn.
3.37 <2Compulsory compounding>2 is effected by the rating author-
ity passing a <2resolution>2 directing that the owners of <2all>2 the
hereditaments in their area of a class defined in the resolution shall
be rated instead of the occupiers. The classification of heredita-
ments <2must>2 be made by reference to rateable value, and, at the
discretion of the authority, it <1may>1 also be made by reference to the
interval at which rent from time to time becomes payable or is
collected. No hereditament may be included in the classification if
its rateable value exceeds #200.<s21>s The rating authority may fix a
lower rateable value limit.
3.38 An owner who has been rated under section 55 is entitled
to an allowance of 10 per cent (or such other percentage as the
rating authority may resolve<s21a>s) of the amount payable if payment
is made within a specified period. Eligibility for the discount
depends on the rates being paid before the expiration of one-half
of the period of the rate, or half the period of the instalment where
the rates are so payable, unless the resolution of the rating
authority specifies a later date or dates.
3.39 Owners cannot terminate compulsory compounding but
the rating authority may do so by means of a rescinding resolution
<s19>s Section 115(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s20>s <1R v. Propert,>1 1911.
<s21>s Rating of Owners Order 1972 S.I. 1972 No. 1983. The Secretary of State for the
Environment (previously the Minister) has power to alter the rateable value limits
(section 55(5) General Rate Act, 1967).
<s21a>s General Rate Act 1967 section 55 as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act 1980 section 36.
57
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
which will take effect on the expiration of a rate period. Another
way in which the owners of particular hereditaments might cease
to be rated is by an increase in the rateable value of the
hereditament.
3.40 Although as a result of compulsory compounding the
owner becomes liable to the rating authority for the rate, his
liability exists only for so long as the property is rateably occupied.
The ordinary rules of rateable occupation still apply, for all that
the resolution of the rating authority does is to cause the owner to
be rated instead of the occupier. Thus if the occupier leaves and
the hereditament becomes empty, the owner's liability under the
compounding provisions cease. (However, the owner may become
liable to pay rates under the unoccupied rate or the rating
surcharge provisions. See chapter 13.)
3.41 <2Voluntary compounding>2 occurs when the owner of a
hereditament enters into an agreement with the rating authority.<s22>s
No resolution of the rating authority is required, and such
agreements may be made in respect of any hereditament provided
that the rent becomes payable or is collected at intervals shorter
than quarterly. In this case there is no limit of rateable value, and
it is not necessary for the agreement to relate to all the heredita-
ments of that class within the rating area, or even to all those
belonging to the owner; if desired an agreement may be made in
respect of only one hereditament.
3.42 Three types of agreement are possible: the owner may
agree (1) to pay the rates irrespective of whether the hereditament
is occupied or not, or <1(2)>1 to pay the rates only for such time as the
hereditament is occupied, or (3) to collect the rates from the
occupier on behalf of the authority. In return for such an under-
taking, and provided the amounts due are paid over on or before
the dates specified in the agreement, the owner may receive an
allowance from the rating authority. The Act prescribes allow-
ances for each type of agreement, namely, 10, 71/2 and 5 per cent
respectively (or such other percentages as the rating authority may
resolve<s22>s), but if the owner is already rated by virtue of a
resolution of the rating authority (i.e. compulsory compounding)
these allowances are in substitution for any which is payable as a
result of such resolution (see paragraph 3.38). It is apparent that
where compulsory compounding applies to a hereditament it is not
normally advantageous for the owner to enter into a voluntary
agreement.
<s22>s Section 56, General Rate Act, 1967, as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act 1980 section 36.
58
<1Rating of Owners>1
3.43 If the owner is unable to collect all the rent and rates due
from the tenant, then the amount of rates which he must pay to the
rating authority is to be proportionate to the sum which he has
collected. In other words if the owner only manages to collect half
the amount due from the tenant, then he must pay half the rates.<s23>s
3.44 The rating surcharge and the unoccupied rating provisions
do not apply to a hereditament where, under section 56(1)(a), the
owner has agreed to pay rates whether or not the property is
occupied.<s24>s They apply in all other cases where properties are
compounded.
3.45 Once an agreement has been made it continues in force
until it is determined by notice given by either the rating authority
or the owner, and if the property changes hands the new owner
will be bound by the agreement as if he had been an original party
to it. A notice determining the agreement cannot become effective
before the expiration of the first complete rate period after it has
been served, for example, if the rate period is a yearly one and a
notice determining an agreement was served in February, 1977,
then the earliest date from which it would be effective is 1st April,
1978.
3.46 Whereas between the owner and the occupier, the occu-
pier is liable to pay the rate, the question arises as to whether the
compounded owner can recover the full amount of the rate from
the occupier, or whether he can only recover the net amount (i.e.
the full rate less any discount). Where the hereditament concerned
is a dwelling-house, schedule 4 of the Rent Act, 1968, provides
that the owner can recover the gross amount, thus leaving the
owner with the benefit of the discount.
3.47 In the case of hereditaments not falling within the Rent
Act, 1968, it would appear that the owner may only be entitled to
recover the net amount of rates which he pays.
(F) <2Unoccupied Buildings>2
3.48 See chapter 13.
<2(G) Unused Buildings>2
3.49 See chapter 13.
<s23>s Section 56(5) General Rate Act, 1967.
<s24>s Schedule 1 para. 2(e) General Rate Act, 1967.
59
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<2(H) Rent Paid Inclusive of Rates>2
3.50 A liability to pay rates may fall on the owner of a
hereditament, in the following circumstances<s25:>s--
(i) Where under the terms of the agreement, which exists
between the owner and the occupier it is the owner who is
liable to pay the rates and
(ii) Where the occupier has paid rent to the owner or his agent.
In such a case the rating authority <1may>1 collect rates from the
owner or agent, just as if he was in occupation of the heredita-
ment.
3.51 However, if the occupier does not pay his full rent, the
owner is not liable to pay the full rates. The owner will only have
to pay to the rating authority, that proportion of the rent which
represents rates.<s25>s
3.52 The above provision may be used to avoid a particularly
unfortunate situation; namely where a tenant has paid his rates to
the landlord but the landlord has not paid the rates to the rating
authority. Previously, in such a case, the rating authority had no
power to recover the rates from the owner but had to recover them
from the luckless tenant.
3.53 The provision also benefits the rating authority where in
the above circumstances, the occupier is for example an ambassa-
dor.<s25>s In such a case the rating authority could not enter the
embassy to distrain on goods, nor could it take the ambassador to
court.<s26>s
3.54 The above provision does not apply where the owner is
compounded.<s25>s
<s25>s Section 60, General Rate Act 1967 as amended by section 37, Local Govern-
ment, Planning and Land Act 1980.
<s26>s See paragraph 4.74.
60
<1Chapter 4>1
<2EXEMPTIONS AND RELIEFS FROM RATES>2
4.1 In its original form the Poor Relief Act, 1601, provided for
the taxation of "every inhabitant, parson, vicar and other, and of
every occupier of land, houses, tithes, impropriate or propriations
of tithes, coal mines or saleable underwoods", but a number of
amendments has since been made to this provision. Thus, the Poor
Rate Exemption Act, 1840, relieved inhabitants in respect of
ability derived from stock-in-trade, and the Rating Act, 1874,
repealed the words "saleable underwoods" but extended the Act
of 1601 to sporting rights severed from the occupation of land and
to mines of every kind.<s1>s The result is that at first sight nearly all
kinds of occupation appear to be rateable, but the extent of the
liability is limited by common law, which exempts Crown occupa-
tion, and statutes which exempt various occupiers.
4.2 At this stage it must be emphasised again that it is an
occupier who is rated and therefore it is an occupier who is exempt
from rates. Although it is often more convenient to speak of
certain kinds of property as being exempt, such practice must not
be allowed to obscure the basic principle.
<2Common Law Exemption>2
<1The Crown>1
4.3 There is a general rule of law to the effect that if the Crown
is not mentioned in a statute it is not bound by it. Since the Crown
was not mentioned in the Act of 1601, and has not been made
rateable by later Acts,<s2>s Crown occupation is not rateable.<s3>s There
are, however, several types of Crown occupation, and it is
necessary to distinguish between them in order to show the range
of the exemption. First, there is occupation by the Sovereign
herself, then there is occupation by servants of the Crown, and
finally there is occupation by persons who are not strictly servants
of the Crown but who perform certain duties on behalf of the
<s1>s This Act also included land used for a plantation or a wood or for the growth of
saleable underwood, but as respects agricultural land this has been repealed.
<s2>s See section 37 and 38 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
<s3>s <1Jones v. Mersey Docks,>1 1865.
61
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Crown. Occupation by the Sovereign does not normally present
any difficulty, but problems have arisen in the other two cases.
4.4 It has been stated already that a servant who is obliged to
occupy certain premises as part of his duties will be regarded as
occupying in the name of his master,<s4>s and this rule applies equally
to occupation by servants of the Crown. This is the reason why
occupation by ministers of the Crown in their official capacity
is not rateable, so that the occupation of custom posts, army
barracks, government offices, and the like, is exempt.<s3>s A
N.A.A.F.I. canteen has escaped liability on the ground that the
N.A.A.F.l. is a trustee or agent for the Crown.<s5>s The Post Office,
which was originally exempt as a Crown occupation, has now
become a corporation and in consequence is rateable,<s6>s as indeed
are other Government Corporations such as the B.B.C. and the
British Steel Corporation.
4.5 According to the theory of the constitution certain public
services are regarded as being administered by the Crown even
though, as a matter of convenience, this administration is carried
out in different localities separately. In cases of this kind it is
necessary to look beyond the person occupying, to the object of
the occupation, thus, assize courts and police buildings are a
charge on local funds but are not regarded as being used for local
government purposes,<s7>s and county courts and judges' lodgings are
in the same category. This distinction is important, for such
premises are consequently deemed to be occupied by the Crown;
but the occupation must be for the purpose of the Crown and not
merely for public purposes with which the Crown is associated. It
has been held, for example, that Edinburgh University was not
exempt merely because the university had been created by royal
charter, or because the Crown was a visitor.<s8>s
4.6 It may happen that the same building is occupied partly for
Crown purposes and partly for purposes of local government, in
which case it would appear that the portion of the building not
used for Crown purposes is rateable. Thus, in the case of the
<1Clerkenwell Sessions House>1<s9>s that part of the premises occupied for
local administration purposes was held to be rateable whereas the
portion occupied purely for judicial purposes was held to be
<s4>s See paragraphs 2.55 to 2.59.
<s5>s <1N.A.A.F.I. v. Wiltshire C. V. C. and Others,>1 1943.
<s6>s <1Williams v. Neath,>1 1935.
<s7>s <1Coomber v. Berkshire J.J.,>1 1883.
<s8>s <1Greig v. Edinburgh University,>1 1868.
<s9>s <1Nicholson v. Holborn Union,>1 1886.
62
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
exempt. But occupation by the Crown is not invalidated by use for
some incidental purpose--for example, where a Territorial Army
drill hall was used for ordinary military purposes, but was also
used for weekly dances to which the public was admitted as well as
members of the company, the Crown exemption still applied.<s10>s
4.7 Sometimes servants of the Crown such as police officers and
soldiers are provided with houses and it then becomes necessary to
determine whether there is Crown or independent occupation. It
seems that if the occupiers live in the premises in the course of
their duties the occupation is that of the Crown, but if the
occupation is for their own convenience they will be in occupation
themselves and therefore rateable. In <1Martin v. West Derby>1
<1Union,>1 1883, a policeman was required to live in a house a quarter
of a mile from the police station and was found to be in occupation
himself on the ground that the house was given to him as part of
his remuneration. A similar decision was reached in <1Showers v.>1
<1Chelmsford Union,>1 1891, where the police offices were about a
mile from the house in question. On the other hand, where
policemen were compelled to live in houses which adjoined the
police station but which had front doors opening on to the street
the privilege of Crown exemption extended to these houses.<s11>s
4.8 A pair of rural police houses (occupied by police constables)
each had a hall connected to an office used for police purposes.
There were no cells. The office was seldom manned but was in
telephone communication with the main police stations in the
county. The telephone could be switched through to either house
so that it could be answered by the policeman's family, when no
one was in the office. Each house has a separate entrance. It was
held by the President of the Lands Tribunal that the houses were
rateable because the dominant use was as a dwelling house.<s12>s
4.9 In one or two instances an Act stresses the Crown exemp-
tion by specifically stating the occupation of certain property by
the Crown is not rateable. For example, militia storehouses and
premises appurtenant thereto were exempted from rating by the
Militia Law Amendment Act, 1854, and a similar provision was
made in respect of volunteer storehouses by the Volunteer Act,
1863. Such words, however, in no way affect the general rule and
must be regarded as having been inserted for the avoidance of
doubt.
<s10>s <1Derby (Territorial Army Association) v. Derby (S. E. Area) A. C.,>1 1935.
<s11>s <1Cross v. West Derby Union,>1 1899.
<s12>s <1Glamorgan County Council v. Ainsworth (Valuation Officer) and Pontypridd>1
<1Urban District Council,>1 1954. See also paragraphs 2.55 to 2.59.
63
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.10 The exemption of the Crown from liability for rates only
extends to Crown occupation of the kind already described.
Where the use which the Crown makes of the property does not
amount to occupation, for instance where rooms in a house are
taken as offices but the landlord remains the occupier, there is no
exemption.<s13>s For similar reasons there is no exemption when
Crown property is let to some private person, and even grace-and-
favour residences in a royal palace, which were occupied free of
rent by permission of the Sovereign, have been held to be in the
occupation of the subject.<s14>s
4.11 There are, however, a few cases in which the Crown
exemption has been limited by statute. For example, fortifications
are rateable under the Defence Act, 1860, at the amount at which
they were assessed before the land was taken for the purpose, but
at no higher sum.
4.12 One curious aspect of Crown property, where it is rate-
able, is that even if a sum is due there appears to be no means of
enforcing payment. A case<s15>s was tried where a postmaster refused
to pay the rates as levied and tendered a smaller amount. The
rating authority applied for a mandamus to compel the postmaster
to pay, but failed to obtain it because the court could not control
the Treasury as represented by the postmaster. Mr Justice Black-
burn said:--
"I have no doubt whatever but that it was intended by the
22nd section of the Telegraph Act, 1868, that the parish should
not be the losers by the transfer of the telegraphs--that they
should have the same rates they had, or ought to have had,
previously. But the Act provides no means of enforcing the
payment, and in that respect it is defective. All we can do is to
refuse the writ."
4.13 Another point worthy of notice is, that where the land has
been acquired, for example, under the Telegraph Act, and is
therefore rateable only at the sum at which it was rated prior to its
being taken by the Government, it does not become liable to rates
like other property, even when it has ceased to be used for
Government telegraphic purposes and has been let to another
occupier.<s16>s
4.14 Although Crown property is usually exempt from rating,
<s13>s <1R. v. Smith,>1 1860.
<s14>s <1R. v. Ponsonby,>1 1842.
<s15>s <1R. v. Postmater-General,>1 1873. (The Post Office is now a corporation and as
such is rateable.)
<s16>s <1St. Gabriel Fenchurch v. Williams,>1 1886.
64
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
contributions in aid of rates are frequently made by the Crown in
respect of it. The amount of such contributions is calculated by
reference to the rateable value determined by the Treasury
Valuer, but there is, of course, no way of contesting this figure
since the payment is an <1ex-gratia>1 one.
4.15 Section 37 of the General Rate Act, 1967, provides that
where any hereditament is occupied by or on behalf of the Crown
for public purposes, then no gross value is to be determined or
entered in the valuation list in respect of it, but an entry in the list
is required if a contribution is made in aid of rates. In these
circumstances the value on which the amount of the contribution is
computed is to be entered in the valuation list as the rateable value
of the hereditament; this value and the amount of the contribution
may then be taken into account for the purpose of ascertaining the
totals or the proceeds of any rate. It is further provided that the
entry shall not affect any question as to Crown contributions in
respect of rates, and an entry in the list does not mean there is an
obligation to make a contribution in the future.
4.16 Crown properties are not valued by valuation officers and
a general revaluation consequently does not affect these heredita-
ments, but following the introduction of a new valuation list the
Treasury Valuer carries out a revaluation of those Crown prop-
erties in respect of which contributions are made. Section 37 of the
General Rate Act, 1967, contains rules designed to meet two
problems which this revision may cause in the first year of the new
list. In ascertaining totals, if the value on which the contribution is
based is different from that in the valuation list when it comes into
force, then such value is to be regarded as having been in the list
from the beginning instead of the value which it supersedes.
Similarly, where a contribution has been revised within the first
two financial years from the coming into force of a new valuation
list, then for the purpose of ascertaining the proceeds of any rate
for the first year of the new list the revised contribution is to be
taken into account.
4.17 Section 38 of the General Rate Act, 1967<s17>s gives power to
police authorities for any police area and to the Receiver for the
Metropolitan Police District, as the case may be, to make con-
tributions in aid of rates in respect of any hereditaments which are
occupied for the purposes of their police force, (provided that no
rates are paid in respect of these hereditaments). It does not
matter if they are situated outside the police area.
<s17>s Amended by section 172 Local Government Act, 1972.
65
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.18 The value on which the contribution is computed is
entered in the valuation list as representing the rateable value of
the hereditament, and this value, or the amount of the contribu-
tion, is taken into account for the purpose of ascertaining totals or
the proceeds of any rate. As in the case of other hereditaments
occupied or deemed to be occupied by the Crown, no gross value
is determined or entered in the list.
<1Foreign Sovereigns and Foreign States>1
4.19 Foreign sovereigns and foreign states are by common law
exempt from the processes of the English Courts. If follows that,
even if a demand note for rates was served, there would be no
method of enforcing payment.
<2Exemption by Statute>2
<1Agricultural Land and Buildings>1
4.20 Under section 26 of the General Rate Act, 1967, no
agricultural land or agricultural buildings shall be liable to be rated
or be included in any valuation list or in any rate.
<1(a)>1 " <2'Agricultural land'>2 means any land used as arable
meadow or pasture ground only, land used for a plantation
or a wood or for the growth of saleable underwood, land
exceeding 0-10 hectare used for the purpose of poultry
farming, cottage gardens exceeding 0- 10 hectare, market
gardens, nursery grounds, orchards or allotments, including
allotment gardens within the meaning of the Allotments
Act, 1922, but does not include land occupied together with
a house as a park, gardens (other than as aforesaid),
pleasure grounds, or land kept or preserved mainly or
exclusively for purposes of sport or recreation, or land used
as a race-course; and for the purpose of this definition the
expression "cottage garden' means a garden attached to a
house occupied as a dwelling by a person of the labouring
classes."
<1(b)>1 Includes land occupied with, and used solely in connection
with the use of, such a building as is mentioned in subsec-
tion (4) <1(b)>1 of this section.
4.21 The definition of <1agricultural land>1 was extended by the
Rating Act, 1971, to include land occupied with and used solely in
connection with, the use of one or more agricultural buildings, as
defined in sections 2, 3 and 4 of the Act.
66
4.22a The word "used," which appears several times in the
definition, is important insofar that if the land under consideration
is not <1used>1 (for the specified purposes) it will not fall within the
definition of agricultural land and will not be exempt from rates. It
follows that it must not necessarily be assumed that an area of land
is "agricultural" land, just because it is covered with grass;
enquiries should be made to determine its use.
4.22b However if land is <1used>1 for one of the specified purposes,
it will not necessarily be deprived of its exemption because the
land forms part of a wider purpose. For example in <1Young (V.O.)>1
<1v. West Dorset District Council,>1 1976, some land attached to riding
stables was <1used>1 for grazing horses. The Lands Tribunal decided
that it was only necessary to look at the "use which is carried on on
that land" and not to look beyond that use to the "ultimate
purpose of the occupier." The grazing land was therefore exempt
from rates.
4.22c Usually, it is quite clear whether or not land is covered by
the definition, but there are a few words and phrases which require
some comment.
4.23 Although land has to be used as arable, meadow or pasture
<1only>1 in order to gain exemption, a trifling use for some other
purpose is not sufficient to take it out of the definition. Thus, the
occasional use of a field by a village football team would probably
be a use which could be ignored as being of no consequence to
the occupier.<s17>sa "Land kept or preserved <1mainly>1 or <1exclusively>1
for the purposes of sport or recreation" is expressly excluded
from the definition of agricultural land.
4.24 Where a farmer, intending to re-seed a field, sold the
existing turf but pastured his cattle in the field while waiting for the
vendor to remove the turf, the field ceased to be exempt because it
was not in use as pasture land <1only,>1 the supply of turf being a
non-agricultural use which is outside the category of <1de minimis>1
user.<s18>s The importance of the conflicting use is, however, a
question of fact and therefore each case must be considered on its
merits.<s18a>s
4.25 "Cottage garden" means a garden attached to a house
occupied by a person of the labouring class, but no indication is
given of what is meant by labouring class. It has been suggested
that it means those persons whose work is chiefly manual even
though some knowledge and skill may be required, as opposed to
<s17a>s <1Eden (V.O.) v. Grass Ski Promotions Ltd.,>1 1980 (L.T.).
<s18>s <1Meriden and Solihull R.A. v. Tyacke,>1 1950.
<s18a>s Re appeal of Forrest (V.O.), 1980 (L.T.).
67
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
those who make a living from work which is mainly a matter of
knowledge and skill but which also requires some manual labour;
for example, factory workers are manual labourers but cooks are
not.i<s9>s To gain exemption cottage gardens must have an area in
excess of 0.10 hectare, but if the ground can fairly be described as
an allotment its area is immaterial. Allotment is another word
which is not defined, although there is reason to believe it is not
confined solely to allotments provided under various Allotments
Acts.<s20>s
4.26 "Park" has been held by the Lands Tribunal to mean park
in the ordinary sense of the word and not to be limited to meaning
an ancient legal park.<s21>s But before land loses its exemption as
agricultural land on the grounds that it is a park, it must be
occupied together with a house.
4.27 It is common to find that land used as a race-course is used
for agricultural purposes in the intervals between race-meetings,
and attempts have been made to treat such land as exempt from
rates on the ground that it is agricultural. For example, where a
farmer let one of his fields for motor cycle racing on a few
occasions each year but farmed it for the rest of the time, the land
was held to be used as a race-course and therefore not exempt.<s22>s
This case also shows that the respective periods spent in farming
the land and using it for some other purpose are irrelevant in
deciding whether the land is used as "arable, meadow or pasture
land only"; it might be pertinent, however, to have regard to the
receipts from each activity; those from motor-cycle racing, for
example, exceeded anything which might have been made from
farming. Again, in <1Sandown Park Ltd. v. Esher U.D.C. and Castle>1
<1(V.O.)>1, 1954, it was held by the Lands Tribunal and approved
by the Court of Appeal that some 29 acres of land in the centre
of the course was not agricultural land, although it had been let,
albeit on usually restrictive terms, for agricultural use and was so
used.
4.28 "Land <1used>1 as a race-course" is expressly excluded from
the definition of agricultural land. Note that the words "mainly or
exclusively" which were used to qualify land kept for "sport or
recreation", have not been used to qualify "land used as a
race-course".
4.29 Similarly, parts of golf courses which are used as grazing
<s19>s Ryde on Rating, 13th Edition, page 296.
<s20>s Ryde on Rating, 13th Edition, page 297.
<s21>s <1Earl of Devon v. Rees,>1 1951.
<s22>s <1Wimborne and Cranbourne R. D. C. v. East Dorset A. C.,>1 1940.
68
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
land will not normally rank as agricultural land,<s23>s and woodlands
kept mainly or exclusively for the purpose of sport or recreation
may still be rateably occupied.
4.30 When valuing land which has lost its agricultural exemp-
tion, for example where the land is used on a few occasions for
motor cycle racing, the value ascribed to the land should include
not only the rental value attributable to the motor cycle racing but
also any residual value attributable to agricultural operations
during the rest of the year.
4.31 <2Agricultural buildings>2 are defined in section 26(4)(a) of the
General Rate Act, 1967, as meaning:--
"Buildings (other than dwellings) occupied together with agri-
cultural land or being or forming part of a market garden, and in
either case used solely in connection with agricultural operations
theron."
4.32 This definition was first enacted by the Rating and Valua-
tion (Apportionment) Act, 1928, and operated very satisfactorily
until after the second world war, when farming methods began to
change.
4.33 "Occupied together with agricultural land" means that the
occupier of the land must also occupy the buildings in his capacity
of farmer. It is not necessary for the buildings to be on the
agricultural land or even adjoining it, nor is it necessary for the
buildings and land to be held under the same title.
4.34 The buildings must be "used solely in connection with
agricultural operations thereon", i.e. on the land with which they
are occupied. It has been recognised that a building may still be
"used solely in connection with agricultural operations" on the
agricultural land even if the operations on the land are slightly
different from the use to which the building is put. For example,
on a dairy farm the land is used for grazing cows, but they are
milked in a milking parlour, which is undoubtedly an agricultural
building. The use of the milking parlour is a necessary aid to the
agricultural operations carried out on the agricultural land. The
buildings are subsidiary or ancillary to the use of the agricultural
land.
4.35 After the second world war, factory farming was de-
veloped, i.e. the intensive raising of livestock in buildings. As a
result the use to which farm buildings were put became more and
more remotely connected with the agricultural operations on the
agricultural land.
<s23>s <1I.R. v. Countess of Cromartie,>1 1930, and <1Abernant Hotel and Estate Co. Lid. v.>1
<1Davies,>1 1954.
69
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.36 In <1Gilmore v. Baker-Carr,>1 1962, and again in <1Eastwood v.>1
<1Herrod,>1 1970, it was held that broiler houses in which chickens
were reared, were not agricultural buildings and were therefore
rateable. The chickens lived all their lives in the broiler houses
without going on to the agricultural land. (For rating purposes
there is a distinction between land and buildings, and this distinc-
tion persists even if the building has an earth floor.) Even though
the litter from the broiler houses was spread as manure on the
agricultural land, and even though the barley grown on the land
formed a small proportion of the food fed to the chickens,
nevertheless the House of Lords held that the broiler houses were
not <1used solely in connection with agricultural operations on the>1
<1agricultural land.>1 The rearing of chickens in the broiler houses was
a different operation from that of the growing of corn on the land.
In <1Gilmore v. Baker-Carr>1 it was suggested that far from the broiler
houses being used solely in connection with agricultural operations
on the land, it was exactly the other way round; namely that the
land was being used in connection with the operations in the
buildings.
4.37 Factory farming is in many ways more efficient than
traditional farming. The rating of factory farms was therefore a
deterrent to efficiency, and so the Rating Act, 1971, was passed.
4.38 By sections 1 and 2 of the Rating Act, 1971, the meaning of
<2agricultural building>2 was extended to include:--
any building used solely for the keeping or breeding of livestock,
and any building (other than a dwelling) which is
(a) occupied together with one or more such buildings, and
(b) used solely in connection with operations carried on in
them.
4.39 If the building is also occupied together with agricultural
land (as defined in section 26(3) of the General Rate Act, 1967),
the fact that the building is partly used in connection with
agricultural operations on that land, will not prevent it from being
an agricultural building.
4.40 But, the above buildings are only agricultural buildings if
they are "surrounded by or contiguous to an area of agricultural
land" (as defined in section 26(3) of the General Rate Act, 1967)
which is not less than two hectares in area.
4.41 In deciding whether or not a building is:--
(a) surrounded by or contiguous to an area of agricultual land,
and
(b) what the area of that agricultural land is,
there shall be disregarded any road, railway or watercourse, any
70
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
agricultural building and, if occupied with the first-mentioned
building, also any other building and any land which is not
agricultural land. For this purpose a railway includes the former
site of a railway from which the rails have been removed.
4.42 One theory as to why the exemption in the Rating Act,
1971, only applies to buildings which are surrounded by or
contiguous to agricultural land, is that an attempt is being made to
preserve the amenities in urban areas, by providing a disincentive
to the setting up of factory farms in these areas. This theory is
supported by the fact that the Act does not require the two
hectares of agricultural land to be in the same occupation as the
agricultural building.
4.43 The word "contiguous" has been considered by the courts
in connection with the now repealed legislation concerning indust-
rial de-rating. Contiguous, in its simplest form, means touching.
4.44 Livestock as defined "includes any <1mammal>1 or <1bird>1 kept
for the production of food or wool or for the purpose of its use in
the farming of land."
4.45 The Court of Appeal has decided that fish are not <1"live->1
<1stock",>1 for the purposes of the 1971 Act<s24>s and had the matter been
left there, Fish Farms would have been rateable. However, by a
new section added to the General Rate Act, 1967, (section 26A)
Fish farms are now exempt from rates, (see paragraphs 4.63a to
4.63e).
4.46 The Land Valuation Appeal Court in Scotland has held
that pigs kept at a pig progeny testing station did not fall within the
definition of livestock. This was because the pigs were kept for the
purpose of collecting scientific data and not for the production of
food.<s25>s
4.47 In order to fall within the definition of livestock, the
animal must be kept primarily for the production of food or wool
or for the purpose of its use in the farming of land.<s25a>s
4.48 By section 3 of the Rating Act, 1971, the meaning of
agricultural building is extended to include a building which is
occupied by a person keeping bees and which is used solely in
connection with the keeping of those bees. The same condition
applies in this case as applies to livestock buildings, namely that
the building must be surrounded by, or contiguous to, not less than
five acres of agricultural land.
<s24>s <1Cresswell (V.O.) v. B.O.C. Ltd.,>1 1980 (C.A.).
<s25>s <1Meat & Livestock Commission v. Stirlingshire Assessor>1 (1975); Section 5 Rating
Act, 1971.
<s25a>s <1tones (V.O.) v. Davis,>1 1977-mink farm rateable.
71
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.49 Sections 2 and 3 of the Rating Act, 1971, removed the
need for agricultural buildings to be <1used solely in connection with>1
<1agricultural operations on agricultural land.>1 This means that many
of the factory farms which were previously rateable, now come
within the definition of agricultural buildings and are exempt from
rates. The disincentive to become more efficient, has been re-
moved.
4.50 When deciding whether a building is used "solely" for
livestock, beekeeping or agriculture, any time during which it is
used in any other way is to be ignored, unless it is
"substantial"<s26.27>s
4.51 "Building" includes a separate part of a building.
4.52 Sleeping quarters and lavatories at an agricultural camp,
where fruit pickers stayed during the season, were held to be
dwellings and as such not agricultural buildings.<s27>s
4.53 By section 1(1)(b) of the Rating Act, 1971, land occupied
with and used solely in connection with the use of one or more
agricultural buildings (as defined in the 1971 Act) is to be included
within the definition of <2agricultural land.>2 This means that whilst
under the General Rate Act, 1967, it was necessary for there to be
agricultural land, before a building could be classed as an agri-
cultural building, under the Rating Act, 1971, if a building is
classed as an agricultural building, it follows that any land occu-
pied with it and used solely in connection with it, will be classified
as agricultural land. This is a complete reversal of the previous
position .
4.54 Some market gardens are not "occupied together with
agricultural land" but consist entirely of buildings, e.g. green-
houses. Because section 26(4)(a) of the General Rate Act, 1967,
uses the words "or being . . . a market garden" it has never been
necessary for a building used as a market garden to be "occupied
together with agricultural land" in order to qualify as an agricultu-
ral building.
4.55 Another change in farming which developed after the
second world war, was the joining together of farmers into groups
or syndicates to collectively own and operate certain agricultural
buildings. For instance, the installation of a grain drying plant is a
big investment, and might well be beyond the pocket of a small
farmer. However, if a number of farmers join together into a
group they will be able to share the cost of installing and running
<s26>s <1Home Grown Fruits Ltd. v. Paul (V.O.), 1974 and Corser (V.O.) v. Gloucester->1
<1shire Marketing Society Ltd.>1 , 1979.
<s27>s <1Winterton (V.O.) v. Friday Bridge Agricultural Camp Ltd.>1 , 1974.
72
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
the plant, and each will have the benefit of the grain dryer for his
own land.
4.56 Under the 1928 definition of an agricultural building, it
was necessary for the agricultural building to be "occupied
together with agricultural land". As already noted, "occupied
together with" has been held to mean that the occupier of the
building is one and the same person as the occupier of the
agricultural land (in connection with which the building is used).
This requirement could not be met when a group of farmers owned
and operated a building; the reason being that the building was
occupied by the group or syndicate, whilst the agricultural land
was occupied by individual farmers. The building was not, there-
fore, occupied by one and the same person as the agricultural land,
and consequently the building was not an agricultural building
within the 1928 definition.<s28>s
4.57 There was another reason which sometimes prevented a
building, occupied by a group or syndicate of farmers, from being
an agricultural building. This occurred when the farm land was
occupied by a company, but the company appointed one of its
directors to be a member of the syndicate which occupied the
building. In this case the agricultural operations were carried out
on the agricultural land by the company, but the company was not
a member of the syndicate (the director was the member of the
syndicate).<s28>s
4.58 Once again rating law was acting as a disincentive to
increased agricultural efficiency, because it was deterring farmers
from grouping together to improve their efficiency.
4.59 In 1961 Parliament added an extra paragraph to the
definition of <2agricultural buildings>2 (now to be found in section
26(4)(a) of the General Rate Act, 1967). This had the effect of -
exempting from rates, buildings occupied by groups of farmers
provided that:--
1. the buildings were used solely in connection with agricultural
operations carried out on agricultural land;
2. the buildings were occupied either by:
(a) the occupiers of all the land, or
(b) individuals appointed by the occupiers of the land, to
manage the use of the buildings; provided that each
individual was an occupier of some of the land or a
director or governor of a corporate body which occupied
some of the land;
3. the occupiers of all the land did not exceed 24 in number.
<s28>s <1Farmers' Machinery Syndicate>1 (11th Hampshire) <1v. Shaw,>1 1961.
73
4.60 The definition of <2agricultural land>2 was also extended to
include "land occupied with, and used solely in connection with
the use of such a building". This meant that any land occupied by
the syndicate and used solely in connection with the use of the
agricultural building, was to be exempt as agricultural land. Such
land would frequently not be used as arable, meadow or pasture
ground and apart from the extended definition would not have
been exempt from rates.
4.61 Unfortunately the above addition to the definition of an
<2 agricultural building>2 did not cover the case where the group or
syndicate which occupied the building was a corporate body. This
was because the corporation occupied the building but the agri-
cultural land was in the occupation of the individual members of
that corporation. So once again the building was not "occupied in
connection with" agricultural land.
4.62 The passing of section 4 of the Rating Act, 1971, overcom-
es the above difficulty and today a building does not lose its
exemption solely because it is occupied by a corporate body.
4.63 If buildings are used partly in connection with agricultural
operations on land <1not>1 occupied therewith, then they will not be
agricultural buildings (unless such use is a trifling one which would
fall within the general rule <1de minimis non curat lex).>1 Thus, in
<1 Perrins v. Draper,>1 1953, a dairy occupied with land which pro-
duced about one quarter of the total quantity of milk cooled,
bottled and pasteurised, was held not to be an agricultural
building. Reference should also be made to <1Parry v. Anglesey>1
<1 A.C.,>1 1948, where a garage in which a farmer kept his car that was
occasionally used for private purposes, was found to be not solely
used in connection with agricultural operations on the farm and
was therefore not exempt.
<1Fish Farms>1
4.63a Following the Court of Appeal's decision on Fish Farms
(see paragraph 4.45) the Local Government, Planning and Land
Act, 1980 section 31, added section 26A to the General Rate Act,
1980. Section 26A provides that land and buildings<s28a>s (other than
dwelling houses) shall not be liable to rates or included in any
valuation list, if used solely<s28b>s for or in connection with fish
farming.
<s28a>s Building includes a separate part of a building---General Rate Act, section
26A(4).
<s28b>s The General Rate Act, 1967 section 26A(3) gives a meaning to the word
"solely" and this is similar to the meaning in the Rating Act, 1971 (see paragraph
4.50).
74
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
4.63b <2"Fish Farming">2 means the breeding or rearing of fish or
the cultivation of shell fish (including crustaceans and molluscs of
any description) for the purpose of:--
(i) producing food for human consumption or
(ii) for transfer to other waters.
The use of the words <1"or transfer to other waters">1 suggests that
even if the fish are going to be used purely for sport in those "other
waters", nevertheless the Fish Farm in which they were reared will
be exempt from rates.
4.63c "Fish Farming" does not include the breeding, rearing or
cultivation of any fish or shell fish:--
<1(a)>1 which are purely ornamental, or
(b) which are bred, reared or cultivated for exhibition.
4.63d The buildings mentioned in section 26A do <1not>1 have to be
surrounded by or contiguous to 2 hectares of agricultural land in
order to be exempt from rates.
4.63e <2Dwelling-houses>2 occupied in connection with fish farms
are not exempt from rates but may receive some relief. They are
treated in a similar way to agricultural dwelling-houses<s28c>s
<1Agricultural Dwelling-houses>1
4.64 Dwelling-houses are, for the most part, excluded from the
definition of agricultural buildings and are in consequence,
rateable.<s29>s However, section 26(2) of the General Rate Act, 1967,
provides for a partial relief from rates in the case of agricultural
dwelling-houses. Section 26(2) defines those houses eligible for the
relief as:--
"a house occupied in connection with agricultural land and used
as the dwelling of a person who---
(a) is primarily engaged in carrying on or directing agricultural
operations on that land; or
(b) is employed in agricultural operations on that land in the
service of the occupier thereof and is entitled, whether as
tenant or otherwise, so to use the house only while so
employed."
4.65 Agricultural dwelling-houses do not have to be situated on
the agricultural land provided they are "occupied in connection
with agricultural land".
<s28c>s See General Rate Act, 1967 section 26A(2) and paragraphs 4.64-4.70 and
7.103-7.108.
<s29>s Section 26(4)(a) General Rate Act, 1967 and sections 2(1)(b), (3) and (4) Rating
Act, 1971.
75
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.66 Part (a) of the definition is applicable to the farmer or farm
manager. In these days of hobby farmers the word "primarily" has
become important. It is quite common for professional or business
men to own a farm. The question arises as to whether such people
are <1primarily>1 engaged in carrying on or directing agricultural
operations or whether they are primarily engaged in their other
activities. Every case must be decided on the facts of that
particular case. However, in coming to decisions, the Courts have
had regard to the difference between a person's farming activities
and his other activities as measured in time, money earned, and
even the convenience of the farm's situation to that person's other
activities.<s30>s
4.67a Part (b) of the definition is applicable to the farm worker.
In order to qualify the employee must be engaged in "agricultural
operations," thus the estates secretary/bookkeeper<s31>sa or the far-
mer's gardener, chauffeur, or maid would probably not fall within
the definition. The words "on that land" would probably exclude
an agricultural worker who spent his time planting and harvesting
other farmers' land under contract.
4.67b "Entitled, whether as tenant or otherwise, so to use the
house only while so employed" suggests that it does not matter
whether the farm worker is a tenant or a licensee, so long as he is
entitled to use the house only whilst he is employed in agricultural
operations on that land in the service of the occupier (i.e. a service
tenancy or a service occupancy). Thus a farm worker who owns his
own house or is, in the normal way, the tenant of a local authority
or a private landlord, will not receive the benefit given to
agricultural dwelling-houses. Agricultural dwelling-houses are
identified in the valuation list by the letters (AG).
4.68 The relief given to agricultural dwelling-houses flows from
the provision that they should be valued, as if they could only be
occupied and used as agricultural dwelling-houses. Thus, where an
agricultural dwelling-house is so situated that it would appeal both
to farmers and non-farmers, then in the open market the rental
value would be driven up by the competition between the two
groups. But for rating purposes the rental value must be estimated
as if the additional competition from non-farmers did not exist. It
will be appreciated that to be classified as an agricultural dwelling-
<s30>s <1Gammons v. Parsons,>1 1953 compared with <1Scott v. Billett (V.O.), 1956; Firkins>1
<1v. Dyer (V.O.), 1972; Pimm v. Port (V.O.), 1964 compared with Parris v. Griffin>1
<1(V. O.)>1, 1974.
<s31>s <1Parker-Jervis & Another (Hampden Settlement Trustees) v. Lane,>1 1973.
76
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
house is only of benefit when there is competition from non-
farmers to rent the house.
4.69 A farmer who lets a cottage to his farm worker is restricted
by law as to the amount of rent he can charge. In <1Bomford v.>1
<1South Worcestershire A.C.,>1 1947, it was held by the Court of
Appeal that the rating assessment was not limited to the maximum
rent which the farmer was entitled to recover from his farm
worker. Regard must be had to any additional rent which the
farmer might be prepared to pay in order to secure the cottage for
his farm worker.
4.70 The valuation of agricultural dwelling-houses is further
considered in paragraphs 7.103 to 7.108.
4.71 Where a house, is not an agricultural dwelling-house, but a
condition in the planning permission restricts its occupation to
those who are or were last engaged locally in the agricultural
industry or forestry and their dependants (but including a widow
or widower of such a person), then the effect of such a condition is
to be reflected in the rating assessment. Any reduction in the value
of such a dwelling is unlikely to be as great as that applicable to an
"agricultural dwelling-house" because such conditions are less
onerous than the requirements contained in section 26(2).<s31a>s
<1Air-Raid Works>1
4.72 Exemption from rates is given by section 46 of the General
Rate Act, 1967, to premises provided solely for affording protec-
tion in the event of air raids and which are not occupied or used for
any other purpose. The effect of the Act is that in finding the value
of a hereditament for rating, no regard is to be had to any increase
in value which is attributable to the existence of any air-raid
shelter<s32>s not used for some other purpose. But if the value of a
hereditament is reduced because an air-raid shelter has been
provided this reduction is to be taken into account.<s33>s
4.73 Similarly, where an air-raid shelter which is not occupied
or used for any other purpose is itself a hereditament, no rates are
payable in respect of it, and it is deemed to be incapable of
rateable occupation.
<1Ambassadors>1
4.74 By the Diplomatic Privileges Act, 1964, ambassadors and
<s31a>s <1Morton (V.O.) v. Dickinson,>1 1977 (L.T.).
<s32>s Shelters may be provided either by an addition to the hereditament or by the
adaptation of part of it.
as <1Waterlow & Sons, Ltd. v. Shoreditch A.C.,>1 1942.
77
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
certain members of their staff are exempt from the processes of the
English Courts. Since no criminal proceedings can be brought
against them, ambassadors and certain members of their staff are,
in effect, exempt from rates.
4.75 The exemption applies not only to the official embassy but
also the ambassador's private house, and to the houses of certain
members of his staff. The exemption, like the exemption of the
Crown, applies to the occupier and not the property, so that, if an
ambassador let his house to an ordinary member of the public, the
occupier would be rateable.
4.76 The Treasury makes a contribution in lieu of rates.
4.77 Consuls are not automatically exempt from rates. How-
ever, under the Consular Relations Act, 1968 as amended by the
Diplomatic and Other Privileges Act, 1971, consular premises are
exempt from rates.
4.78 Where a hereditament occupied by a person having diplo-
matic immunity has been let at an inclusive rent, the proportion of
the rate included in the rent may be recovered from the owner.<s34>s
4.79 The exemption from rates has been extended to various
international organisations such as the United Nations.<s35>s
<1Atomic Energy Authority>1
4.80 This Authority was established under the Atomic Energy
Authority Act, 1954, and the same Act provides that any land
occupied by the Authority is deemed to be occupied by or on
behalf of the Crown. Consequently, the rules, concerning Crown
exemption, which have been discussed above, will apply.
<1Charities and Other Organisations>1
4.81 In the past some charities and similar organisations re-
ceived relief from rates. The grant of this relief has sometimes
resulted from the provisions of an Act of Parliament, whilst on
other occasions it resulted from the rating authority remitting the
rates on the grounds of poverty, or the assessing authority
undervaluing the hereditament.
4.82 When the Inland Revenue took over the task of assessing
properties for rating purposes, the practice of underassessing
charities had to stop, and proper statutory provision had to be
made for the granting of relief.
<s34>s Section 60, General Rate Act, 1967 as amended by the Local Government
Planning and Land Act, 1980.
<s35>s The International Organisations Act, 1968; the Diplomatic Immunities (Com-
monwealth Countries and Republic of Ireland) Act, 1952; Diplomatic and Other
Privileges Act, 1971.
78
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
4.83 The latest attempt at providing a workable system of relief,
is contained in section 40 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
4.84 Section 40 provides for two types of relief:--
A. a fifty per cent mandatory relief;
B. a discretionary relief of any amount up to one hundred
per cent, granted by the rating authority.
4.85 A. By subsection <1(1)>1 <2mandatory relief>2 is granted to:--
(a) "any hereditament occupied by, or by trustees for, a
charity, and wholly or mainly used for charitable purposes
(whether of that charity or of that and other charities); or
(b) any other hereditament, being a hereditament held upon
trust for use as an almshouse."
4.86 <2"Charity>2 means any institution or other organisation
established for charitable purposes only." <2"Organisation>2 includes
any persons administering a trust . . ."
4.87 Under the Charities Act, 1960, the Charity Commissioners
must keep a list of charities. If a body is included in this list there
would seem to be little doubt that it is a charity for rating
purposes. Unfortunately certain charities are exempt from the list.
For example:--
Some Church Commission charities. Societies registered under
the Industrial and Provident Society Act, 1893, or the Friendly
Societies Act, 1896. Certain voluntary schools. Some Boy Scout
and Girl Guide charities.
4.88 The meaning of the words charity and charitable purposes,
have been considered in a number of cases, some of which were
concerned with income tax and others with rating.<s36>s,
4.89 In order to receive the mandatory relief in subsection 1(a)
above, a hereditament must not only be occupied by a charity but
must also be "wholly or mainly used for charitable purposes . . ."
4.90 For the purposes of section 40 only, the following is
deemed to be a "charity" and "wholly or mainly used for
charitable purposes":--
a hereditament an interest in which belongs to a charity or any
ecclesiastical corporation and in which (in right of that interest)
(i) the person from time to time holding any full-time office as
clergyman or minister of any religious denomination, or
(ii) any particular person holding such an office
<s36>s See <1Income Tax Special Commissioners v. Pemsel,>1 1891; <1Polish Historical>1
<1Institution Ltd. v. Hove B.C.,>1 1963; <1Soldiers', Sailors' and Airmen's Families>1
<1Association v. Merton B.C.,>1 1966; <1Derbyshire Miners' Welfare Convalescent Home>1
<1and Holiday Centre (Trustees) v. Skegness U.D.C.,>1 1966; <1Wynn v. Skegness>1
<1U.D.C.,>1 1966.
79
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
has a residence from which to perform the duties of the office,
or where such accommodation is being held available.
4.91 Thus, provided a charity or ecclesiastical corporation hold
an interest in the dwelling, and provided the resident holds a
full-time office and performs his duties from the dwelling, the fifty
per cent mandatory relief must be granted.
4.92 In <1Glasgow Corporation v. Johnson,>1 1965<s36a>s a full-time
servant of a Church Board was required, by the terms of his
employment to live in a house which formed part of the church
building. His duties were to prepare for services and take care of
the church. The house was owned by the Church Board and the
servant lived there free of rent and rates.
4.93 The question was raised, whether the house was used as a
residence and for no other purpose, or whether it was "wholly or
mainly used for charitable purposes".
4.94 The House of Lords first decided that the Church Board
and not the servant, was the rateable occupier of the house. (The
servant was required to live there for the better performance of his
duties.)<s37>s
4.95 They then looked at the purpose for which the Board used
the house (not the purpose for which the servant used the house).
The court found that the Board "used the house to have a servant
on the spot to assist them in the mare efficient performance of
their charitable activities". It followed, that the house, which was
occupied by a charity, was "wholly or mainly used for charitable
purposes" and so entitled to mandatory relief.
4.96 In the case of <1Oxfam v. City of Birmingham District>1
<1Council,>1 1975 the House of Lords held that an Oxfam shop, which
sold things that had been given to Oxfam, was not used for
"charitable purposes". This despite the fact that the profit made in
the shop was spent on carrying out Oxfam's charitable objectives.
4.97 In the decision Lord Cross said that "charitable purposes"
are "those purposes or objects the persuit of which make it a
charity--that is to say in this case the relief of poverty, suffering
and distress". He maintained that raising money for charity, fell
on the wrong side of the line.<s38>s
4.98 The approximate position of this rather fine line can be
seen from the fact that in the Oxfam case, the House of Lords
<s36a>s A Scott1sh case not binding on the English and Welsh courts but see <1forces Help>1
<1Society & Lord Robert's Workshops v. Canterbury City Council,>1 1979.
<s37>s See paragraphs 2.55 to 2.60.
<s38>s But see below.
80
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
approved a decision, in which relief was given to a shop which was
used to sell goods made by blind people.<s39>s
4.99 The decision in the Oxfam case clearly did not please
Parliament who passed the Rating (Charity Shops) Act 1976. This
Act added a new subscription to section 40, which reads as
follows:--
(9A) Without predudice to the meaning of the expression "wholly
or mainly used, for charitable purposes", a hereditament
shall be treated as so used, for the purposes of subsection (1)
of this section if:--
(a) It is used wholly or mainly for the sale of goods donated to a
charity; and
(b) the proceeds of sale (after any deduction of expenses) are
applied for the purposes of a charity."
4.100 The decision in the case of <1Oxfam v. City of Birmingham>1
<1District Council,>1 1975 has therefore been reversed by statute.
4.101 Charities listed in schedule 8 of the General Rate Act,
1967, are not to receive the fifty per cent mandatory relief. The
schedule comprises mainly government financed teaching estab-
lishments such as the University of Reading, London, Durham
and the Welsh College of Advanced Technology. The Minister
may add to the 8th schedule from time to time.
4.102 In order to obtain the fifty per cent mandatory relief the
charity must serve a notice on the rating authority before the end
of the rate year in which they first claim the relief.
4.103 B. The <2discretionary relief>2 may be granted to:--
(a) any hereditament which receives the fifty per cent manda-
tory relief;
(b) "any other hereditament which is occupied for the purpose
of one or more institutions or other organisations which are
<1 not established or conducted for profit>1 and <1whose main>1
<1 objects are charitable>1 or are otherwise philanthropic or
religious or concerned with education, social welfare, scien-
ce, literature or the fine arts;"
<1(c)>1 "any other hereditament which is occupied for the purposes
of a club, society or other organisation <1not established or>1
<1 conducted for profit>1 and is <1wholly or mainly used>1 for
purposes of recreation."
4.104 Since the granting of relief is entirely at the discretion of
the rating authorities it is unlikely that there will be many cases
fought on the exact meaning of the above words. However, some
<s39>s <1Belfast Association for Employment of Industrious Blind v. Commissioner of>1
<1Valuation for Northern Ireland,>1 1968.
81
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
of these words have been used in previous acts and the courts have
had an opportunity to consider them.
"Not established or conducted for profit" does not preclude the
organisation from making a charge. It has been suggested that in
the light of the Oxford Dictionary definition of the word "recrea-
tion", hereditaments eligible for relief need not be restricted only
to places of physical recreation.
4.106 The discretionary relief granted by the rating authority
may be at any amount up to 100 per cent of the rates.
4.107 Under subsection 6 of section 40 of the General Rate Act,
1967, the rating authority may grant relief:--
(a) for the year or the next following year;
(b) for a specific term not exceeding five years;
(c) for an indefinite period, subject to twelve months' notice by
the rating authority terminating or modifying the relief.
4.108 The relief will stop automatically if the occupation of the
hereditament changes.
4.109 The provisions of section 40 of the General Rate Act do
not apply to properties:--
(i) which fall within section 39 of that Act, namely places of
public religious worship, church halls, chapel halls, or
similar buildings, or
(ii) which are occupied by authorities which have the power to
levy a rate.
<1Churches, Chapels and their Halls.>1
4.110 Section 39 of the General Rate Act, 1967, grants relief
from rates
(i) to places of public religious worship belonging to the
Church of England, the Church in Wales, or which are for
the time being certified<s40>s as places or religious worship;
(ii) to church halls or similar buildings which are used in
connection with such place and for the purpose of the
religious organisation concerned; and
(iii) to any hereditament consisting of a place of public religious
worship as above together one or more church halls or
similar buildings.
4. 111 These provisions, therefore, will have effect where a
church and its hall are separate hereditaments as well as when the
two buildings form one hereditament.<s41>s The church with or
<s40>s Under the Places of Worship Registration Act, 1855. This group comprises
churches and chapels belonging to denominations other than those in (i) above.
<s41>s For the meaning of "hereditament" see paragraphs 2.3 to 2.30.
82
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
without its hall must be a separate hereditament in order to enjoy
exemption. Thus where a school chapel was used for public
religious worship it was not exempt because it was part of the
school hereditament.<s42>s
4. 112 The type of religion does not appear to be significant
provided the place is certified.<s43>s
4.113 The word <1public>1 is important, as was illustrated in the
case of <1Henning v. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,>1
1962, when a Mormon Church was held to be rateable. The main
reason for the decision was that certain ceremonies performed in
the church could only be attended by Mormons and were not open
to the public.
4.114 Provided the place is used for public religious worship, it
no longer has to be used exclusively for that purpose. Thus, a
members' room, a room for church meetings, a clerk's room and a
cre\che attached to a place of public religious worship, did not
prevent the whole hereditament from falling within section 39.<s44>s
4.115 A Christian Science reading room was held to be a <1similar>1
<1building>1 and therefore exempt.<s44>s Also a former church building
used as a social club in connection with the church and still
registered for public worship, was held to be exempt from rates as
a church hall.<s44a>s
4.116 It is provided that no hereditament to which section 39
applies shall be liable to be rated. But this exemption is qualified if
the hereditament, or any part of it, is let either (i) for any use other
than as a place of public religious worship, or (ii) for a use which is
not connected with the purposes of the organisation conducting
the public religious worship. The exemption will be lost in any rate
period where in the previous year any payment accrued due in
consideration of such a letting. In these circumstances the Act
provides that no gross value<s44b>s is to be ascribed to the heredita-
<s42>s <1Shrewsbury Schools v. Shrewsbury Borough Council & Plumpton (V.O.)>1, 1960.
<s43>s <1Rv Registrar-General, ex parte Segerdal,>1 1970.
<s44>s <1Board of Ninth Church of Christ Scientist v. Westminster City Council and Cane,>1
1958.
<s44a>s <1Swansea City Council v. Edwards (V.O.) and Trustees of Our Lady of Lourdes>1
<1Roman Catholic Church,>1 1976 see also <1Westminster Roman Catholic Diocese>1
<1Trustee v. Hampshire (V. O.)>1, 1975, but see <1Roman Catholic Diocese of Motherwell>1
<1v. Lanarkshire Assessor,>1 1974 (Scottish case not binding on the English and Welsh
courts).
<s44b>s When the amendment of section 19 of the General Rate Act, 1967 (by the Local
Government Planning and Land Act, 1980) takes effect, church halls will no longer
be valued to a gross value. It would therefore seem that an amendment will have to
be made to section 39 of the General Rate Act, 1967 if church halls are to continue
to receive partial exemption from rates.
83
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
ment unless the average annual amount of the payment received
exceeds the average annual amount of the expenses <1attributable to>1
<1those lettings>1. It follows, therefore, that although there has been a
letting, full exemption will still be enjoyed if the average proceeds
were less than or equal to those expenses.
4.117 Even where a hereditament becomes liable to be rated in
this way, there will be a partial relief from rates because the Act
limits the assessment which is to be placed on the hereditament.
This value is to be assessed by reference only to the amount by
which the average annual payments for letting exceeds the average
annual amount of the expenses <1attributable to those lettings>1; which
means, in effect, that exemption is still given to the use of the
hereditament for religious purposes.
4.118 "Let" means let either by way of a tenancy or a licence,
from which it would appear that the letting of a church hall for
only one night would, if a payment was made, give rise to a <1prima>1
<1facie>1 liability for rates in the next rate period. This liability would
be only nominal if the letting produced no surplus of income over
expenditure. If no charge was made for the premises at all it seems
that not even a <1prima facie>1 liability would arise.
For the valuation of church halls see paragraphs 11.128 to
11.134.
<2<1Gas Undertakings>1>2
4.119 Occupations by the board of a nationalised industry does
not amount to occupation by the Crown and is rateable unless
exempt by statute.
4.120 Under section 33 of the General Rate Act, 1967,<s45>s no
premises occupied by the British Gas Corporation shall be liable to
be rated or included in any valuation list or in any rate.
The above provisions do not apply to:--
(i) a dwelling;
(ii) premises occupied wholly or mainly as a water supply
undertaking;
(iii) premises used wholly or mainly for the manufacture of
plant or gas fittings;
(iv) a shop, room or other place used wholly or mainly for the
sale, display or demonstration of apparatus (any use for the
receipt of payments for gas consumed being disregarded)
or,
(v) office premises not situated on operational land.
<s45>s As re-enacted by section 34 and sched. 5 Gas Act, 1972.
84
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
4.121 The Act of 1967 requires the Boards to make payments
for the benefit of local authorities in lieu of the rates which would
otherwise have been payable. The amount of these payments does
not depend on the value of the exempted hereditaments but on a
formula which is contained in the Act.
4.122 In place of liability for hereditaments actually occupied
(other than excepted premises), the Corporation is made liable for
rates on a hypothetical hereditament which the Act of 1967 deems
to exist in any rating area where the Board supplied or manufac-
tured gas in the last but one year before the rate period in
question. The rateable value of the hypothetical hereditament is
calculated from the formula which is contained in the sixth
schedule to the Act,<s46>s and as a result the rateable value will be
adjusted each year according to the number of therms supplied or
manufactured in the particular rating area.
4.123 The hypothetical hereditament and the excepted pre-
mises are entered in the valuation list, but the latter appear as
separate hereditaments which are valued and are rateable in the
ordinary way.
<1Electricity Undertakings>1
4. 124 Under section 34 of the General Rate Act, 1967, premises
occupied by an Electricity Board shall not be rated or be included
in the valuation list. The following premises are not included in the
above exemption:--
(i) dwellings;
(ii) a shop, room or other place used for the sale, display or
demonstration of apparatus (any use for the receipt of
payments for electricity consumed being disregarded);
(iii) office premises not situated on operational land.<s47>s
4.125 In place of liability for hereditaments actually occupied
(other than excepted premises) the Generating Board and Area
Board shall be treated as occupying a hypothetical hereditament
the value of which will be determined by a formula set out in the
seventh schedule of the 1967 Act.
4.126 The hypothetical hereditament and the excepted pre-
mises are entered in the valuation list, but the latter appear as
separate hereditaments which are valued and are rateable in the
ordinary way.
<s46>s As amended by sched. 5 Gas Act, 1972.
<s47>s Section 32(8), General Rate Act, 1967.
85
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Statutory Water Undertakings>1
4.127 The rateable values of the hereditaments in any rating
district which are occupied for the purposes of a statutory water
undertaking will be called "water hereditaments". The rateable
value of the "water hereditaments" is to be found by using the
formula laid down in schedule 4 of the 1967 Act.<s48>s Dwelling-
houses are excluded from the "water hereditament" and will be
assessed in the normal way.
<1Land Occupied by River A uthorities or other Drainage A uthorities>1<s51>s
4.128 The following shall not be rated or be included in any
valuation list: <s49>s
(i) any land which is occupied by a Water Authority or other
drainage authoritys<s50>s and forms part of a main river for the
purposes of part II of the Land Drainage Act, 1930, or of a
water course<s51>s maintained by the authority;<s50>s
(ii) any structure or appliance maintained by a drainage
authority<s50>s being a structure or appliance for controlling or
regulating the flow of water in, into or out of a water
course<s50>s which forms part of the main river, or is maintained
by the authority.<s51>s
4.129 It follows from the wording of the above that the offices
of the Water Authority or drainage authority would not be exempt
from rates.
4.130 The above provisions do not confer exemption on any
right of fishing or shooting which forms a separate hereditament.
<1Lighthouses>1
4.131 The exemption from rates granted to Trinity House is
limited to lighthouses, buoys and beacons and any property within
the same curtilage as and occupied for the purpose of a
lighthouse.<s52>s To obtain exemption the property must belong to or
be occupied by Trinity House.
4.132 The exemption from rates granted to the Ministry of
<s48>s Section 31, General Rate Act, 1967 and the Rating (Water hereditaments)
Order 1975 made under section 19 and schedule 3 Local Government Act, 1974.
<s49>s Section 43, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s50>s Has the same meaning as in the Land Drainage Act, 1930.
<s51>s River Authorities and several other bodies concerned with water were abolished
by the Water Act, 1973 and their functions taken over by Water Authorities which
were newly created by that Act (see sections 2, 9, 19 and 33). See also Land
Drainage Act, 1976 section 17(7).
<s52>s Section 41, General Rate Act, 1967.
86
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
Transport, the Commissioners of Northern Lighthouses and the
Commissioners of Irish Lights is much wider and extends to:--<s53>s
(1) all lighthouses, buoys, beacons, and all light dues and other
rates, fees or payments accruing to or forming part of the
General Lighthouse Fund; and
(2) property belonging to or occupied by the above authorities
and used or applied for the purposes of any of the services
for which those dues, rates, fees and payments are received.
<1Plant and Machinery>1
4.133 Unless a hereditament is valued by reference to the
accounts, receipts or profits of the firm in occupation, the only
plant and machinery deemed to be part of a hereditament, and
therefore to be taken into account in assessing the value of the
occupation, is that which is within the terms of the Plant and
Machinery (Rating) Order, 1960.<s54>s This Order was made under
section 24 of the Act of 1925, now section 21 of the General Rate
Act, 1967, and classifies plant and machinery under five headings.
The effect of the Order is explained fully in Chapter 5.
4.134 If the hereditaments falls to be valued for rating on the
profits or trade earnings basis, then the law obtained before the
commencement of the Rating and Valuation Act of 1925 still
applies with the result that, broadly, the value of all plant and
machinery is taken into account.
4.135 It should be noticed that rateable plant and machinery is
not necessarily to be found solely in industrial hereditaments and
may be installed in all manner of property, although it will
naturally be more important in factories.
<1Railways and Canals>1
4.136 Section 32 of the General Rate Act, 1967, exempts from
rates railway or canal premises which are occupied wholly or partly
for "non-rateable purposes" by the British Railways Board, the
London Transport Executive<s55>s the British Waterways Board, the
National Freight Corporations<s56>s or a subsidiary of any of these
bodies.<s57>s
<s53>s Section 731, Merchant Shipping Act, 1894.
<s54>s S.I. 1960 No. 122 as amended by, amongst others, the Pipe Lines Act, 1962 and
the Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amendment) Order, 1974.
<s55>s The London Transport Executive was created and stepped into the shoes of the
London Transport Board under the Transport (London) Act, 1969.
<s56>s The National Freight Corporation was created by the Transport Act, 1968, see
sections 1 and 162.
<s57>s Section 162 Transport Act, 1968.
87
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.137 Non-rateable purposes means:--
(a) all purposes of the parts of the Boards' undertaking which
are concerned with the carriage of goods or passengers by
rail or inland waterway or the provision of facilities for
traffic by inland waterway;
(b) parts of the Boards' premises which are subsidiary or
incidental to the parts mentioned in (a);<s58>s
(c) also to be treated as non-rateable are:--
(i) parts of the Boards' premises used for the collection
and delivery by road, of goods which are to be carried
by rail or inland waterway;
(ii) railway or canal premises which are occupied mainly
for non-rateable purposes and partly for the central
direction and control of the Boards' affairs;
(iii) railway or canal premises which are occupied partly for
non-rateable purposes and partly for the display of
advertisements by the Board.
4.138 Non-rateable purposes expressely excludes:--
(1) Parts of the premises concerned with or subsidiary or
incidental to the carriage of goods or passengers by road
transport, sea transport or with harbours;
(2) the generation and supply of electricity to an Electricity
Board;
(3) premises used for the exercise of powers conferred by
sections 48 and 50(1) to <1(7)>1 of the Transport Act, 1968<s59>s
which include manufacturing, repairing, purchasing and
selling other than for the Transport Boards. Also the
provision of hotels, caravan and camping sites and re-
creational facilities;
(4) premises occupied as a dwelling, hotel or place of public
refreshment;
(5) office premises which are not situated on "operational
land";
(6) premises so let out as to be capable of separate assessment.
4. 139 Where the Boards' premises are partly occupied for
non-rateable purposes and partly for the purposes mentioned in
(1) to <1(3)>1 above, then there shall be ascribed to the hereditament
such value as may be just having regard to the extent to which it is
<s58>s But expressely excluding parts of the Board's premises mentioned in subsection
(4)(a) of section 32 General Rate Act, 1967.
<s59>s Section 162(5) Transport Act, 1968.
88
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
occupied for rateable purposes. This, in effect, gives exemption to
the part used for non-rateable purposes.<s59>sa
4.140 In lieu of rates, each Board makes a payment calculated
in accordance with the formula prescribed in schedule 5 of the
1967 Act.
4.141 Railway and canal premises not occupied by the above
Boards are rateable in the normal way.
<1Rooms used for Elections>1
4.142 Under the Representation of the People Act, 1949,<s60>s if
the returning officer at either a parliamentary or local election uses
a room in an unoccupied house for the purpose of the poll, such
use will not give rise to any liability for rates.
4. 143 The same Act also provides that public election meetings,
whether parliamentary or local, shall not render any person liable
to be rated or to pay any rate for the premises.<s61>s Thus, if no rates
are payable in respect of the hereditament in which the meeting is
held--for example, because it is empty--then the holding of the
meeting will not give rise to liability.
<1Sewers>1
4.144 Section 42 of the General Rate Act, 1967, provides that
sewers and accessories, such as manholes, ventilating shafts,
pumping stations and pumps, shall not be liable to be rated or be
included in the valuation list; outside London, sewer has the
meaning given to it in section 343 of the Public Health Act, 1936,
and inside London the definition in section 81 of the Public Health
(London) Act, 1936, is adopted. These definitions are substan-
tially the same, and broadly, a sewer is any sewer or drain used in
connection with the drainage of buildings and yards appurtenant
to buildings except a drain used for the drainage of one building,
or any buildings or yard appurtenant to buildings within the same
curtilage. As a result of these provisions any sewer belonging to a
local authority and any private sewer used for the drainage of
buildings will be exempt.
4.145 On the other hand a drain used for the drainage of a
building or buildings within the same curtilage will be rateable as
part of the hereditament.
4.146 Sewage disposal works are rateable. As to what is a sewer
and what a sewage disposal works see <1H.S. Jones (V.O.) v. The>1
<s59>sa <1London Transport Executive v. Haysom (V. O.),>1 1975.
<s60>s Second Schedule.
<s61>s Section 85.
89
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Eastern Valleys (Mon.) Joint Sewerage Board, 1960 and H. J.>1
<1Gudgion (V. O.) v. Erith B. C. and The L. C. C.>1 , 1960 and on
appeal 1961.
<1Rebates in Respect of Facilities for Disabled Persons>1<s62>s
4.147 Following the House of Lords decision in <1Vandyke v.>1
<1Oliver,>1 1976, section 45 of the General Rate Act, 1967, (on which
the decision was based) has been repealed and replaced by the
Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
4.148 A "disabled person"<s63>s means any person who is:--
(i) blind, deaf or dumb, or who suffers from
(ii) mental disorder or any description, or who is
(iii) substantially or permanently handicapped by illness, injury
or congenital deformity, or
(iv) any other disability for the time being prescribed for the
purposes of section 29 (1) of the National Assistance Act,
1948.
4.149 A rating authority <1must>1 grant a rebate where:--
<1(i)>1 a disabled person resides or is usually resident in the
hereditament<s64>s and
(ii) any one of the following is "required for meeting the needs"
of the disabled person:--
(a) a room (other than a bathroom or lavatory) <1used>1 predomi-
nantly by the disabled person whether for providing therapy
or for some other purpose.<s64>sa
(b) an additional bathroom or lavatory.
(c) a heating installation for providing heating in two or more
rooms. (In other words some form of central heating
system )<s64a>s
(d) any other facility.
(e) sufficient floor space to permit the use of a wheelchair <1used>1
by the disabled person.
(f) a garage, carport or land <1used>1 (otherwise than temporarily)
for accommodating a vehicle <1used>1 by the disabled person.
The garage, carport or land will qualify for a rebate no
matter whether it forms a separate hereditament or is part
of a larger hereditament. In this case it is not necessary for
the disabled person to reside in the garage or larger
hereditament.
<s62>s Section 1, Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978, see also D.O.E. circular 74/78
and Welsh Office circular 149/78.
<s63>s Section 8(1), Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
<s64>s19R&VR3.
<s64a>s <1Howell Williams v. Wirral B. C.>1, 1981 (C.A.).
90
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
4.150 There are therefore up to six questions to be answered in
the affirmative before a rebate is made:--
(i) is there a facility?
(ii) is there a disabled person?
(iii) is the disabled person resident or usually resident in the
hereditament? (except in case (f) above)
(iv) is the user requirement satisfied in cases <1(a), (e)>1 and <1(f)>1
above?
(v) is the facility (or as the case may be the wheelchair or
vehicle in cases (e) and (f) required for meeting the needs
of the disabled person?
(vi) is there a person with the necessary qualification to apply
for and receive the rebate?<s65>s
4.151 The fifth test may give rise to more disputes than the
others. This is because in order to establish whether any item is
"required for meeting the needs of a disabled person" the question
has to be asked, is it <1essential or of major importance to his>1
<1well-being by reason of the nature and extent of his disability?>1
4.152 The method of calculating<s65a>s the amount of the rebate
varies according to the type of facility:--
(1) In the case of some facilities the rebate is based on the
annual value of the facility, as certified by the valuation
officer. The certified value is then multiplied by the
appropriate rate in the pound, in order to arrive at the
amount of the rebate.<s65a>s
There is a right of appeal, to the local valuation court,
against the value contained in the valuation officer's certifi-
cate.
(2) In the case of other facilities the rebate is based on a sum
specified in the first schedule of the Rating (Disabled
Person) Act, 1978. This sum is multipled by the appropriate
rate in the pound to arrive at the amount of the rebate.
It is likely that the sums specified in the first schedule will
change at the time of a revaluation.
4.153 Full details of how the rebate is to be calculated is
contained in the first schedule of the 1978 Act. In England and
Wales the rebate does not extend to the water-rate.
4.154 Where in case of a facility mentioned in (a), (b) or (f)
above the valuation officer certifies that no part of the rateable
value of the hereditament is attributable to that facility, then
<s65>s Section 3(1) Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
<s65a>s Schedule 1, Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
91
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(despite the fact that a specific sum has been attributed to it) the
rebate is to be reduced to nil.<s65a>s
4.155 If the rebate is based on one of the specific sums
mentioned in the first schedule, the rating authority, if they think
fit, may increase the amount of the rebate by one fifth. Such an
increase could be used to allow for the fact that rateable values are
higher in some areas than in others.<s65a>s
4.156 The person entitled to apply for and receive<s65b>s the rebate
is either:--
(i) the disabled person if he is the occupier of the hereditament
or makes payments by way of rent<s65c>s in respect of all or any
of it or
(ii) any person who is a member of the same household as the
disabled person and either is the occupier of the heredita-
ment or makes payments by way of rent<s65c>s in respect of all
or any of it.
In the absence of such a person it would seem that no rebate can
be granted
4.157 The rebate may be granted either<s65d>s by making a payment
to the person entitled to the rebate or where the person entitled to
the rebate is the occupier of the hereditament, by reducing the
amount of the rates.
4.158 There is a right of appeal<s65e>s to the County Court in the
event of a rating authority refusing to grant a rebate.
4.159 The disabled person rebate is to be deducted from the
rates payable before any rebate under section 11 or 12 of the Local
Government Act, 1974 is calculated.
<1Rebates for Institutions for the Disabled>1<s66>s
4.160 A rating authority <1must>1 grant a rate rebate to the
occupier<s66a>s of any hereditament which is <1used>1 for one or more of
the following purposes (together with any ancillary purposes),
namely the provision of:--
(a) residental accommodation for,
(i) the care of persons suffering from illness or
<s65b>s Section 1(4) Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
<s65c>s 19R & VR 6.
<s65d>s Section 3(4) Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
<s65e>s Section 3(5) Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978 and for appeal procedure see
19R & VR 1987.
<s66>s Section 2, Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978. see also paragraph 4.147 and
D.O.E. circular 74/78 & Welsh Office circular 149/78.
<s66a>s To be eligible for a rebate the occupier must be a local authority or other body.
(This would seem to be very wide.) See <1Morgan v. Windsor and Maidenhead Royal>1
<1Borough Council,>1 1981 (C.A.).
92
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
(ii) the after-care of persons who have been suffering from
illness or
(b) facilities for,
(i) training or
(ii) keeping suitably occupied, persons suffering from ill-
ness or persons who have been suffering from illness or
(c) such accommodation or facilities as are mentioned in (a) or
(b) provided for disabled persons who do not fall within (a)
or (b) or
(d) welfare services for disabled persons<s66b>s or
(e) facilities under section 15 of the Disabled Persons (Employ-
ment) Act 1944 or
(f) a workshop or other facilities under section 3 (1) of the
Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1958.
4.161 For the purpose of the above:--
"care"<s66c>s does not include the provision of medical surgical or
dental treatment but these may be included under "ancillary
purposes."<s66c>s
"illness"<s66e>s has the meaning given by section 128(1) of the
National Health Service Act, 1977.
"Welfare services for disabled persons <s66c>s means services or
facilities (by whomsoever provided) of a kind which a local
authority have power to provide under section 29 of the
National Assistance Act, 1948.
4.162 The rebate is to be equal to the full amount of the rates
chargeable on the hereditament during the rebate period.<s66d>s
4.163 If the rating authority refuses the occupiers application
for a rebate, the occupier may appeal<s65e>s to the County Court.
<1Parks>1
4.164 The exemption from rates of public parks was discussed
in Chapter 2. It is only necessary to note here that to be exempt
from rates it has been held in a succession of cases that a park must
in effect be dedicated to the use of the public in perpetuity.<s67>s A
power to:--
<s66b>s See paragraph 4.148.
<66c Section 2(3) Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978 see >6<1Glenherne Nursing>1
<1Services Ltd. v. Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough Council,>1 1981 (C.A.).
<s66d>s Section 2(5) Rating (Disabled Persons) Act, 1978.
<s67>s <1Trustees of Mitcham Golf Course v. Ereaut,>1 1937; <1Burnell (V. O.) v. Downham>1
<1Market Urban District Council,>1 1952; <1Burnell (V. O.) v. Terrington St. Clement>1
<1Parish Council,>1 1954; <1London Playing fields Society v. South-West Essex Assess->1
<1ment Committee,>1 1930; <1Blake (V. O.) v. Hendon Corporation,>1 1961 and Case No. 2
1965; <1Sheffield Corporation v. Tranter (V. O.),>1 1957-
93
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(a) close the park on certain days
(b) make a charge on occasions for entry or
(c) let out parts of the park,
does not necessarily cause those parts to become rateable.
4.165 Section 44 of the General Rate Act, 1967, states that
where a park has been provided by or is under the management of
a local authority and is for the time being available for free and
unrestricted use by members of the public, it shall whilst so
available, be treated for rating purposes as if it had been dedicated
in perpetuity for such use.
<1Enterprise Zones>1
4.165a No person shall be liable to pay rates in respect of a
hereditament which is situated within an area designated, for the
time being, as an enterprise zone<s67a>s; unless the hereditament is:--
(a) a dwelling-house<s67b>s, private garage<s67c>s or private storage
premises<s67c>s or
(b) a hereditament specified in schedule 3 of the Local Govern-
ment Act, 1974 (e.g. certain statutory water, gas and
electricity undertakings, railway and canal premises occu-
pied for non-rateable purposes, statutory dock and harbour
undertakings, etc.) or
(c) a hereditament, occupied by a public utility undertaking
and valued on the profits basis.<s67b>s
<1Note:>1 A hereditament which is not in use will be treated as a
dwelling-house, private garage or private storage premises,
if it appears that when next in use, it will be a hereditament
of that description.
4.165b Even though no rates will be collected on exempt
hereditaments, within enterprise zones, those hereditaments will
nevertheless be entered in the valuation list, together with their
values.
4. 165c Where a <1mixed hereditament>1<s67d>s is situated within an
enterprise zone, the valuation officer is to determine, that propor-
tion of the total rateable value of the hereditament which is
attributable to the part used for the purposes of a private dwelling
or private dwellings. That proportion will then form the basis of
assessment and rates will be collected as if the whole hereditament
is a dwelling-house.
<s67a>s Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980 schedule 32, para. 27.
<s67b>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 115.
<s67a>s Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980 schedule 32, para. 32.
<s67d>s See paragraph 4.183.
94
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
4. 165d For example, if a mixed hereditament has a rateable
value of #2,000, the valuation officer may apportion #500 of that
figure, to the part used for the purpose of a private dwelling. Rates
will then be levied as if the hereditament is a dwelling-house,
which has a rateable value of #500.
4.165e It should be noted that the valuation officer is required
to apportion<s67e>s the rateable value of the whole hereditament. He is
not required to value the part used for the purpose of a private
dwelling s) as if it was a separate hereditament. Such an approach
might well result in a different rateable value, since the value of
the whole is not necessarily the same as the sum of the parts.
4.165f It may be that the occupier of a hereditament (or person
treated as the occupier) will dispute the valuation officer's appor-
tionment of the rateable value, as between the part used for the
purposes of a private and the remainder. The Minister has power
to make regulations which will provide for a method whereby such
disputes can be resolved.<s67f>s
<1Poverty>1
4.166 By section 53 of the General Rate Act, 1967, a rating
authority shall have power to reduce or remit the payment of any
rate on account of the poverty of any person liable to pay it.
It will be remembered that the present rating system was
founded in 1601 in order to relieve poverty, not to create it.
<1Hardship>1
4.167 In the case of the unoccupied rate or the rating surcharge
(not in the case of the occupied rate) the rating authority has
power to reduce or remit the rates if it considers that the payment
would cause hardship to the person liable for the rates. The power
is entirely at the discretion of the rating authority.<s67g>s (See para-
graph 13.75)
<1Reduction of Rates in the Pound for Domestic and Mixed>1
<1Hereditaments>1
4.168 Rates on business premises are paid out of untaxed
monies but the rates on a house are paid out of income which has
already been taxed. It follows that the occupier of a house feels the
full effect of any rate increase.
<s67e>s Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980 schedule 32, para. 28.
<s67f>s See paragraph 4.187 also the Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980
schedule 32, para. 28.
<s67g>s Schedule 1, paragraph 3A, General Rate Act, 1967.
95
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
4.169 A method of minimising the effect of rate increases has
been introduced for the benefit of the occupiers of "domestic" and
"mixed hereditaments". Previously each rating authority declared
a "general rate" in the pound of so much, and this general rate was
applied to all properties. Now the Secretary of State, from time to
time, specifies a sum, for that area, called the "standard
amount",<s67h>s which is to be deducted from the general rate before
it is applied to "domestic" hereditaments.<s68>s The exact amount of
the deduction for any rate period will be shown on the rate
demand notice and may vary from year to year.
4.170 Thus, if the rating authority declare that the general rate
will be 90 pence in the pound, and the Secretary of State declares
that the "standard amount" is to be 16 pence, the rates levied on
"domestic" hereditaments will be 74 pence in the pound.
4.171 As the amount of the general rate is increased year by
year the Secretary of State can minimise the effect of these rate
increases, as far as "domestic" hereditaments and mixed heredita-
ments are concerned, by prescribing larger deductions from the
general rate.
4.172a The deduction to be made from the rate in the pound in
the case of a mixed hereditament, will depend on how much of
that hereditament is used for dwelling-house purposes. Where the
proportion of the rateable value of the mixed hereditament,
attributable to the part used for the purposes of a private
dwelling(s):--
(i) exceeds 8th the deduction will be 1/8th of the standard amount;
(ii) exceeds 1/4 the deduction will be 1/4 of the standard amount;
(iii) exceeds 1/2 the deduction will be 1/2 of the standard amount.
4.172b Take as an example a mixed hereditament with a
rateable value of #8,000. Of the #8,000, #1,001 is attributable to
the part of the hereditament used for the purposes of a private
dwelling. The general rate in the pound is 90p and the "standard
amount" is 16p. In this case the rate in the pound to be applied to
the #8,000 will be 90p less one eighth of 16p. So the rates payable
will be #8,000 x 88p = #7,040.
4.172c If in the above example the rateable value of the part
used for the purposes of a private dwelling had been #1,000, then
no deduction would have been made from the general rate in the
<s67h>s General Rate Act, 1967, Section 48(1A) added by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980.
<s68>s Section 48 General Rate Act, 1967 and schedule 2 para. 5 Local Government
Act, 1974.
96
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
pound. Indeed the hereditament would not have fallen within the
definition of a "mixed hereditament".
4.172d For the purposes of calculating the rate in the pound to
be applied to mixed hereditaments, the fraction of the "standard
amount" is to be calculated to the nearest one tenth of a penny
(one half of one tenth being treated as less than one half) 68a
<1Meaning of "Domestic Hereditament'>1
4.173a A "domestic hereditament" means<s68>sb a hereditament
which is:--
<1(a)>1 a dwelling house
(b) a hereditament of an area not exceeding 25 square meters
which is used wholly or mainly for the accommodation of a
motor vehicle. However, such a hereditament is not a
"domestic hereditament" if:--
(i) it forms part of premises in which a business of
providing services for motor vehicles is carried on, or
(ii) is provided by the keeper of a hotel, inn, guest-house
or boarding-house and used wholly or mainly for the
motor vehicles of his guests, or
(iii) is used for the accommodation of a motor vehicle for
the time being chargeable with duty under Schedule 2,
3 or 4 to the Vehicles (Excise) Act, 1971 (hackney
carriages, tractors and goods vehicles) whether it is
also used for any other vehicle or not.
(c) private storage premises (as defined in General Rate Act,
1967 section 19(6).
4.173b The effect of the above definition is that even if a garage
or store is a hereditament on its own (as opposed to being included
in the same hereditament as a house or flat) it will still receive the
benefit of the reduced rate in the pound on dwelling-houses.
4.173c "Dwelling-house" is defined in section 115 of the Gen-
eral Rate Act, 1967 (as qualified by schedule 13 of the Act), and
<1means a hereditament>1 . . . <1which is used wholly for the purposes of>1
<1a private dwelling or private dwellings.>1
4.174 The word "used", in the above definition has been held
to mean<s69>s exists for the use of" or "is of the kind that is used for."
It does not have to be interpreted as meaning "is actually being
<s68>sa General Rate Act, 1967 section 48(1B).
<s68>sb General Rate Act, 1967 section 48(4A).
<s69>s <1Kensington & Chelsea L.B.C. v. Victoria Wine Co. Ltd.,>1 1977 (Q.B.D.) and
General Rate Act, 1967 section 19(7) added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act, 1980.
97
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
used." In consequence a building which has been used as a private
dwelling in the past and is being held for use as a private dwelling
in the future, may still be a "dwelling-house" within the meaning
of the Act. If this were not so, then a vacant house could not be a
"dwelling-house" within the meaning of the Act. (For the unoccu-
pied rate and rating surcharge see chapter 13.)
4.175 In order to qualify as a dwelling-house the hereditament
must be used "wholly for the purpose of a private dwelling". A
very common form of hereditament is made up of house, garage
and garden and this raises the question whether a garage used for
housing a car or van can be described as <1"used wholly for the>1
<1purposes of a private dwelling".>1 The question also arises as to
whether a person who uses a room in his house partly for dwelling
purposes and partly for business purposes can claim that the
hereditament is <1"used wholly for the purpose ofprivate dwelling".>1
4.176 Fortunately, schedule 13 answers both questions by pro-
viding that a hereditament or premises is to be deemed to be used
wholly for the purposes of a private dwelling despite the fact:--
(a) that it includes a garage, outhouse, garden, yard, court,
forecourt, or other appurtenance which is <1not used, or not>1
<1 used wholly>1 for the purpose of a private dwelling;
(b) that part of the hereditament or premises (not being a part
mentioned in <1(a)>1 above) is <1used partly>1 for the purposes of a
private dwelling and partly for other purposes. However, if
the part was constructed or has been adapted for those
other purposes it is not deemed to be used "wholly for the
purposes of a private dwelling".
4.177 It follows that the occupier of a house who keeps his
delivery van in his garage can still claim that the hereditament is
used, "wholly for the purposes of a private dwelling". Similarly a
doctor who allows patients to wait in his dining-room during
surgery hours can still claim that the room is "used wholly for the
purposes of a private dwelling" (unless the room was specially
constructed or adapted as a waiting room).
4.178 On the other hand if a doctor uses a room in his house as
a surgery, and that room is not used at all for living purposes, then
that room and consequently the whole hereditament, cannot be
said to be used wholly for the purposes of a private dwelling. In
such a case the hereditament would almost certainly be a "mixed
hereditament".
4.179 The fact that a person is required to live in a house as a
consequence of his employment does not prevent that house from
falling within the definition of a private dwelling-house.
98
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
4.180 Schedule 13 provides that where substantially the whole
of the available accommodation in a hereditament is let in rooms
singly for residential purposes, then the hereditament shall be
deemed not to be used for the purposes of a private dwelling.
(Three exceptions to this rule are contained in schedule 13.)
4.181 A hereditament shall be deemed not to be used for the
purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings if it consists
wholly or mainly or land used as sites for movable dwellings within
the meaning of section 269 of the Public Health Act, 1936, but see
section 1(5) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976.
4.182 Schedule 13 makes special provision in the case of
dwelling accommodation which forms part of a hereditament
which would otherwise be exempt from rates. In such a case the
dwelling accommodation is deemed to be a dwelling-house. Thus,
if a vicar lives in a flat over a hall used exclusively for public
religious worship, that flat is to be deemed to be a dwelling-house.
<1Meaning of Mixed Hereditament>1
4.183 A mixed hereditament is defined in section 48 of the
General Rate Act, 1967<s69a>s and <1means a hereditament which is not a>1
<1domestic hereditament but in the case of which>1 . . . <1the proportion>1
<1of the rateable value>1 . . . <1attributable to the part>1 . . . <1used for the>1
<1purpose of a private dwelling>1 . . . <1is greater than one eight>1 of the
rateable value of the whole hereditament.
4.184 In order to determine whether a hereditament is a mixed
hereditament, it is first of all necessary to make sure that the
hereditament is not a domestic hereditament. It is then necessary
to find the proportion of the rateable value of the hereditament
which is attributable to the part which is used for the purpose of a
private dwelling(s). Only if that proportion exceeds one eighth of
the rateable value of the whole hereditament, will it be a "mixed
hereditament".
4.185 Surprisingly, it is the rating authorities' responsibility in
the first instance to decide which properties are mixed heredita-
ments and not the responsibility of the valuation officer, who
made the original valuations.
4.186 An occupier who is dissatisfied by the refusal of the rating
authority to treat a hereditament as a mixed hereditament, may
apply to the valuation officer for a certificate. If the valuation
officer is satisfied that the hereditament is used partly for the
purposes of a private dwelling(s) and partly for other purposes, he
<s69a>s Amended by Local Government, Planning and Lad Act, 1980 section 33(6).
99
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
shall as soon as possible issue a certificate.<s69>sb The certificate must
state<s69>sb whether or not the proportion of the hereditament used
for the purposes of a private dwelling(s) is:--
(i) less than 1/8 th
(ii) greater than 1/8 th but not greater than 1/4
(iii) greater than 1/4 but not greater than 1/2
(iv) greater than 1/2
4.187 Either the occupier or the rating authority may object to
the contents of the valuation officer's certificate. Thereafter the
proceedings are somewhat similar to those which follow when an
objection has been made to a valuation officer's proposal. (See
paragraph 14.54 onwards). The Local Valuation Court will give a
decision in the matter and there is a right of appeal to the Lands
Tribunal. (For full details see the Mixed Hereditament (Certifi-
cate) Regulations, 1967 as amended by the Mixed Hereditaments
(Certificate) (Amendment) Regulations, 1981.
<1Rate Rebate Schemes>1
4.188 Rates are a regressive tax; that is the burden of rates is
greater on people with small incomes than on people with average
or large incomes.
4.189 In order to reduce the burden of rates on residential
occupiers with small incomes, rate rebate schemes have been
introduced. The current legislation providing for these schemes is
contained in sections 11 to 14 of the Local Government Act, 1974
Statutory Instruments made under that Act and resolutions passed
by rating authorities.
4.190 There are two types of rebate scheme:--
(i) <2"the statutory rate rebate seheme",>2 prescribed by the
Secretary of State for the Environment in Statutory Instru-
ments.
(ii) <2"local rate rebate schemes",>2 prescribed in rating authority
resolutions.
In both cases the rebate scheme is administered by the rating
authority.
4.191 It is at the rating authorities discretion whether or not to
introduce a local rebate scheme. If they decide to do so, their
scheme must (as with the Secretary of State's scheme) have regard
to residential occupiers needs and resources and it will take the
place of the statutory scheme.
4.192 The local rate rebate scheme may be different in form
<s69b>s Mixed Hereditaments (certificate) Regulations, 1967 as amended by The Mixed
Hereditaments (certificate) (Amendment) Regulations, 1981.
100
<1Exemptions and Reliefs from Rates>1
from the statutory rebate scheme or it may be no more than a
variation of that scheme.
4.193 The local rate rebate scheme should be framed so that a
person will not receive a lower rebate under the local scheme than
under the statutory scheme. However, the total of the rebates
granted under a local rebate scheme should not exceed 110% of
the total rebates which would have been granted under the
statutory rebate scheme.
4.194 If there is no local rebate scheme in a rating area then the
statutory scheme <1must>1 be operated by the rating authority.
4.195a Only "residential occupiers" are eligible for rate re-
bates. A "residential occupier" is a person who resides or is
usually resident in premises used for the purposes of a private
<2dwelling>2 and is:--
(a) the occupier of the hereditament which consists of or
includes the premises<s70>s
(b) not the occupier of the hereditament, which consists of or
includes the premises, but
(i) pays the rates for the hereditament and
(ii) is the spouse or former spouse of a person who is the
occupier but who does not reside and is not usually
resident in the hereditament.<s70>s
(c) <1(i)>1 not the occupier of the hereditament which consists of
or includes the premises but
(ii) makes payments by way of rent in respect of the
premises to the occupier of the hereditament or to any
other person who is himself a residential occupier.<s70>s
4.195b It will be seen from the above that it is not necessary for
a person to be a rateable occupier in order to be eligible for a
rebate. Such a person is eligible if he/she occupies part only of a
hereditament, provided he/she pays rent to the rateable occupier
or to some other person who is a "residential occupier".
4.195c The provisions set out in paragraph 4.195a (a) above are
intended to cover the type of case where, for example, a husband
and wife are divorced or otherwise living apart but the husband
provides rent free accommodation in which his wife and children
live. In this situation the husband may be the rateable occupier of
the hereditament, due to his presumed duty to provide for his wife
and children. If there were no such provisions as those contained
in <1(a)>1 above, the wife (even though she paid the rates) could not
<s70>s Local Government Act, 1974 section 13(1) as amended by the Local Govern-
ment, Planning and Land Act, 1980.
101
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
obtain a rate rebate. This is because she is neither the rateable
occupier nor a person paying rent to the rateable occupier. The
husband could not obtain a rebate because he is not resident or
usually resident in the premises.
4.196a The residential occupier is only eligible for a rebate if
the rateable value of the <1premises,>1 used for the purposes of a
private dwelling, does not exceed a specified limit.<s7071>s
4.196b If the premises which are used for the purposes of a
private dwelling, form part only of a hereditament, then the
rateable value of those <1premises>1 must be found by the "proper
apportionment" of the rateable value of the whole hereditament.
There is a right of appeal on the apportionment to the County
Court, whose decision is final.<s72>s
4.197 Where in any case there are joint occupiers/tenants the
rating authority may, for rebate purposes, treat any one of them as
if he was the sole occupier/tenant.<s73>s
4.198 Where under a local rebate scheme a person would be
granted a lower rebate than under the statutory rebate scheme,
that person is entitled to have his rebate calculated under the
statutory scheme (but not otherwise<s74>s).
4.199 As far as details are concerned, local rebate schemes can
vary widely. This is because a rating authority has considerable
iscretion when designing a local scheme.
4.200 The details of the Secretary of State's statutory rebate
scheme were set out in the Rate Rebate Regulations, 1974. These
have been amended in part, many times.
4.201 The method of calculating the amount of a rebate under
the statutory scheme, broadly speaking, involves balancing the
notional income of the applicant and his spouse against their
notional needs. It also takes into account the existence of depen-
dants, non-dependants and the amount of the rates.
4.202 Thus a person's income is only one of the factors to be
looked at. For example, with a given income a widow living on her
own in a small house might not be entitled to a rebate, whereas a
<s71>s The rateable value referred to, is the one at the beginning of the year in which
the rebate takes effect. (Local Government Act, 1974 section 13(4).) The rateable
value limits are laid down in the Rates Rebate (Limits of Rateable Value) Order
1974 S.I. 1974 No. 412.
<s72>s Local Government Act, 1974 section 13(3) as amended by the Local Govern-
ment, Planning and Land Act, 1980.
<s73>s Local Government Act, 1974 section 13(2) as amended by the Local Govern-
ment, Planning and Land Act, 1980.
<s74>s Local Government Act, 1974 section 14.
102
husband with a wife and six children living in a large house but on
the same income, might get a rebate.
4.203 Because of the frequency of change and the amount of
detail involved in calculating a rebate, the Statutory Instruments,
in which much of the detail is to be found, have not been
reproduced in the appendix to this book.
4.204 It is suggested that if the reader wishes to calculate a
rebate for himself, he should contact the appropriate rating
authority in order to find out the up-to-date position.
103
<1Chapter 5>1
<2PLANT AND MACHINERY>2
5.1 In order to fully understand the present position with regard
to plant and machinery, it is neccesary to look at the law as it
existed before 1925.
<2Prior to 1925>2
5.2 In the earlier rating Acts, from 1601 onwards, there was no
specific mention of the way in which plant and machinery was to
be treated. The first Act which made any such provision was the
Rating and Valuation Act, 1925. Before this Act the only guidance
that could be found on this question was from certain judicial
decisions.
5.3 Until the Industrial Revolution this problem was of little
consequence and there are no very early cases dealing with plant
and machinery which need be considered. From the end of the
18th century, however, there was much controversy as to whether
or not machinery and plant should be included in a valuation for
rating and, indeed, if it were to be included, how its value was to
be assessed.
5.4 There was a series of decisions on these points dating from
<1R. v. St. Nicholas, Gloucester,>1 1783. In <1Kirby v. Hunslet Union,>1
1906, which referred back to the decision in <1Tyne Boiler Works>1
<1Co. v. Longbenton,>1 1886, it was clearly established that an item of
plant or machinery did not have to be a fixture or otherwise part of
the freehold, before it could be taken into account in the rating
assessment. Certain items of plant and machinery which were not
fixed to the property but which stood on their own weight were to
be included in the assessment. These were items which <1made the>1
<1premises fit for the purpose for which they were being used,>1 for
example as a brewery or as a foundry, <1and which were intended to>1
<1remain there as long as the premises were used for that purpose.>1
Loose tools and stock in tradei were not however to be included in
the assessment.
5.5 Having established what items were to be taken into
account, the next problem was how they should be valued. In
<1Smith v. Willesden Union,>1 1919 the Court decided that the
<s1>s Poor Rate Exemption Act, 1840.
105
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
hereditament should be valued on the assumption that the
hypothetical landlord had provided not only the land and buildings
but also those items of plant and machinery which were to be
taken into account in the assessment. The question for the valuer
to answer was what rent would the hypothetical tenant pay for the
hereditament as equipped with those items.
5.6 The principle of valuation laid down in <1Smith v. Willesden>1
<1Union,>1 1919 applies today, as it did before the passing of the
Rating and Valuation Act, 1925.
5.7 After the first World War, industrialists began to complain
that the rating of a very wide range of plant and machinery
resulted in their being unfairly treated in comparison with other
businesses which were not so dependent on plant and machinery.
Furthermore, it was argued that the rating of plant and machinery
deterred industrialists from investing in it and this was not in the
best interests of the Country. Largely as a result of these pressures
the law relating to plant and machinery was overhauled in the
Rating and Valuation Act, 1925.
<2The Rating and Valuation Act, 1925>2
5.8 The effect of section 24 of this Act was to exempt from
rating all plant and machinery unless it was specified in the third
schedule to the Act. The section provided that "<2no account shall>2
<2be taken of >2<1the value>1 of any plant or machinery in or on the
<2hereditament">2 except that which is scheduled. The section did not
state that the plant is to be ignored--only that no account is to be
taken of its value. It can therefore be argued that the existence of
the exempted plant is to be accepted but in determining the rental
value its value is to be ignored.
5.9 Section 24 did not apply where a valuation of the heredita-
ment was made by reference to the accounts, receipts or profits of
an undertaking carried on therein. In such a case the pre-1925 Act
law continued to apply.
<2The General Rate Act, 1967>2
5. 10 Section 24 and the third schedule to the Rating and
Valuation Act, 1925, have now been re-enacted in section 21 and
the third schedule of the General Rate Act, 1967 as amended by
the Local Government Act, 1974.
5.11 Section 21 refers to the third schedule of the Act and all
items of plant and machinery found in that schedule are <2deemed to>2
106
<1Plant and Machinery>1
<2be part of the hereditament>2 and therefore rateable. All other plant
and machinery is exempt. (ie: no account is to be taken of its value
or of the cost of installing it).<s2>s
5.12 It is important to remember that whether or not a piece of
plant or machinery is rateable is dependent on whether or not it is
included in the third schedule. Physical attachment to the here-
ditament is not a conclusive test to decide whether an item of plant
or machinery is rateable. Items of plant and machinery which are
not attached to the hereditament but stand on their own weight
can be rateable. On the other hand many items of plant and
machinery which are attached to the hereditament are not rate-
able.
5.13 Although the third schedule of the Act has not been
repealed (and in cases of difficulty and complexity it is still
necessary to refer to it), for all practical purposes it has been
replaced by an Order, provision for which is made in subsection 3
of section 21. The current Order is the Plant and Machinery
(Rating) Order, 1960, SI 1960 No. 122,<s3>s which replaced the 1927
Order.
<1Plant or Machinery>1
5.14 Section 21 of the General Rate Act, 1967, states that (with
the exception of hereditaments valued on the profits basis) any
<1"plant and machinery">1 set out in the Plant & Machinery (Rating)
Order, 1960, is deemed to be part of the hereditament. Thus
before looking to see whether a particular item is included in the
Plant and Machinery Order, it is first necessary to determine
whether that item is <1"plant or machinery".>1
5. 15 The word "machinery" would seem to have its normal
everyday or dictionary meaning. There do not appear to have been
any rating cases in which the meaning of the word machinery has
been defined and this indicates that no great difficulty has been
experienced in determining its meaning.
5.16 On the other hand the meaning of the world <2"plant">2 has
given rise to a number of court decisions. In the leading case of
<1Yarmouth v. France,>1 1887 it was stated that plant included
<2"whatever apparatus is used by a businessman for carrying on his>2
<2business." "All his goods and chattels, fixed or movable, live or>2
<s2>s <1English Clays Lovering Pochin & Co. Ltd. v. Bowles (V. O.), 1974.>1
<s3>s As amended by section 5(4) Rating and Valuation Act, 1961, section 41, Pipe
Lines Act, 1962 and the Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amendment) Order, 1974.
107
<2dead, which he keeps for permanent employment in his business">2
are plant. Stock-in-trade is not plant.<s4>s
5.17 In this case (which was concerned with compensating an
injured workman) it was decided that a horse was plant, because it
was used by a businessman in his business. Happily, from the
surveyor's point of view, horses are not rateable because they are
not mentioned in the Plant and Machinery Order.
5.18 Plant has been held to include cement kilns, chalk boards
and display panels at a school,<s5>s demountable partitioning used to
subdivide large offices into convenient sizes,<s6>s knives and lasts.<s7>s
But items of plant will only be rateable if they are included in the
Plant and Machinery <2Order.>2
5.19 In <1J. Lyons & Co., Ltd. v. Attorney General,>1 1944 (a war
damage case) electric light bulbs with sockets and wires were held
not to be plant, but to be part of the setting in which the business
was carried on, and without which the building could not be used
to its full extent. It follows that because items such as electric
lights, sockets and wires are mentioned in the Plant and Machinery
Order, this does not mean that they fall within the definition of
plant in every case where they are found.
5.20 In each case, the valuer must ask himself: is this item
(1) plant or machinery, or a combination of both;<s7>sa or
(2) is it part of the setting in which the business is carried on<s7>sb;
or
<1(3)>1 is it neither plant nor machinery nor part of the setting in
which the business is carried on.<s7c>s
It is only in those cases in which the item is plant or machinery
that the valuer need look at the Plant and Machinery Order.
<1The Plant and Machinery Order>1
5.21 The plant and Machinery Order is divided into five classes.
The fifth class was added by the Pipe Lines Act, 1962.
<s4>s <1Yarmouth v. france,>1 1887.
<s5>s <1Dawkins v. Warwickshire County Council,>1 1961.
<s6>s <1Jarrold (Inspector of Taxes) v. John Good & Sons, Ltd.,>1 1963 but see other cases
where office partitions were held not to be plant (paragraphs 5.96 to 5.104).
<s7>s <1Hinton v. Maden Ireland,>1 1959.
<s7>sa <1Cook (H.M.I. T.) v. Beach Station Caravans Ltd.,>1 1975 (C.D.) (swimming and
paddling pools are plant): <1Union Cold Storage>1 Co., <1Ltd. v. Phillips (V.O.)>1 1976
(H.L.) (chambers for refrigerating within a building are plant).
<s7b>s <1Dixon (H.M.I. T.) v. Finch's Garage Ltd.,>1 1975 (C.D.) (canopy over petrol
pumps not plant): <1St. john's School v. Ward (H. M.I. T.)>1 1974 (C.A. (prefabricated
class rooms not plant).
<s7c>s <1Haigh v. Charles W Ireland Ltd.,>1 1973 (H.L.) (safe being cut up in scrap yard not
plant).
108
<1Plant and Machinery>1
Classes 1A, 1B and 4 are each in two parts; a general description
followed by a specific list of items.
<2Class>2 1A
Class 1A comprises plant and machinery (together with accessor-
ies) which are used or intended to be used mainly or exclusively in
connection with:--
the <2generation, storage, primary transformation or main trans->2
<2 mission of power.>2 If the plant or machinery falls within this
general description, it is then necessary for the item to appear in
the specific list of items in table 1A before it becomes rateable.
Table 1A includes steam boilers and their settings; chimneys;
steam turbines; hot air engines; alternating current dynamos;
storage batteries; static transformers; cables; switchboards;
water wheels; air compressors; windmills; and many other
items.
5.22 ""<2Power">2 has been held to mean "any form of energy or
force applicable to work."<s89>s <2""Work">2 has been defined as "the
exertion of force in overcoming resistance or producing molecular
change."<s9>s
5.23 In the light of the above definitions the Lands Tribunal
helds that the electric current used "in an electrolytic process (to
move the ions to their respective electrodes and thereby chemical-
ly separate large quantities of sodium and chlorine) rendered the
current so used "force of energy applied to work' and thus ""power'
within the meaning of the Order."<s8>s It is, therefore, apparent that
electric current used to bring about a chemical reaction can be
classed as power and that the appliances used to generate trans-
form and transmit the current, will be part of the hereditament if
they are named in class 1A.
5.24 In <1Chesterfield Tube Co. Ltd., v. Thomas (V.O.),>1 1970 the
question was raised as to whether air compressors and hydraulic
pumps, driven by electric motors, were generating power. The
wires leading to the electric motors were not rateable because they
were beyond the point at which the main transmission of power
ceased. The ratepayers argued that power could only be produced
from a natural physical, chemical or fossil source of energy. Once
generated the power could be used in that form or converted into
another form but there could be no question of that power
generating other power. The ratepayers claimed that the electric-
ity fed into their hereditament was power which had already been
<s8>s <1ICI Ltd. v. Owen (V. O.).>1 1954.
<s9>s Oxford English Dictionary.
109
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
generated and that it was thereafter merely being transformed into
hydraulic and pneumatic power.
5.25 The Court of Appeal having regard to the Oxford Diction-
ary definition of power, quoted above, decided that "<2generation of>2
<2power">2 meant no more than the "production of power". That
power could be produced using any source of energy including
electrical energy and that in consequence the electric motors,
compressors and hydraulic pumps were "<2used mainly or exclusive->2
<2ly in connection with the generation of power,">2
5.26 <2"Transformer>2' is defined as meaning "any plant which
changes the pressure or frequency or form of current of electrical
power to another pressure or frequency or form of current except
any such plant which forms an integral part of an item of plant or
machinery in or on the hereditament for manufacturing operations
or trade processes". The interesting word here is the word
<2"integral".>2 A transformer is rateable unless it is an integral part of
an item of plant or machinery used for manufacturing operations.
It would appear from this that "integral" must mean "essential"
for no other interpretation would make any sense at all. This is
particularly interesting when one deals with the meaning of the
same word, <1"integral",>1 in the preamble to class 4.
5.27 <2"Main transmission of power">2 has been given a definition,
and in the case of electrical power "main transmission of power"
means "all transmission of power from the generating plant or
point of supply in or on the hereditament up to and including . . .
the first transformer in any circuit, or where the first transformer
precedes any distribution board or, where there is no transformer,
the first distribution board".
5.28 The point at which rateability ceases in the case of
shafting, wheels, hydraulic and pneumatic power, is also set out in
the Plant and Machinery Order.
<2Class IB>2
5.29 Class 1B comprises plant or machinery (together with
accessories) which are used or intended to be used mainly or
exclusively in connection with:--
the <2heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting, drainage or supplying>2
<2 of water to the land or buildings of which the hereditament>2
<2 consists, or the protecting of the hereditament from fire.>2 If the
item falls within this general description, it is then necessary for
the item to appear in the list of items in table 1B (or within
paragraph 2 of the list of accessories), before it is rateable.
110
<1Plant and Machinery>1
Table 1B includes all the plant and machinery listed in table 1A
and amongst other things calorifiers; radiators; hot air furnaces
with distributing ducts and gratings; gas heaters; plug-sockets
and other outlets; electric heaters; refrigerating machines; plant
for filtering, washing, drying, warming, cooling, humidifying,
deodorising and perfuming, and for chemical and bacteriologic-
al treatment of air; electric lamps; sewage treatment machinery
and plant; sluice-gates; plant for the storage and treatment of
water; hydrants; sprinkler systems; fire alarms; and lightning
conductors.
5.30 Provided that where plant or machinery is there for the
purposes of <2manufacturing operations or trade processes,>2 the fact
that it is used in connection with those operations or processes, for
heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting, or supplying of water or
protection from fire, shall not cause it to be rateable.<s10>s
5.31 One interpretation which could be placed on the proviso is
that it excludes from class 1B, all plant and machinery which is
used for manufacturing operations or trade processes, even though
it is used only to a small extent for those purposes but to a much
larger extent for heating, cooling . . . the hereditament. This
interpretation does not seem to have been adopted in practice.
5.32 The interpretation which has been adopted in practice is
that, it excludes from rateability plant, such as a boiler which was
used to heat an ale store for the purpose of regulating or
accelerating the conditioning process of the ale.ii The ale store
was part of the hereditament and if it were not for the proviso, it
could have been argued that the boiler was being used to heat the
hereditament and this would have made the boiler rateable under
class 1B.
5.33 This interpretation seems to have been adopted by the
courts, not only in the case of the ale store but also in the case of
cold stores.
5.34 In the <1Union Cold Storage Co. Ltd. v. Southwark Assess->1
<1 ment Committee,>1 1923 refrigeration plant was used to lower the
temperature in the storage chambers, so as to reduce the rate of
deterioration of the goods stored. The storage chambers were part
of the hereditament and had it not been for the proviso, some of
the refrigeration plant would have been rateable under class 1B
because it was being used to cool the hereditament. As it was the
<s10>s It should be noted that the word "drainage" in class 1B does not appear in the
proviso to that class. It follows that process drainage plant is rateable.
- 1i <1Burton-upon-Trent>1 C.B.C. <1v. Bass Ratcliff & Thomas (V. O.),>1 1961.
111
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
proviso appears to have resulted in the exclusion of the refrigera-
tion plant from rateability under class 1B because it was being used
for a trade process, namely the reduction of the rate of deteriora-
tion of the goods in store.
5.35 It is important to remember that the above proviso only
applies to class 1B; which means that plant and machinery in other
classes is not automatically excluded because it is used for manu-
facturing operations or trade processes. For example, in a particu-
lar factory there is a bottle sterilisation plant which uses steam to
sterilise bottles. After the steam has sterilised the bottles it goes on
to heat the factory. Because of the above proviso the sterilisation
plant will not be rateable under class 1B. However, the proviso will
not prevent the plant from being rateable under class 4 if it meets
the requirements of that class.
5.36 A problem arises in the case of plant performing a dual
function. Where, for example, a steam boiler is used partly to heat
a hereditament and partly to supply steam for some manufacturing
operation or trade process. One argument put forward in such a
case, is that if the amount of heat used for the trade purpose
exceeds the amount of heat used to warm the hereditament, then
the boiler would be excluded from rating under class 1B; but if the
opposite was the case, the boiler would be rateable. There do not,
however, appear to be any court decisions to support this argu-
ment.
<1Class 2>1
5.37 Class 2 comprises lifts and elevators mainly or usually used
for passengers. It follows that goods lifts and elevators are not
rateable plant or machinery.
<1Class 3>1
Class 3 comprises railway and tramway lines and tracks.
5.38 It is a principle in the interpretation of Acts of Parliament,
that where different words are used in an Act they should be given
different meanings. Following this principle it is interesting to
consider the difference in meaning between the words "mainly" or
"usually" in class 2 and "lines" and "tracks" in class 3. Apart from
this the descriptions in classes 2 and 3 are comparatively straight-
forward and little difficulty is experienced in practice.
<1Class 4>1
5.39 Class 4 begins with five paragraphs (a to e) which exclude
certain plant and machinery from the class. There follows two
112
<1Plant and Machinery>1
tables of named items which, if they do not fall within the
exclusions, will be rateable.
<1CLASS 4>1<s12>s
5.40 The following items except:--
(a) "any such item which is not, and is not in the nature of, a
building or a structure;"
(b) "any part of any such item which does not form an integral
part of such item as a building or structure or as being in the
nature of a building or structure;"
(c) "any such item or part of such item which is moved or
rotated by motive power as part of the process of
manufacture;"<s13>s
(d) "so much of any refactory or other lining forming part of
any plant or machinery as is customarily renewed by reason
of normal use at intervals of less than fifty weeks;"<s13>s
(e) "any item in table B the total cubic capacity of which
(measured externally and excluding foundations, settings,
supports and anything which is not an integral part of the
item) does not exceed two hundred cubic metres, and which
is readily capable of being moved from one site and
re-erected in its original state on another without the
substantial demolition of the item or of any surrounding
structure."<s13>s
(a & b) Paragraphs a and b are worded in the negative and this
may make them more difficult to understand. Expressing
them in a positive form, the paragraphs state that before
an item can be rateable within class 4, it must be a
building or a structure or in the nature of, a building or a
structure.<s14>s Or the item must form an integral part of
such an item as a building or structure . . .
5.41 <2"Integral">2 in paragraph <1(b),>1 does not mean functionally
integral, but integral in the sense of being part of the structure.
Thus in <1Burton (V.O.) v. Ogdens (Brighton) Ltd.,>1 1952 the belts
moving trays and electric motors in a bakers oven were not an
integral part of the oven because they were not part of the
structure.<s15>s
<s12>s As amended by the Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amendment) Order, 1974.
<s13>s Added to C1ass 4 by the Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amendment) Order,
<i1974.>i
<s14>s See Class 4 in the 3rd schedule of the General Rate Act, 1967.
<s15>s See also <1British Steel Corporation v. Pittock (V.O.),>1 1970 and <1B.P. Refinery>1
<1(Kent) Ltd. v. Walker (V. O.),>1 1957.
113
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Paragraphs a and b of class 4 have given rise to a series of cases,
some of which should be noted. For help in deciding, in any
particular case, what is the meaning of the word <1"structure",>1 one
can turn to several decided cases such as <1Cardiff Rating Authority>1
<1& Cardiff Assessment Committee v. Guest, Keen Baldwins Iron &>1
<1Steel Co.,>1 1949; <1Burton v. Ogdens (Brighton) Ltd.,>1 1952; <1Tunnel>1
<1Portland Cement Co. Ltd. v. Thurrock Urban District Council,>1
1951; <1Jones v. Rugby Portland Cement Co. Ltd.,>1 1952; <1Woodward>1
<1v. Brading & Blundell Ltd.,>1 1951 and <1B. P. Refinery (Kent) Ltd. v.>1
<1Walker,>1 1957.
5.42 Basically to be a <2structure,>2 an item of plant must be
constructed;<s16>s that is built on the site, rather than brought to the
site in one piece.
5.43 However, the Courts have said<s16>s that just because a thing,
by some <1feat of engineering or transport,>1 was brought to the site in
one piece, it is not debarred from being <1in the nature of a structure.>1
5.44 An item which is not a structure in itself, may become
structural as a result of the way that it is mounted. For example a
soda flash tower in an oil refinery was not a structure by itself but
after delivery to the site it was bolted to a concrete base and
brickwork was built around it to a height of 8 to 10 feet. The Court
of Appeal held the whole to be <1"in the nature of a structure.">1<s17>s
5.45 Similarly in another case<s18>s metal supports for steam pipes
were brought to the site ready made. They resembled ladders in
appearance, were not of any great weight and were not in
themselves structures or in the nature of structures. However,
once on the site the supports were mounted in concrete blocks;
they would remain there until they needed to be removed from the
site or replaced. They could only be removed by breaking up the
blocks of concrete. Having regard to the integration of the
supports, into the concrete blocks the Lands Tribunal decided that
the supports were <1in the nature of a structure.>1
5.46 The case of <1Guest, keen, Baldwin>1 concerned some tilting
furnaces in an ironworks. These furnaces are massive items
holding many tons of molten metal and when ready to be emptied
are tilted to pour the metal out. Each furnace is supported on very
substantial supports and foundations and the furnace rotates on
some trunions which allow as it were of a swinging motion. The
Court of Appeal held that the whole group of foundations,
supports and "container" formed a single rateable item, namely a
<s16>s <1Cardiff v. Guest, Keen, Baldwin's Iron & Steel Co.,>1 1949.
<s17>s <1B.P. Refinery (Kent) Ltd. v. Walker,>1 1957.
<s18>s <1Lever Bros. Port Sunlight Ltd. v. Bright (V. O.),>1 1962.
114
<1Plant and Machinery>1
furnace, which was to include all the associated parts functionally
inseparable and, further, a <1limited degree of movement>1 on <2a>2 fixed
foundation was not a bar to rateability under class 4 of the Order.
This case was followed almost immediately by test cases concern-
ing the rateability of cement kilns. A modern rotary cement kiln
may be several hundred feet long and possibly up to ten feet wide
and is a metal cylinder rotating on an inclined plane about a
longitudinal axis, the whole being supported on concrete supports
and foundations. For years it had been generally thought that
whereas the supports and foundations were rateable the kiln itself
was not, because of its degree of movement on the foundations,
and the fact that it merely rested thereon. As a result of the
doctrine in <1Guest, keen, Baldwin's>1 case the cement kilns were
tested before the Lands Tribunal and similarly held to be rateable
on the same basis.
5.47 It may be that since 1974 the cement kilns and the tilting
furnaces are excluded from class 4 by reason of paragraph <1(c)>1
above, however, this does not invalidate the principle that an item
may be in the nature of a structure even though it has a limited
degree of movement.
5.48 To summarise the position it would appear that in order to
be a structure or in the nature of a structure, within the meaning of
class 4, an item should have been constructed on the site; brought
to the site by a feat of engineering/transport, or mounted on the
site in such a way that it becomes an integral part of its mounting.
It must be large; probably heavy and have a degree of perma-
nence. A limited degree of movement is acceptable.
5.49 A further thought that came directly from <1Guest, keen,>1
<1Baldwin's>1 case was more recently known as <2the theory of the>2
<2functional unit.>2 In <1Guest, Keen, Baldwin's>1 case the decision
referred to the "agglomeration of associated parts functionally
inseparable" and it, therefore, seemed that if this could be taken
to its logical conclusion much of what was now regarded as exempt
would be treated as rateable. It was the current thought that under
class 4 any part or parts of an item of rateable plant which could be
detached from the main plant without disturbing the structure
were not rateable, but of course once these parts were detached
the function of the part that was left was destroyed and if the
function was to be the criterion of rateability then a lot more
equipment could and should be rateable.
5.50 This doctrine of the functional unit theory was taken to its
conclusion in the case of <1Kent Oil Refinery Limited v. Walker,>1
1954, which went to the Lancs Tribunal and then to the Court of
115
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Appeal. The actual items involved were a crude distillation unit in
the refinery where certain parts, such as the main towers <2and>2 so
on, were admitted rateable by the occupier. The matters at issue
were all the control and measuring gear and mechanism which
went with the main towers to make the crude distillation unit a
functional entity as opposed to a basic unusable hulk of steel
structures. The difference in value in this particular case was
enormous and from the occupier's point of view it was clearly
worth fighting. The Court of Appeal in a long judgment in effect
exploded the theory of functional unit and restored substantially,
though possibly not entirely, the position as it was prior to <1Guest,>1
<1keen, Baldwin's>1 case.
5.51 Immediately following paragraphs a to e in class 4 come
two tables listing plant and machinery, which if it does not fall
within the exclusions will be rateable.
5.52 Table A includes blast furnaces; bridges; chimneys; eleva-
tors and hoists; floating docks and pontoons; flumes and conduits;
foundations; settings; masts (including guy ropes) and towers for
radar, wireless, television; pits, beds and bays for certain specified
purposes; slipways; telescopes, including radio telescopes; walk-
ways, stairways, handrails and catwalks; weighbridges and wind-
mills.
5.53 Table B includes bins, hoppers and funnels; boilers;
forges; furnaces, kilns, ovens and stores; chambers, vessels and
containers for a large range of things including chemical reaction,
cooling, drying, mixing, refrigerating and testing; coolers; heat
exchangers; reactors; silos; stills; tanks; vats and wind tunnels.
5.54 Items in table B are excluded from rateability under class 4
if they have a <2total cubic capacity not exceeding 200 cubic metres,>2
<2and are readily capable of being moved from one site and re-ereeted>2
<2in their original state on another, without the substantial demolition>2
<2of the item or of any surrounding structure.>2<s18a>ss Such items must be
measured externally and foundations, settings, supports and any-
thing which is not an integral part of the item must be excluded
when arriving at the cubic capacity. The requirement that the item
must be measured externally can give rise to difficulty in practice.
Whilst the internal capacity of an item is usually well known to the
manufacturer or user of the item, the external capacity is seldom
known. Difficulties occur where for example it is necessary to
measure a piece of plant which is lagged on the outside and where
the surface of the lagging is in a corrugated form. Further difficulty
<s18>sa Cumber (V.O.) v. Associated Family Bakers (South West) Ltd. 1979 (L.T.).
116
<1Plant and Machinery>1
may arise when trying to decide where the item stops and where its
foundations settings and supports begin.
5.55 Whilst some of the descriptions in class 4 are quite specific,
for example "windmills", others are more general. For example
"chambers, vessels and containers for . . .". The more general
descriptions enable items to be rated, even when they are not
referred to by name. For example refrigerators are not named in
class 4 but "chambers, vessels and containers for refrigerating" are
included and this would cause a refrigerator to be rateable
provided it was not excluded by the preamble to class 4.
<1Class 5>1
5.56 The boom in pipe laying in this country resulted in the Pipe
Lines Act, 1962, adding a fifth class to the Plant and Machinery
(Rating) Order, 1960.
5.57 The fifth class makes rateable a pipeline, that is to say, a
pipe or system of pipes for the conveyance of anything, not
being:--
<1(a)>1 a drain or sewer;
(b) a pipe or system of pipes vested in a Gas Board, an
Electricity Board, or the Central Electricity Generating
Board;
(c) a pipe or system of pipes forming part of the equipment of,
and wholly situated within, a factory<s19>s or petroleum storage
depot or premises comprised in a mine, quarry or mineral
field.<s20>s
5.58 Where a pipe or system of pipes is partly inside and partly
outside a factory, petroleum storage depot, mine or mineral field,
the part inside is to be excluded from class 5.
5.59 The rateability of pipes within a factory, petroleum stor-
age depot, mine or mineral field is determined by the other four
classes of the Plant and Machinery Order.
5.60 Although drains and sewers are not rateable, sewage
works are rateable.
5.61 Pipes vested in Gas and Electricity Boards are already
taken into account in the formulae used to assess these undertak-
ings.
<s19>s <1Edwards (V. O.) v. B.P. Refinery (Llandarcy) Ltd.,>1 1974.
<s20>s <1English Clays Lovering Pochin & Co. Ltd. v. Davis (V.O.),>1 1966 and <1Rugby>1
<1Portland Cement Co. Ltd. v. Hunt (V. O.),>1 1969.
117
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<2The Item>2
5.62 The word "plant" has been given the same meaning by the
Courts in workman's compensation, war damage, rating and
revenue (national taxation) cases. However, there is an important
difference between rating and revenue cases, insofar that the <1item>1
of plant to be considered, may not be the same. This is well
illustrated in relation to dry docks.
5.63 In <1Commissioners of Inland Revenue v. Barclay Curle &>1
<1Co. Ltd.,>1 1969 (a revenue case) the House of Lords decided that
the <1item>1 to be considered was the dry dock as a whole. They
applied a <1"functional test">1<s2>si to the dock and determined that the
dock gate, pumps, walls and floor of the dock functioned together
as a "single entity" and in consequence, for revenue purposes, the
dry dock should be considered to be a single <1item.>1 The piecemeal
approach was rejected.
5.64 The House went on to decide that the dock, looked at as a
single <1item,>1 was plant. This was because it was used to separate a
ship from the water, to hold it steady ("as in a vice") whilst it was
being repaired and then return it again to the water. In other
words it was being used as apparatus in a business.
5.65 By contrast, <1Manchester Marine Ltd. v. Duckworth>1
<1(V.O.),>1 1973 was a rating case, which dealt with dry docks. In
giving his decision in the Court of Appeal Lord Denning said
"rating law is difficult from revenue law. The word "plant' has the
same meaning in each statute but the subject-matter to which it is
applied is different. In rating cases it is permissible to split up the
dry docks into parts but in revenue cases it is not. The rating cases
are governed by another decision of the House of Lords
<1Shell-Mex and B.P. Ltd v. Holyoak V.O.>1 (1959)." (In that case the
House of Lords did in fact split up the subject-matter into pieces.
They dealt with it piecemeal. Lord Reid said:
"I agree that, in fact, from a practical point of view, it would
not be sensible or realistic to split the two things up. But, as I
have said, it appears to me to be the purpose of this legislation
to split up for rating purposes installations which are for
practical purposes indivisable.' These words are applicable to
the present case (the dry dock.) It is legitimate in rating cases to
consider the subject-matter piecemeal and to split it up in a way
which is not permissible in revenue cases."
<s21>s <1Cardiff Rating Authority & Cardiff Assessment Committee v. Guest, Keen,>1
<1Baldwins Iron & Steel Co. Ltd.,>1 1959-
118
<1Plant and Machinery>1
5.66 Lord Denning thought<s22>s that before asking whether a thing
is plant, whether it is in the Plant and Machinery Order and
whether it is in the nature of a building or structure, there was a
preliminary question to be asked.
5.67 The preliminary question was <1"what is the part of the>1
<1hereditament which is in question?">1
"Applied to this case the dry dock is to be divided into parts.
Take first the parts such as the dock gates, the pumps and pipes
and so forth. All those parts are obviously "plant'. Next take the
floor and walls. For rating purposes you take those parts by
themselves and ask whether they are "plant' or not. The answer is
that they are not plant at all, but they are the structure in which the
plant is housed. To anyone versed in rating law, this structure,
these walls and floors--built more firmly than any house ever
could be--these are clearly not plant. They are the housing or
setting within which the plant is operated. They are rateable
accordingly."
5.68 The reason for bringing the Manchester Marine case to
Court was the hope, on the part of the ratepayers, that the Court
would treat the dry dock as a single item. Had that been so the dry
dock would not have been rateable because dry docks are not
listed in the Plant and Machinery Order. As it was the Court
confirmed the previous practice of treating the floor and walls of
the dock, not as plant, but as part of the setting in which the
business was carried on and as such part of the rateable heredita-
ment. The dock gates, pumps and pipes and some other items
were held to be plant but they were not rateable because they were
not listed in the Plant and Machinery Order.
5.69 By comparing the two dry dock decisions, it would appear
that in revenue cases, it is permissible to apply the "functional
test" in order to arrive at the "part of the hereditament which is in
question" and that it is not permitted to use the "piecemeal"
approach. In rating cases on the other hand the ""functional test"
should not be applied and the "piecemeal" approach should be
adopted.
5.70 ln <1Shell--Mex and B. P. Ltd. v. Holyoak,>1 1959 a metal
petrol tank was installed underground at a garage. A pit was dug
and lined with brick and concrete. The tank was inserted in this
chamber and the gap between the two filled with sand. The whole
was then covered with a concrete slab incorporating a manhole
through which the tank was to be filled and inspected.
<s22>s <1Manchester Marina Ltd. v. Duckworth (V. O.),>1 1973-
119
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
5.71 The tank could not be removed from its surroundings
without at very least destroying the concrete slab. The House of
Lords decided that for rating purposes the installation was to be
divided up. They took the tank and its surroundings separately and
held that the tank was plant.<s23>s The surrounding brick and concrete
enclosure, they held was not plant but was part of the setting, and
in consequence, part of the rateable hereditament.
5.72 Amongst the other rating cases which demonstrate the
Courts piecemeal approach to plant, are <1kent Oil Refinery Ltd. v.>1
<1Walker (V.O.),>1 1954 in which the "topping unit" in the refinery
was reduced to its component parts and considered <1item>1 by <1item>1
and <1Union Cold Storage Co. Ltd. v. Phillips (V.O.),>1 1976 in which
subdivisions within a building were each held to be a chamber for
refrigeration.
5.73 If difficulty is experienced in understanding the technical
words used in the Order, the interpretation to be placed on the
words, is the meaning given to them by "rating valuers and
surveyors, the occupiers of hereditaments and the practical techni-
cians concerned with the design, making and operation of the
plant and machinery;" not the meaning given to them by philo-
sophers and physicists.<s24>s
<2Valuation of Plant and Machinery>2
5.74 Under section 21 of the 1967 Act, the occupier has the
right to require the valuation officer to supply a list of all plant and
machinery, which he has treated as rateable. The valuation officer
does not have to disclose the amount at which he has valued the
plant and machinery.
5.75 As a matter of practical valuation certain items of plant
and machinery, particularly those enumerated in class 1, are very
often valued in with the building which they serve and not treated
as separate additional items. For example, when valuing a factory
at a price per square metre derived from rental evidence, it is usual
for one's basic price per square metre to reflect the fact that the
building is lit, heated and possibly sprinklered. In the ordinary way
the valuer will not value an unheated, unlit building and then add
for the heating and lighting installations thereafter, and much the
<s23>s Though the tank in this case was held to be plant it was not rateable because
although tanks are mentioned in class 4 of the Plant and Machinery Order, 1960
this one was not considered by itself, of sufficient substance, to be in the nature of a
building or a structure.
<s24>s <1Chesterfield Tube Co. Ltd. v. Thomas (V. O.)>1 1970.
120
<1Plant and Machinery>1
same goes with items such as main power wiring and things of that
sort. Other items, such as transformers, gantries, railway lines,
will normally be valued to an effective capital value<s25>s and a
percentage of this taken and added to the basic net annual value
figure otherwise calculated.
5.76 The fundamental principle of valuation, is that the valuer
must imagine that the hypothetical landlord supplied the land and
the buildings and the rateable plant and machinery. The valuer
must answer the question--how much rent would the hypothetical
tenant pay for all three combined together in one hereditament?
5.77 Care must be used to avoid valuing any item of plant and
machinery twice. It is easy, for instance, to reflect the value of a
switchboard in the price per square metre at which the factory is
valued. This will occur automatically when other factories, from
which the valuer's rental evidence is drawn, have similar switch-
boards included in their rent. Later the valuer may inadvertently
include the "effective capital value"<s25>s of the switchboard in with
the "effective capital value" of other rateable plant and machin-
ery. The effect will be that the switchboard will have been valued
twice.
5.78 A similar effect to the above will be achieved where a
hereditament is unable to be connected to the main drain but
instead has its own sewage treatment plant. If the rental evidence
used to value the hereditament is drawn from hereditaments with
main drainage and the valuer then finds a separate value for the
sewage treatment plant and adds this to his valuation, he has in
effect valued the plant twice. In addition the valuer may have
overlooked the possibility that a tenant would pay a lower rent for
a hereditament which does not have the benefits of main drainage.
5.79 Where a hereditament which is not connected to the main
drain is valued using rental evidence from properties which are
connected to the main drain, the existence of a drainage system
will already have been included in the value. Far from adding
anything to reflect the presence of a private sewage treatment
plant, the valuer should seriously consider deducting an amount,
to reflect the disadvantage of having a private sewage plant (as
compared with the advantages of being connected to the main
drain).
5.80 It is sometimes thought that inclusion of plant and machin-
ery applies only to industrial properties. This, of course, is wholly
fallacious. Plant and machinery may be found in any rateable
<s25>s for an explanation of "effective capital value" see paragraph 7.41.
121
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
hereditament;<s26>s for example, a cold store in a food shop, if it is
large enough to be considered a structure, will be rateable.
5.81 A case which is worthy of attention in connection with
plant and machinery is that of <1Townley Mill Company (1919)>1
<1Limited v. Oldham Assessment Committee,>1 1936. This concerned a
spinning mill which, during a trade depression, was closed and
"silent". The mill contained certain items of rateable plant and a
great deal of process machinery (non rateable machinery). It also
contained some items of loose chattels. The question was whether
or not it was to be treated as a store for the process machinery or
only as a store for the loose chattels. The House of Lords held that
the value of the process machinery was to be ignored in accord-
ance with section 24 Rating and Valuation Act, 1925. Accordingly
it was not possible to rate the mill as a warehouse for the process
machinery, because the process machinery was deemed to be
valueless and no one would pay a rent to store valueless machin-
ery. As a result the mill was valued at a purely nominal figure,
being its value as a store for the loose chattels.
5.82 The rateable plant in the Townley Mill case was, by section
24, part of the hereditament and as such could not cause the
hereditament to be in rateable occupation. A hereditament cannot
occupy itself. Furthermore the rateable plant and machinery did
not add to the value of the premises because at that time there was
no demand for a mill of that type.
5.83 Finally it should be recalled that where a profits valuation
is made the pre-1925 Act law applies and the Plant and Machinery
Order does not have any effect. It may be that a valuer decides to
value a given hereditament by two or more different methods. For
example he may decide to make one valuation using the <1contrac->1
<1tors method>1 of valuation and another using the <1profits or accounts>1
<1method.>1 In such a case section 21 of the General Rate Act, 1967
and the Plant and Machinery Order, 1960 would apply to the
<1contractors>1 valuation but the pre-1925 Act law would apply to the
<1profits or accounts>1 valuation.
5.84 The plant and machinery which is not deemed to be
provided by the hypothetical landlord must be provided by the
hypothetical tenant, and due allowance should be made for this
when estimating the rent which he would pay. In the case of a
profits valuation the sum set aside for tenants capital should
include the value of the items which the hypothetical tenant is
deemed to provide.
<s26>s <1Townley Mill Company (1919) Ltd. v. Oldham Assessment Committee,>1 1936.
122
<1Plant and Machinery>1
<2The Rateability of Plant and Machinery in or on the Hereditament>2
Identify the boundaries of the hereditament.
Is the value of the hereditament being
found by reference to accounts, receipts yes
of profits?
no
What is the part which
is in the question?
Adopt the "piecemeal" approach. The pre-1925 Act law
Break the thing which is under consideration applies.
down into seperate "parts" or "items".
Take each item seperately.
Is the item:--
(i) plant or machinery? (ii) part of the surroundings (iii) not plant or
in which the business is machinery or part of
carried on? the surroundings in
which the business is
yes carried on?
yes
The item is rateable as yes
part of the hereditament.
The item is not
rateable.
Is the plant or machinery
included in the Plant and no
Machinery Order?
yes
The item is deemed to be No account is taken of the
part of the hereditament value of the item when
and should be included assessing the hereditament.
in the valuation.
<s*>s Classes 1A and 1B contain a general description followed by a specific list of things. To
come within the Plant and Machinery Order an item must comply with the general
description and be named in the list of specific items.
Class 4 contains five general exceptions followed by two tables of plant and machinery. To
be rateable an item must not fall within the exclusions and must be named in one of the
tables.
123
<1Plant and Machinery>1
5.88 The courts have observed on more than one occasion that
the dividing line is very narrow.
5.89 In trying to determine the function which the partitioning
fulfils it may be relevant to consider the following:
(i) Whether the business has any special features which make
it a <1necessity>1 to have movable partitioning, as opposed to
the <1convenience>1 of having movable walls.
(ii) Whether the area in which the partitioning is erected was
specially built or chosen by the rate payer, in order to
provide the flexibility necessary for his business.
(iii) How often the partitioning is moved in practice.
(iv) How much cutting, how long and how much skilled labour
is involved in erecting and moving the partitioning.
(v) How securely the partitioning is fixed to the structure of the
building.
(vi) Whether or not the partitioning extends from floor to
ceiling.
5.90 The fact that the tenant supplied the partitioning or that he
has the right to take it with him when he leaves, is of little
consequence.
5.91 If due to the special nature of a business there is need to
expand and contract partitioned areas and if in practice the
partitioning is moved fairly often, then it will probably be held that
the function of the partitioning is that of plant. The fact that
partitioning is not of full height, that it is not securely attached to
the structure and that it can be re-erected quickly without skilled
labour, will add to the notion that its function is that of plant. The
converse is also the case.
5.92 The narrow line which exists between the two functions
can be illustrated by comparing two cases.
<1(1)>1 <2Jarrold (Inspector of Taxes) v. John Good & Sons Ltd., 1962>2
5.93 In the above the Court of Appeal considered the case
where a shipping agent occupied certain offices. The shipping
agent ran his business on the basis that when he took on a new
agency he set up a new department which he enclosed within a
partition. If he lost an agency the department would cease to exist
and the partitioning would be removed. Fluctuations in the work
of a department necessitated increasing or diminishing the number
of staff within a department and in consequence giving it more or
less floor space. It was a <1commercial necessity>1 for the office
accommodation to be highly flexible. The building had been
125
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<2Demountable Partitioning>2
5.85 "Demountable" or "removable" partitioning is becoming
more and more common in modern buildings. The essential
characteristic of this type of partitioning is that it is so constructed
that after it has been used in one place it can be dismantled
(without destroying it) and repositioned elsewhere. There are
many different types of demountable partitioning. Some partitions
extend the full height from floor to ceiling whilst others only
extend part of the way. Some are securely screwed to the floor,
ceiling and walls whilst others are not physically attached at all.
Some systems of partitioning involve a lot of cutting and require
skilled men to erect them, whilst others involve a minimum of
cutting and can be speedily erected by a handyman. Partitioning
can add appreciably to the rental value of a building and it is
therefore important to establish whether or not it is rateable.
5.86 There would seem to be three alternatives as far as a piece
of partitioning is concerned:
(1) It is plant; in which case it will not be rateable because
partitions are not included in the Plant & Machinery
(Rating) Order, 1960.<s27>s
(2) It is not plant; but it is part of the <1setting>1 within which the
business is carried on. In such a case it will form part of the
hereditament and will be rateable.<s28>s
(3) It is neither plant nor part of the setting; in which case it will
not be rateable.
5.87 To determine whether or not a piece of partitioning is
plant, it is necessary to look at the <1function>1<s29>s which it fulfils. If the
"function" which the partitioning fulfils is,
(a) to provide internal wall within which the business is carried
on, then it is not plant (even if the walls have the advantage
of being movable)<s30>s;
however if its function is,
<1(b)>1 that of internal movable partitioning necessary for the
running of the business, then it will fall within the definition
of plant given in <1Yarmouth v. France,>1 1887.<s30>s
<s27>s Section 21 General Rate Act, 1967 and The Plant and Machinery (Rating)
Order, 1960 do not apply to hereditaments valued by the profits method. 1n such
cases the pre-1925 Act law applies. Nor does the Plant and Machinery Order apply
to a hereditament valued by statutory formula. In this case the formula covers any
. <1Attorney General,>1 1944.
. <1Gudgion (V. O.) and Cwydon L.B.>1 C., 1969.
<1es) v. John Good & Sons Ltd.,>1 1962 Court of Appeal.
124
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
purpose built by the ratepayers and the architect had been
instructed to allow for maximum elasticity within the office area.
Accordingly he had designed a steel framed concrete structure
with a large open floor space for the offices. This enabled
demountable partitioning to be erected without limitation on the
size or shape of the individual offices.
5.94 The partitioning extended from floor to ceiling and was
screwed to the floor and the ceiling but was not fixed laterally to
the walls. It was erected by fitters but could be easily dismantled
and re-erected by the occupiers own maintenance men or by a
handyman. Even major alterations could be carried out in not
more than two days, including any necessary redecoration. In
about a year and a half only two alterations had been made and
these were made by the fitters who initially installed the partition-
ing.
5.95 The Court decided that instead of having internal walls in
their office building the occupiers "need to have and do have, for
the special requirements of their business, movable partitioning,
by means of which they can, in response to changing volumes of
business in their departments or the cessation of departments or
the emergence of new departments, rapidly and cheaply and
without much interruption of business, alter the sub-divisions of
their office building". Accordingly the Court held that the parti-
tions were plant.
(2) <2British Bakeries Ltd, v. Gudgion (V.O.) and Croyden L.B.C.,>2
<219660>2
5.96 This case which was heard by the Lands Tribunal, can be
contrasted with <1Jarrold v. Good.>1 In the offices concerned there
were three different types of demountable partitioning:
(i) Full height partitioning extending from floor to ceiling.
(ii) Half height partitioning,
and
(iii) A small amount of three quarter height partitioning.
5.97 As far as the full height partitioning was concerned the
construction was, in principle, similar to that in <1Jarrold v. Good.>1
Those differences which did exist were apparently not material.
5.98 The half height partitioning on the other hand "is brought
on to the site, prefabricated except for the capping which is easily
put on: it is screwed on to the floors and several sections can easily
be joined together. The removal can be carried out quite easily by
a layman and so indeed in most cases could its erection".
126
<1Plant and Machinery>1
5.99 The occupiers business was to manage a number of com-
panies which operated bakeries and bakers' shops. It was a rapidly
expanding business having gone from the management of 7
companies to the management of 41 companies. This made the use
of demountable partitioning <1desirable>1 because "changes in the
partitioning would probably have to be made.
5.100 In a period of some 4 years 108 ft. of partitioning had
been added (all but 29 ft. being of full height). No full height, but
9 ft. of the half height partitioning, had been removed. The
occupier "had in mind" moving more of the half-height partition-
ing.
5.101 British Bakeries occupied two floors in a speculatively
constructed building. It was a growing practice amongst specula-
tors in Croydon to erect large partition free areas of offices, in
which demountable partitions could be installed at a later date.
The comparatively low weight of demountable partitioning en-
abled the construction of buildings to be altogether lighter. The
other advantage to the speculator of erecting large partition free
areas, was that each tenant would ideally want a different arrange-
ment of partitions. By constructing large partition free areas the
speculator could complete the structure of the building without
waiting to find a tenant.
5.102 The Tribunal found that the full height partitioning was a
""commercial convenience" to the occupiers and not a "commer-
cial necessity". As such it ""constituted the internal walls of the
building". "It may well be that sometime they will want to move
some of it but . . . until they are moved (they) stand firm and
solid, performing the functions of internal walls". "Again . . . the
partitioning is in my view more a part of the setting than part of the
apparatus for carrying on the trade. Its function is I think to make
offices for the staff, to provide places <1in>1 which the business is
carried on, not to be plant <1with>1 which it is carried on. On these
findings of fact I hold that the full-height partitioning is rateable".
5.103 With regard to the half-height partitioning "this was to
my mind properly described . . . as really no more than furniture.
It is very easily moved and its function is that of a low screen". ""I
think that it is furniture and part of the plant with which the
business is carried on in the same way as desks, filing cabinets and
the like. I hold therefore that this half-height partitioning is not
rateable."
5. 104 The Tribunal decided that the three-quarter-height parti-
tioning was more like half-height partitioning than full height
partitioning and was not rateable.
127
<1Chapter 6>1
<2THE BASIS OF VALUATION>2
6.1 The Poor Relief Act, 1601, did not define how the value of
the occupation of land was to be measured. The Act merely spoke
of taxation "in such competent sums of money" as the overseers
might direct. Rather surprisingly the rating system operated for
over 200 years without any definition of value. It was not until the
Parochial Assessment Act, 1836, that "net annual value" was
defined. The Union Assessment Committee Act, 1862, first de-
fined "gross value"; whilst the Rating and Valuation Act, 1925,
gave new definitions for both gross and net annual value.
6.2 As will be seen later there is a difference between valuing a
hereditament according to the definition of gross value and valuing
the same hereditament according to the definition of net annual
value. It is important, therefore, to decide whether a given
hereditament should be valued on the basis of gross value or on
the basis of net annual value.
6.3 Today gross value and net annual value are defined in
section 19 of the General Rate Act, 1967. <2"Rateable value">2 is
equal to net annual value, except where expressly provided to the
contraryia or in the very limited cases mentioned in section 117 of
the General Rate Act, 1967, and in the case of mines and quarries.
6.4 Every rateable hereditament has a net annual value and a
rateable value, but not all rateable hereditaments have a gross
value.
<2Gross value for the 1973 Valuation List>2
6.4a For the purposes of the 1973 valuation list and for many
years before that, a <2gross value>2 was required <2"in the case of a>2
<2hereditament consisting of one or more houses or other non->2
<2industrial buildings, with or without any garden, yard, court,>2
<2forecourt, outhouse or other appurtenance belonging thereto, but>2
<2without other land".i>2
6.5 Neither the word "house" or the word "building" is defined
in the Act. The word building should be given its ordinary
<s1a>s See paragraph 6.24a.
<s1>s See section 19 General Rate Act 1967 before it was amended by the Local
Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 (it appears in both forms in the
appendix).
129
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
everyday meaning neither unduly expanded nor unduly
restricted.2 Oil storage tanks constructed on the site and having
diameters of 92 feet and heights of 34 feet were held not to be
buildings. On the other hand a substantial bus shelter and a
cement mixing plant and builders huts have been treated as
buildings.<s3>s
6.6 "House" includes part of a house. "Non-industrial build-
ing" means a building or part of a building, of any description
other than:--
(a) factories, mills and other premises of a similar character
used wholly or mainly for industrial purposes;<s4>s or
(b) premises forming part, and taken into account in the
valuation for rating purposes of:
<1(i)>1 a railway, dock, canal, gas, water or electricity
undertaking; or
(ii) any public utility undertaking not falling within (i).
6.7 Thus, a hereditament which consists of a house, flat, shop,
office, cinema, school, hospital or other non-industrial building
has a gross value in addition to a net annual value and rateable
value.
6.8 It must be understood that it is the hereditament as a whole
which has to be considered when deciding whether or not a gross
value is necessary. Hereditaments usually consist not only of a
building but also of land occupied with the building. For example,
a house and garden, a school and sports field, or a cinema and car
park. Frequently the land has a greater area than the building. The
question may arise, is this hereditament a non-industrial building
with other land (in which case it should not have a gross value) or
is it a non-industrial building with an appurtenance (in which case
it should have a gross value)? Fortunately section 19 of the
General Rate Act, 1967, gives some guidance by providing that:--
"appurtenance" in relation to a dwelling or to a school, college
or other educational establishment, includes all land occupied
therewith and used for the purposes thereof.
<s2>s Court of Appeal decision in <1Shell-Mex and B. P. Ltd. v. Childs (V. O.),>1 1962.
<s3>s <1East Kent Road Car Co. Ltd. v. Childs (V.O.),>1 1962; <1Clayton (V.O.) v. Good>1
<1Hovercroft & Co. Ltd.,>1 1961 and <1London County Council v. Wilkiru (V. O.),>1 1957
respectively.
<s4>s The words "industrial purposes" were used in section 4(2) Rating and Valuation
(Apportionment) Act, 1928 and meant the purposes which made the premises a
factory within the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901. See Ryde and Rating 13th
edition pages 402 to 418, also earlier editions of the work which dealt with
industrial derating.
130
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
6.9 This still leaves a problem in the case of, for example, a cafe
situated in its own gardens where teas are served in the gardens as
well as in the cafe: or a pavilion situated on a sports field.
6.10 A suggested approach to solving the problem of whether
these premises should have a gross value is as follows:--
(1) decide what property is included in the hereditament;
(2) satisfy yourself that the building is non-industrial;
(3) answer the question: Is the land appurtenant to the building
or is the building appurtenant to the land?
6.11 In the case of the cafe the hereditament includes the cafe
and the gardens. The building is non-industrial. The main purpose
of the hereditament is the running of a cafe, whilst the gardens are
an amenity to the cafe. If the gardens were taken away the main
purpose of the hereditament could continue, but not so conve-
niently. The gardens are therefore an appurtenance to the building
and as such the hereditament would need a gross value.
6.12 In the case of the sports ground and the pavilion both form
part of the hereditament. The pavilion is a non-industrial building.
The sports ground could with some inconvenience, continue
without the pavilion but there is little purpose in having a pavilion
without a sports ground. The pavilion in this case is an appurte-
nance to the sports ground and consequently the hereditament
would not have a gross value.
6.13 The mere fact that one of the buildings within a heredita-
ment is a factory does not automatically prevent the hereditament
from having a gross value. In <1Croydon County Borough Council v.>1
<1London County Council and Hardiman (V.O.),>1 1962, a children's
home included a laundry, which was a factory within the meaning
of the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901, but the Court held that
the hereditament should have a gross value. In deciding whether
there should be a gross value, the hereditament must be looked at
as a whole.
<2Gross Value>2 <1after>1 <2the>2 1973 <2Valuation List>2
6.13a The cases in which a gross value was required for the 1973
valuation list, have been examined in paragraphs 6.4a to 6. 13.
However, section 19 of the General Rate Act, 1967 has now been
amended by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980
and this will have the effect of reducing the occasions on which a
gross value is needed. This amendment will not take effect until
after the expiry of the 1973 valuation list.
131
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
6.13b In the future a gross value will only be needed for a
hereditament which is a <1dwelling-house, a private garage or private>1
<1storage premises.>1 All other rateable hereditaments will be valued
direct to net annual value.
6.13c <1Dwelling-house>1<s4a>s means a hereditament which <1is used>1
<1wholly for the purpose of a private dwelling or private dwellings>1 but
subject to certain provisions (see paragraphs 4.173c to 4.182).
6.13d <1"Private garage<s4b>s means a building having a floor area not>1
<1exceeding 25 square metres which is used wholly or mainly for the>1
<1accommodation of a motor vehicle>1 . . ." For this purpose a
building includes part of a building. It will be noted that there is no
restriction on the class of motor vehicle that can use the garage. A
garage housing a commercial vehicle will still be valued to gross
value. This may be because of the difficulty of telling, at any given
point in time, what class of vehicle is housed in a lock-up garage.
6.13e <1"Private storage premises>1<s4b>s <1means a hereditament which is>1
<1used wholly in connection with a dwelling-house or dwelling-houses>1
<1and wholly or mainly for the storage of articles of domestic use>1
<1(including bicycles and similar vehicles) belonging to persons>1
<1residing there".>1
6.13f All three definitions include the word "<1used".>1 Difficulty
has arisen in the past, with such definitions, where a hereditament
has been left empty and is therefore not being used. To overcome
this problem (as far as section 19 is concerned) it is provided that,
<1"a hereditament that is not in use shall nevertheless be treated as a>1
<1dwelling-house, a private garage or private storage premises if it>1
<1appears that, when next in use, it will be a hereditament of that>1
<1description".>1<s4c>s
6.13g The reason for the reduction in the number of heredita-
ments which require a gross value would seem to be as follows. In
recent times there has been a tendancy for properties (with the
exception of dwelling-houses) to be let on terms that the tenant
will bear the cost of repairing and insuring the premises. It is
therefore more logical to value such properties direct to net annual
value, since under the definition of net annual value the tenant is
liable to bear the cost of repairs and insurance. It follows that
there will be less need to adjust actual rents in order to bring them
into line with the rating hypothesis.
<s4a>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 115 and schedule 13.
<s4b>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 19(6) added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act, 1980.
<s4c>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 19(7) added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act, 1980.
132
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
<2Gross Value>2
6. 14 <2"Gross value, in relation to a hereditament, means the rent>2
<2at which the hereditament might reasonably be expected to let from>2
<2year to year if the tenant undertook to pay all usual tenant's rates>2
<2and taxes and the landlord undertook to bear the cost of the repairs>2
<2and insurance and the other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain>2
<2the hereditament in a state to command that rent".>2
6.15 From the gross value there is deducted an amount laid
down by the Minister in an Order.<s5>s These deductions are known as
"statutory deductions".
STATUTORY DEDUCTIONS FROM GROSS VALUE
<1Gross Value Deduction from Gross Value>1
Not exceeding #65 45% of the gross value.
Exceeding #65 but not #29 plus 30% of the amount by which
exceeding #128 the gross value exceeds #65.
Exceeding #128 but not #48 plus 162/3% of the amount by which
exceeding #330 the gross value exceeds #128 subject
to a maximum of #80.
Exceeding #330 but not #80 plus 20% of the amount by which
exceeding #430 the gross value exceeds #330.
Exceeding #430 #100 plus 162/3% of the amount by which
the gross value exceeds #430.
6.16 The amount left after taking away the statutory deductions
from the gross value, is called the net annual value. The net annual
value is unless otherwise provided equal to the rateable value.<s6>s
Gross value -- statutory deductions = net annual value =
rateable value.<s6>s
<2Net Annual Value>2
6.17 Those hereditaments which do not require a gross value,
are valued direct to net annual value. For this purpose the net
<s5>s The Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order, 1973 S.I. 1973 No. 2139 (with
effect from 1st April 1974).
<s6>s But see paragraph 6.24a.
133
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
annual value of a hereditament shall be <2"an amount equal to the>2
<2rent at which it is estimated the hereditament might reasonably be>2
<2expected to let from year to year, if the tenant undertook to pay all>2
<2usual tenant's rates and taxes, and to bear the cost of repairs and>2
<2insurance and the other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the>2
<2hereditament in a state to command that rent".>2
6. 18 Once again the net annual value is, unless otherwise
provided, equal to the rateable value.<s6>s
Net annual value = rateable value.<s6>s
6.19 It should be noted that there are two totally different
definitions of net annual value:--
(1) net annual value found by taking the statutory deductions
from the gross value;
<1(2)>1 net annual value arrived at direct by estimating the yearly
rent in accordance with the above definition.
6.20 In either case, the rateable value is, unless otherwise
provided, equal to the net annual value.<s6>s
6.21 When valuing a hereditament which requires a gross value,
it is wrong to value it first to a net annual value and then add the
statutory deductions.<s7>s Similarly when valuing a hereditament
which does not require a gross value it is wrong to value it to gross
value and then subtract the statutory deductions.
6.22 Hereditaments which require a gross value must be valued
direct to gross value. Hereditaments which do not require a gross
value, must be valued direct to net annual value.
6.23 The reason for the above rule is as follows. The statutory
deductions are intended to equal the average annual cost of
repairing and insuring the average hereditament. Because the
statutory deductions are based on averages, they do not in practice
equal the cost of repairing and insuring any given hereditament. If
a valuation were made by first finding the net annual value and
then adding the statutory deductions, a different answer would
usually be obtained from that arrived at by valuing the heredita-
ment direct to gross value.
6.24 It is customary to express gross value to the nearest pound
although there is no statutory requirement to this effect. Statute
provides that net annual value and rateable value shall be express-
ed to the nearest complete pound (50p is to be rounded down).<s8>s
<s7>s <1Sandown Park Ltd. v. Esher Urban District Council & Castle (V. O.),>1 1954-
<s8>s Section 19(4) General Rate Act, 1967.
134
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
<2Rateable Value>2
6.24a The general rule is that rateable value is equal to net
annual value, but there are exceptions to this. These include:--
(i) mines and quarries<s8a>s
(ii) provisions contained in unrepealed local Acts of Parliament
(now very rare)<s8b>s or
(iii) where, for the purposes of a revaluation (following the
revaluation in 1973), some hereditaments have been revalued
and some have not. In this case the Secretary of State has
power to order that an adjustment is to be made to the net
annual value, in order to arrive at the rateable value. The
object of this adjustment is to keep the rateable values of
those hereditaments which have not been revalued, in line
with the rateable values of those hereditaments which have
been revalued. The adjustment may be made either to the net
annual value of the hereditaments which have been revalued
or to the net annual value of those which have not been
revalued; which ever the Secretary of State orders.<s8c>s
<2The Hypothetical Tenancy>2
6.25 Whether the hereditament is one which requires a gross
value or not, the first stage in assessing a hereditament is to find
the annual rent at which it might reasonably be expected to let.
This is known as the hypothetical rent. Where a gross value is
called for, it is the rent which will be paid if the landlord does the
repairs; whilst if no gross value is needed, it will be the rent which
will be paid if the tenant does the repairs. Apart from difference in
the liability for the "repairs and insurance and the other expenses
. . ." the terms of the imaginary tenancies laid down in the
definitions of gross value and net annual value are basically
similar.
6.26 Both the definitions refer to the rent at which the heredita-
ment "might reasonably be expected to let", which is not neces-
sarily the same thing as a reasonable rent. Whether a rent is
reasonable or not depends on a person's point of view. The
landlord may think that a particular rent is reasonable whilst a
tenant might think that the same rent is unreasonably high.
<s8a>s See paragraphs 9.40 to 9.45.
<s8b>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 117.
<s8c>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 19B added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act, 1980, see paragraphs 14.32a to 14.32g.
135
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
However, the rent which "might reasonably be expected" is a
matter of fact which can be determined by experienced valuers.
6.27 It is to be envisaged that the letting is to be from <2"year to>2
<2year".>2 A letting from year to year has been held to mean a letting
for one year certain but with a reasonable prospect of
continuance.<s9>s Thus if a house is situated on the route of the
Coronation and in the year of the Coronation a specially high rent
would be paid for that house, the rating assessment would not be
changed in that year. However, when assessing the house the
valuer would "take one year with another" and would reflect in his
valuation the possibility of processions passing the house from
time to time.
6.28 Sometimes conditions of trade are so bad that businesses
are <2run at a loss.>2 Clearly no business can be run at a loss for ever
but there are occasions on which a proprietor decides to run at a
loss for a period of time, in the hope that conditions will improve
and that he will once again be able to operate at a profit. The
question arises whether a tenant from year to year would be
prepared to pay rent for a hereditament knowing that it would run
at a loss but in the hope that it will make a profit at some time in
the future. The Courts have on occasions held that a rent would be
paid and on other occasions that no rent, or a reduced rent, would
be paid.<s10>s The question to be answered is whether taking one year
with another, the hypothetical tenant (who is not necessarily the
actual tenant) would be prepared to pay a rent for the
hereditament.<s10>s
6.29 The implications of a tenancy from year to year must also
be considered when, for example, the Local Authority announce
their intention to compulsorily acquire the hereditament or a part
of the hereditament within a year or so. It would seem in such
cases that, if the event is reasonably certain and the period of time
prior to acquisition is fairly short, an allowance should be made in
determining the assessment.ii Such allowance to be the reduced
rent which a tenant from year to year would pay if he knew that his
tenancy was to be terminated shortly due to the compulsory
acquisition of the hereditament.
6.30 The fact that the hypothetical tenancy is from year to year,
also affects the situation when a property suffers from a <2temporary>2
<s9>s <1Staley v. Castleton Overseers,>1 1864; <1L. & B. Black Ltd. v. Burton (V. O.),>1 1958
L.T.); <1Walls (V. O.) v. National Car Parks Ltd.>1 , 1978 (L.T.).
<s10>s <1Consett Iron Co. Ltd. v. North-West Durham A.C>1., 1931; <1Rank Organisation>1
<1Ltd. v. Billett (V. O.),>1 1958.
<s11>s <1Dawkins (V.O.) v. Ash Brothers & Heaton Ltd.,>1 1967; <1Saunders v. Maltby>1
<1(V. O.),>1 1976.
136
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
<2disturbance;>2 for example the laying of a sewer or some construc-
tion work close to the property. This problem is examined in some
detail in paragraph 6.102 onwards.
6.31 Many hereditaments are in fact not let on yearly tenancies.
Tenancies for anything from a week to 99 or even 999 years are
quite common. The problem is how to find the rent from year to
year, if the hereditament is let on a weekly tenancy or perhaps a 99
year tenancy.
6.32 The courts have considered this problem and it would
appear that where the actual tenancy is anything between a weekly
tenancy and a tenancy for 21 years, then the Lands Tribunal are
likely to treat the actual rent as <1prima facie>1 equivalent to a rent
from year to year<s12>s (provided the period between rent reviews is
not too long). A weekly rent should be multiplied by 52 in order to
convert it into a rent from year to year.<s13>s If, however, the actual
rent was agreed on the basis of a tenancy exceeding 21 years, then
<1prima facie>1 it will not be treated as being the same as a rent from
year to year. In either case, it is open to the parties to prove that
the actual rent, is or is not equivalent to the rent from year to
year.<s14>s Indeed in one case the Lands Tribunal based its decision on
leases of 42 years and 117 years duration both containing rent
review clauses (see also paragraphs 8.62 to 8.74).
6.33 In considering whether a rent agreed on an actual letting is
the same as a rent from year to year, regard may be had to the fact
that the actual tenancy can be extended under part 2 of the
Landlord and Tenant Act, 1954. In <1Baker Britt & Co. Ltd. v.>1
<1Hampshire (V.O.),>1 1976 it was pointed out in the House of Lords
by Viscount Dilhorne that one effect of the Landlord and Tenant
Act, 1954 was to convert leases for fixed terms, of the premises to
which part 2 of the Act applied, into leases of indefinite duration
and that a lease from year to year was also of indefinite duration.
He went on to say, "I doubt very much whether it is right to
conclude that all leases made of indefinite duration by the Act are
to be treated as equivalent to a lease from year to year, or as
providing better security of tenure than one from year to year, or
as good security. Whether a particular lease does or does not do so
does not seem to be a question of law but one of fact on which the
opinions of expert valuers may well differ."<s14a>s
<s12>s <1Humber Ltd. v. tones (V. O.) and Rugby R.D.C.,>1 1960, but see <1L. & A. Black>1
<1Ltd. v. Burton (V.O.),>1 1958 (L.T.).
<s13>s <1London County Council v. Wand (V. O.),>1 1957.
<s14>s <1Fine-Fare v. Burton (V.O.) and County Borough of Brighton,>1 1958; <1Naylor's>1
<1(Reading) Ltd. v. Gaylard (V. O.),>1 1958.
<s14>sa <1Humber Ltd. v. Jones (V.O.) and Rugby R.D.C.,>1 1960 (C.A.).
137
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
6.34 Quite apart from whether a tenant would pay more rent
under a long lease because his occupation is more secure,<s15>s there is
also the question of rent reviews.
6.35 The frequency of rent reviews in a lease is important when
deciding whether the rent agreed in the lease is, or is not, the same
as a rent from year to year. In times of rapidly rising property
values, a tenant who holds under a tenancy from year to year, will
be liable to have his rent increased each year. It follows that a
prospective tenant might be prepared to pay a higher rent in order
to obtain a 21 year lease without rent reviews. Such a tenant will at
the start of his lease be paying more than a tenant from year to
year but as time passed and rental values rise, the 21 year tenant
will find that he is paying less than a tenant from year to year.
6.36 Similarly in times of rapidly rising values, a tenant might
be prepared to pay more for a lease which contains rent reviews
every 14 years, than for one which contains rent reviews every 7
years.
6.37 Market rents should be examined to see whether, for
example, there is any evidence to show that properties with 14
year rent reviews, let at higher rents than similar properties with 7
year rent reviews. Or whether properties with 7 year rent reviews,
let for higher rents than properties with 3 year rent reviews. If
there is such evidence then the valuer when trying to arrive at the
rent from year to year may have to adjust<s16>s or even discard the
rents on the properties which have the longer periods between rent
reviews.<s17>s For a more detailed examination of the effect of the
length of the actual lease and the frequency of rent reviews, on the
valuation of a hereditament, see paragraphs 8.62 to 8.74.
6.38 Where in the case of a tenancy it can be shown that voids
would normally be expected, it can be argued that in arriving at
the rent from year to year, an allowance should be made for the
voids. For example, a property is let at a weekly rent of #1. No
tenant stays long in the hereditament, and in the course of the
many changes the property is untenanted for an average 10% of
the year. In this case, the rent on an annual tenancy might be
calculated:--52 weeks x #1 -- 10% = #47 p.a.
6.39 The argument in favour of making a "void allowance" is
strongest where the person who is the rateable occupier, does not
<s15>s <1Lord A. Black Ltd. v. Burton (V.O.),>1 1958.
<s16>s Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy by P. B. Bowcock, Estates Gazette
25 August 1973, Vol. 227, pages 1271 to 1275 (reproduced in appendix A).
<s17>s <1W. H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977-
138
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
physically occupy the hereditament himself but lets it out to a
Succession of other people.<s18>s
6.40 In both the definition of gross value and the definition of
net annual value the hypothetical tenant undertakes to pay "all
usual tenant's rates and taxes".
6.41 Usual tenant's rates and taxes include the "general rate",
tenant's drainage rate and any rates or taxes which the law usually
requires the tenant to bear. Landlord's drainage rate and land-
lord's property tax are not usual tenant's rates and taxes.
6.42 The water rate is not really a rate at all, but is a payment
for water. The hypothetical tenant must pay the water rate in the
same way that he pays for his gas and electricity.
6.43 In the definition of gross value it is the landlord who
undertakes "to bear the cost of repairs, insurance and the other
expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the hereditament in a state
to command that rent," whilst in the definition of net annual value
it is the tenant who is to bear the expense.
6.44 Repairs include both internali<s8a>s and external decorations.
"Other expenses necessary to maintain the hereditament . . ."
refers only to money spent on:--
<1(a)>1 the hereditament itself; or
<1(b)>1 sea walls or embankments outside the hereditament but
without which the hereditament would physically cease to
exist, by reason of being flooded or swept away.
6.44a "Other expenses" do not include money spent outside the
hereditament, as for example dredging the approaches to a
dock,<s18b>ss when the approaches are outside the hereditament.
Without the dredging, the dock would continue to exist in a
physical sense, even if no boats could reach it and no-one would be
prepared to pay a rent for it. The wording says "other expenses,
. . . necessary to maintain the <1hereditament>1 . . ." It does not say
other expenses, . . . necessary to maintain the <1rent.>1
6.44b A similar problem arises over the maintenance cost of a
private road leading to, but not being part of, the hereditament.
The President of the Lands Tribunal decided that the cost of
<s18>s But see <1Smith v. Churchwardens of Birmingham,>1 1889 where on the facts of the
case it was decided that no void allowance should be made.
<s18>sa <1Hart v. Gregory (V. O.),>1 1964.
<s18b>s <1White Brothers v. South Stoneham Union,>1 1915. See <1Murray v. Newbiggin>1
<1(V. O.),>1 1952 which related to maintenance costs of a private road not forming part
of the hereditament and <1Vaissiere v. Jackson (V.O.),>1 1968 which related to the
maintenance cost of an unadopted road. Consisider also section 23 of the General
Rate Act, 1967.
139
maintaining the private road was neither the liability of the
hypothetical landlord nor the hypothetical tenant.<s18c>s However the
cost of repairing, maintaining, sweeping and gritting a private
approach road, leading to a hereditament (but not being part of
the hereditament) has been held to influence the annual value for
rating purposes <s18d>s
6.45 Section 23 of the General Rate Act, 1967, deals with the
question of "the cost of repairing, maintaining and insuring other
premises not forming part of the hereditament". Section 23 is
referred to in paragraph 8.55 onwards.
<2Assumptions in the Rating Hypothesis>2
6.46 When valuing a hereditament in order to find the gross
value or net annual value various assumptions must be made.
<1Date of Valuation>1
6.47 In times of rapidly changing rental values, the annual rent
of a hereditament on the 1st January may not be the same as the
annual rent on the 31st December in the same year. It is,
therefore, important to know by reference to what date the
hereditament is to be valued.
6.47a The "date of valuation" depends on the event which
causes the valuation to be made. There are two such events:--
(a) the making of a new valuation list, and
(b) the making of a proposal.
<1(a) Date of Valuation for a New Valuation List>1
6.47b The date of valuation, when making a new valuation list,
was in the case of the 1973 and earlier valuation lists, the date on
which the list came into force.<s19>s This gave rise to certain problems
because, for practical reasons, valuations for a new list have to be
made a year or so before the list comes into force. In consequence,
when preparing a valuation list, the valuation officer had to try and
project rent levels a year or more ahead. This at a time of rapidly
changing values proved difficult.<s19a>s
6.47c With a view to overcoming these difficulties the Secretary
of State now has power to name "<2time>2" by reference to which
<s18c>s <1Vaissiere v. Jackson (V. O.),>1 1968, See also <1Piner (V. O.) v. House,>1 1980,
<1Rickson v. Rickards (V. O.),>1 1980.
<s18d>s <1Morris v. Braxton (V. O.),>1 1980.
<s19>s <1R. v. Paddington (V. O.) Ex parte Peachey Properties Corporation Ltd.,>1 1965..
<s19a>s <1K Shoe Shops Ltd. v. Hardy (V. O.) and Westminster City Council,>1 1980 (L.T.).
140
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
hereditaments must be valued for the purposes of a new valuation
list. This "time" will be earlier than the <2date>2 on which the new
valuation list is to come into force and will hopefully enable
revaluations to be based on firm rental evidence, rather than on
projected rental values.
6.47d Although the level of rents by reference to which the
revaluation is to be carried out, will be taken as those existing at
the "time" named by the Secretary of State, the same assumption
does not apply to the physical state of the hereditament, its
surroundings and other <1""relevant factors".>1 As far as the heredita-
ment which is being valued is concerned, its <1state>1 and <1mode or>1
<1category of occupation,>1 must be taken as that which exists at the
date that the new valuation list comes into force.<s19>sb Likewise, for
the purposes of that valuation, other premises in the <1locality>1 (their
occupation and use, transport services, facilities and other ameni-
ties) must be taken to be in the state that they will be at the date
that the valuation list comes into force.<s19b>s
6.47e It should be noted that the factors which have to be taken
into account at the date that the valuation list will come into force,
are of a <1physical nature.>1 They <1do>1 not (with the exception of public
houses and mineral producing hereditamentsi<s9c>s), include the
volume of trade resulting from economic circumstances and
trends. Nor should the level of interest rates, the availability of
credit or the state of the economy in general, be taken as it exists
at the date of the new list.
6.47f Thus if, as a result of a general economic trend, a garage is
selling more petrol at the date that the valuation list comes into
force, than it was at the "time" named by the Secretary of State,
this should not be reflected in its assessment for the new valuation
list. But if the increased sales were due to the opening of a new
access road to a motorway and this access road was opened after
the "time" named by the Secretary of State, but before the date
that the new valuation list comes into force, then any necessary
adjustment should be made in the valuation, to reflect the increase
in sales.
6.47g To summarise: For the purposes of a revaluation, the
hereditament and its locality are to be taken as they exist at the
date that the new valuation list comes into force but the level of
rents is to be taken as that which existed at the "time" named by
the Secretary of State.
<s19b>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 19A, added by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act 1980. See also paragraphs 14.32b to 14.32g.
<s19c>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 20(2)(b) and (c).
141
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
6.47h Clearly only "<1specified hereditaments"i>1<s9b>s will be revalued
by reference to the "time" named by the Secretary of State for that
list. <1"Unspecified hereditaments"i>1<s9>sb (namely those which are not to
be revalued for that list) will be entered in the new valuation list at
the same net annual value as they appeared in the "old valuation
list" (the "<1old valuation list">1 is the one which was in use im-
mediately before the coming into force of the new list).
6.47i Where, when making a revaluation, a particular "unspeci-
fied hereditament" did not appear in the "old valuation list", it is
to be included in the new list at the figure at which it would have
appeared in the old list. For this purpose it has to be imagined that
the old list remains in force and that a proposal is made to include
the hereditament in that list. The date of this imaginary proposal is
to be the date of the coming into force of the new valuation list. It
follows that the hereditament will be valued by reference to the
relevant factors which exist at the date that the new valuation list
comes into force but at a level of values appropriate to an earlier
list.
(b) <1Date of Valuation for a Proposal>1
6.48 In <1Barratt v. Gravesend Assessment Committee,>1 1941, it
was established that the date at which the hereditament had to be
valued was the date on which the proposal to alter the assessment
in the valuation list was made. In other words, if, on the 30th June
1981 an occupier made a proposal to reduce the rateable value of
his house, the value to be found under the <1Barratt v. Gravesend>1
rule was the value of the house on the 30th June, 1981.
6.49 At times when property values are rising rapidly, the rule
in <1Barratt v. Gravesend>1 can produce unreasonable results. For
example, a developer builds a row of five identical shops just
before a revaluation and lets them for #2,000 per annum. The
valuation officer, when preparing his new valuation list obtains
rent return forms showing the rents to be #2,000 and he puts the
shops into the new valuation list at #2,000 each. Three years later
the developer adds two more identical shops to the row. Because
rental values have increased the developer is able to let the new
shops for #3,000 per annum each.
6.50 A strict application of the rule in <1Barratt v. Gravesend>1
would, result in the valuation officer assessing each of the new
shops at #3,000 (i.e. #3,000 being the value at the date when the
valuation officer makes his proposal).
6.51 In consequence there would be seven identical shops in the
142
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
valuation list, five of which would be assessed at #2,000 each and
two at #3,000 each.
6.52 If the occupiers who's shops were assessed at #3,000 went
to the Court and asked for a reduction in their assessments the
Court would no doubt follow the decision in <1Ladies' Hosiery and>1
<1Underwear Ltd. v. West Middlesex Assessment Committee,>1 1932.
In this case the Court, having satisfied itself that a particular
assessment was correct, pointed out that it could not make that
assessment incorrect, merely to bring it in line with other incorrect
assessments. It should be noted that "unfairness" is no longer a
statutory ground for amending the valuation list.<s20>s The only course
open to the two shopkeepers with assessments of #3,000, would be
to make proposals to increase the assessments of their neighbours'
shops to #3,000, thus bringing them into line with the two correctly
assessed shops.
6.53 Leaving aside the question of whether in practice the two
shopkeepers would be prepared to make proposals to increase the
assessments of their neighbours' shops, there remains the fact that
if the rental values have increased substantially in the case of the
five shops, they have in all probability also increased in the case of
all other shops in the area, and for that matter other types of
hereditament as well. It follows that to put things right, the two
shopkeepers would have to make proposals to increase the
assessements of all other properties in the rating area. In other
words, they would have to carry out a revaluation of the whole
rating area, and possibly the whole precepting area.
<2Tone of the List>2
6.54 In order to help overcome the above difficulty, which also
occurred when a proposal was made to alter the assessment of an
existing hereditament, a "statutory tone of the list" was intro-
duced. The provisions relating to the statutory "tone of the list"
are contained in section 20 of the General Rate Act, 1967 (as
amended by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act,
1980).
6.55 Section 20 does not do away with the decision in <1Barratt v.>1
<1Gravesend>1 but is creates a <1ceiling value.>1 The section only operates
where a proposal to alter a valuation list is made. In such a case the
<s20>s In the Rating and Valuation Act, 1925 "unfairness" was a ground on which a
proposal to alter the valuation list could be made. However the General Rate Act,
1967 includes no such ground. See also <1British Airways Board v. Riggeon (V. O.),>1
1979.
143
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
value to be entered in the valuation list shall <1not exceed>1 the value
which would have been entered in the list had the hereditament
existed in its current state, in the "relevant year" <s20a>s
6.55a The <1""relevant year">1 for the purposes of <1""specified>1
<1hereditaments">1<s20a>s (i.e. those which were revalued for the current
valuation list) is the year before that in which the valuation list
came into force.
6.55b For <1""unspecified hereditaments">1<s20a>s (i.e. those which were
not revalued for the current list) the <1""relevant year">1 is either:--
(a) the year before the coming into force of the valuation list,
for which the hereditament was last revalued; or
<1(b)>1 if the hereditament has never been revalued, then the year
before the coming into force of the valuation list, for which
it would last have been revalued, had the hereditament
existed on the 1st April 1973.
6.56 In the above example section 20 would result in the
assessments, of the two new shops being limited to #2,000 namely,
the amount at which they would have been assessed, had they
existed in the year before the last revaluation.
6.57 Section 20 refers to the value which <1"would'>1 have been
ascribed to the hereditament, had it existed in the year before the
last revaluation. The Courts have held that "would" means <1"would>1
<1properly>1" have been ascribed.<s20b>s
6.57a For example: When preparing the valuation list, a valua-
tion officer failed to include the value of parking space at
dwellings, on a particular housing estate. After the valuation list
came into force, the court decided that the valuation officer was
not precluded from making proposals to include the value of the
car parking space, on that estate. This was because had the
dwellings been <1"properly">1 assessed for the purposes of the valua-
tion list, their assessments <1"would">1 have included the car parking
space.<s20b>s
6.58 Although, when applying section 20, it has to be envisaged
that the hereditament existed in the year immediately before the
last revaluation, certain assumptions have to be made. For inst-
ance, it has to be imagined that the state of the hereditament, its
mode or category of occupation, the locality in which it is situated,
the transport services, the amenities of the area and the use of
other premises in the locality were the same in the year immediate-
<s20a>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 20 as amended by The Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980. See paragraphs 14.32b to 14.32g.
<s20b>s <1Fairhurst v. Grice (V. O.),>1 1976; <1Boddington v. Sture (V. O.),>1 1970.
144
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
ly preceding the last revaluation as they are at the date when the
proposal is made. However care must be taken not to reflect
factors which are not mentioned in section 20. For example if there
has been a change in the state of the economy or a swing in public
taste, these are not "relevant factors" within the meaning of
section 20 and should not therefore be reflected in a tone of the list
valuation.<s20c>s
6.59 For example; on the 1st October, 1977, a proposal is made
to reduce the assessment of the Railway Hotel, Little Sodbury.
The hotel has, since the closing of the railway station in 1975 been
used as a private house. According to the decision in <1Barratt v.>1
<1Gravesend>1 the value to be found is the value of the hereditament
on the 1st October, 1977, but this value is subject to a ceiling
imposed by section 20. To find the ceiling figure, the valuer has to
imagine that in 1972 (the year preceding the date of the last
revaluation) the railway hotel was used as a private house and he
also has to imagine that at that time the railway station was closed.
The ceiling value will be the value which would have been placed
on the property in the 1973 revaluation list, had it been used as a
dwelling house in the previous year and had the railway station
been closed at that time.
6.60 In the case of a public house, when applying section 20, it
must be assumed that the volume of trade which existed at the date
that the proposal was made, also existed in the year immediately
preceding the date of the last revaluation. A similar provision
applies to the quantity of minerals or other substances extracted
from a hereditament.
6.61 Thus if the public house was in 1972 selling an average of
200 barrels a year and at the date that the proposal was made it
was selling on average 300 barrels a year, then the valuer when
applying section 20 must ask himself--what would this public
house have been assessed at had it existed in 1972 and had it at that
time been selling 300 barrels a year?
6.62 The effect of section 20 is to ensure that in a time of rising
values the "tone of the list" is maintained. In other words, the
general level of assessments in the valuation list is not exceeded.
6.63 Section 20 does not apply when the valuation officer is
preparing a new valuation list.
6.63a Because the decision in <1Barratt v. Gravesend>1 still stands,
it follows that if values in a given area are falling, it is possible by
means of a proposal to get the assessment of a hereditament
<s20c>s But see paragraphs 6.60 and 6.61.
145
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
reduced. This would apply if the value of the hereditament at the
<2date of the proposal,>2 was lower than the <2value of that heredita->2
ment when the last relevant valuation list was made.
<2Vacant and to Let>2
6.64 When making a valuation for rating purposes it must be
assumed that the hereditament is vacant and to let.<s21>s The fact that
the hereditament is owner-occupied or that it is let to a particular
tenant is of no <2consequence.>2 The valuer has to imagine that the
hereditament is empty and is being offered to let in the market. It
is the way that the <1hypothetical tenant>1 and the <1hypothetical>1
<1landlord>1 would behave, which the valuer must consider.
6.65 It <2follows>2 that restrictive covenants or monopolies which
bind only the actual occupier must not be taken into account. The
hypothetical landlord lets to the hypothetical tenant on the terms
laid down in the definitions of the gross or net annual value and
without being able to impose any other special restictions or
advantages.<s22>s
6.66 Statutory restrictions or advantages affect all occupiers
including the hypothetical landlord and the hypothetical tenant
and must, therefore, be taken into account when finding the
hypothetical rent.
6.67 Sometimes a statute restricts the amount of rent which a
landlord <2can>2 require <2a tenant>2 to pay. For example, rent control,
rent regulation, or the limits imposed on farmers who let dwellings
to their farm workers. It has been clearly established that these
statutory restrictions must be ignored when valuing for rating
purposes.<s23>s At first this might appear to be contrary to the rule
that statutory restrictions should be taken into account when
valuing for rating purposes. However, it must be remembered that
the Rent Act only limits the amount of rent which the landlord can
legally recover from the tenant, it does not limit the amount which
the tenant might reasonably be expected to offer. In addition,
from a purely practical point of view, if a tenant is lucky enough to
pay an artificially low rent there is no reason why he should also
pay less than his fair share of the cost of <2local>2 services.
<s21>s <1London County Council v. Erith and West Ham,>1 1893.
<s22>s <1Robinson Brothers (Brewers) Ltd. v. Durham County Assessment Committee,>1
1938.
<s23>s <1Popular Assessment Committee v. Roberts,>1 1922.
146
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
<2Rebus Sic Stantibus>2
6.68 Although for rating purposes the landlord, the tenant, the
terms of the tenancy and the rent are all hypothetical, the
hereditament is not hypothetical. The hereditament to be valued is
the actual hereditament as it stands with <2all>2 its advantages <2and>2
disadvantages.<s24>s
6.69 The person who, in accordance with the terms of the
hypothetical tenancy, is prepared to pay the highest rent for the
hereditament becomes the <1hypothetical tenant.>1
6.70 When considering what rent the hypothetical tenant will
pay for the hereditament three factors must be taken into
account:--
(1) that no structural alterations can be made to the hereditament;
and
(2) that as far as town planning is concerned the hereditament can
only be used for its present purposes or for <2another>2 purpose
for which planning permission has been, or could reasonably
be expected to be given; and
(3) that the present mode of occupation cannot be changed.
<2Structural Alteration>2
6.71 The hereditament must be valued in the physical state in
which it exists, and as if it cannot be altered <1(rebus sic stantibus).>1
Thus a house with space to build a garage cannot be valued as a
house with a garage minus the cost of erecting the garage. The
house must be valued at the rent which a person would pay for the
house on the basis that he could never build a garage.
6.72 Similarly, if a shop has had its shop window bricked up, it
must be valued for rating purposes at the rent at which it would let
on the basis that the tenant could at no time pull down the
brickwork and build in a shop window. This would, in all
probability, be a different rent from that which could be obtained
if the shop were let on the understanding that the tenant could
replace the brickwork with a shop front.
6.73 A building plot cannot be valued as such, because for
rating purposes it must be imagined that it will always remain as it
is and can never be built on.
6.74 Doors cannot be widened,<s25>s a worked-out mine must be
valued as a worked-out mine,<s26>s partitioning which forms part of
<s24>s <1Townley Mill Co.>1 (1919) <1Lid. v. Oldham Assessment Committee,>1 1937.
<s25>s <1Manchester Tennis & Racquet Club v. Castle>1 (V. O.), 1960.
<s26>s <1R. v. Bedworth,>1 1807.
147
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the hereditament, (even if it is of a demountable type), must not
be valued as if it could be removed.<s27>s
6.75 Where a hereditament is undergoing structural alteration it
must be valued in the state in which it exists at the date of the
proposal. The valuer must not reflect in his valuation the fact that
the alterations may be completed in the foreseeable future.<s28>s
6.76 The valuer may, however, take into account alterations of
a non-structural nature, such as removing boarding from windows,
when that boarding is not secured to the structure,<s29>s the taking
down of a notice board,<s30>s and the removal of battens which were
fixed to a garage door and which prevented it from opening.<s31>s
6.77 If structural alterations are made to a hereditament, for
example a garage is added to a house, then the valuation officer
must make a proposal to alter the assessment so as to reflect the
value of the garage.
<1Repairs and Decorations>1
6.78 One exception to the rule that a hereditament must be valued
in the physical state in which it exists, involves repairs and
decorations. In the market, there is a considerable difference
between the rent which can be obtained for a house in bad
decorative condition and the rent which can be obtained for the
same house in good decorative condition. Fortunately for the
valuation officer the Courts have decided that it is not normally
necessary to take account of the actual state of repair and
decorations when valuing for rating purposes.
6.79 The definition of gross value envisages that the landlord
will be responsible for the cost of repairs, and the Courts have
decided that a hereditament must be valued on the basis that the
landlord has carried out his repairing covenant. A similar argu-
ment may be applied to hereditaments which do not require a
gross value but of course in this case it is the hypothetical tenant
who is deemed to have done the repairs.
6.79a The person who, under the terms of the hypothetical
tenancy, is liable for keeping the property in repair, is also deemed
<s27>s For the position with regard to demountable partitioning see paragraphs 5.85 to
5.104.
<s28>s <1Hounslow London Borough Council v. Rank Audio Visual Ltd. v. Bryant>1
(V.O.), 1970. However the position with regard to the unoccupied rate, rating
surcharge and completion notices can be different--see chapter 13.
<s29>s <1Hope>1 (V. O.) <1v. Wellcome foundation Ltd.,>1 1960.
<s30>s <1Croydon Corporation v. Hardiman & Wates,>1 1962.
<s31>s <1Fletcher v. Dyson>1 1965; <1Venis v. Bullock>1 (V. O.), 1966; Re appeal of <1Sheppard>1
<1(V. O>1.), 1967.
148
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
to have put the property into repair before it is offered in the
market.
6.80 It follows that when valuing a hereditament for rating
purposes, it must be imagined that the hereditament is in a
reasonable state of repair and decoration, having regard to the
class of hereditament and the neighbourhood in which it is
situated.<s32>s
6.81 There are, however, cases where the decorative condition
of a building has deteriorated to such a state that no reasonable
<2man would>2 be prepared to take a tenancy of the property or more
practically no reasonable occupier would continue to tolerate the
condition.<s33>s There are also cases where the repairs have been
neglected for so long that no reasonable landlord would be
prepared to put the property in repair. Finally there may be
inherent defects which a landlord is not prepared to remedy.<s33a>s
6.82 In those cases where it is not reasonable for the landlord to
put the hereditament into repair, the rule of <1rebus sic stantibus>1
comes back into operation. In other words, the hereditament must
be valued in its actual state of disrepair, as if it would never be
remedied.<s34>s In such cases the tenant would expect to pay a
reduced rent, and it is this reduced rent which must be taken into
account when valuing for rating purposes.
6.83 In deciding whether or not the hypothetical landlord could
reasonably be expected to put a hereditament into repair, regard
should be had to the following:--
(1) whether the defects are physically capable of being
remedied.<s35>s
(2) whether the cost of carrying out the repairs is reasonable in
relation to the value of the building.<s36>s
<1(3)>1 the anticipated life of the building.<s36>s
6.84 If the building suffers from inherent defects the hypothe-
tical landlord will not be expected to repair them.<s35>s If the defects
are not inherent but it would not make economic sense to spend
money on putting the property into repair, then once again it is to
be assumed that the hypothetical landlord will not repair the
hereditament.<s36>s
<s32>s <1Wexler v. Playle>1 (V. O.), 1960.
<s33>s <1Fowler v. Lloyd (V.O.),>1 1958.
<s33a>s <1Civil Aviation Authority v. Langford>1 (V.O.) <1and Camden London Borough>1
<1Council>1 1979.
<s34>s <1Mitchell v. Cleaver>1 (V. O.), 1958; <1Fowler v. Lloyd>1 (V. O.), 1958.
<s35>s <1Atter v. Webber>1 (V.O.), 1962.
<s36>s <1Saunders v. Maltby>1 (V. O.), 1976.
149
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
6.85 In deciding whether or not it is economic to carry out the
repairs, regard should be had to the expected life of the building.
For example if it is apparent that the house will be demolished in
the not too distant future to make way for redevelopment, this can
be taken into account.<s36>s
6.86 Whether or not the actual landlord can afford to carry out
the repairs is irrelevant. The question is whether the hypothetical
landlord can reasonably be expected to carry them out.<s36>s
6.87 In the case of <1Saunders v. Maltby (V. O>1.), 1976 Mr.
Saunders' terraced house was 125 years old. It had a main water
supply but only to the W.C. and the sink. Electricity was laid on
but there was no hot water or central heating. The roof was sound
and the house was wind and water tight, but it was filthy, the
timbers were defective and so was the woodwork, the internal
plaster work was bad and there was a complete lack of decoration.
Mr. Saunders could not afford to put the house right.
6.88 An application for an improvement grant had been re-
fused. The house had not actually been condemned but houses
further up the road were being demolished. The member of the
Lands Tribunal who inspected the property said that it was clear
that the whole area would be cleared in the early future.
6.89 The Lands Tribunal decided that the defects were capable
of remedy and that the house should, therefore, be valued as if the
defects had been remedied. The Court of Appeal decided:--
<1(1)>1 that the Tribunal had fallen into error by not going on to
enquire how much the repairs were going to cost. "If the
expenditure was such that it would be out of all sense to do
the repairs, then a hypothetical landlord would let it at a low
rent."
<1(2)>1 that the hypothetical landlord's repairing obligation was not
limited to maintaining a hereditament in its existing state of
repair. The hypothetical landlord should do such repairs as
would make a premises reasonably habitable.
(3) that the lack of Mr. Saunders financial resources should not
be taken into account. It was the hypothetical landlord who
had to be considered and not the actual ratepayer.
(4) "that the probability of the house being demolished by the
requirements of the local authority in the near future was a
factor which would have to be taken into account in
considering what degree of repair it would be reasonable to
consider the hypothetical to be bound to adopt."<s37>s
<s37>s <1Dawkins (V. O.) v. Ash Brothers & Heaton Ltd.,>1 1969.
150
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
6.85 In deciding whether or not it is economic to carry out the
repairs, regard should be had to the expected life of the building.
For example if it is apparent that the house will be demolished in
the not too distant future to make way for redevelopment, this can
be taken into account.<s36>s
6.86 Whether or not the actual landlord can afford to carry out
the repairs is irrelevant. The question is whether the hypothetical
landlord can reasonably be expected to carry them out.<s36>s
6.87 In the case of <1Saunders v. Maltby (V. O.),>1 1976 Mr.
Saunders' terraced house was 125 years old. It had a main water
supply but only to the W.C. and the sink. Electricity was laid on
but there was no hot water or central heating. The roof was sound
and the house was wind and water tight, but it was filthy, the
timbers were defective and so was the woodwork, the internal
plaster work was bad and there was a complete lack of decoration.
Mr. Saunders could not afford to put the house right.
6.88 An application for an improvement grant had been re-
fused. The house had not actually been condemned but houses
further up the road were being demolished. The member of the
Lands Tribunal who inspected the property said that it was clear
that the whole area would be cleared in the early future.
6.89 The Lands Tribunal decided that the defects were capable
of remedy and that the house should, therefore, be valued as if the
defects had been remedied. The Court of Appeal decided:--
<1(1)>1 that the Tribunal had fallen into error by not going on to
enquire how much the repairs were going to cost. "If the
expenditure was such that it would be out of all sense to do
the repairs, then a hypothetical landlord would let it at a low
rent."
(2) that the hypothetical landlord's repairing obligation was not
limited to maintaining a hereditament in its existing state of
repair. The hypothetical landlord should do such repairs as
would make a premises reasonably habitable.
(3) that the lack of Mr. Saunders financial resources should not
be taken into account. It was the hypothetical landlord who
had to be considered and not the actual ratepayer.
(4) "that the probability of the house being demolished by the
requirements of the local authority in the near future was a
factor which would have to be taken into account in
considering what degree of repair it would be reasonable to
consider the hypothetical to be bound to adopt."<s37>s
<s37>s <1Dawkins (V.O.) v. Ash Brothers & Heaton Ltd.,>1 1969.
150
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
The case was remitted for the Tribunal to reconsider the position
in the light of the Court of Appeal's judgment.
<2Town Planning>2
6.90 When valuing a hereditament for rating purposes it can be
valued for the actual purpose for which it is used whether or not
planning permission has been obtained. In addition it can be
argued that the valuer may take into account the value of the
hereditament for any other purpose for which planning has been
or could reasonably be expected to be granted; provided that the
change in use can be made without making any structural altera-
tions to the hereditament or changing its <1mode>1 of occupation.
6.91 In <1Hope v. Wellcome Foundation Ltd.,>1 1960, it was held
that the valuation officer was entitled to value private libraries as if
they were capable of being used as offices. The need to value the
private libraries as offices arose from the fact that there was no
evidence of what a library would let for, but there was plenty of
rental evidence for office accommodation. In this case the valua-
tion officer was able to show that the libraries could be converted
to offices without making structural alterations to the building.
The planning officer gave evidence that in his opinion a planning
application to use the libraries as offices would be granted. The
change from private library to private offices did not apparently
involve a change in the <1mode>1 of occupation of the hereditament.<s38>s
6.91a In <1London Transport v. Croydon London Borough>1
<1Council and Phillips (V. O.)>1 1974 the Lands Tribunal held that a
bus garage had to be valued as a bus garage and could not be
valued as some other form of transport depot, (despite the fact
that it could have been used as such without any structural
alteration). The Tribunal concluded that the bus garage was in a
mode of occupation of its own <1(sui generis).>1
6.91b Having regard to the local situation it seems unlikely that
the Planning Authority would have given planning permission for
any change of use because of the continuing need for a bus garage
in that area.<s38a>s This point was not however mentioned in the
decision.
6.91c The Lands Tribunal has made it clear, on more than one
occasion, that it does not see itself as taking the place of the
planning inspector at a planning appeal. It is apparently no part of
<s38>s This decision should be compared with that in <1London Transport Executive v.>1
<1London Borough of Croydon & Phillips (V.O.),>1 1974, see below.
<s38a>s Donald Nicholls 1974 RV 302.
151
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the Tribunal's function, in rating cases, to decide the purposes for
which planning permission would be granted.<s35b>s
6.91d Referring to the Use Classes Order the Tribunal said that
"as a generalisation we think it is a useful guide--but we put it no
higher--in deciding what other uses can be taken into account."<s41>s
<2"Mode of Occupation">2
6.92 Although when assessing a hereditament it must be im-
agined that it is vacant and to let, nevertheless the valuation must
be made on the assumption that the existing <1"mode of occupation">1
cannot be changed. <1Fir Mill Ltd. v. Royton U.D.C. and Jones>1
<1(V.O.),>1 1960 (L.T.).
6.93 ""Mode of occupation" has not been defined, but from
decisions given by the courts it would appear that a shop must be
valued as a shop, but not as any particular type of shop,<s39>s whilst a
factory must be valued as a factory but not as any particular type of
factory.<s40,41>s A house must be valued as a house and not as business
premises.<s41a>s
6.94 In <1London Transport Executive v. London Borough of>1
<1Croydon and Phillips (V.O.),>1 1974 it was held that a bus garage
must be valued for use as a bus garage and not as warehousing or
for industry or for some form of transport depot. In this case the
Lands Tribunal declined to even consider whether planning per-
mission would be granted for the alternative uses and went on to
approve the view that "so long as the proprietor makes a beneficial
use of his property the assessor has nothing to do with whether it
might have been turned to other and more lucrative purposes."<s42>s
The Tribunal said "In our view the only exception to the rule that
does not take into account another <1mode>1 of use is where no
beneficial use is being made of the property."
6.95 Apart from the dictum the difference between the Well-
come Foundation case and the London Transport case would seem
<s38b>s <1Midland Bank Ltd. v. Lanham (V.O.),>1 (1978).
<s39>s <1Vinall and Vinall v. Covell (V. O.),>1 1974 (L. T.).
<s40>s <1Fir Mill Ltd. v. Royston U.D.C., 1960.>1
<s41>s <1London Transport Executive v. Croydon Borough Council & Phillips (V.O.)>1,
<i1974.>i
<s41a>s But see <1Prince v. Baker (V.O.)>1 and <1Widnes Borough Council>1 (1974), where a
shop which was still capable of being used as such and for which there was still a
demand as a shop, was occupied in its entirety for residential purposes. The Lands
Tribunal held that it should be valued at what someone would have paid for it as a
shop. But contrast this with the decision in <1Henriques v. Garland>1 1977 (L.T.).
<s42>s These words were taken from Armour on Valuation for Rating (4th edition), a
book on rating in Scotland.
152
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
to be that, whereas the former case did not apparently involve a
change in the <1mode>1 of occupation, the latter did.
6.96 It would seem that where a hereditament is not being used
for a particular purpose, and where planning permission cannot be
obtained for that purpose, this would exclude the rental bid of a
tenant who wanted to use the hereditament for that purpose.
(Even though there would be no change in the <1mode>1 of occupa-
tion.) For example, a shop is being used as a general store but
would command a higher rent if used as a fish and chip shop.
However, planning permission would not be granted for this
purpose. In such a case it is suggested that the higher rent that
would be paid by a tenant who wanted to use the premises as a fish
and chip shop, should be ignored.
<1Rebus sic stantibus,>1 <2planning permission and mode of occupation>2
6.97 Having examined each of the above factors individually,
their combined effect must now be examined. This is because
although it is always permissible to value a hereditament for the
actual purpose for which it is being used (whether illegally,
immorally or without planning permission) a valuer will sometimes
attempt to value a hereditament for a purpose for which it is not
being used.
6.97a The reason for this may be:--
<1(i)>1 there is no rental evidence for the particular purpose for
which the hereditament is being used (as for example in the
Wellcome Foundation case involving private libraries) or
(ii) the rental value associated with the particular use to which
the hereditament is put, is low in relation to the rent which
could be obtained if the hereditament was put to some
other purpose e.g.: the occupier is using a shop in a busy
street, solely for residential purposes.
6.97b The general rule would seem to be that before a heredita-
ment can be valued for a purpose for which it is not actually being
used, three tests must be satisfied:--
<1(i)>1 it must be shown that the hereditament is capable of being
used for that purpose without being physically altered
<1 (rebus sic stantibus),>1 and
(ii) it must be demonstrated that planning permission would be
available or would be thought to be available for that
purpose by people competing for the hereditament in the
market, and finally
153
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(iii) that the purpose, for which it is proposed to value the
hereditament is within the same mode of occupation as <2that>2
for which it is currently being used.<s41b>s
6.97c It would appear that it is necessary for all three tests to be
satisfied before the hereditament can be valued for some purpose
other than that for which it is currently being used.
6.97d There have been a number of decisions on the combined
affect of the above factors but it is difficult to find a consistent line
of reasoning running through them all. In other words some of the
decisions would seem to contradict others, on certain points.
Occasionally they appear to be at odds with the rating hypothesis.
6.97e On the main point of contradiction, the decisions can be
divided into two groups:--
(i) those which hold that the valuer has to determine the value
of the existing occupation, and
(ii) those which hold that it is necessary to find the highest level
of rent that could be obtained for the property in the open
market.
6.97f The first group of decisions may be supported on the basis
that rating is a tax on the value of the occupation of the
hereditament.
6.97g The second group may be supported on the basis that, at the
date of valuation, the hereditament must be imagined to be vacant
and to let and would therefore be available to the highest bidder.
6.97h In both groups the courts have accepted that the heredita-
ment must be valued in its physical state at the time of valuation
<1(rebus sic stantibus).>1 So there is no major difference of opinion on
this point.
6.97i Likewise there is no serious difference of opinion over
whether or not it is necessary to take into account the possibility of
obtaining planning permission. The only doubt which exists is
whether the court should constitute itself as if it were hearing a
planning appeal, with evidence from the planning officer and
others; or whether it should take account of the planning situation
only indirectly as seen through the eyes of people in the market. In
the latter case the question to be asked is, for what purposes would
the market expect planning permission to be granted, and in the
light of the answer, what rent would be offered.
6.97j The real difference between the first group of decisions and
<s41b>s <1Byrne v. Parker (V.O.),>1 1980 (C.A.).
154
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(iii) that the purpose, for which it is proposed to value the
hereditament is within the same mode of occupation as <2that>2
for which it is currently being used.<s41b>s
6.97c It would appear that it is necessary for all three tests to be
satisfied before the hereditament can be valued for some purpose
other than that for which it is currently being used.
6.97d There have been a number of decisions on the combined
affect of the above factors but it is difficult to find a consistent line
of reasoning running through them all. In other words some of the
decisions would seem to contradict others, on certain points.
Occasionally they appear to be at odds with the rating hypothesis.
6.97e On the main point of contradiction, the decisions can be
divided into two groups:--
(i) those which hold that the valuer has to determine the value
of the existing occupation, and
(ii) those which hold that it is necessary to find the highest level
of rent that could be obtained for the property in the open
market.
6.97f The first group of decisions may be supported on the basis
that rating is a tax on the value of the occupation of the
hereditament.
6.97g The second group may be supported on the basis that, at the
date of valuation, the hereditament must be imagined to be vacant
and to let and would therefore be available to the highest bidder.
6.97h In both groups the courts have accepted that the heredita-
ment must be valued in its physical state at the time of valuation
<1(rebus sic stantibus).>1 So there is no major difference of opinion on
this point.
6.97i Likewise there is no serious difference of opinion over
whether or not it is necessary to take into account the possibility of
obtaining planning permission. The only doubt which exists is
whether the court should constitute itself as if it were hearing a
planning appeal, with evidence from the planning officer and
others; or whether it should take account of the planning situation
only indirectly as seen through the eyes of people in the market. In
the latter case the question to be asked is, for what purposes would
the market expect planning permission to be granted, and in the
light of the answer, what rent would be offered.
6.97j The real difference between the first group of decisions and
<s41b>s <1Byrne v. Parker (V.O.),>1 1980 (C.A.).
154
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
the second, concerns the meaning to be given to the concept of
"mode of occupation."
6.97k <1In the first group>1 the courts have interpreted "mode of
occupation" very narrowly, looking only at the actual mode of the
actual occupier. A shop must be valued as a shop, a house as a
house and a factory as a factory.
6.97l <1In the second group>1 of decisions the courts have inter-
preted "mode of occupation" very widely. Thus in <1Midland Bank>1
<1Ltd. v. Landam (V. O>1.) the Lands Tribunal after reviewing a large
number of decisions said--Mr. Emlyn Jones ". . . all alternative
uses to which the hereditament in its existing state could be put in
the real world, and which would be in the minds of competing
bidders in the market, are to be taken as being within the mode or
category, where the existence of such competition can be estab-
lished by evidence."
6.97m It would appear from this decision that if a house,
situated in an office area, could be used as an office without
structural alteration and if the market was so confident of obtain-
ing planning permission for its use as an office that it would be
prepared to bid a higher rent than was appropriate to a house,
then office use should be taken as being within the mode of
occupation of that hereditament.
6.97n This way of interpreting mode of occupation despite
being much wider than that contained in previous decisions, has
the attraction that it conforms with the concept of the heredita-
ment being "vacant and to let." It also gets very close to what
would happen in the real world.
6.97o If the hereditament was vacant and to let, in the real
world the market would decide on the most beneficial use to which
the hereditament could be put and for what purposes planning
permission could be obtained. Rental evidence or evidence of
rental bids, might well be available on this basis.
6.97p Indeed the only major difference between rental bids
made for the hereditament in the real world and bids made in the
rating world, would be that in the real world the possibility of
structural alteration to the hereditament would be reflected in the
rental bid, whereas in the rating world the possibility of making
structural alterations would be excluded.
6.97q The acceptance of the wider interpretation of "mode of
occupation" would mean that (subject to the restriction against
physically altering the hereditament) a ratepayer would be taxed
on the most beneficial use to which the hereditament could be put,
rather than on the value of the use to which he chose to put it.
155
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
6.97r Only time will tell which of these two interpretations of
""Mode of occupation" will prevail or whether some other inter-
pretation will come to the fore.
6.97s For other decisions concerning the above see:--
<1Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons v. Cane (V. O.)>1, 1956---
masonic hall, offices.
<1Wood (V. O.) v. Midland Bank Ltd,>1 1966--bank, office, shop, use
class.
<1Dixon (Peter) & Son Ltd. v. Elliott (V.O.), 1967--factory, rate->1
able plant and machinery.
<1Williams (V. O.) v. Spastic Society and Cardiff City Council,>1
1971--site for spastics hostel, not residential value.
<1S & P Jackson (Manchester) Ltd. v. Hill (V. O.)>1, 1979--warehouse
valued as shop.
<1British Airways Board v. Ridgeon (V. O.),>1 1979---hangers, work-
shops, stores.
<1Vesta Launderettes Ltd. v. Smith (V.O.)>1, 1979---launderette, shop.
<1West Dorset District Council v. Auton (V. O.) and The Post Office,>1
1979 (L.T.)--valuation of a telephone exchange.
<2Scarcity>2
6.98 The fact that certain hereditaments are in short supply
does not mean that when valuing for rating purposes their rents
must be ignored. Normal scarcity can be taken into account in
assessing a property. However, where there is a letting under
conditions which combine extreme scarcity with dire necessity on
the part of the person agreeing to pay the rent, then that rent may
be ignored when valuing the hereditament.<s43>s
6.99 For example a shopkeeper, who has had to move out of his
present premises, is forced to pay a particularly high rent for
another shop, because it is the only one suitable to his needs in
that particular area. If he moved out of the area he would lose all
his goodwill. In such circumstances the rent which resulted (i.e.
from extreme scarcity and dire necessity) should have little weight
attached to it when valuing that hereditament or others. (see
paragraphs 10.74 to 10.75)
<s43>s <1Thomas v. Cross,>1 1951; <1Moore v. Rees,>1 1952.
156
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
<2Value the whole hereditament>2
6.100 The fact that a particular occupier chooses to occupy only
a part of a hereditament has no effect on the rating assessment.
For example if a man chooses to live in only six rooms of a
30-<2room>2 mansion the valuer must still find the hypothetical rent
for the whole hereditament. "Occupation of part is occupation of
the whole." For a statutory exception to this rule see paragraph
2. 117 onwards. See also paragraph 2. 113 onwards for a non
statutory exception.
<2Everything to be taken into account>2
6.101 In <1Robinson Brothers (Brewers) Ltd. v. Houghton &>1
<1Chester le Street A. C.>1 , 1937, it was stated by Lord Justice Scott that
"every intrinsic quality and every intrinsic circumstance which
tends to push the value up or down" must be taken into account
when valuing a hereditament for rating purposes.
<1Temporary Disturbance>1
6.102 A temporary disturbance to an occupier's enjoyment,
may affect the letting value of a hereditament. For example the
construction of a road close to the boundary, the laying of a sewer
across a property, the tipping of refuse on adjoining land<s44>s or the
delay in making up the roads on a new housing estate.<s45>s In a
number of such cases the courts have been asked to decide
whether the rating assessment should be reduced as a result of the
temporary disturbance.
6.103 In considering cases brought before them, the courts have
applied a number of basic rating assumptions. The first of these is
that it must be imagined that the property is vacant and to let, on
the date on which the proposal is made to reduce the assessment.<s46>s
The question to be answered is whether, having regard to all the
circumstances at that date, a prospective tenant would have
offered a lower rent for the property and whether the hypothetical
landlord would have accepted that lower rent?<s47>s
6.104 It must be borne in mind that the hypothetical tenancy is
"from year to year". This means that it is not a tenancy for one
<s44>s <1Dennis v. Gilmore (V. O.),>1 1966; <1Scott v. Gilmore>1 (V. O.), 1966.
<s45>s <1Price v. Harrison>1 (V. O.), 1963. <1Bradgate v. Buncombe>1 (V. O.), 1967. <1Lillywhite v.>1
<1Baker>1 (V. O.), 1967. <1Young v. Baker>1 (V. O.), 1967.
<s46>s <1Fielder v. Baker>1 (V. O.), 1970.
<s47>s <1Lewis v. Holman>1 (V.O.), 1961. <1Heath v. Holman>1 (V.O.) and <1Chorleywood>1
<1U.D. C>1., 1961
157
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
year or for two years or for three years but will continue
indefinitely until such time as it is brought to an end by notice to
quit.<s48>s It follows that if at the date of the proposal, a prospective
tenant could see that the disturbance would last only a short time,
he would be unlikely to offer a reduced rent. He might however
expect the landlord to make a lump sum deduction from the rent
by way of compensation, but this would not affect the rent from
year to year (or the rating assessment)<s49>s
6.105 If on the other hand the prospective tenant could see that
the disturbance was likely to go on for a long time he would
probably offer a lower rent. Once the disturbance came to an end
the tenant would be prepared to agree to a rise in the rent.<s47>s
6.106 From an examination of the decisions, it would seem that
as a general rule the disturbance must be expected to go on for
about a year (from the date that the proposal is made) before a
reduction will be made in the rating assessment.<s50>s However in
Sheppard's (V.O.)'s appeal, a reduction was made by the Lands
Tribunal and yet the length of the works was six months in total
and only five months from the date of the proposal. In this case an
air compressor was operating for twelve hours a day within
twenty-five feet of a house and there was also a crane, lorries, dust
and dirt. The Lands Tribunal decided that the magnitude of the
nuisance outweighed the shortness of the time and that the
hypothetical landlord and the hypothetical tenant would have
agreed on a reduction in the rent for the duration of the works.
6.107 It is important to note that it is the time, from the date of
the proposal until the end of the disturbance, which must be
looked at; not the total time that the disturbance has been going
on.<s51>s This is because rating is concerned with the effect on the
hypothetical tenant<s52>s and not the actual tenant. The length of time
that the actual tenant (or owner) has suffered the disturbance is
largely irrelevant. What is important is how the hypothetical
tenant would react to the disturbance, if he came fresh to the
property at the date of the proposal.<s51>s
<s48>s <1R. v. South Staffordshire Waterworks Co>1. , 1885. <1Heath v. Holman>1 (V. O.) and
<1Chorleywood U. D. C>1., 1961.
<s49>s <1Heath v. Holman>1 (V. O.) and <1Chorleywood Urban District Council,>1 1961; <1Tuhill>1
<1v. Holman>1 (V. O.), and <1Chorleywood Urban District Council,>1 1961. However the
lump sum argument might be countered by claiming that the lump sum should be
treated as a premium in reverse, (i.e.: a premium paid by the landlord to the
tenant). It could then be argued that the sum should be spread over the period of
the disturbance and deducted from the rent. This would give the equivalent rent, as
if no lump sum had been allowed.
<s50>s <1Nightingale v. Harrap>1 (V. O.), 1971 -
<s51>s <1Lewis v. Holman>1 (V. O.), 1970.
158
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
6.108 This point is well illustrated in <1Fielder v. Baker (V.O.),>1
1970 in which the road opposite Mr. Fielder's house was being
converted, by major engineering works, into a dual carriageway.
As a result he suffered a considerable nuisance. The works started
in March 1968 and were not finished until March or July 1969 (a
total period of 12 to 16 months). However Mr. Fielder did not
make a proposal to reduce his rating assessment until December
1968 (by which time the works only had 3-7 months to go before
they were complete). By the date of the proposal the South bound
carriageway had been completed and a person thinking of renting
the house would have seen that the works were likely to be
finished in a few months. He would not therefore have reduced his
rental bid for the house.
6.109 It followed that the Lands Tribunal were not prepared to
allow a reduction in the rating assessment but commented that had
Mr. Fielder lodged his proposal, at or shortly after the commence-
ment of the works he would have succeeded in obtaining a
reduction.
Once the disturbance is ended it is to be assumed that the
hypothetical landlord will serve a notice to quit on the hypothetical
tenant and then agree with him an increased rent. On the basis of
this assumption the valuation officer would be justified in serving a
proposal to increase the rating assessment of the hereditament, as
soon as the disturbance is over.<s53>s
6.111 A second principle applied by the courts in this type of
case, is that the level of disturbance suffered must amount to
something in the nature of a nuisance, rather than a slight
annoyance. In deciding this point the court will look at the scale
and proximity of the cause of the disturbance.
6.112 The Tribunal has said that "It is not enough merely to
show that the particular occupier is disturbed by some nuisance or
disability; what has to be established is that the rent which a tenant
might reasonably be expected to pay is less on that account than it
would otherwise be."<s54>s
6.113 In the cases which have come before it, the Tribunal has
decided that the following were sufficient of a nuisance to justify a
reduction in the rating assessment. The construction of the M40
motorway, at a distance of 184 yards from the property; even
though the motorway could not be seen from the house.<s55>s The use
<s52>s <1Bradgate v. Buncombe>1 (V. O.), 1967.
<s53>s <1Beath v. Poole>1 (V.O.), 1973.
<s54>s <1Elderfield v. Cockroft>1 (V. O.), 1971-
<s55>s <1Beath v. Poole>1 (V. O.), 1973-
159
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
of land immediately adjoining a house, by contractors working on
a railway line; huts and latrines had been erected, offensive
building materials stored and there was noise and fumes from
machinery.<s56>s The construction of a dual carriageway in front of a
house, including the erection of huts immediately opposite the
house, interference with access to the garage, dirt, dust and sharp
stones which damaged the children's shoes and the car tyres.<s57>s The
destruction of "a good tall thick hedge" which afforded "a high
degree of privacy" to the garden and ground floor of a house.<s58>s An
access to a building site on the opposite side of the road, giving rise
to noise, dust and dirt.<s59>s
6.114 Amongst the disturbances which have not been big
enough to justify a reduction in the rating assessment are the
following. The failure to surface a footpath leading to shops and
schools.<s60>s A vacant plot of land opposite a house, growing
weeds.<s60>s Light aircraft passing over a house when coming into land
on a nearby air field; from inside the house the planes were almost
inaudible.<s61>s
6. 114a Unfinished roads and other incomplete amenities on
housing estates have given rise to many a claim for a temporary
reduction in the assessment. Some of these have been allowed
whilst others have not.<s61a>s
6.115 It is not possible to lay down firm rules as to what kind of
disturbance will cause the hypothetical tenant to reduce his rental
bid. Each case has to be examined on its merits and the Lands
Tribunal has said that it is "a question of degree".<s62>s
6. 116 The two important factors which must be taken into
account are (a) the magnitude and <1(b)>1 the duration of the
disturbance. It is possible for a disturbance to be of sufficient
magnitude but of insufficient duration. For example the laying of a
sewer across a garden<s63>s or the heaping of earth beyond the rear
boundary of a property during the construction of a road.<s64>s
<s56>s <1Lewis v. Holman>1 (V.O.), 1961.
<s57>s <1Fielder v. Baker>1 (V. O.), 1970.
<s58>s <1Scott v. Gilmore>1 (V. O.), 1966; <1Dennis v. Gilmore>1 (V. O.), 1966.
<s59>s <1Ashcroft v. Braxton>1 (V. O.), 1975-
<s60>s <1Lillywhite v. Baker>1 (V. O.), 1967; <1Young v. Baker>1 (V. O.), 1967.
<s61>s <1Elderfield v. Cockroft>1 (V. O.), 1971 -
<s61a>s <1Radford (V. O.) v. Cowan (Et e contra)>1 1980 (L.T.) (reduction allowed); Re the
appeal of <1Fearnley (V. O.)>1 1980 (L.T.) (reduction not allowed); Re the appeal of
<1Radford (V. O.)>1 1980 (no reduction).
<s62>s <1Price v. Harrison>1 (V. O.), 1963.
<s63>s <1Heath v. Holman>1 (V. O.) and <1Chorleywood Urban District Council,>1 1961; <1Tuhill>1
<1v. Holman>1 (V. O.) and <1Chorleywood Urban District Council,>1 1961; <1Dennis v.>1
<1Gilmore>1 (V. O.), 1966; <1Scott v. Gilmore>1 (V. O.), 1966.
<s64>s<1Nightingale v. Harrap>1 (V. O.), 1971.
160
<1The Basis of Valuation>1
Likewise it is possible to have a disturbance which is of sufficient
duration but insufficient magnitude; as in the cases of the unmade
footpath, the vacant plot growing weeds and the low flying light
aircraft. The disturbance must be sufficient in both magnitude and
duration, before the hypothetical tenant will offer and the
hypothetical landlord will accept, a reduction in the rent.
6.117 In Sheppard <1(V.O.)'s>1 appeal the Lands Tribunal--Mr.
Walmsley set out a very useful summary of the earlier Lands
Tribunal's decisions and said:--
"The degree of importance attaching to the factor of transience
must vary with the circumstances of the particular case. The
adoption of a 12-month minimum period is recognisably a conve-
nient practice where (as for instance with an unfinished estate
road) the rental value is not being greatly affected. But where the
nuisance or disability, while it lasts, is a severe one and is reducing
the rental value substantially, then considerations of administra-
tive convenience must clearly take second place.
The Tribunal should, it seems to me, put itself in the situation of
a reasonable man negotiating, at the date of the proposal, a
tenancy for a year with reasonable expectation of its continuance.
If the hypothetical tenant in these circumstances may reasonably
be expected to offer the same rent as if the temporary nuisance or
disability did not exist then the gross value will stay unreduced.
But if, on the other hand, the hypothetical tenant would say: "But
for this nuisance or disability the property is worth so much rental
value, and when the nuisance or disability passes I shall be able to
enjoy the full rental value; but meanwhile the nuisance or disabil-
ity is sufficiently severe and/or is likely to continue sufficiently long
as to reduce my rental bid for a year to year tenancy of the
property," then the assessment will fall to be reduced according-
ly."
6.118 Where a proposal is made to reduce the rating assessment
of a hereditament due to a temporary disturbance, the local
valuation court/Lands Tribunal must not include more than one
alteration in it's decision.<s65>s In other words it can not give two
different reductions or give a reduction followed by an increase to
the original figure for when the disturbance comes to an end. This
is because the court has to find the value of the hereditament as at
the date that the proposal is made and on that date the heredita-
ment only has one value. If more than one reduction is required
then more than one proposal must be made and when the
<s65>s <1Sheppard V.O.'s>1 appeal, 1977 (L.T.).
161
hereditament is to be returned to its original assessment a further
proposal must be made. It is important to remember that the
hereditament must be in the appropriate physical state when the
proposal is made. It is no use making a proposal after the
disturbance has ceased because, valued at the date of the proposal,
the hereditament will have returned to its original value.
6.119 Neither can the local valuation court or Lands Tribunal
decide the dates for which the reduction is to be given. This is the
function of the rating authority.<s65>s
6.120 It should be noted that the above only applies to disturb-
ances which impinge from outside the hereditament and are not
caused by or are under the control of the occupier of the
hereditament. Where a disturbance is caused within the heredita-
ment by the occupier or owner, for example refurbishing the
hereditament, then the hereditament must be valued <1rebus sic>1
<1stantibus>1 as if the works will never be completed (see <1Hounslow>1
<1London Borough v. Rank Audio-Visual Ltd and Bryant (V. O.),>1
1970).<s66>s
<1<s66>sSee also Paul Rocky & CO. v. Morley (V.O) and Jones v. Morley (V.O.),>11980
(L.T.).
162
<1Chapter 7>1
<2THE METHODS OF ASSESSMENT>2
7.1 The problem is to find the rental value in terms of either
gross value or net annual value, depending on the statutory
requirement.
7.2 There are only four basic methods of assessment:--
(1) statutory formula;
(2) rental method (direct or indirect);
(3) contractor's method; and
(4) profit or accounts method.
(1) <2Formulae>2
7.3 The use of a formula does not involve valuation in the
generally accepted sense of the word. It merely lays down an
arithmetical method of finding the gross value or net annual value
for certain hereditaments.
7.4 The formula always stems from an Act of Parliament and
can only be used for those hereditaments specified by an Act.<s1>s
Hereditaments assessed by means of a formula include:--
Railway and canal premises occupied for non-rateable purposes
by the British Railways Board, the London Transport Executive,
the British Waterways Board and the National Freight Corpora-
tion also statutory gas, water and electricity undertakings.
7.5 In addition the Secretary of State may by order specify the
method by which the rateable value is to be found for the
following:<s2>s
(a) Certain properties occupied by the Post Office e.g. posts,
wires, telephone kiosks and their underground railway.
(b) Mines, quarries, wells, bore-holes.
(c) Hereditaments occupied by persons carrying on an under-
taking for the diffusion by wire of sound or television
programmes.
(d) Statutory dock or harbour undertakings.
(e) Hereditaments occupied by the National Coal Board.
7.6 From time to time orders are made relating to these
properties but where a hereditament is not covered by an order, it
<s1>s Sections 30-34 General Rate Act 1976 and section 19 and the 3rd schedule of the
Local Government Act 1974.
<s2>s Section 19 and schedule 3 of the Local Government Act 1974.
163
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
will be valued using one of the other three methods of valuation.
7.7 Provision has been made for the valuation of "county and
voluntary schools" by means of a statutory formula,<s3>s but at the
time of writing the statutory formula has not been brought into
effect.
7.8 The statutory formulae are long and complex and since they
do not involve valuation they are not dealt with further in this
book.
7.9 The practice has grown up of valuing some hereditaments
by non-statutory formulae which have been evolved and agreed
between the Inland Revenue and the ratepayers concerned. For
example, "county" and "voluntary" schools have been valued for
many years by means of a non-statutory formula. Likewise some
university buildings are valued by means of a formula agreed
between the Vice Chancellor's Committee and the Inland Re-
venue.
7.10 The Courts raise no objection to the use of these unofficial
formulae provided that they produce the same assessment as that
which would have been arrived at by applying the correct method
of valuation.<s4>s In order to check that the formula does produce the
same result as the correct method of valuation, it is, of course,
necessary to do a valuation by the correct method.
<2Choice of Method>2
7. 11 Having satisfied himself that the hereditament is not one to
which a formula has to be applied, the valuer must decide which of
the three methods of valuation is the most likely to produce the
right answer.
7.12 Rental evidence has always to be investigated first, for the
rental method is to be used in preference to all others. It does, of
course, depend on there being available sufficient relevant rental
evidence. Its success in application depends on the valuer being
able to find some yardstick whereby various properties can be
compared so that the rental evidence can be analysed and collated
for use in further valuations.
7.13 In the absence of rental evidence the contractor's method
may be used where it is possible for the hypothetical tenant, legally
and factually, to reproduce the hereditament himself if the land-
lord is asking too much rent. If the tenant could construct a similar
<s3>sSection 30 General Rate Act 1967.
<s4>s <1Henning (V.O.) v. Croydon County Borough Council,>1 1965.
164
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
property for himself he would charge himself a <2book>2 rent at a
certain rate per cent of the costs involved, and therefore would not
be prepared to offer a higher rent for the landlord's heredit-
ament.
7.14 The profits method is applied in the absence of rental
evidence where the contractor's method is not suitable. For
example where the tenant cannot legally or factually replace the
hereditament, so that the landlord can properly expect the rent to
be measured not by the cost of reproducing the hereditament but
by reference to the profit arising from the occupation. In some
cases this may produce a higher answer than that given by the
contractor's method, but conversely there will be instances where
the profits demonstrate that no tenant could afford to pay a rent
calculated on the contractor's method.
7. 15 For many years it was thought that where the hereditament
was let at its full rental value, similar hereditaments were let at
their full rental values, then only the rental method of valuation
could be used. The authority for this view came from the decision
in <1Robinson Brothers (Brewers) Ltd. v. Houghton and Chester-le->1
<1Street Assessment Committee,>1 1937, in which Scott L.J. said:
"Where the particular hereditament is let at what is plainly a rack
rent or where similar hereditaments in similar economic sites are
so let, so that they are truly comparable, that evidence is the best
evidence and for that reason is <1alone>1 admissible: indirect evidence
is <1excluded>1 not because it is not logically relevant to the economic
inquiry but because it is not the best evidence".
7.16 The rule that where good rental evidence is available other
methods of valuation must not be considered, was dispelled in
1968 by the case of <1Garton v. Hunter (V.O.).>1 In this case Lord
Denning, M.R.,supported by the other two judges, said: "Nowa-
days we do not confine ourselves to the best evidence. We admit
all relevant evidence. The goodness or badness of it goes only to
weight and not to admissibility". Lord Denning suggested an
amendment to the dictum in the Robinson case as follows: "When
the particular hereditament is let at what is plainly a rack rent or
when similar hereditaments in similar economic sites are so let, so
that they are truly comparable, that is admissible evidence of what
the hypothetical tenant would pay; but it is not in itself decisive.
All other relevant considerations are admissible". "In my opinion
the tribunal was wrong in limiting the enquiry to the actual rent
and making adjustments to it. It should also have taken into
account the estimates given by opposing valuers on the contrac-
tor's basis and the profits basis. From the sum of all the available
165
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
material it should have come to an estimate of the sum which a
hypothetical tenant would pay as rent for this caravan site."
7.17 It seems that the Courts cannot now exclude any method
of valuation, but must instead admit all relevant evidence. The
value of the evidence must be <1weighed>1 by the Court and the Court
must decide how much reliance to place on each method of
valuation in each case.
7.18 Even having regard to the decision in <1Garton v. Hunter>1 the
fact remains that a valuer is required to find the letting value of the
hereditament. If the hereditament was properly advertised and is
let at a rent which resulted from the higgling of the market at
about the time that the value has to be found for rating purposes,
then in the absence of other circumstances, it is hard to imagine
that the Courts will do other than rely heavily on the rental
method of valuation.
<2(2) The Rental Method of Valuation>2
<1(a) Direct Rental Evidence>1
7.19 Direct rental evidence is the actual rent of the actual
property which is to be valued. <1Prima facie>1 it is fair to say that as
the actual tenant and the actual landlord agreed to the rent passing
in the open market, that rent is evidence of rental value. This
<1prima facie>1 assumption may be rebutted by several means.<s5/6>s In the
first case the rent may not reflect the terms of the statutory
tenancy, that is, it may be a rent between related individuals or
companies, or it may be a rent coupled with a premium. Further, it
may be a rent on a long lease or one in which the onus of liabilities
such as repairs differs from that in the statutory definition of value.
(See chapter 8.)
7.20 Secondly, the rent may have been agreed at a time
materially different from the time by reference to which the
hereditament has to be valued for rating purposes. (See para-
graphs 6.47 to 6.63.)
7.21 Finally, the rent may include factors which should not be
reflected in the rating assessment or exclude factors which should
be reflected. (See chapter 6.)
7.22 The difficulty of reconciling actual rents with rental value
in rating terms has been commented on many times in many
judgments in the Courts. For example, in <1Poplar Assessment>1
<1Committee v. Roberts,>1 1922, Lord Buckmaster said, "the actual
<s5/6>s <1Baker Britt & Co. Ltd. v. Hampsher (V. O.),>1 1976 (House of Lords).
166
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
rent paid is no criterion, unless, indeed, it happens to be the rent
that the imaginary tenant might reasonably be expected to pay in
the circumstances mentioned in this Section".
7.23 This point was emphasised in the House of Lords by
Viscount Dilhorne in <1Baker Britt & Co. Ltd. v. Hampsher (V. O>1.),
1967 when he said ". . . unless the terms of the actual tenancy of
the hereditament are such that no distinction is to be drawn
between the actual tenancy and the hypothetical tenancy so that
the rent due under the actual tenancy must be taken to be the rent
reasonably to be expected from a letting of the hereditament from
year to year, it is right to have regard to the actual rents of
comparable hereditaments when assessing the rent in accordance
with section 19(6)" (of the General Rate Act, 1967).
7.24 If, on the other hand, it is clear that the rent passing has
been fixed by the "higgling of the market" between a landlord and
a tenant at arm's length with no collateral agreements or condi-
tions whatsoever and it is a yearly rent without any premium,
agreed at the appropriate point in time, then that rent will reflect
the rental value that the rating valuer is trying to find.
<1(b) Indirect Renal Evidence>1
7.25 If the property is of a type commonly let in the open
market there will be available a volume of evidence which can be
analysed and then applied to similar properties which may them-
selves not be rented. This method clearly requires care in its
application and to be of use in estimating a rental value these rents
must be adjusted to reflect the statutory terms of tenancy envis-
aged in the definition of gross value or net annual value as the case
may be.
7.26 <2First,>2 the valuer must decide whether the rent is acceptable
for rating purposes or whether it should be completely rejected.
For example the date on which the rent was agreed must be
ascertained. If the date of the lease or agreement is so long ago
that conditions have changed between that date and the date of the
valuation, that rent will probably have to be ignored. Only rental
evidence at about the date at which the value of the hereditament
has to be found is sufficiently strong for the rating valuer to use.
7.27 Any rents which are not representative of rental value,
such as family rents, rents between associated companies, or leases
forming part of financial transactions with collateral agreements,
should be rejected.
7.28 Rents which are controlled, regulated or subsidised must
not be used as the basis of a rating valuation. (See chapter 8.)
167
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
7.29 <2Secondly,>2 if the terms of the actual tenancy, with particular
reference to the liability for outgoings, do not correspond to the
terms of the statutory tenancy envisaged in the definition, then the
rent will have to be adjusted so as to bring it into line with the
statutory hypothesis. Thus, a rent on a twenty one years' lease,
without a rent review and with the landlord liable for all outgoings,
will require substantial adjustment to bring it into line with the
terms of an annual tenancy within the definition of net annual. Not
only will the burden of the outgoings have to be shifted, but the
relationship between a rent on lease and a rent from year to year
will have to be studied.<s7>s Then again a tenant may have paid a
premium or made alterations or additions to a property and in
such a case the rent will have to be adjusted to bring it into the
terms gross or net annual value.<s8>s
7.30 There can be no hard and fast rule for this adjustment of
rental evidence. Each case must be taken on its merits and many
difficulties may be encountered especially when considering prop-
erties which are of similar character and type but of different ages.
The cost of repairing an old property will be very much heavier
than that of a property built yesterday, and the valuer will have to
take care in deciding what is the correct adjustment to be made to
convert a full repairing rent into a "gross value" rent. (See chapter
8.)
7.31--7.32 <2Thirdly,>2 when the acceptable rental evidence has
been collected and adjusted so as to bring it into line with the
statutory definition it is helpful to analyse it in some way so as to
present it in terms of some common unit, and this "de-valued"
rental evidence may then be used to advantage in valuing other
properties which are not rented. This common unit is known as the
<2"unit of comparison.">2 (See chapter 8.)
(3) <2The Contractor's Method of Valuation>2<s9/10>s
7.38 The contractor's method consists of estimating the "effec-
tive capital value" of the premises and applying to this a rate per
cent in order to estimate the rental value. The argument behind
this method is that if the hypothetical landlord demands too much
rent for a property the hypothetical tenant would buy a similar
piece of land and construct a similar building for his own occupa-
tion. In order to do this he would have to borrow money and the
<s7>s See paragraphs 8.62-8.74.
<s8>s Known as "rent in terms of gross value" or "rent in terms of net annual value."
<s9/10>s Sometimes referred to as the contractors test or contractors basis.
168
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
interest which he paid on this money would be equivalent to
rent.<s11>s
7.39 The property has to be valued <1rebus sic stantibus,>1 i.e. in the
state and condition in which it is at the date of the valuation. An
old building therefore will have to be valued so as to allow for its
age, obsolescence and bad planning. A rambling old town hall, for
example, built of stone with a marbled entrance hall and consider-
able architectural embellishment would cost very much more to
reconstruct today than its modern equivalent recently built from
contemporary materials and in accordance with good planning.
From the point of view of actual cost of precise reconstruction, the
older building would show a substantially higher figure than the
newer. It would, however, be absurd to suggest that the older
building has a higher rental value. The capital value of the older
building must therefore be depreciated to allow for the use of
out-of-date or unnecessarily expensive materials, the excess of
architectural embellishment and the waste due to bad planning.
This approach is well illustrated in the Oxford University case
<1(Oxford University v. Oxford,>1 1902)<s12>s in which the assessments of
university buildings were under appeal. Such buildings are, of
course, never let to a tenant and there was therefore no rental
evidence. Many were built as memorials or from money given to
the University by benefactors. Whilst the buildings were more or
less useful to the University, it was under no obligation to provide
these buildings, which were costly in their method of construction
and architectural treatment. The method of valuation finally
approved was to eliminate any part of the structural cost attribut-
able to a monumental character, and to apply to this reduced
capital value a moderate percentage, lower than the commercial
rate for borrowing money. From this case there arose the phrase
known as <1"the simple substituted building".>1 In other words, one had
to estimate the cost of constructing a building which was <1func->1
<1tionally equivalent>1 to the actual, but of a simple design, character
and construction. Thereby the architectural excess was eliminated
from the valuation. This method can be readily adopted for other
properties to which the contractor's method is applied and where
the actual capital value is enhanced by architectural excess or the
use of extravagant materials.
7.40 It can thus be seen that the capital value which is adopted
<s11>s <1Dawkins (V. O.) v. Royal Leamington Spa Corporation and Warwickshire>1
<1County Council,>1 1961; <1Cardiff City Council v. Williams (V. O.),>1 1973; <1Coppin>1
<1(V. O.) V. E. Midlands Airport joint Committee,>1 1970 and on appeal 1971.
<s12>s <1Ryde & Konstans Rat. App.>1 87.
169
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
in the contractor's test is not always the same as the cost of
reconstruction. Generally speaking the cost of reconstruction can
only be adopted without modification if the premises have been
built very close to the time by reference to which the value has to
be found and to the design of the particular occupier. In all other
cases it must be treated with caution.
7.41 The capital value thus estimated for rating purposes is
called the <1"effective capital value".>1 Broadly speaking this effective
capital value, or E.C.V. as it is generally called, represents the
estimated open market sale price of the premises assuming that
they cannot be altered structurally in any way and that they can
only be used for their present <1mode>1 of occupation. Such a
definition is not particularly helpful, as open market sales very
rarely take place subject to such restrictions. Effective capital
value is therefore nearly always a matter of opinion. Nevertheless
the possibility of finding the effective capital value direct by
looking at the sale price of similar properties should not be entirely
ruled out.
7.42 In normal circumstances effective capital value can never
be greater than the cost of reconstruction for if it were the
hypothetical tenant would prefer to go elsewhere and incur the
cost of reconstruction in building new premises. Occasions on
which the E.C.V. could exceed the cost of reconstruction would be
in times of building restriction such as when licences and permits
to build are necessary and when they are not easy to obtain or
where there is scarcity of such buildings and it would take time to
build a new one.<s12a>s In such cases the hypothetical tenant would
probably prefer to bid a little extra for a suitable building with
vacant possession rather than risk having to wait a year or more. In
other words, it is in such circumstances that the contractor's
method breaks down to a limited extent because the hypothetical
landlord has a certain degree of monopoly in the premises by
virtue of the fact that they are available for immediate occupation.
7.43 The method therefore resolves itself into estimating (i) the
site value, assuming the <1mode>1 of occupation cannot be changed,
e.g. a town hall site must be valued as a site for a town hall or
similar use, and not as a site for shops;<s13>s (ii) the effective capital
value of the buildings, bearing in mind all the factors mentioned
above; and (iii) the effective capital value of any rateable plant or
machinery. To these values is applied a rate per cent which
<s12a>s <1Occidental Inc. v. Orkney Assessor,>1 1978 (L.V.A.C. Scottish case).
<s13>s <1Dawkins (V.O.) v. Royal Leamington Spa Corporation and Warwickshire>1
<1County Council,>1 1961.
170
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
produces the gross value or the net annual value of the
hereditament.<s14>s At one time different rates per cent were used for
the land, the buildings, and the rateable plant and machinery.
Today the land and buildings are frequently taken at one rate.
Where the amounts of rateable plant and machinery are small,
they may also be taken at the same rate per cent as the land and
buildings.
7.44 The Courts have on several occasions ruled that the rate
per cent to be used should be the commercial rate per cent at
which money can be borrowed.<s15>s If this rule were strictly applied
then the assessment of a hereditament valued by the contractor's
method would fluctuate; going up and down with the cost of
borrowing money. It is submitted that the correct rate per cent to
use is the long term rate of return which a hypothetical landlord
would expect to receive, from that particular type of
hereditament.<s16>s
7.45 The rate of return which a landlord would expect to
receive would be coloured by the class of tenant who would occupy
the hereditament. Different classes of tenant can afford to pay diffe-
rent amounts of rent. For example, a landlord who builds a
children's home suitable for occupation by a charity would expect
a lower rate of return on his money, than a landlord who
constructs a purpose built factory for a commercial firm.<s16>s
7.46 From a study of contractor's valuations over the years it
can be seen that the rule laid down by the Courts, namely: to apply
the commercial rate for borrowing money, has not always been
followed. At times of low interest rates, the rate per cent used in
making contractor's valuations is frequently found to exceed the
commercial rate for borrowing money. Conversely, at times of
high interest rates the rate per cent used in making contractor's
valuations is invariably below the commercial rate for borrowing
money.
7.47 The fact that one particular tenant can borrow money at a
lower rate per cent than other tenants does not justify the use of
that rate per cent. <s17>s Government grants or gifts towards the cost of
the property should not be taken into account when deciding on
<s14>s <1Gilmore (V. O.) v. Baker-Carr>1 (No. 2), 1963.
<s15>s <1Metropolitan Water Board v. Chertsey A. C>1., 1916; <1London County Council v.>1
<1Erith & West Ham,>1 1893 but see <1Westminster>1 City <1Corporation v. The American>1
<1School in London and Goodwin (V.O.),>1 1980 (L.T.).
<s16>s <1Cardiff City Council v. Williams (V. O.),>1 1973 but see <1Westminster City orpora->1
<1tion v. The American School in London and Goodwin (V.O.)>1 1980 (L.T.).
<s17>s <1Metropolitan Water Board v. Chertsey A. C>1., 1916.
171
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
profits method is used to show what rent the hypothetical tenant
could reasonably be expected to pay.
7.58 A similar situation arises in the case of cinemas and
theatres where a contractor's valuation would in many cases result
in a rent above that which the tenant could afford. However, the
use of the profits method of valuation is limited to those heredita-
ments where there are profits or accounts on which a valuation can
be based. This still leaves a range of properties where in the
absence of rental evidence the contractor's method is the only one
which can be used.
7.59 In outline, the profits or accounts method consists of
ascertaining the gross receipts of the undertaking and deducing
therefrom the working expenses. From this figure of gross profit
deductions are made for the repairs and renewals, thus arriving at
a net profit. From this net profit is deducted the amount which the
tenant would reasonably require for himself (the tenant's share)
and the residue will be available for the notional rent and the
rates. As the rate poundage is known the apportionment between
notional rent and rates is a simple algebraical calculation.
7.60 It is clearly impracticable to distinguish that portion of
receipts and expenses which is attributable to the plant and
machinery and so section 21 of the General Rate Act, 1967 (which,
primarily, exempts plant and machinery from rating), does not
apply to a valuation made by reference to accounts. Where this
method applies, all plant and machinery which makes the premises
suitable for the purpose for which it is used and which has a degree
of permanence, is rateable.
7.61 In practice a great deal of care is required in complying
with the various steps in a profits valuation, and the method will
now be considered in detail.
<1(a) Year of Account>1
7.62 Profits valuations have to be performed either for the
making of a new valuation list, or in order to settle a proposal to
alter the current valuation list.
7.63 In either case the accounts to be looked at first are the last
full year's accounts, prior to the time by reference to which the
value has to be found.
7.64 The time by reference to which the value has to be found
for the purposes of a new valuation list is examined in paragraph
6.47a to 6.47i. The time by reference to which the value has to be
<2found>2 when a proposal is made is examined in paragraphs 6.48 to
6.63a.
174
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the rate per centi<s8>s Where the hereditament suffers from disabili-
ties these should be reflected in the effective capital value of the
hereditament and not in the rate per cent.
7.48 The application of a commercial rate per cent to the
effective capital value may give a figure which is higher than the
hypothetical tenant would be prepared to pay. In <1Shrewsbury>1
<1Schools v. Shrewsbury Borough Council,>1 1960, the Court said that
"no tenant would be prepared to offer, nor would any landlord,
owning school buildings and grounds such as these, expect from a
public school which is not run for profit, a rent based on a
commercial percentage of the value of the school. The precise
figure which would finally be reached is a matter of conjecture".
7.49 In cases concerning the valuation of public schools and
universities, the courts have approved rates of interest well below
the commercial rate. <s19>s
7.50 It must always be remembered that the contractor's
method of valuation is only an aid to valuation and is not a positive
proof of what the hypothetical tenant will pay. If the application of
a given rate per cent to the effective capital value results in a figure
which the hypothetical tenant would not pay, then the figure must
be adjusted.
<1Method of Last Resort>1
7.51 The contractor's method of valuation is based on the
valuation fallacy that "cost is value" i.e.: that because a property
cost a lot of money to build, it would necessarily let for a high rent.
This is plainly not so. The reader will no doubt be able to call to
mind a property which if it were to be constructed today would
prove very expensive, but for which there is little demand and
which would in consequence let at a low rent.
7.52 The rental value of a property is determined by the supply-
and demand for that property and not by its cost of construction
(as many developers have discovered).
7.53 It may be that the contractors test will in most cases give a
ceiling value for a property. Namely a rent above which, in normal
circumstances, the property will not let.<s20>s It is, however, most
unlikely that it will give the correct value in the case of a property
which is expensive to construct but for which there is little
demand.
<s18>s <1Gilmore v. Baker-Carr,>1 1963
<s19>s <1Eton College (Provost and fellows) v. Lane (V.O.) and Eton Rural District>1
<1Council,>1 1969; and the <1Oxford and Cambridge Colleges Cases.>1
<s20>s <1Crofton Investment Trust Ltd. v. Greater London Rent Assessment Committee,>1
1967.
172 <1The Methods of Assessment>1
7.54 The contractors test method of valuation has been referred
to in the Lands Tribunal on a number of occasions as a ""method of
last resort." However, the Tribunal apparently felt that the
method had been over criticized because in <1Eton College (Provost>1
<1& Fellows) v. Lane (V.O.) and Eton RDC,>1 1969 it said ". . . we
feel the time has come to say a good word for this method of
valuation. . . . Provided a valuer using this approach is sufficiently
experienced, and is aware of what he is doing, and knows just how
he is using his particular variant of the method, and provided he
constantly keeps in mind what he is comparing with what, we are
satisfied that the contractor's basis provides a valuation instrument
at least as precise as any other approach. For this kind of case it is
almost certainly, the best substantive method that has been
devised so far."
7.55 In addition to schools, universities, colleges and town
halls, the contractor's method of valuation has been used to value
swimming baths, sewage works, public conveniences, art galleries,
museums, sports centres, football and cricket grounds.
(4) <2The Profits or Accounts Method of Valuation>2
7.56 The profits method is used in those cases where there is no
true open market rental evidence and where the contractor's
method is inapplicable. As has been explained above, this occurs
frequently where there is an element of monopoly, either factual
or statutory in the property which the landlord is letting. If,
therefore, a tenant wants to enjoy that monopoly in that locality
he must be prepared to pay to the hypothetical landlord a share of
his profits. As its name implies, the method centres on a treatment
and study of the accounts; in fact its purpose is to show how much
of the trading surplus is available to pass on to the landlord by way
of rent. Properties commonly valued on this method include public
utility undertakings (those not valued by statutory formula) docks,
harbours, tramways, public houses, zoos, amusement parks, cara-
van sites and racecourses, in all of which there is an element of
monopoly attached to the premises.
7.57 In recent years there has been a tendency to use the profits
method of valuation in preference to the contractor's method,
even though the property being valued enjoys very little if any
monopoly. An example of this is the valuation of hotels, where
there is virtually no rental evidence and no monopoly. The reason
for this change is that the contractor's method of valuation has on
occasions been found to produce unrealistic results, and so the
173
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
7.65 It must not be forgotten that for the purposes of a
proposal, strictly speaking, two valuations ought to be made. The
first, should be based on values current at the date that the
proposal was made. <1(Barratt v. Gravesend A. C.).>1 The second,
should be based on the tone of the valuation list.<s21>s It is the lower of
the two values which must be entered in the valuation list.
7.65a As mentioned above, the accounts immediately prior to
the time by reference to which the value has to be found, are
usually looked at first. However the rent required, for rating
purposes, is that which the hypothetical tenant would be prepared
to offer at the date of valuation. When deciding what rent to pay,
the tenant will be looking to the future, on the basis of a tenancy
"from year to year." That is, for one year certain but with a
reasonable expectation that the tenancy will continue. It follows
that the general trend of profits can be as important as the last
years' trading accounts. The valuer may therefore decide to
project a past trend into the future, when making his valuation,
and this will mean that several years accounts have to be ex-
amined.
7.65b Several year's accounts will also be needed if profits have
fluctuated. This is so that the valuer can estimate a level of profit,
which could reasonably be expected to be maintained in the
future.
7.65c If in reality the valuation is being prepared on a date
following the time by reference to which the value has to be found,
then the accounts for the intervening years can be looked at in
order to provide confirmation of any predicted trends.
7.65d It must not be forgotten that when valuing a public house
or a mineral producing hereditament, special rules apply. Section
20 of the General Rate Act 1967 expressly provides that the
valuation is to be made on the basis that the volume of trade, in
the former case, and the quantity of minerals extracted, in the
latter case, are to be those subsisting:--
(i) at the date that the valuation list comes into force (when a
new valuation list is being made) or
(ii) at the date of the proposal (when a proposal has been
made). See paragraphs 9.32 to 9.33 and 11.31.
7.66 Section 20 of the General Rate Act 1967 does not apply to
the valuation of a hereditament which is occupied by a public
<s21>s See section 20 General Rate Act, 1967 statutory tone of the list.
175
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
utility undertaking and of which the value falls to be assessed on
the profits basis.<s22>s
7.67 Where factors are known to have changed between the
date of the last complete set of accounts and the time by reference
to which the value is to be ascertained, these may be taken into
account. For example, there might have been a substantial in-
crease in the price of coal, and this might make a considerable
difference to the profits which the occupier could expect to make
in the future.
<1(b) Gross Profit>1
7.68 The valuer will normally begin with a study of the last
complete set of accounts prior to the time by reference to which
the value has to be found. He must delete from the accounts any
items which do not relate to the running of the undertaking as
such, whether they be receipts or expenses. For example, over the
years a particular company may have invested certain amounts of
accrued profits, and the interest from these investments will
appear as a receipt in the accounts. This receipt must, however, be
deleted from a valuation for rating purposes because the hypothe-
tical tenant will not be assurned to possess those investments. He is
taking over the property, vacant and to let, but will not be
assumed to take over the accumulated investments of any previous
tenant. Equally the existing occupier may show among his ex-
penses certain extraneous costs which do not relate to the running
of the undertaking as such, and these too will have to be deleted.
There are also other items which will have to be deleted, namely,
rent (if any) and rates. Rent, or rental value, is the answer the
valuer is trying to find and it is therefore wrong to make a
deduction for this as a working expense. The future rates are
dependent on the notional rent and must therefore be deduced at
the end of the calculation and it would be incorrect to deduct the
actual rates at this stage.
7.69 It is usual to consider repairs and renewals as separate
items after the gross profit has been struck (see paragraph <1(c)>1
below). Any items of repair or renewal must therefore be ommit-
ted from the expenses before arriving at the gross profit. It will not
matter what these items are called in the accounts, they may be
called depreciation, writing off of assets, or any other accountancy
term but if, in effect, they amount to repairs or provision for
renewals or depreciation they must be deleted.
7.70 Having adjusted the gross receipts and expenses in this
<s22>s Section 20(4) General Rate Act, 1967.
176
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
manner the valuer will then have to increase or decrease them in
accordance with any known factual alteration which has occurred
since the date on which the accounts were closed. He will thus
arrive at properly adjusted figures of gross receipts, and working
expenses, and by deducting the latter from the former he will
arrive at a figure of gross profit.
7.71 What has to be found in rating is the rent which the
<1hypothetical tenant>1 would pay. Problems can arise where the actual
tenant is not the hypothetical tenant. For example the proprietor
of a public house may be a famous cricketer and people may flock
to that public house in the hope of being served by him. This
would result in an increase in the takings. The hypothetical tenant
is not a famous cricketer and the valuer must base his valuation not
on the level of business done by the actual tenant but on the level
of business which would be done by the <1hypothetical tenant.>1
7.72 An adjustment in the opposite direction may be necessary
if the proprietor is a very inefficient and slothful character. In such
a case the valuer may have to allow for an increase in takings.
<1(c) Repairs and Renewals>1
7.73 When the hereditament is one which has a gross value* the
hypothetical landlord is responsible for bearing the cost of repairs,
insurance and other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the
hereditament. It will not, therefore, be necessary to deduct from
the gross profits the cost of repairs, insurance, sinking fund, or
other expenses necessary to maintain the <1hereditament.>1 However,
in the case of hereditaments which are valued direct to net annual
value, these items should be deducted.
7.74 If the hereditament is to be valued direct to net annual
value, the valuers first step is to analyse the actual repairs. He
must delete from the actual repair figure any items which are in the
nature of capital expenditure. To avoid unduly violent fluctuations
in figures of repairs it is usual to look at several years' accounts.
Some items of repair recur annually, and othere recur at five and
ten years' or even longer intervals, so he must endeavour to strike
a proper average by investigating the accounts of previous years.
7.74a When analysing past accounts it must be borne in mind
that the building is not getting any younger and that there may be a
greater need for repair in the future. The effect, on the cost of
repairs, of inflation and V.A.T. must also be borne in mind.
7.75 One of the expenses necessary to maintain the heredita-
ment in a state to command the rent is the provision of an annual
<s*>s See paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
177
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
sinking fund to replace the hereditament as and when it wears out.
No sinking fund will be required for the land, for this is virtually
indestructible, but one will be required for some structures and
plant and any chattels which the hypothetical tenant will require to
run the business. A sinking fund may not be required on certain
items, such as impounding dams, which are of such long life as to
be virtually imperishable.<s23>s
7.76 The sinking fund is calculated by estimating the cost of
replacing each item. This future capital liability is then spread over
the anticipated life of the asset from the beginning of its life to the
time that it requires renewing. This is usually done by applying the
appropriate multiplier from published sinking fund tables. The
various sinking funds are then added together to produce an
annual sinking fund for the whole undertaking. The combined
figure of repairs and renewals is then deducted from the gross
profit to produce a net profit or divisible balance.
7.77 Regardless of whether or not a hereditament is one which
has a gross value, there should be deducted from the gross profits,
the cost of repair, renewal, insurance and other expenses neces-
sary to maintain items which do not form part of the hereditament,
e.g.: furniture and certain equipment. If these items are used in
the business it is the hypothetical tenant's responsibility to main-
tain them.
(d) <2>2<1Divisible Balance--Tenant's Share>1
7.78 The first charge on the divisible balance is the tenant's
share.<s24>s The House of Lords has held (i) that the hypothetical
tenant must have sufficient inducement to enter into the undertak-
ing and that this must be a proper ind<iucemen>it t<io>i th<ie>i t<ienant and>i
not merely an arbitrary fraction of the divisible balance; and (ii)
that such inducement is a prior charge on the divisible balance,
even if it means in any particular case that there will be nothing left
to provide rent for the landlord and rates for the local authority. In
other words, the tenant must be satisfied in full, although he must
not be too greedy, before the landlord's share (or rent) can be
calculated. Both these propositions were challenged in the case of
<1 Sandown Park Ltd. v. Esher U. D. C.>1 ,<s25>s but the Court of Appeal in
1953 upheld the doctrine laid down in the <1Southern Railway>1 case.
7.79 The tenant's share is usually regarded as covering three
<s23>s <1Birmingham City Council v. Bronisgrove R. D. C. & Linley (V. O.), Lands>1
<1 Tribunal,>1 1955.
<s24>s <1The Railway Assessment Authority v. Southern Railway>1 Co., 1936.
<s25>s Lands Tribunal see 45. R. & I.T. Page 70; C. of A., 47. R. & I.T. 351.
178
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
main items. Firstly, pure interest on the capital he has to invest in
the undertaking; secondly, risk over and above pure interest; and,
thirdly, his own remuneration. On the first point, the argument is
that he must be allowed at least a risk free rate of interest on his
capital, since he could get that with no effort by investing his
money in a risk free security. Secondly, he must be allowed
something in addition for the risk involved, in that particular type
of business. Thirdly, he must be allowed a proper remuneration
for his own efforts in running the undertaking.
7.80 The Courts usually express the tenants share as a percen-
tage of either:--
(i) the capital which the tenant has invested in the
undertaking;
(ii) the gross receipts of the undertaking or
(iii) the divisable balance.
7.81 At varying times and in varying circumstances the tenant's
share may be affected by different conditions and may be liable to
substantial variations. That part of the tenant's share which
provides the element of pure interest is unlikely to vary from one
class of hereditament to another. That part of the tenant's share,
however, which relates to his risk may well vary from one class of
hereditament to another. In a large concern such as the Metropoli-
tan Water Board, which is dealing with an essential commodity,
the tenant's share may well be as low as 6% or 7% of the gross
turnover, for there is virtually no risk. (Statutory water undertak-
ings are now assessed by a formula.) On the other hand, if one is
dealing with a horse racecourse where the whole profits have to be
earned over seven or eight racing days in a year, or with some
other speculative enterprise such as a large fun fair at the seaside,
the tenant's share may properly have to provide a substantial
margin as cover for the trading risk inherent in the undertaking. It
was argued in the years shortly after the last war that if greyhound
racing tracks were correctly valued on profits the tenant's share
might well have been up to 25% or 30% of the turnover. The risk
of a period of depression following the postwar flush of spending
could well have changed a boom to a slump in a matter of months
and the tenant would need a substantial inducement to embark on
such a risky enterprise. He would allow for this when deciding the
amount of rent he could afford to pay. In the case of a particular
caravan site the percentage to be applied to gross receipts to find
tenant's share was held to be 271/2% <s26>s
26 <1Vaughan v. Great Yarmouth Seashore Caravans Ltd.,>1 1960.
179
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
7.82 In cases where the hypothetical tenant would have to
provide a substantial amount of capital, either in the form of
chattels or of cash, it is not unusual for the tenant's share to be
calculated by reference to such capital. The estimation of the
tenant's chattels and fittings which do not form part of the
hereditament. Over and above this he must have money at the
bank to cover wages and all other outgoings until his receipts begin
to flow from his customers. In this way he may require money
available at the bank equal, possibly, to two months' outgoings.
He will also need a cover for possible contingencies and "run of
bad luck" at the start of his trading period. If the undertaking is
one which consumes a great deal of solid fuel then the tenant's
capital would include the cost of providing a sufficient stock of coal
or anthracite to protect him against delays in future deliveries. All
these amounts totalled together form the sum of money which the
tenant must put into the business if he takes a tenancy, and this
total sum is known as tenant's capital.
7.83 After the tenant's share has been deducted from the
divisible balance the residue represents two items, namely, the
rent to the landlord and rates to the rating authority. If the rate
poundage is known, it is a matter of elementary algebra to
calculate the amount to be deducted for rates and thus leave the
net annual value.
<1(e) Other Matters>1
7.84 Unless special circumstances can be proved the profits
basis is now virtually obligatory for valuing those public utility
undertakings which do not have to be assessed by statutory
formulae. In no reported case to date has an appellant been able to
plead special circumstances to bring him outside this principle.
7.85 Finally it must be remembered that the profits or accounts
method of valuation is only a means to an end. The end being to
determine what rent the hypothetical tenant will pay for the
hereditament. Many tenants take a property in order to make a
profit and the rent which they pay will depend on the profit which
they can make. There are, however, some tenants who's principle
aim is not the making of a profit and who would be prepared to
pay a rent for a hereditament even if no profit could be made. For
example a town council at a seaside resort may operate a pier in
order to attract holiday makers into the town; even though the pier
runs at a loss. Despite this loss the council would be prepared to
pay a rent for the pier in order to achieve its' objective.
7.86 Similarly a town council might see an advantage to the
180
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
town in running for example, a market. In deciding what rent they
should pay for the market they first of all carry out <2a>2 profits
valuation, arriving at a figure which could be justified on the basis
of the anticipated profits. A private businessman would offer no
more than this sum, since his only objective is the making of a
profit. However, the hypothetical landlord may well be able to
persuade the town council to pay a higher rent thus reflecting the
added value which the market has to the town.<s27>s The higher rent
would result in the council running the market at a diminished
level or profit or even at a loss but this would not necessarily be
inconsistent with the council's main objective. The extra rent over
and above that justified by the anticipated profits is known as an
"overbid".
7.87 When using the profits method the valuer should ask himself,
what the principle objective of the hypothetical occupier is. The
absence of a profit must not be allowed to blind the valuer into
thinking that no one would be prepared to pay a rent for a
hereditament, although in some cases this may be so.
7.88 Another case in which a profits valuation might show no
rent but where a rent may nevertheless be paid, is where a
hereditament is being run for a short time at a loss in the hope that
a profit will arise in the near future. For example a cinema
proprietor may run a cinema at a loss for a year or two in the
expectation of it becoming profitable in the not too distant future<s28>s
It should, however, be borne in mind that the hypothetical tenant
is a tenant from year to year. It is unlikely that such a tenant would
be prepared to make a loss for very many years and still continue
to pay a rent for the hereditament.
7.89 It will be seen later that there are many variations of the
profits test which are commonly applied to public houses, cinemas
and theatres. They are, however, nothing more than adaptations
of, or short cuts in, the true profits test, and the same underlying
theory will apply in each case.
7.90 A distinction has been drawn by the Courts between "the"
profits method and "a" profits method. "The" profits method is
the method which is strictly applied to public utility undertakings.
"A" profits method refers to variations of "the" profits method
which have been evolved for the purpose of valuing cinemas,
public houses, caravan sites, crematoriums and other properties.
7.91 Undertakings valued by the profits method sometimes
<s27>s <1Taunton Borough Council v. Sture (V. O.),>1 1958 see also <1Morecombe and>1
<1Heysham B. C. v. Robinson (V. O.)>1, 1959-
<s28>s <1Rank Organisation Ltd. v. Billett (V.O.),>1 1958.
181
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
extend into more than one parish. 1n such cases the undertaking
should be valued as a whole and the value then apportioned
between the different parishes. There are several different ways of
doing this and the method used will depend on the type of
undertaking. In the case of some undertakings it is necessary to
distinguish between the directly and indirectly productive parts of
an undertaking and to apportion each part separately. The appor-
tionment can become very complicated.<s29>s
<2Other Methods of Valuation>2
7.92 Ingenious valuers have sometimes sought to introduce new
methods of valuation, but on investigation these nearly always
prove to be based on the three methods already discussed and to
be little more than variations in application.
7.93 It has been argued at times that there is a <2"unit method">2 of
valuation, but this, as has been explained earlier, is not really a
method of valuation but merely a method of comparison. An
experienced valuer may have analysed so many rents and so many
assessments that he is able to relate these in his own mind at "so
much rent per unit". He may then apply this figure to a new
property, but all that he is really doing is to summarise his rental
evidence in unit form.
7.94 Another suggestion was what was called the <2"contractor's>2
<2plus">2 method. This had certain following in respect of greyhound
race tracks in the years 1946-50. The argument was that it would
be wrong to apply the profits method because there was not a
sufficient element of monopoly in the hereditament, although it
was admitted that a tenant would be prepared to pay more by way
of rent than that shown by the straightforward contractor's method
based on cost of construction. The additional rent was usually
related to the totalisator retentions, apparently on the argument
that this part of the undertaking constituted a monopoly in the
hands of the tenant. It is suggested that such a basis of valuation is
untenable.
<1Comparable Assessments>1
7.95 Where similar properties have been valued, their assess-
ments are admissible as evidence of value, even where those
assessments are not in the same rating area.<s30>s
7.96 It is not open to a valuation officer to deny the correctness
<s29>s Ryde on Rating 13th edition pages 574 to 584.
<s30>s <1Shrewsbury Schools v. Shrewsbury Borough Council & Plumpton>1 (V. O.), 1960.
182
<1The Methods of Assessment>1
of an assessment in a valuation list; whether his own list or that for
another area. An exception to this rule is where the valuation
officer has made a proposal to alter that assessment. It follows that
a gross or net annual value in the valuation list is in the nature of
an admission by the valuation officer of what a property is worth.
This point is particularly important when a valuation officer
attempts to prove the correctness of his assessment, by quoting the
rent paid for another property.
7.97 For example, the valuation officer seeks to justify an
assessment of #500 gross value for 9, Meadow Road by producing
evidence that 11, Meadow Road (an identical house) let for #500.
On the face of it this seems reasonable, but on further investiga-
tion it is found that 11, Meadow Road is assessed at a gross value
of #250. Since the valuation officer cannot deny the correctness of
assessment in the valuation list, the implication is that the valua-
tion officer rejected the correctness of the rent of #500 when he
assessed 11, Meadow Road. Having denied the correctness of the
rent in the case of 11, Meadow Road, he can hardly claim that it is
correct to use that rent in the case of 9, Meadow Road.
7.98 The use of assessments of similar properties is not truly a
method of valuation. This can be proved by the fact that it is
impossible to use it where a new valuation list is to be made
(because there are no assessments of similar hereditaments).
However, in the case of proposals to alter the assessment in a
valuation list, comparison with the assessment of other similar
hereditaments can be very useful. This is particularly so where
difficulty is experienced in applying one of the three basic methods
of valuation.
7.99 Section 20 of the General Rate Act, 1967, which provides
for valuation by statutory tone of the list, states "for purposes of
any alteration of the valuation list . . . the value . . . to be ascribed
to the hereditament . . . shall not exceed the value which <1would>1
have been ascribed thereto in that list if the hereditament had been
subsisting throughout the year before that in which the valuation
list came into force . . ." The word "would" may result in an
increased importance being attached to the assessments of compa-
rable hereditaments.
7.100 Where a proposal is made to reduce the assessment of a
hereditament, the fact that comparable hereditaments are assessed
at lower figures does not necessarily justify a reduction.<s31>s This
matter is discussed further in paragraph 6.53.
<s31>s <1Ladies Hosiery & Underwear Ltd. v. West Middlesex Assessment Committee,>1
1932.
183
<1Chapter 8>1
<2RENTAL SELECTION, ADJUSTMENT AND ANALYSIS>2
8.1 In chapter 7 the rental method of valuation was considered
and it was pointed out that before rents can be used for rating
valuation purposes, they have to pass through various processes.
These are the:--
(A) Selection of Rents
(B) Adjustment of Rents and
(C) Analysis of Rents
Each of these processes is now considered in greater detail than in
the last chapter.
<2A. Selection of Rents>2
8.2 The first process through which a rent has to pass is to see
whether it conforms with the rating hypothesis.<s1>s In other words,
are the terms and circumstances surrounding the actual letting, the
same as those in the imaginary world of rating?
8.3 There are certain rents which must not be used in rating
valuations at all, because they do not conform and cannot be made
to conform with the rating hypothesis. For example, a rent which
is subject to rent control or rent regulation does not conform with
the rating hypothesis. This is because according to the hypothesis
it is necessary to imagine that the property which is being valued is
free from rent control and rent regulation. There is in practice no
way in which a rent controlled or rent regulated rent can be
adjusted so as to turn into a free open market rent.
8.4 Other examples of rents which cannot be adjusted are:--
(i) Rents agreed at some distance in time from the date on
which the value of the hereditament has to be found.
(ii) Rents on long leases without rent reviews.<s1a>s
(iii) "Tied" or other rents which result from the imposition of
restrictions or the granting of concessions by the landlord.
(iv) Family rents, agreed between related persons or com-
panies.
<s1>s See paragraph 6.25 onwards.
<s1a>s But see appendix A.
185
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(v) Rents of furnished accommodation where it is not practic-
able to deduct the rent attributable to the furniture.
(vi) Sale and lease back rents.<s1b>s
8.5 On the other hand there are true open market rents which
do not conform with the rating hypothesis but which can be
adjusted so as to make them conform. Examples of these in-
clude:--
(i) Rents which have been agreed in consideration of the
tenant paying a premium, carrying out improvements,
doing accrued repairs or otherwise spending money in a
way required by the landlord.
(ii) Lettings where the landlord pays the rates.
(iii) Lettings where the repairing or insuring liabilities do not
conform with the definition of gross or as the case may be,
net annual value.
(iv) Rents agreed in consideration of the tenant surrendering
previous lease.
(v) Under certain circumstances only, rents which have been
agreed or determined by a court under the provisions of the
Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (as amended).
<2B. Adjustment of Rents into Rent in Terms of Gross Value or Net>2
<2Annual Value>2
8.6 Rents which cannot be adjusted so as to make them
conform with the rating hypothesis must not be used as a basis for
rating valuations. Any attempt to adjust them will be a waste of
time and will produce misleading results.
8.7 Of those rents which remain the type of adjustment to be
applied will depend on how the terms of the actual letting differ
from the terms of the hypothetical letting. Examples of some of
the more common forms of adjustment are discussed below.
<1(a) Rates>1
8.8 No matter whether a hereditament is valued to a gross value
or direct to a net annual value, it has to be imagined that the
hypothetical tenant pays "all usual tenant's rates and taxes."<s2>s
However, in the real world it sometimes happens that the landlord
pays the usual tenant's rates or a portion of them. This calls for an
adjustment to convert the terms of the actual tenancy into terms of
<s1b>s See paragraph 10.70b.
<s2>s See paragraphs 6.40 to 6.42.
186
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
the hypothetical tenancy. Broadly speaking this adjustment may
be carried out in one of two ways.
8.9 The simplest of the two methods is to find the rateable value
of the hereditament at the time that the letting took place and
multiply this by the rates in the pound at that time. The result will
be the amount of rates paid by the landlord and this sum can be
deducted from the actual rent, in order to arrive at the rent which
the tenant would have paid had he been responsible for the rates.
8.10 The above way of adjusting the rent is reasonably satisfac-
tory in those cases when, at the time that the rent was agreed,
neither the landlord nor the tenant could foresee the likelihood of
any material change occurring in the rates payable on the heredita-
ment and where subsequently no change took place.
8.11 In those cases where a material change in the rates could
have been foreseen at the time that the rent was agreed, it can be
argued that the deduction to be made from the inclusive rent
should be the amount which the landlord and tenant envisaged the
rates would be after the change and not the actual rates at the time
that the rent was agreed.
8.12 The above ways of adjusting the rent are not likely to
produce an accurate answer in the following circumstances. Name-
ly that at the time that the rent was agreed, neither the landlord
nor the tenant could foresee any likelihood of a material change in
the rates but that at some time after the rent was agreed, the rates
changed to a material extent. In such a case an application of the
"equation theory" may result in a more accurate answer.
8.13 The <1equation theory>1 is based on the idea that a tenant is not
particularly concerned with the amount of rent which he pays nor
with the amount of rates which he pays but is concerned with the
combined figure of rent and rates. In other words if a tenant's rates
increase he will want to pay less rent, whereas if his rates go down
he would be prepared to pay more rent.
8.14 Thus it does not matter to a tenant whether he pays #90
rent and #10 rates or #10 rent and #90 rates. What does matter is
that he should not have to pay more than #100 in total.
8.15 The above reasoning, together with the fact that for any
given rental value there is only one correct rating assessment, has
lead valuers to use an algebraic equation which brings the rating
assessment of a hereditament into exact balance with its rental
value.
8.16 To apply the equation theory, the rent and rates of a
hereditament are first added together to give a figure of rent which
includes rates (i.e. the "inclusive rent"). The exact nature of the
187
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
equation will depend on whether the hereditament is to be valued
to a gross value or direct to a net annual value. Furthermore it will
be necessary to modify the equation in those cases where the
rateable value is not equal to the net annual value (e.g. mines and
quarries but see also paragraph 6.24a). However, all the equations
are based on the same principle, namely that the gross value or as
the case may be, the net annual value, is equal to the rent.
(i) <1The equation where a hereditament has a gross value and>1
<1where the rateable value is equal to the net annual value.>1
In the case of a hereditament to be valued to a gross value, the
equation is evolved as follows:--
rent inclusive of rates = rent + rates
Rent <2and>2 gross value are by definition the same. Rates are found
by multiplying the rateable value by the rates in the pound. In
consequence the equation can be re-written as follows:--
rent inclusive of rates = gross value +
(rateable value x rates in #)
Gross value is the same as net annual value plus statutory
deductions, and so the equation can be re-written:--
rent inclusive of rates = net annual value +
statutory deductions + (rateable value x rates in #)
Where the net annual value is equal to the rateable value it is
possible to re-write the equation using X in place of both rateable
value and net annual value:--
rent inclusive of rates = X + statutory deductions +
(X x rates in #)
In order to be able to work the equation out it is necessary to know
what the statutory deductions are, in terms of net annual value.
These are set out in the second column of the table below:--
<1Example>1
A hereditament which is to be valued to a gross value is let at a
rent, inclusive of rates, of #10,000 per annum. The rates in the
pound at the time that the rent was agreed were 65p. Find the
gross value.
#10,000= X + statutory deductions + (X x rate in the #)
Before going any further it is necessary to decide approximately
188
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
<1Gross Value>1 <1Statutory deductions>1 <1Statutory deductions>1
<1expressed in relation>1 <1expressed in relation>1
<1to Net Annual Value>1 <1to gross value>1
<1(approximate only)>1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not exceeding #65 9 NAV 45% of the gross value
-----
11
Exceeding #65 but 3 NAV + 95 #29 plus 30% of the
----------
7 amount by which
the gross value
exceeds #65
Exceeding #128 NAV + 160 #48 plus 163%
---------
but not exceeding 5 of the amount by
#320 which the gross
value exceeds
#128.
Exceeding #320 #80 #80
but not exceeding
#330
Exceeding #330 NAV + 70 #80 plus 20%
--------
but not exceeding 4 of the amount by
#430 which the gross
value exceeds
#330
Exceeding #430 NAV + 170 #100 plus 16 2/3%
---------
5 of the amount by
which the gross
value exceeds
#430
Where "NAV" is the Net Annual Value
------------------------------------------------------------------
what the gross value will be, so that the correct statutory deduc-
tions can be chosen. In this case the gross value will almost
certainly exceed #430 and so the statutory deductions can be
expressed as NAV + 170
---------
5
#10,000 = X + X + 170 + (X x 65p in the #)
--------
5
10,000 = X + X + 170 + 65X
------- ---
5 100
10,000 = 100 X + 20X + 3,400 + 65X
-------------------------
100
100 x 10,000 = 185X + 3,400
1,000,000 - 3,400 = 185X
996,600 = 185X
X=5,387
189
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Net Annual Value or Rateable Value #5,387
ADD: Statutory deductions
5,38 + 170
5 #1,111
Gross Value #6,498
After working out the equation it is advisable to check, in order to
make sure that the correct statutory deductions have been used. If
they have not, then the equation must be worked out again using
the correct statutory deductions.
To check that the above answer is correct:
Gross Value #6,498
LESS: Statutory deductions
Gross Value Statutory
Deduction
#6,498
-- 430 #100
#6,068
x 162/3% #1,011
Statutory Deductions #1 111
Net Annual Value or Rateable Value #5,387
Rates in the pound -65
Rates payable #3 502
ADD: Gross Value #6 498
Rent inclusive of rates #10 000
(ii) <1The equation where a hereditament is valued direct to net>1
<1annual value and where the rateable value eguals the net>1
<1annual value.>1
If the equation theory is applied to a hereditament which does not
have a gross value and where the rateable value is the same as the
net annual value, then the equation can be written as follows:--
rent inclusive of rates = net annual value +
(rateable value x rates in #)
190
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
Let the net annual value and the rateable value each be X.
rent inclusive of rates = X + (X x rates in #)
(iii) <1The equation where a herediament is valued direct to net>1
<1annual value and where the rateable value is less than the net>1
<1annual value.>1
It may be necessary to apply the equation theory to a hereditament
which does not have a gross value and where the rateable value is
less than the net annual value (e.g. mine or quarry, see also
paragraph 6.24a). In such a case the equation may be written as
follows:--
rent inclusive of rates = net annual value +
(rateable value x rates in #)
The net annual value may be expressed as the rateable value plus
the deduction which is to be made from the net annual value to
arrive at the rateable value. So the equation can be written as:--
rent inclusive of rates = rateable value +
deduction + (rateable value x rates in #)
Where X is the rateable value:--
rent inclusive of rates = X + deduction +
(X x rates in #)
8.17 If in addition to paying the general rate the landlord also
pays the water, sewerage or environmental rates, and if they are
based on the rateable value of the hereditament, it will be
necessary to add these rates in the pound to the general rate.
8.18 The use of the <1equation theory>1 is not restricted to those
cases where, under the terms of the actual tenancy the landlord is
liable to pay the rates. Its use may be appropriate where the rating
assessment of a property is materially out of line with its rental
value and where it is proposed to revalue the property. In such a
case the rent is added to the rates payable, to give a rent inclusive
of rates, and the equation theory is then applied. The valuer will
thus be able to arrive at a rating assessment which is exactly in line
with the rental value of the hereditament.
8.19 The rates in the pound to be used in the above case will be
those which will have to be paid after the assessment has been
revised. For example, if there have been considerable changes in
rental values since the last revaluation it may be decided to apply
191
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the equation theory when making valuations for a new valuation
list. In such a case the rates in the pound to be used in the equation
should be the rates in the pound which it is anticipated will be
charged when the new list comes into force.
8.20 If, however, there is likely to be little relative change
between the value of one property and another at the time of a
revaluation then it will not be necessary to apply the equation
theory to the rents of all properties. This is because the general
rise in rateable values resulting from the revaluation will be
compensated for by a fall in the rates in the pound.
8.21 Although the equation theory is academically sound the
courts have not always been willing to approve its use in practice.
Thus it will be up to the court to decide whether in any particular
case the equation theory should be applied. Some guidance on
when to use the equation theory may be obtained from a study of
the following cases:--
<1Olding v. Denman>1 1951;
<1Kimbells v. Payne>1 1953;
<1City of Sheffield v. Meadow Dairy Ltd.>1 1957;
<1Shell-Mex & B.P. Ltd. v. Gribble>1 1960.
8.22 The equation theory is invariably applied at the end of a
profits valuation in order to apportion the final figure between
rent and rates. (See paragraph 11.42.)
<1(b) Repairs, Insurance and other Expenses>1
8.23 When using rental evidence to value a hereditament it is
frequently found that the repairing terms of the actual letting do
not conform with the rating hypothesis. For example, when
finding the gross value of a hereditament it has to be assumed that
the landlord bears the cost of repairs, insurance and other
expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the hereditament in a state
to command that rent.<s3>s But in fact it may be found that the
property is let on the basis that the tenant carries out some or all of
the repairs or pays for the insurance. In such a case it is necessary
to adjust the rent in order to bring it into line with the definition of
gross value.
8.24 Likewise in a case where a hereditament has to be valued
direct to a net annual value, it must be assumed for rating purposes
that the tenant bears the cost of repairs, insurance and other
expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the hereditament in a state
<s3>s Section 19 General Rate Act, 1967.
192
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
to command that rent. It follows that if under the terms of the
actual letting the landlord is liable to pay for any of these
outgoings, then the rent will have to be adjusted to bring it into
line with the definition of net annual value.
<1Example>1
A house is let at a rent of #6,000 p.a. and the tenant is responsible
for repairing and insuring the property. Adjust the rent to bring it
into terms of gross value.
From an examination of past records and having regards to
likely increases in costs, it would seem that at the time that the rent
was agreed, the hypothetical tenant would have expected to spend
an average of #450 p.a. on keeping the property in repair. The cost
of insuring the building at the time would have been #60 p.a.
The total cost of repairs and insurance expected to be borne by
the tenant was therefore #510 p.a.
A house is valued to a gross value and according to the
definition of gross value the hypothetical landlord is responsible
for repairs and insurance. Had the house been let on these terms
the tenant would not have had to spend #510 p.a. on repairs and
insurance and would in consequence have been prepared to pay an
extra #510 p.a. in rent.
Rent or lease
(tenant paying for repairs and insurance) #6,000 p.a.
Cost of repairs and insurance # 510 p.a.
Rent in terms of gross value #6,510 p.a.
8.25 Where a hereditament has to be valued direct to net
annual value but is let on the terms that the landlord does the
repairs, an adjustment is called for. However, in this case the
average annual cost of repairing the hereditament must be de-
ducted from the rent payable under the letting.
8.26 For rating purposes the cost of repairs includes the cost of
decorations.
8.27 A practice has grown up over the years of estimating the
cost of repairs by taking 10% of the full rental value of the
property. Where only internal repairs are concerned, 5% of the
full rental value is taken. Because this practice takes no account of
the type of property or of its age, size, situation, or construction, it
is liable to give inaccurate results.
8.28 For example, if two identical office blocks were built at the
same time and of the same materials, one in central London and
193
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the other in the suburbs, it is quite possible that the central
London offices will have a rental value three times that of the
suburban offices. However, the central London offices will not
cost three times as much to repair.
8.29 Despite its obvious failings, the practice of estimating
repairs by taking 10% of the rental value has been accepted by the
Lands Tribunal on a number of occasions.<s4>s
8.30 It is, however, submitted that in the event of the Tribunal
being presented with evidence of actual repairing costs (suitably
adjusted to reflect future trends) the Tribunal might not feel
bound to follow its previous decisions.
8.31 The practice of estimating the cost of insurance by taking a
percentage of the full value, will also give inaccurate results. For
example, in the case of the two office blocks mentioned above it is
unlikely that the central London block (which has a rental value
three times that of the one in the suburbs) will cost three times as
much to rebuild.
8.32 The adjustment to be made for insurance may be calcu-
lated by estimating the cost of replacing the buildings and rateable
plant and machinery, in the event of them being destroyed. The
replacement cost is then multiplied by a premium, of so much for
each hundred pounds insured. The amount of the premium varies
with the type of construction and the use to which the building is
put. The cost of the land is normally left out of account because it
is unlikely to be destroyed. However, the cost of clearing the site
after the destruction and before reconstruction can commence
must be allowed for, as must be the cost of professional fees (e.g.
architect and where appropriate, quantity surveyor and engineer).
The whole should be adjusted to allow for inflation and except in
the case of a complete rebuilding, it is wise to allow for V.A.T.
8.33 It should be noted that in both the definition of gross value
and net annual value, section 19 of the General Rate Act, 1967
refers to "the cost of repairs and insurance and other expenses, if
any, necessary <1to maintain the hereditament in a state to command>1
<1that rent.">1 This is not always the same thing as expenditure
necessary <1to maintain the rent.>1
8.34 For example, in the case of a hereditament comprising a
dock it may be necessary to dredge the river outside the dock gates
in order to get ships in and out. Such expenditure would un-
doubtedly be necessary <1to maintain the rent.>1 But if the river is
outside the boundaries of the hereditament, the money spent on
<s4>s <1Trevail (V.O.) v. C & A Modes,>1 Ltd., 1967:
194
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
the dredging is not expenditure necessary to <1"maintain the here->1
<1ditament.">1
8.35 If expenditure does not come within the express wording
of the definitions of gross value or net annual value, then where
that expenditure is likely to have an effect on the rent paid for the
hereditament, the valuer must decide whether the landlord, tenant
or someone else is liable for the expenditure. A number of such
cases have been before the courts and some guidance may be
obtained from these. The items considered include the dredging of
a river, the emptying of a cesspool and the maintenance of a
private road.
8.36 The significance of the words <1"to maintain the heredita->1
<1ment">1 also has a bearing on the cost of insurance. For example, to
insure a building against fire, is expenditure necessary <1""to main->1
<1tain the hereditament">1 but to take out an insurance against claims
by third parties who may be injured whilst on the premises, is not
expenditure necessary <1"to maintain the hereditament.">1
<1(c) Premiums, Accrued Repairs and Alterations as a condition of the>1
<1Lease>1
8.37 Where, as <1a condition of the lease,>1 the tenant
(i) pays a premium,
(ii) spends money on repairs or decorations the need for which
arose before the start of the lease,
(iii) spends money on alterations or
(iv) otherwise spends money according to the wishes of the
landlord,
then an adjustment should be made to the rent.
8.38 The reason for this adjustment is that if the tenant had not
been required to lay out a capital sum, he would have been
prepared to pay a higher rent.
8.39 It is not possible to add a capital sum to an annual sum and
so the annual equivalent of the capital sum must be found. This is
done by dividing the capital sum by a figure of years' purchase and
adding the answer to the rent paid under the lease.
8.40 In selecting an appropriate figure of years' purchase the
matter is looked at from the tenant's point of view. This is because
by the end of the lease the tenant will expect to have recovered the
capital sum which he laid out. He does this by paying a rent which
is lower than the full rental value of the property.
8.41 If there is a rent review clause in the lease, by which the
rent is to be increased to full rental value (including the value of
195
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
any alterations) then the period for which the figure of years'
purchase should be calculated, is the number of years of the <2lease>2
up to the first rent review. Otherwise the year's purchase is
calculated for the full length of the lease.<s4a>s
8.42 The Lands Tribunal has approved the use of a dual rate
years' purchase for finding the amount of the annual equivalent
but at the time of writing it has not given approval to the tax
adjustments of the annual sinking fund element in the years'
purchase figure (i.e. it has not approved the use of the years'
purchase table adjusted for tax).
<1Example>1
A factory was let for 7 years without a rent review at #10,000
p.a., on the terms that the tenant did all the repairs and paid the
insurance. A premium of #20,000 was paid.
Rent on lease #10,000 p.a.
Premium #20,000
Y.P. 7 years @ 8% & 3% 4-7505
Annual Equivalent of Premium #4,210 p.a.
Rent in terms of Net Annual Value #14,210 p.a.
8.42a Had there been a rent review to full rental value after 4
years, the rent in terms of net annual value would have been found
in the same way, except that the figure of years' purchase would
have been calculated over a 4 year period.
8.42b It has been argued that where a tenant has spent a capital
sum on <1improving a property,>1 the annual equivalent of the capital
sum should be spread over the life of the improvement and not
over the length of the lease. Where the improvements have been
carried out as <1a condition of the lease,>1 it is submitted that this view
must be wrong, because the tenant will not receive any compensa-
tion for the improvements under the Landlord and Tenant Act and
can only make good his expenditure by paying a rent which is
lower than the full rental value. The lower rent will cease when the
lease comes to an end.
8.42c Where <1improvements>1 are carried out <1as a condition of the>1
<1lease>1 the amount by which the improvements increase the value of
the property is irrelevant. What is significant, is that the tenant has
been required to part with a capital sum.
<s4>sa <1Edma (Jewellers) Ltd. v. Moore (V. C.),>1 1975 (L.T.).
196
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
8.42d Thus to take an extreme case, if as a condition of the
lease the landlord required the tenant to set fire to #5,000's worth
of bank notes, the tenant would still expect to be compensated for
laying out the sum and he would demand to pay a lower rent. The
lower rent would be calculated by finding the annual equivalent of
the #5,000, spread over the length of the lease (or until the first
rent review) and deducting this from the full rental value of the
property.
8.42e If the lower rent is known and it is desired to find the full
rental value, then the annual equivalent of the #5,000, spread over
the period of the lease, must be added to that rent. The fact that
the burning of the #5,000 added nothing to the value of the
property would not affect the matter.
8.42f On occasions it may be found that a <2"reverse premium">2
has been paid. A reverse premium is a capital sum paid to a tenant
in order to induce him to take a lease. Or it may be a sum paid to a
landlord in order to induce him to accept the surrender of a lease.
8.42g A reverse premium usually occurs where a tenant took a
lease of a property at a time when its rental value was high but
wants to dispose of the lease at a time when its rental value is low.
The tenant is usually bound by the lease to go on paying the high
rent until the end of that lease. However, because rental values
have fallen he is paying a higher rent than that at which similar
properties are being let. In consequence, if he tries to sub-let or
assign his lease he will find it difficult, if not impossible, to
persuade anyone to take the lease on at the high rent. To
overcome this difficulty the outgoing tenant may agree to pay the
incoming tenant a capital sum, in order to compensate him for
having to pay a higher rent than that at which he could rent a
similar property.
8.42h In the case of an ordinary premium the annual equivalent
of the premium is added to the rent but in the case of a reverse
premium, the annual equivalent is deducted from the rent in order
to find the full rental value of the property.
(d) <1Alterations not as a condition of the lease>1
8.43 Where the tenant
(i) makes alterations but was not bound to do so as a condition
of his lease, or
(ii) spends more money on altering a property than he was
required to do under the terms of his lease,
197
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
then the method of adjustment explained in section <1(c)>1 above is
not necessarily appropriate.
8.44 In the case of alterations voluntarily carried out by the
tenant the first question to be asked is whether the money spent on
the property has increased its value in the open market or whether
the benefit obtained from the alterations is personal to the tenant.
For example, a multiple shop tenant may have a distinctive style of
shop front which acts as a kind of trade mark. If he takes a lease of
a shop which already has a perfectly good shop front, removes it
and installs his own style of shop front, he will have spent money
on the property but he will not have increased the value of the
shop in the open market. In this case it would be wrong to add the
annual equivalent of the sum spent to the rent which the tenant is
paying.
8.45 If in the case where a tenant carries out a voluntary
improvement, the annual equivalent is going to be used to adjust
the rent, then the valuer must first exclude any money spent on the
property which does not increase its value in the open market. He
must also exclude any value which has been destroyed in the
course of the alterations.
8.46 However, finding the annual equivalent of the money
spent on the property is not necessary the best way of finding the
increase in the value of the property resulting from the alterations
(when alterations are not made as a condition of the lease.) This is
because amongst other things the alterations may have released
latent value in the property, thus increasing its value out of all
proportion to the money spent (e.g. putting a lift into a large six
storey block of offices which previously had no lift).
8.47 Probably the most accurate way of estimating the value of
a property after voluntary alterations have been made, is to
compare it with similar property which has been let in the market.
Where this is not possible a comparison may be made with the
assessments of similar properties. It is only when there are no
similar properties which can be used for comparison purposes that
it is necessary to find the annual equivalent of the cost of the
alterations.
<1(e) The surrender and renewal of leases>1
8.48 Tenants sometimes surrender to their landlord the unex-
pired term of their existing lease in consideration of the landlord
granting them a new lease for a longer period. One of the reasons
for doing this is that (despite the security of tenure provided by the
Landlord & Tenant Act, 1954) a tenant who only has a few years
198
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
left on his existing lease cannot plan for the future because he
cannot be sure that he will be granted a new lease when his present
lease expires. Another reason, is that he may wish to sell the
goodwill of his business but will not find this easy if his present
lease only has a short time to go.
8.49 Landlords are frequently willing to accept a surrender of
an existing lease and in return grant a new one, because when
values are rising, it usually means that they will get an increase in
rent a year or two earlier than would otherwise be the case. Also,
if the tenant has proved reliable in the past, the landlord will want
him to continue in the property thus increasing the security of the
landlord's investment.
8.50 At times of rising values the tenant will almost certainly be
enjoying a <1profit rent.>1 In other words the tenant will be paying a
lower rent under the terms of his present lease than the property is
really worth. This rent will have a value in the open market
because an investor or an incoming tenant would be prepared to
pay a capital sum for it.
8.51 It follows that if the tenant surrenders the unexpired
portion of his lease, he is giving his landlord something of value. In
consequence the tenant expects to pay a rent for the new lease
which is somewhat lower than the full rental value of the property.
It will be realised that the surrendering of a lease which has a
market value, is similar to the case where a tenant gives the
landlord a premium and in return pays a lower rent.
8.52 The surrender and renewal of a lease presents the rating
valuer with something of a problem when it comes to finding the
full rental value of the property. This is because the valuer will
only know (1) the rent paid under the old lease and (2) the rent
paid under the new lease.
8.53 The rent paid under the old lease will not be the rental
value of the property at the time of the surrender because it was
agreed some years previously. Similarly the rent under the new
lease will not be the rental value at the time of the renewal
because, in consideration of the tenant surrendering his previous
lease, the landlord will have agreed to accept a rent which is lower
than the full rental value.
8.54 However, the valuer can make use of these rents in order
to find the rental value of the property at the time that the
surrender and renewal took place. For this purpose he uses an
equation which is based on the assumption that neither the
landlord nor the tenant will be financially any better or any worse
off after the surrender and renewal, than before. This is a
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<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
reasonable assumption because if either party was going to be
worse off, that party would in all probability not have agreed to
the surrender and renewal. Also, in a surrender and renewal
situation it is usually possible for one party to be financially better
off, only if the other party becomes financially worse off. If neither
party is going to be financially better or worse of then it follows
that the value of the tenant's interest after the renewal will be
equal to the value of the tenant's interest before the renewal.
Similiarly the value of the landlords's interest after the renewal,
will be equal to the value of the landlords interest before the
renewal. The two equations which are used in this case are
therefore:--
(i) Value of tenant's interest after renewal ==
value of tenant's interest before renewal
(ii) Value of landlord's interest after renewal =
value of landlord's interest before renewal.
<1Example>1
8.54a Records show that a lease with two years unexpired was
surrendered on the 1st April 1978 in exchange for a new 21 year
lease. The rent under the old lease was #5,000 p.a. whilst the rent
under the new lease is #23,000 p.a. The new lease contains rent
reviews (to full rental value) every 7 years. Find the full rental
value of the property on the 1st April 1978.
Let the full rental value be #X. The freehold capitalisation rate at
full rental value with 7 year rent reviews is 8%.
(i) <1Rental Value from the Tenant's Point of View>1
(a) <1Value of tenant's interest under the new lease:>1--
Full rental value #X p.a.
LESS Rent under new lease #23,000 p.a.
------
Tenant's profit rent #X - 23,000 p.a.
Y.P. 7 years @ 9% and 3% adjusted
for tax on sinking fund at 40% 3.2519
------
Value of tenant's interest
after renewal #3.2519X - 74,794
================
Note: The tenant's profit rent has been capitalised for 7 years
because at the end of this time the rent will rise to full rental
value and the tenant's profit rent will cease.
200
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
<1(b) Value of tenant's interest under the old lease.>1----
Full rental value #X p.a.
LESS Rent under old lease #5,000 p.a.
Tenant's profit rent #X -- 5,000 p.a.
Y.P. 2 years @ 9% and 3% adjusted
for tax on sinking fund at 40% 1.0977
Value of tenant's interest
before renewal #1 -0977X -- 5,489
Value of tenant's interest after renewal =
the value of the tenant's interest before renewal
3.2519X -- 74,794 = 1-0977X -- 5,489
3.2519X -- 1.0977X = 74,794 -- 5,489
2.1542X = 69,305
X = 32,172
Full rental value looked at from the tenant's point of view is
#32,172 p.a.
(ii) <1Rental Value from the Landlords Point of View>1
(a) <1Value of landlord's interest under the new lease.->1---
Rent on lease #23,000 p.a.
Y.P. 7 years @ 71/2% 5,2966
Value of term up to
time of first rent
review #121,822
Reversion to full
rental value #X p.a.
Y.P. in perpetuity
deferred 7 years
@ 8% 7.29363
#7.29363X
Value of landlord's
interest under new
lease #7.29363X + 121,822
201
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1(b) Value of landlord's interest under the old lease.->1---
Rent on lease #5,000 p.a.
Y.P. 2 years @ 7% 1.8080
------
Value of term #9,040
Reversion to full
rental value #X p.a.
Y.P. in perpetuity
deferred 2 years
@ 8% 10.71674
--------
#10.71674X
-----------------------------
Value of landlord's
interest before
renewal #10.71674X + 9,040
==================
Value of landlord's interest after renewal =
value of landlord's interest before renewal.
7.29363X + 121,822 = 10-71674X + 9,040
7.29363X - 10.71674X = - 121,822 + 9,040
- 3.42311X = - 112,782
X = 32,947
Full rental value looked at from the freeholder's point of view is
#32,947 p.a.
8.54b It will be seen that whereas the full rental value from the
tenant's point of view is #32,172 p.a. the rental value from the
landlord's point of view is #32,947 p.a. This difference arises
because the "traditional method of valuation" has been used to
value the two interests and in particular because of the use of a
dual rate sinking fund and different rates of interest for the
freehold and leasehold interests.
In reality the property has only one full rental value and this is
the rent which, at a given point in time, the tenant is prepared to
pay and the landlord is prepared to accept. It is likely to fall
somewhere between the rental value looked at from the tenant's
point of view and the rental value looked at from the landlord's
point of view. There is, however, no mathematical way of calcu-
lating where this point comes and the valuer must rely on his
knowledge of values in deciding what the full rental value is.
202
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
(f) <1Services>1
8.55 Where the rent on which the value of a property is based
includes services or, in certain circumstances, where a separate
charge is made for services, it will be necessary to adjust the rent in
order to make it conform with the rating hypothesis.
8.56 In the case of <1Bell Property Trust Ltd. v. Hampstead>1
<1Assessment Committee,>1 1940, it was decided that in arriving at the
gross value of a hereditament there should be deducted from the
rent, the cost of any services included in that rent. The <1Bell>1 case
also allowed a deduction from the rent in respect of the cost of
repairs to the common parts, depreciation on buildings and plant
used to provide services and the landlord's profit on providing
services.
8.57 It is a principle that rates are charged on the value of the
occupation of the hereditament and not on the value of the
services provided for the tenant.
8.58 The general rule stands, that where the rent includes a
payment for services, the cost of the services should be deducted
before finding the rating assessment. However, section 23, of the
General Rate Act, 1967, has reversed the decision in the <1Bell>1 case
insofar as repairs to the common parts and landlord's profit on
services are concerned. This may be because it was felt that repairs
to the common parts have already been allowed for in the
statutory deductions from gross value. The taking of a profit by the
landlord, on the provision of services, merely has the effect of
reducing the sum available for rent. It is argued that the landlord is
providing services in order to enhance the rental value of his
property and not as a separate trading venture.
8.59 Section 23 does not apply in all cases. In fact, it only
applies where:--
(1) the rental method of valuation is used and
(2) the hereditament has a gross value and
(3) the rent which is being used for the valuation
(a) includes a payment to the landlord for providing ser-
vices (including the repair, maintenance or insurance of
premises not forming part of that hereditament) or
(b) the tenants, in addition to paying a rent, contribute
towards the cost of such services.
8.60 In order to apply section 23, any of the above services
which the tenant pays for separately must first be added to the
rent. From the inclusive figure of rent and services, there is to be
deducted the cost of all services except:--
203
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(a) any profit made, or which might be expected to be made, by
the landlord in providing the services:
<1(b)>1 the cost of repairs to, and maintenance and insurance of,
premises not forming part of that hereditament.
8.60a The word "premises" includes rateable plant and machin-
ery.
"Premises not forming part of the hereditament" means, for
example:--
<1(1)>1 communal staircases, passages, passenger lifts and the en-
trance halls in a block of offices let out in suites, where each
suite is a separate hereditament;
(2) communal gardens and parking areas belonging to a block
of flats;
(3) the boiler room including the rateable plant and machinery,
which supplies central heating and hot water to a block of
self-contained flats.
Where section 23 does not apply, the old law, as established in
the <1Bell>1 case, is still operative.
For an example of a valuation which includes an adjustment for
services see paragraph 10.36a.
(g) <1Weekly Rents>1
8.61 In the past it was the practice of some rating valuers to
multiply a weekly rent by 50 in order to convert it into a rent from
year to year. The practice has been disapproved by the Lands
Tribunal who have made it clear that a multiplier of 52 should be
used.<s5>s
<1(h) Length of Lease and Frequency of Rent Reviews>1<s5a>s
8.62 In order that landlords should be able to take advantage of
rising rental values, rent reviews are now included in many leases
as a matter of course. These rent reviews are frequently in an
upwards direction only, (i.e. the rent paid under the lease cannot
be reduced) and require the tenant's rent to be increased to the full
rental value of the property, at the time of the rent review.
8.63 Considerable care must be exercised before using a rent,
which has been fixed at a rent review. This is because there is a
wide range in the wording of rent review clauses and not all clauses
call for the full rental value of the property, as it stands at the date
of the review. For example, a rent review may be only to a stated
<s5>s <1London County Council v. Wand (V.O.),>1 1957-
<s5>sa See paragraphs 6.31 to 6.37.
204
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
fraction of the full rental value or tenant's improvements may have
to be left out of account or again the fact that a premium has been
paid may have to be taken into account. Other types of rent review
may require the rent to be based on the amount of business done
on the premises or the level of rent may be tied to a published
index such as the Retail Price Index.
8.64 In a case where an upwards only rent review takes effect at
a time when rental values have fallen (since the last rent review)
the tenant could well find himself paying more rent after the rent
review than the property would let for in the open market. This is
because although the rent would not have been increased at the
time of the review, neither would it have been decreased.
8.65 It follows from the above that it is not safe to assume that
the rent paid following a rent review, is necessarily the full rental
value of the property for rating purposes. It is always advisable to
read the exact terms of the rent review clause before placing any
reliance on the resulting rent.
8.66 The time between rent reviews varies according to the type
and situation of the property and the strength of demand for the
property at the time that the lease was entered into. Three, five
and seven year rent reviews are common but both longer and
shorter rent reviews are encountered from time to time. In a
period of rising rental values a tenant is likely to pay a higher rent
for a lease which contains seven year rent reviews than for one
which contains three year rent reviews. This is because although
the tenant may find himself paying more than the full rental value
(on a year to year basis) in the first years of the lease, he
anticipates that he will recoup this over payment in the latter years
(by which time he will be paying a rent which is less than the full
rental value on a year to year basis).
8.67 for rating purposes the valuer has to find the rent which
would be paid <1from year to year.>1 That is the rent which a tenant
would pay taking one year with another (see paragraph 6.27
onwards). In practice the larger or more valuable properties are
seldom let on an annual tenancy or with annual rent reviews and so
for this class of property there is little or no rental evidence which
exactly conforms with the rating hypothesis. Because of this the
courts have frequently accepted rents on leases of up to 21 years,
as being equivalent to a rent from year to year.<s6>s In times of
inflation however, this does not take into account the fact that the
<s6>s Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy--P. Bowcock (see appendix) but see
also <1National Car Parks Ltd. v. Burrows (V. O.),>1 1977 and <1F. W. Woolworth & Co.>1
<1Ltd. v. Moore (V. O.),>1 1978.
205
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
rent initially agreed on a 21 year lease with 7 year rent reviews is
likely to be higher than the rent which would have been agreed for
that property had it been let with 3 year rent reviews.<s6>s
8.68 When examining rents in a given area a valuer may find
that similar properties have dissimilar rent review periods and
before making use of the rents he should first try to find out
whether the different rent review periods have resulted in different
rents. If he finds that different rents have been paid (varying with
the length of the rent review) then he has the choice of either
discarding those rents which are furthest away from a rent from
year to year or alternatively attempting to adjust the different
rents in order to bring them into line with the rating hypothesis.
8.69 Mr. Philip Bowcock in his article Lease Rents and the
Hypothetical Tenancy (see appendix A) examines mathematically
ways of adjusting rents in order to allow for different periods of
rent review and it may be that in time these will find acceptance in
the courts. However, a purely mathematical solution is only likely
to give results consistent with the rental evidence, if tenants when
deciding what rent to pay for differing rent review periods, do so
on the basis of a similar mathematical calculation.
8.70 If in practice tenants when negotiating a rent used cruder
methods, such as a straight percentage addition for the longer
period of rent review, then the rating valuer may be able to find
this out by analysis.
8.71 For example, in a given locality for a given type of
property a valuer may find that rents agreed on the basis of 7 year
rent reviews are 5% higher than rents agreed on the basis of 3 year
rent reviews. Evidence of this type would enable the valuer to
adjust the available rents so as to bring them to a common basis.
8.72 The effect on the rent of different rent review periods must
not be confused with the effect on the rent of the <1security of tenure>1
gained by taking a long lease. It is well known that to sub-let the
last few years of a lease can prove extremely difficult and may
result in a comparatively low rent.<s7>s This is because most business-
men want some degree of certainty when planning their affairs and
even though the Landlord and Tenant Act, 1954 gives the tenant
of business premises a degree of security, he still cannot be
absolutely certain that he will get a new lease when his old one
expires. In consequence it can be argued that a tenant is prepared
to pay a higher rent for a longer lease.
8.73 On the other hand, looked at from the landlord's point of
<s7>s <1Baker Britt & Co. Ltd. v. Hampsher (V. O.),>1 1976.
206
<1Rental Selection, Adjustment and Analysis>1
view he also requires some degree of certainty as far as his income
is concerned. The last thing he wants is tenants continually moving
out of his property, with the ensuing loss of rent and expense of
re-letting. It can, therefore, be argued that the landlord will accept
a lower rent from a tenant who is prepared to take a longer lease.
8.74 The exact point at which the higher rent the tenant is
prepared to pay and the lower rent the landlord is prepared to
accept, balance out, cannot be calculated mathematically. How-
ever, the valuer should be aware of these tendencies when
examining rents.<s8>s
<2C. Analysis of Rents>2
8.75 Having excluded those rents which do not conform and
cannot be made to conform with the rating hypothesis and having
where appropriate, adjusted the other rents to conform with the
rating hypothesis, the next stage is to analyse the rents.
8.76 If all properties were the same size and shape and used for
the same purpose it would be comparatively easy to use the rent of
one property to value another, but unfortunately this is not the
case. Many valuers cannot see at a glance whether a workshop
with an area of 237 m<s2>s let at #1,715 p.a. is pro rata more or less
valuable than a workshop of 372 m<s2>s let at #2,845 p.a. Even less
could they see whether a shop with a frontage of 4-78 m and a
depth of 19-26 m letting at #4,350 p.a. is pro rata more or less
valuable than a shop with a frontage of 6-31 m and a depth of
13-82 m letting at #4,500 p.a.
8.77 It follows that in order to be able to compare the value of
one property with the value of another it is necessary to express
the rent of each in terms of some unit, which is common to both.
This is known as the <1"unit of comparison".>1
8.78 In many cases, such as general light-industrial factories,
the best method of comparison is to de-value on a price per unit of
area basis (the square metre). The adjusted rental evidence is
divided by the number of square metres available to the occupier.
In this way rental values per square metre can be calculated, and
used as the basis for other valuations. It may be found that in one
area the price per square metre is materially higher or lower than
in another area, and the reasons for this divergence will have to be
<s8>s <1British Home Stores Ltd. v. County Borough of Brighton and Burton (V.O.),>1
1958; <1W. H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977.
<1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Moore (V. O.),>1 1978; see also; <1Humber Ltd. v.>1
<1Jones (V.O.)>1 and <1Rugby R.D.C.,>1 1960 (C.A.).
207
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
ascertained, so that the correct place on the scale can be found for
any property under review.
8.79 The <1"price per unit ofarea">1 method is by no means the only
unit of comparison. Another common method is to find the <1"unit>1
<1of occupation">1 and to analyse the rental evidence on that basis. For
example, it is common practice to compare schools on a <1per capita>1
basis, that is, at so much per pupil: nursing homes and private
hospitals at so much per patient; cinemas and theatres at so much
per seat, and so on. In such a way the available rental evidence can
be translated into a price per unit and applied to comparable,
though not identical, properties for which there is no direct rental
evidence.
8.80 In selecting the "unit of comparison" to be used to analyse
any particular class of property the valuer may ask himself the
question, "what is it that the hypothetical tenant is really in-
terested in?" For example, in the case of most offices, factories
and stores the hypothetical tenant will be interested in the amount
of usable floor space. But in the case of a public house the
hypothetical tenant is not so interested in the size of the property
as in the amount of alcohol which can be sold. An appropriate unit
of comparison in this case might be the barrel of beer, the gallon of
wine and gallon of spirit. Similarly with a petrol filling station the
hypothetical tenant would not be so interested in the size of the
forecourt as in the number of gallons of petrol which can be sold.
The unit of comparison in this case would be the gallon of petrol
and the gallon of oil.
The analysis of different types of property is dealt with in more
detail in chapters 9 to 12.
<1Zoning>1
8.81 Zoning is one of the more complicated methods of rental
comparison and is frequently-applied to shop premises: It may be
that the most valuable part of the shop is that which adjoins the
public highway, namely, the display windows and the part im-
mediately behind them. When a customer enters the shop he may
be loath to walk far to have his wants satisfied. It is therefore
argued that the further back the shop extends, the less valuable the
space becomes.
8.82 Zoning is a method of analysis which subdivides the floor
area of the shop into a number of zones.<s9>s The objective is to find
the rental value per square metre in each zone. This method is
dealt with in detail in chapter 10.
<s9>s <1Trevail (V.O.) v. C & A Modes Ltd.,>1 1967; <1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Peak>1
<1(V.O.),>1 1967: <1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Moore (V. O>1.), 1978.
208
<1Chapter 9>1
<2VALUATION OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROPERTY---I>2
<2Land>2
9.1 The basic property of which the occupation can be rated is
bare land. Land which is vacant and unenclosed is <1prima facie>1 not
rateable. Land which is enclosed but used for no purpose, will not
be rateable either. Agricultural land, plantations and woodlands,
are also not rateable provided they fall within the statutory
definition of agricultural land.i Market garden land is also exempt.
9.2 The only bare land which is rateable as such is land of which
some use is made which does not require the addition of buildings,
and notable examples of these are storage land and playing fields
having no pavilions.
9.3 <2Open storage land>2 is commonly let at a rent and the
evidence of such rents should be used to estimate the assessment
of any piece of similar land which is owner-occupied.
9.4 For the most part it will be found that the rents available
will reflect the value of the bare land only, and if the property to
be assessed has been properly drained and surfaced with concrete
or hard core by the tenant then <1prima facie>1 something will have to
be added for that improvement. If there are rents of <1improved>1
<1storage land>1 then it is to the rents that recourse must be taken and
the unit of analysis is the square metre of area, due allowance
being made for awkwardness of shape, difficulty of access, etc.
Analysis of rents of improved land can usually be readily com-
pared with rents of unimproved land plus a percentage of the
improvement. If there is no local rental evidence of improved
storage land then the method of valuation would run somewhat as
follows, assuming that the subject of the assessment is an area of
1,000 square metres adjacent to reasonable access and that a
proposal has been made:-- #
Bare land: 1 000 m<s2>s at 10p/m<s2>s 100
<1Add>1 Underdraining #1,000
Hard core and concrete #4,000
Effective Capital Value #5,000 @ 5% 250
Net annual value #350
<s1>s General Rate Act, 1967, section 26 and the Rating Act, 1971.
209
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Note.>1--Land values and building costs were higher at the date
of the proposal than in the year prior to the last revaluation,
therefore only one valuation was made and this was on the basis of
the tone of the list (i.e. the level of values used when this class of
hereditament was last revalued).
9.5 It is assumed that the rental evidence has been analysed to
show 10p a square metre as the open market rental value of bare
storage land in terms of net annual value. As there is no local
evidence of rentals of improved storage land the only way of
placing an annual rental value on the improvement is to take a
percentage on the capital value thereof.
9.6 In this example it has been taken that the underdraining
cost is #1,000 and that the laying of hard core and concrete has
been done to a fairly high standard costing a further #4,000 (the
level of building costs used in the preparation of the re-valuation).
It is fair to assume that a reasonable tenant and a reasonable
landlord would accept a figure such as 5% by way of rent on the
capital expenditure. From this emanates a final total N.A.V. of
#350.
9.7 <2Playing fields>2 on bare land would follow very much the same
pattern. A sports field may be simply a field originally owned by a
farmer which has been let at a small weekly rent to the local
football club. In a case of this sort the rent passing will be a fair
measure of the rental value and again no gross value is required.
9.8-9 It is frequently found that certain improvements have
been made, such as the underdraining and possibly the levelling of
the field. Where this has been done the annual value of the
improvement must be added on precisely the same lines as shown
above.ia However, if good rental evidence is available for compa-
rable playing fields which are properly levelled and drained, this
evidence might prove preferable.
9.10 Playing fields will, of course, vary from the smaller village
club ground on a farmer's field to vast professional grounds such as
Stamford Bridge or Highbury. For the smaller kind of sports
ground frequently met in relation to sports clubs and the grounds
occupied by factory and commercial concerns there will usually be
found to be some rental evidence, though again the evidence may
frequently reflect the unimproved value rather than the improved
value. Where rents of properly laid-out sports fields are found
these may be usefully analysed and used for valuing owner-
occupied properties.
<s1a>s But see <1Leisure U.K. Ltd. v. Moore (V. O.),>1 1974 (L.T.).
210
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Note.->1-Land values and building costs were higher at the date
of the proposal than in the year prior to the last revaluation,
therefore only one valuation was made and this was on the basis of
the tone of the list (i.e. the level of values used when this class of
hereditament was last revalued).
9.5 It is assumed that the rental evidence has been analysed to
show 10p a square metre as the open market rental value of bare
storage land in terms of net annual value. As there is no local
evidence of rentals of improved storage land the only way of
placing an annual rental value on the improvement is to take a
percentage on the capital value thereof.
9.6 In this example it has been taken that the underdraining
cost is #1,000 and that the laying of hard core and concrete has
been done to a fairly high standard costing a further #4,000 (the
level of building costs used in the preparation of the re-valuation).
It is fair to assume that a reasonable tenant and a reasonable
landlord would accept a figure such as 5% by way of rent on the
capital expenditure. From this emanates a final total N.A.V. of
#350.
9.7 <2Playing fields>2 on bare land would follow very much the same
pattern. A sports field may be simply a field originally owned by a
farmer which has been let at a small weekly rent to the local
football club. In a case of this sort the rent passing will be a fair
measure of the rental value and again no gross value is required.
9.8-9 It is frequently found that certain improvements have
been made, such as the underdraining and possibly the levelling of
the field. Where this has been done the annual value of the
improvement must be added on precisely the same lines as shown
above.ia However, if good rental evidence is available for compa-
rable playing fields which are properly levelled and drained, this
evidence might prove preferable.
9.10 Playing fields will, of course, vary from the smaller village
club ground on a farmer's field to vast professional grounds such as
Stamford Bridge or Highbury. For the smaller kind of sports
ground frequently met in relation to sports clubs and the grounds
occupied by factory and commercial concerns there will usually be
found to be some rental evidence, though again the evidence may
frequently reflect the unimproved value rather than the improved
value. Where rents of properly laid-out sports fields are found
these may be usefully analysed and used for valuing owner-
occupied properties.
<s1a>s But see <1Leisure U.K. Ltd. v. Moore (V.O.),>1 1974 (L.T.).
210
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--I>1
9.11 In these cases it is usually wrong to de-value merely on the
basis of area. A field may be too big for one football pitch and not
big enough for two pitches. As a sports field it is unlikely that any
sports club would pay any rent for the excess over a sufficiency for
one pitch--allowing for a reasonable area of buffer land around
the pitch. On the other hand, care must be taken to see that
property is not over-assessed by the arithmetical method of taking
a number of pitches and multiplying by a unit price per pitch. A
particular club may prefer to have two sub-standard pitches rather
than one full-sized pitch. Nevertheless, the general method of
comparison should be at so much per pitch or so much per cricket
square and not at so much per square metre or per hectare,
provided that care is taken to see that the valuation is not
over-balanced by the particular occupier's crowding the pitches
together or not using the outfield of the cricket pitch for playing
football in the winter.
9. 12 Provided that a sufficiently large number of somewhat
similar sports ground rents are analysed a useful standard of
comparison can be found and used to value owner-occupied
grounds. In addition to reflecting the value of any improvements
to the land something will have to be added for any pavilions, on
the merits of each individual case. It is rare to find a pavilion let at
a rack rent and the most usual method of valuation is to add for the
pavilion using the contractor's method.
<1Example>1 :
9. 12a Land used by a small sports club consisting of two
hectares of improved land with a pavilion having a total internal
floor area of 80 square metres. The ground is laid out for one
cricket square and for winter use, three football pitches. The
football pitches for the most part use the outfield of the cricket
pitch. There is a rent of #1,400, fixed shortly before the last
revaluation, with the tenant repairing and insuring and paying
rates.
This rent might be de-valued as follows:--
#
Pavilion 80 m<s2>s at #5 p/m<s2>s 400
3 football pitches at #240 720
1 cricket square at #280 280
Rent in terms of net annual value #1,400
211
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
No gross value is needed, so the rent has been de-valued in
terms of net annual value.
9. 12b The figures produced from this de-valuation can be
compared with other devaluations of other sports grounds of
roughly comparable size and the resultant basis used for the
valuation of other comparable sports grounds which are owner-
occupied. The rent used in the example should not be de-valued
on the basis of hectares, for if this were done the following would
results:--
#
Pavilion 80 m<s2>s at #5 m<s2>s 400
2 hectares of land at #500/ha 1,000
Rent in terms of net annual value #1,400
9.13 The error of this method can be shown by assuming the
case of a sports field of 1 hectare valued on this information:--
1 hectare at #500/ha #500
but the one hectare field will take only one football pitch. This
should be the guiding factor, so that by using the earlier method
the answer is:--
1 football pitch at #240 #240
In other words on a pure area basis a n.a.v. of #500 is produced
whereas if the usable area only is valued a n.a.v. of #240 is
produced. Clearly no sports club will pay rent for the extra area of
land which it cannot use.
9.14 If, however, the surrounding land is properly adapted for
use by spectators then there might be a case for adding something
to the value of the pitch.
9. 15 When the larger type of cricket or football ground is under
review it will rarely be found that there are any rents which can be
analysed, and in the absence of factors which make the profits
method applicable, the proper approach to the valuation is that of
the contractor's method.
<1Example :>1
9.15a There is a county cricket ground of some 4 hectares in
extent which provides one good class cricket pitch. There is a good
grandstand, a pavilion and club, a covered indoor cricket school
and scattered lavatory blocks at various positions around the
ground.
212
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--I>1
A valuation on the contractor's basis might run as follows:--
4 hectares of unimproved land at #3,000 E.C.V. #12,000
Draining, levelling, turfing of
cricket square and seeding
of outfield E.C.V. #13,000
Grandstand E.C.V. #90,000
Pavilion and Club E.C.V. #36,000
Indoor cricket school E.C.V. #29,000
Lavatory Blocks E.C.V. #15,000
--------
Total Effective Capilal Value #195,000
--------
At 5% gives net annual value 9,750
========
No gross value is required and the valuation will show a net annual
value and rateable value of #9,750.
9.15b For the purposes of comparison some valuers like to
reduce this N.A.V. to so much per head of spectators, or to a
percentage of the gate receipts.
9.16 The same kind of approach (namely the contractor's
method) may be applied to the bigger class of football grounds,
but some care must be taken here as it may be considered that
there is some element of monopoly attached to <2league grounds.>2 1n
any event the very large football grounds which are often found
near to or in the middle of large urban areas may enjoy a
substantial element of factual monopoly. In many cases, therefore,
it may be proper to look at the accounts of such a property, though
this should be done with the greatest care. The first case of a
football ground which came before the Lands Tribunal was
<1Hardiman (V. 0.) v. Crystal Palace Football and Athletic Club,>1
<1Ltd.,>1 in 1955. The decision was unhelpful for general application.
No method of approach apparently found favour with the Tribun-
al. A further case, however, <1J. Tomlinson (V.O.) and Plymouth>1
<1City Council v. Plymouth Argyle Football Company Ltd.,>1 decided
that a contractor's method is preferable to any form of profits
method, but the Court of Appeal sent the case back to the Lands
Tribunal to determine the value on the basis of there being only
one possible hypothetical tenant--the football club.
9.17 The valuation of Lords cricket ground was considered in
the case of <1Marylebone Cricket Club v. Morley,>1 1959. Here again
the basic method of valuation was the contractor's method but the
213
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
method was adapted to suit the circumstances of the particular
case.
9.18 Land without buildings may be used for <1dumping materials>1
on, e.g. a refuse tip, or for extracting materials therefrom, e.g. a
gravel pit. Occupations of these sorts are all rateable.
9.20 The occupier of a tip is rateable because people are willing
to pay to be allowed to tip. The occupier makes a profit therefrom
and would therefore be prepared to pay a rent for the land on
which the tipping takes place. It is usual for contractors to pay by
the load for the privilege of tipping and in those areas where tips
are scarce or the mileage to be travelled to alternative sites is very
large the price per load may be considerable.
9.21 To value a tip it is usual to obtain the actual figures of the
amount tipped over the relevant period and the charge per load.
Failing this, estimates can be made. The "royalty" is that part of
the charge for each load tipped, which the tip operator would be
prepared to pay as rent. The valuation simply comprises estimat-
ing the probable quantity of material to be tipped during the
appropriate year and multiplying it by a royalty of so much per
cubic metre, tonne or load, with the possible addition of a site rent
for the area of land on which the tip is formed.
9.22 Where tipping is taking place as part of an agricultural
process of raising the level of a field, then it may well be exempt
with the agricultural land.
<2Mineral Producing Properties>2
9.23 Where a landowner grants rights to a tenant to extract
minerals from his land such rights are nearly always given in return
for a royalty payment. This royalty payment may include several
elements.
9.24 First there is the actual <1royalty,>1 which is a payment of so
much per cubic measure of per tonne of the mineral extracted,
whether it be chalk, gravel, ironstone or anything else.
9.25 Secondly, there may be a <1dead rent.>1 A dead rent is an
annual payment which has to be made whether or not any mineral
is extracted, and is therefore in fact the minimum rent payable
every year. When mineral extraction takes place the royalty
payment usually merges with the dead rent so that if the rate of
214
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
extraction is such that the amount of royalty payable in respect of a
year's working is less then the dead rent, then only the latter is
paid. When the royalties exceed the dead rent no dead rent is paid.
9.26 Thirdly, there may be a <1surface rent>1 of so much per hectare
for the land disturbed or the area of land which is denied to the
owner. In an agricultural area the opening of a chalk pit may
sterilise more than just the area of the pit, for clearly cattle cannot
be grazed near a precipice nor can agricultural operations take
place around the immediate area of the pit. It is usual for the
surface rent to be payable over and above any royalty payments,
though this is by no means the universal practice.
9.27 In considering mineral royalties it is essential to see that
comparisons are made between like minerals. Thus, various
grades of chalk must be segregated. Some chalk is fit for burning
into lime; some is not. Some sand is suitable for moulding; some is
not and royalties to be analysed must be compared with those of
similar minerals.
9.28 There is, unfortunately, no standard or common unit of
measure amongst mineral producers. Some use the cubic metre
dug, others the cubic metre in the solid and some use the tonne.
The royalties must be brought to a common yardstick before
comparisons can be made.
9.29 In comparing mineral workings care must be taken to see
that the comparison is between pits with similar working condi-
tions. Thus, one pit may have a heavy overburden or callow, i.e. a
substantial layer of unwanted matter lying above the wanted
mineral, which must be removed first. Other pits may experience
difficulties of flooding or the strata may slip, causing very difficult
working conditions. Depth of working face is an important factor,
since a deep working face is generally far easier and cheaper to
work.
9.30 Mineral producing hereditaments may include buildings
and rateable plant and machinery. Frequently these have been
provided by the tenant and will thus not be reflected in the royalty
paid to the landlord. In such cases the buildings and rateable plant
and machinery may be valued for rating purposes using the
contractors method and their value added to the value of the land.
9.31 Except for tin, lead and copper mines, the output which
will form the basis of the valuation is the output for a year
commencing at the date of the proposal or the new list. In practice
the best forecast for the next year can usually be made by
reference to output for the preceding year or years. The valuer
should look for upward or downward trends in the output in
215
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
previous years. The trends, if any, together with a knowledge of
other factors affecting output, should enable the valuer to estimate
the output which the hypothetical tenant would expect in the
forthcoming year. With this estimate in mind the valuer will be
able to decide what rent the hypothetical tenant will pay in the
following year.
9.32 Where a proposal has been made to alter the valuation list
it is necessary (at least in theory) to make two valuations of the
hereditament (see paragraphs 6.54 to 6.63). The first valuation will
be on the normal basis <1(Barratt v. Gravesend A. C.)>1 whilst the
second valuation will be on the "tone of the list" basis. The tone of
the list valuation provides a ceiling value and assessments above
this ceiling must not appear in the valuation list. Section 20 of the
General Rate Act, 1967 makes special provision for mineral-
producing hereditaments. The section provides that the "tone of
the list" valuation must be made with reference to the quantity of
materials produced, <1at the date when the proposal is made>1 and not
the quantity produced in the year before the last revaluation.
9.33 This means that the tone of the list valuation will be based
on:--
(1) the quantity of materials produced at the date of the
proposal;
(2) the level of values prevailing at the time of the last revalua-
tion.
The tone of the list valuation can be compared with a normal
valuation (see <1Barratt v. Gravesend A. C.).>1 The normal valuation is
based on:--
(1) the quantity of materials produced at the date of the
proposal;
(2) the level of values prevailing at the date of the proposal.
It follows that where values at the time of the last revaluation
were lower than values at the date of the proposal, it will be
necessary to make only a tone of the list valuation.
9.34 An interesting rating problem arises in the case of a
mineral producing hereditament which will become exhausted in
less than 12 months from the date on which it is valued. Following
the normal rules of rating the valuer would ask himself what rent
the hypothetical tenant would pay for the forthcoming year. If the
tenant can see that the minerals will be exhausted in 6 months time
he will offer only half the annual rent which he would otherwise
have paid.
216
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
9.35 This creates a difficulty in so far that the value placed on
the hereditament has effect from the beginning of the rating year.<s2>s
If the tenant remains in occupation for 6 months extracting
minerals at the same speed as before and then leaves the heredita-
ment (when the minerals are exhausted) he will have got away
with paying less rates than he should have done. This is because
during the 6 months that he was in occupation he will have paid
rates on only half the full net annual value of the hereditament.
Whilst after the hereditament becomes exhausted and he leaves,
he will pay no rates at all. He will, therefore, have enjoyed full
extraction rights for half a year, whilst only paying one quarter of
the rates which he would have paid in a normal year (i.e. half a
year's rates based on half the annual value of the property).
9.36 The problem was considered by the Court of Appeal in
<1Gilbard (V.O.) v. Amey Roadstone Corporation Ltd.,>1 1974 and
their Lordships were apparently unable to find any legal argument
which would overcome the problem. They, therefore, decided that
because following the normal rating rules produced a manifestly
absurd result, it would be necessary to value such a hereditament
as if it were not going to become exhausted.
9.37 Thus if a gravel pit has only 2,000 cubic metres of gravel
left in it at the date of valuation and the normal rate of extraction
is 1,000 cubic metres a month, then it is apparent that the pit will
be worked out in two months. Assuming that the royalty on the
gravel is 30p per cubic metre, an actual tenant would only pay #600
in order to extract the remaining gravel. If the pit was assessed at a
net annual value of #600 the tenant who left after 2 months would
only have paid rates on 2/12ths of #600 (i.e. #100). This would be
less than the value which he enjoyed during those two months.
9.38 In consequence for rating purposes it is necessary to value
the hereditament on the basis that the extraction rate of 1,000
cubic metres a month will continue throughout the forthcoming
year, giving a net annual value of #3,600. The tenant, when he
leaves the hereditament after 2 months, will have paid rates on
2/12ths of #3,600 (i.e. #600) which is the value that he enjoyed
during his occupation.
9.39 Although the rental method of valuation is usually used for
the valuation of mineral producing hereditaments, the use of the
profits method has also been approved by the courts.<s3>s
9.40 A <1royalty>1 paid on the quantity of minerals extracted from a
<s2>s Section 79, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s3>s <1Denaty and Cadety Colliery Co. v. Doncaster Union,>1 1898.
217
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
mine or quarry has in the past been regarded, from a rating point
of view, as pure rent. However, since 1971 a mineral royalty is to
be treated as half rent, and half a payment of capital for the
minerals extracted.
9.41 <1The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order, 1971>1 gives effect
to this new way of looking at royalties. The 1971 order applies
to:--
(i) National Coal Board mines and open cast land,
(ii) Any tin, lead or copper mine,
(iii) Any other mine or quarry, or any hereditament occupied
together with a mine or quarry for storage or removal of its
minerals or refuse.
9.42 To revalue all mines and quarries, on the basis that half the
royalty is capital, would have meant a lot of work. To save this
work, the 1971 order provides that a deduction shall be made from
the net annual value of the hereditament, before arriving at the
rateable value. The deduction is to be one half<s5>s of the rent
attributable to the occupation of the "land" used for the purposes
of the winning and working, grading, washing, grinding and
crushing of minerals. "Land" for this purpose does not include
buildings, structures, roads, shafts, adits or other works (i.e. the
rent payable for the buildings and other items is pure rent, and
does not include any capital sum).
9.43 The rateable value arrived at by applying the 1971 order is
similar to the rateable value which would have been arrived at by
revaluing all the mines and quarries on the basis that only half the
royalty is rent.
9.44 The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order, 1971 in effect,
gives the National Coal Board's mine properties and open cast
land the same benefits which other mines receive under the order.
9.45 Tin, lead and copper mines, which are assessed on the
basis of the dues payable in the preceding year, also effectively
receive the benefits given by the 1971 order to other types of mines
and quarries.
<1Lead, Tin and Copper Mines>1
9.46 Lead, tin and copper mines are valued according to special
rules contained in section 36 of the General Rate Act, 1967 and
the Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order, 1971. The assessment
<s4>s---
<s5>s One quarter, for the rate year 1971/72.
218
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
of these mines is found by adding the amount of any royalty paid in
the preceding year to the amount of any fixed rent paid in that
year.<s7>s If the person receiving the royalty is liable for the repairs,
insurance and other expenses, then the average annual cost of
these shall be deducted in arriving at the assessment.
9.47 If a tin, lead or copper mine is worked by the owner or let
wholly or partly for a fine (premium), then the valuer when
assessing the property must estimate what royalty and rent would
have been paid in the previous year, if the mine had been let
without a fine.
9.48 From the actual or estimated royalty and rent payable for
the hereditament, there shall be deducted one half of those dues
which are attributable to the occupation of the land.<s6>s
9.49 The method of assessment laid down for tin, lead and
copper mines may be contrasted with the method of valuation used
for all other mines. In the case of other mines the valuer is trying
to estimate the output of the mine in the forthcoming year and the
rent which the tenant will pay in that year.
<1Slag-heaps>1
9.50 Material is sometimes extracted from slag-heaps, in which
case the occupier of the slag-heap may become rateable.<s8>s The
valuation of slag-heaps will almost certainly be based on the
quantity and value of material extracted. In many cases a royalty
or rent will be paid by the occupier and the valuation can be based
on this.
<1Other Mineral Hereditament Valuations>1
9.51 Mines, quarries and other mineral producing heredita-
ments will be valued direct to net annual value.<s9>s
<1Example>1 :
9.51a The valuation of a <1chalk pit>1 where there is no rateable
plant might run as follows:--
The proposal was made on the 1st February, 1977
Output 1973-74 45,000 cubic metres
Output 1974-75 40,000 cubic metres
Output 1975-76 50,000 cubic metres
<s6>s Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order, 1971 (S.I. 1971 No. 560).
<s7>s This rule applies even where the minerals have not been worked in the previous
year, see <1East Pool and Agar Limited v. Redruth Assessment Committee,>1 1923.
<s8>s <1National Coal Board v. Brook (V. O.),>1 1970 and <1Brook (V. O.) v. National Coal>1
<1Board and Burnwell Coal Company Ltd.,>1 1971 (L.T.) 1975 (C.A.).
<s9>s Section 19, General Rate Act, 1967.
219
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Average output over the three years prior to the date of the
proposal 45,000 cubic metres at 20p/m<s3>s. (Tone of the list level of
values.)
Net annual value #9,000
<1Less.->1
Half the estimated rent for the land<s10>s #4,500
Rateable Value #4,500
======
9.52 The average of three years' output has been taken because
pits of this simple type where the output is small are affected very
much by seasonal conditions and it is probably fair to take three
years' average output to arrive at a fair expectation for next year.
A royalty of 20p per cubic metre has been taken as being the
royalty which would have been used to value the hereditament had
it existed in the year immediately before the 1973 revaluation.
That is after considering all the evidence of actual royalties
available in 1972<s11>s. By the 1st February, 1977, (the date of the
proposal) royalties for this type of chalk had increased to 24p/m<s3>s.
9.53 As an industrial property comprising land, the heredita-
ment would be valued direct to net annual value.
9.54 The next example will show a valuation of a sand pit where
there is an element of rateable plant.
<1Example:>1
9.51b Value a <1sandpit>1 operating with mobile diggers but with a
steel storage and loading hopper and two huts as office and
canteen for the workmen. Estimated output in the forthcoming
year 75,000 tonnes of sand. The proposal was made on the 16th
April, 1978.
<1Valuation>1
75,000 tonnes of sand at 20p/t #15,000
Hoppers: E.C.V. #12,000
2 Huts: E.C.V. #4,000
#16,000 at 5% #800
Net annual value #15,800
<1Less>1
Half the estimated rent for the land<s10>s #7,500
Rateable value #8,300
<s10>s Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Orders, 1971.
<s11>s Section 20 General Rate Act, 1967.
220
20p/t represents the level of royalties which existed in 1972; by
1978 royalties were appreciably higher. The hoppers and the huts
have been valued on their Effective Capital Value in 1972 at 5%.
9.55 In certain cases the output of the pit may be limited by the
capacity of the rateable plant. It is quite common to find in gravel
and ballast pits a semi-permanent washing, grading and crushing
plant. The economic output of the pit will therefore be related to
the optimum output of the plant and some allowance must be
made if the market conditions are such that the optimum through-
put cannot be sold. In the absence of other evidence, it is usual to
consider the ratio of actual output to optimum output as being
applied to the value of the rateable plant, so that the full value of
the plant will only be brought into the valuation when the
maximum output is being obtained from the pit.
9.55a The following example will illustrate the point:--
A <1ballastpit>1 has an optimum output of 200,000 tonnes per annum.
This is the limit imposed by the washing, crushing and grading
plant. The proposal was made on the 20th January, 1978 and the
average output for the three previous years was 150,000 tonnes.
<1Valuation>1
Crushing, grading and washing plant (structure only) #50,000
Diesel generator #12,000
Well, lagoon and pumps #30,000
Buildings, hoppers and elevators (structure only) #18,000
Hard surfaces for stacking grounds, etc. #10,000
-------
Effective capital value (1972) #120,000
At 5% gives a net annual value of #6,000
======
The #6,000 represents the optimum N.A.V. of the plant. From
this point the valuation could be continued on either of the
following two methods:--
(1) Optimum N.A.V. of plant #6,000 for 200,000 tonnes. This is
equivalent to 3p per tonne and assuming a 1972 mineral
royalty of 20p/t for the ballast alone, then the combined
royalty of plant and mineral is 23p per tonne. Therefore,
take 150,000 tonnes at 23p = #34,500 N.A.V. or alterna-
tively.
221
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(2) Mineral royalty 150,000 at 20p/t #30,000
150,000
Plant ------- of #6,000 #4,500
200,000
Net annual value #34,500
In both cases:--
Net annual value #34,500
<1Less>1 :
Half of the estimated rent for the land<s10>s #15,000
Rateable value #19,500
9.56 These two methods are clearly only slight variations of the
same mathematical problem. Where many mineral pits are being
valued, and particularly where they are to be revalued year after
year (it is quite common to revise such assessments annually), the
first method is probably easier, because the plant royalty will not
vary substantially until the old plant is replaced by new, or extra
plant is added.
9.57 The underlying theory of the method is that the hypothe-
tical tenant will not pay rent for the surplus capacity of the plant
which on a year to year basis he cannot utilise. The method is not
wholly correct as a matter of valuation since the value of such plant
does not necessarily decrease in the same ratio as its capacity. In
other words, a plant capable of dealing with 100,000 cubic metres a
year costs more than one quarter as much as a plant capable of
dealing with 400,000 cubic metres a year.
9.58 Exactly the same method is applied to the valuation of
brick fields. Bricks are made by a burning process utilising for the
most part some form of brickearth or clay and in some cases
certain additives. It is usual to find the brick-making plant either
next to the mineral pit or at least connected thereto by a short
length of pipeline. The usual method of valuation is to value the
plant to an "effective capital value" and relate this at, say, 5% to
the optimum output of bricks so that a "royalty" of so much per
thousand bricks is calculated.
9.59 The probable "make" of bricks for the next year is
estimated and priced at that royalty. To this is added a royalty for
the brickearth required. Some valuers add the plant royalty to the
mineral royalty and apply the combined figure to the probable
output. One must note here that in some circles there is a tendency
222
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
to value a brickworks on the number of bricks <1sold>1 in any given
year. This is not in compliance with rating law. The operator has
dug a certain amount of brickearth and has used the plant to
manufacture a certain number of bricks. The rent paid must
clearly relate to the amount of earth dug, which in turn is the direct
function of the number of bricks made. For normal bricks 1-8
cubic metres of material makes a thousand bricks. In some
brickworks the material will be simply the clay as dug whereas in
other cases, such as in the maufacture of Kentish stocks, chalk and
ashes are added and 1-8 cubic metres of the mixture will approxi-
mate to one thousand bricks.
9.60 There are certain methods used by the brick-making
industry in dealing with the minerals for the brickearth. Some
companies will agree to royalties in terms of cubic measure but
many determine the royalty based on "thousands" of bricks and a
royalty may be expressed at, for example, 40p per thousand of
earth. This means that the mineral royalty is 40p for every unit of
earth which is that amount required to make a thousand bricks. It
is not easy to convert such a royalty into cubic measure unless one
knows the percentage of the additives, if any.
9.61 Brick fields are industrial properties and are valued direct
to net annual value.
9.62 The Secretary of State may specify in an order the way in
which the rateable value of mines, quarries, wells, bore-holes and
certain land occupied with them is to be arrived at. He may specify
different methods of valuation for different parts of the
hereditament.<s12>s A statutory formula has been laid down for the
valuation of National Coal Board mines, opencast workings and
related property.<s13>s
<2Sporting Rights>2
9.63 As has been explained earlier, sporting rights are not
always separately rateable.<s14>s In certain circumstances they are
rateable as enhancing the land over which they are exercised and
in other cases they are not rateable at all. When sporting rights
have to be assessed as a separate hereditament it is often found
that there is a volume of open market rental evidence.
9.64 As regards fishing rights, salmon and trout streams are
usually let in terms of so many metres of river bank. This does not
<s12>s Section 19 and 3rd Schedule Local Government Act, 1974.
<s13>s National Coal Board Valuation Order, 1963.
<s14>s See paragraphs 3.23 to 3.32.
223
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
mean that the whole length of any trout stream is of necessity of
equal value throughout. Indeed some parts may be almost unfish-
able whereas other parts will provide choice spots favoured by
anglers. Therefore mere length is not always the correct standard
to apply, although as a rough and ready guide the number of
metres of river bank which are let gives some indication of value.
Another method of letting fishing rights which is particularly
applicable to salmon fishing, is a rent of so much per fish caught.
The number of fish caught in previous seasons forms the basis on
which the rent for next season is estimated. Provided the river is
well stocked (either -naturally or artificially) the rental value will
not fluctuate violently from year to year.
9.65 As regards shooting rights these are nearly always let for
the season in lump sum figures and there will usually be enough
rents to form the basis of valuation. A shooting letting may be for
as little as 40 hectares or up to 500 hectares or more. Again mere
area alone is no criterion of value. The amount of cover provided
and the number of birds expected to be shot must make a
substantial difference to the rent. In years of poor feeding or
unfortunate frosts the number of young birds which will reach
maturity may fall considerably. In other years, moors may be
packed so full of birds that there is hardly enough food to support
them.
<2Advertising Stations>2
9.66 The law concerning advertising stations was examined in
paragraphs 3.13 to 3.22.
9.67 When an advertising station forms a separate hereditament
it be valued direct to net annual value. Where the advertisement
forms part of another hereditament the nature of that heredita-
ment will determine whether or not a gross value is required.
9.68 Advertising stations are usually let, so the rental method of
valuation is appropriate. However, it is frequently the occupier
who erects the hoarding, supplies lighting equipment and even lays
out a garden. This means that the value of these items will not be
reflected in the rent. In such a case it is appropriate to use a
combination of the contractors method, applied to the improve-
ments (paid for by the occupier) and the rental method, applied to
the site.
9.69 Where an advertising station forms part of a larger here-
ditament care must be taken not to include the value of the
224
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
advertising station twice. The rent used to value the larger
hereditament must be carefully examined to see whether it already
includes the value of the advertising rights or whether a separate
sum should be added for these.
9.70 Situation is the most important factor contributing to the
value of an advertising station and for a given size of hoarding the
value may range from tens of pounds to tens of thousands of
pounds.
<2Racecourses>2
9.71 Racecourses such as horse racecourses, greyhound race-
courses and motor car racecourses are usually little more than land
improved by the construction of the course and the necessary
grandstands, if any.
9.72 In the case of <1R. v. Verrall,>1 1875 the Queen's Bench
Division held that it was proper to look at the occupier's account
books in connection with the <1horse racecourse>1 if they were
tendered in evidence. The case forms the basis of the present
practice of valuing horse racecourses by the profits method. The
method is further supported by the fact that the Jockey Club,
which amalgamated with the National Hunt Committee in 1968,
has the power of granting licences to racecourses and without a
licence it is impracticable for a racecourse to continue operating.
Further permissions may be required under the Betting, Gaming
& Lotteries Acts.
9.73 The existence of the licence gives the racecourse a quasi-
monopoly which justifies the use of the profits method. The
would-be tenant of a licensed racecourse knows that it would be
impossible for him to acquire some nearby land and construct a
racecourse thereon, since he would not obtain the necessary
licence. It is therefore useless for him to base his offer of rent on
the contractor's method, and he must instead base his offer on the
profits which he estimates will be made at the racecourse in the
future.
9.74 On a horse racecourse there is usually, if not always, a tote
(a totalisator being a method of <1pari mutuel>1 betting).
9.75 Ever since 1928 an authority, currently known as the
Horserace Totalisator Board, has had a statutory monopoly in
operating totalisators on horse racecourses. On occasions,
attempts have been made to rate these totalisators on profits and
in 1946 this problem was taken before an Arbitrator, when it was
225
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
held in the <1Doncaster case>1<s14a>s that it was not proper to value a tote
on its profits but merely by having regard to the actual rent paid
for the site of the totalisator buildings plus the rental value of the
buildings as enhanced by certain payments for facilities provided
by the racecourse company.
9.76 In connection with a horse racecourse, therefore, there
will normally be two assessments, one on the operator of the horse
racecourse (which assessment will be calculated on a profits test
and another on the Horserace Totalisator Board in respect of their
tote buildings.
<1Example:>1
9.76a The assessment of a racecourse might run as follows:--
THE HORSE RACING COMPANY
<1Valuation on accounts for year ended 31st March, 1972>1
<1for the purposes of the 1973 revaluation>1
<1Gross Receipts>1 # #
Admissions 80,000
Car Parks 8,000
Catering 35,000
Race Cards 5,000
Bookmakers 6,000
Commentary Rights 15,000
Race Fund---Sponsors' etc - 12,000 161,000
<1Working Expenses>1
Salaries and Wages 35,000
Office Expenses and General
Management 10,000
Insurance 500
Police 2,000
Publicity 2,000
Catering 32,000
Race cards 4,000
Added money and trophies 30,000
Sundry Expenses 3,500 119,000
42,000
<s14a>s See <1Racecourse Betting Control Board v. Doncaster County Borough,>1 1946
<1(Arbitration)>1 which in practice has overruled <1Racecourse Betting Control Board v.>1
<1Brighton County Borough,>1 1941.
226
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
<1Less>1
Annual Sinking Fund 3,300
Repairs and Maintenance of
Course--3 years average 9,000 12,300
Divisible Balance 29,700
Tenant's Share (10% of Gross Receipts) 16,100
N.A.V. plus rates 13,600
Less rates at 70p in # 5,600
Net annual value #8,000
9.77 In considering <1greyhound racecourses>1 the exact converse is
the case. Under the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Act, 1963, the
operator of a greyhound race track is the only person who is
allowed to operate the tote on the track, so that the right to
operate the tote passes to any tenant of the track. Therefore, in
rating such a course, one assessment will be made for the
combined track, buildings and totalisator.
9.78 A greyhound race track, before it can be operated, has to
receive a licence from the County Licensing Authority and this
licence gives the owner of such a track a quasi-monopoly in the
premises. Incidentally, the Licensing Authority also regulate the
days on which racing may take place. The position therefore is that
not only is there a monopoly insofar as the occupier is the only
person who can run the tote but also there is a monopoly in the
hypothetical landlord who has the licensed track available for
letting. This means that the correct method of assessment is by
having regard to the accounts, which should include the tote
receipts and expenses.
<1Examples:>1
9.78a A valuation of a greyhound race track might run as
follows:--
THE GREYHOUND RACING Co. LTD.
THE STADIUM
<1Valuation based on the accounts for the year ending>1
<131st December, 1971>1
<1for the purposes of the 1973 revaluation>1
227
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Gross Receipts>1
# #
Admissions and Entry Fees 69,600
Totalisator retentions 126,000
Sale of programmes 5,000
Bookmakers' Permits and Lists 4,400
Car Park 2,000
Catering 75,000
Sundry receipts 500 282 500
<1Working Expenses>1
Salaries and Wages 52,000
Licences and Insurances 2,000
Repairs 6,000
Prize Money including Entry Fees 24,000
Cost of Catering adjusted for stock 67,000
Costs of operating Totalisator including
Totalisator Mechanic and Accountant 45,500
Cost of printing programmes 600
Subscriptions 1,400
Travelling and advertising 3,000
Printing, stationery and post 1,500
Fuel and power 3,000
Cost of operating kennels 9,000
2/3 of Directors' fees 1,000 216,000
66,500
<1Less>1
Annual Sinking Fund to renew buildings,
totalisator and contents of buildings 8,000
Divisible Balance 58,500
Tenant's share at 121/2% of Gross
Receipts, say 35,500
N.A.V. plus Rates 23,000
Rates at 70p in # 9,471
13,529
Net Annual Value say #13,500
=======
9.79 In some cases there are separately assessed properties,
such as kennels, which are occupied in conjunction with a
greyhound stadium and, when this occurs, it is usual to deduct
228
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
their rateable value plus rates, from the N.A.V. plus rates of the
stadium, before calculating its Net Annual Value.
9.80 Where a racecourse is run at a loss a profits valuation
would show a nil assessment. But it is argued that if the occupier
continues to run a racecourse at a loss, then if he was not the
owner of the course, he would be prepared to pay a rent for it. In
such a case the rent may be arrived at by taking a percentage of the
gross receipts.
<2Motor Car Race Tracks>2
9.81 In the ordinary way these tracks are found away from
built-up areas and are in the more rural parts, though usually near
good road access.
9.82 Planning permission is required to use land for the purpose
of a motor race track but they do not in practice enjoy a legal
monopoly. In certain cases there may be such a strong factual
monopoly in the hereditament that the profits method is proper
but in the ordinary way it is suggested that the contractor's method
is correct. If the hypothetical landlord demanded too much by way
of rent the tenant could go elsewhere and construct himself a
similar hereditament, provided that he could obtain planning
permission.
<1Example>1 :
9.82a The assessment of a small track might run as follows:--
THE SMALL CAR RACE COMPANY
Date of proposal: 1st January, 1977
<1(Valuation made by reference to values current in late 1972; because>1
<1values and costs have risen since 1972, section 20, of the General>1
<1Rate Act, 1967 applies)>1
N.A.V.
<1Land>1
125 hectares at #2,000/ha at 4% #10,000
Hard standing for car parks and approach roads,
#80,000 at 4% #3,200
Tarmacadam track: closed circuit, 2794 metres
run at #120/m at 4% #13,411
229
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Buildings>1
Grandstands: 1 at #72,000
1 at #120,000
Club buildings and refreshment
bars #4,800
Pits for motor cycles and small
cars #23,200
#220,000 at 5% #11,000
#37,611
Net annual value, say #37,600
<2Caravans and Caravan Sites>2<s15>s
9.83 The law relating to caravans was discussed in paragraphs
2.108a, 2.111 and 3.8.
9.84 Normally, if a caravan has remained on a piece of land for
a year or more both the caravan and the land occupied with the
caravan will be rateable and will form a separate rateable heredita-
ment. The hereditament will usually be valued to a gross value<s*>s
and the person who occupies the caravan will be the rateable
occupier.
9.85 The rental method of valuation is usually used to deter-
mine the value of such a hereditament. However, it sometimes
occurs that whilst there is adequate rental evidence of the value of
the land, there is no rental evidence of the value of the caravans.
This happens where the occupiers of the caravans pay rent for the
site but own the caravans. In such a case the valuer may attempt to
value the hereditament by using the rental method for the land
but the contractors method for the caravan.<s15a>s The effective
capital value of the caravan may be found from open market sales
of similar caravans.
9.85a There have been a number of cases concerning the
valuation of caravans and these have dealt with restrictions as
between the actual landlord and the actual tenant,<s15bsb lack of>s
security of tenure,<s15b>s age and disabilities of caravans,<s15b>s <s15c>s and site
disabilities.<s15d>s A caravan and pitch cannot be valued by reference
<s15>s See report of lecture given by A. H. Baker (V.O.) R & V Jan. 1976 p. 26.
<s15a>s <1Stout v. Capstick (V.>1 O.), 1978.
<s15b>s <1Baker (V. O.) v. Horwell and Halton B. C.,>1 1975.
<s15a>s <1Price v. Smith (V.O.>1), 1977.
<s15d>s <1Hart v. Smith (V. O.>1), 1977-
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
230
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---I>1
to the assessments placed on traditionally constructed houses but
the assessment placed on a prefabricated bungalow (restricted in
use to the summer months) may form a guide.<s15e>s
9.85b A caravan and pitch will be valued to a gross value and so
the hypothetical landlord will be responsible for repairs, insurance
and other expenses.<s15f>s
9.85c A caravan used as a residence and entered in the valua-
tion list as a separate hereditament is a "dwelling-house" for the
purposes of section 48 of the General Rate Act, 1967. The
occupier is therefore entitled to pay at the reduced rate in the
pound applicable to dwelling-houses. (See also paragraph 3. 10c
for leisure caravans.)
9.85d Where caravans are permanently parked on a commercial
caravan site and are rateable as separate hereditaments, there will
invariably be an area of land and some buildings which are in the
occupation of the proprietor of the site, (e.g. access roads, car
parks, recreation areas, lavatory blocks, stores, shops, club house
and site office). These will form a separate hereditament in the
occupation of the proprietor and may well be valued to a net
annual value. The Lands Tribunal has expressed the view that such
a hereditament should not be valued by the profits method taking
into account the cost of maintaining the site but should preferably
be valued by comparison with the rents at which buildings are let
or by comparison with assessments of similar hereditaments.<s15g>s
9.85e A proposal to enter in the valuation list as a separate
hereditament, a caravan and pitch which is already included within
a larger hereditament, has been held not to be invalid.<s15h>s It would
seem that this could produce the rather unusual result of rates
being paid twice on the same piece of property.
9.86 Because of the difficulties of assessing and collecting rates
from <1"leisure caravans">1 (even though they have remained on a
site for a year or more) the valuation officer has in certain circum-
stances been given a discretionary power to assess a number of
them together, as a single hereditament. In this case the site
operator will be the rateable occupier.<s16>s
9.87 In the case of a caravan site or part of a site which caters
for touring caravans, the site operator will usually be the rateable
occupier of the site or that part of the site. Such a site may be just a
<s15e>s <1Leighton v. Thomas (V. O.), 1977; Carter v. Squire>1 (V. O.), 1968.
<s15f>s <1Hastie v. Sharples>1 (V. O.), 1980.
<s15g>s <1Rye Bay Caravan Park Ltd. v. Morgan>1 (V. O.), 1979.
<s15h>s <1Holderness District Council v. Hingley>1 (V. O.), 1979.
<s16>s Rating (Caravan Sites) Act, 1976.
231
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
bare field with no facilities or it may have been developed by
providing roads, hardstanding for the caravans, toilet blocks and
even a shop and recreational facilities.
9.88 The leading case of <1Garton v. Hunter,>1 1968 concerned a
caravan site and it was established in that case that all three
methods of valuation were admissible as evidence of value and
that it was up to the court to decide which to give the most weight
to. However, in the absence of good rental evidence the profits
method of valuation seems to have found favour among valuers.
9.89 If a caravan is kept in the garden of a house and remains
there for a year or more being used as an additional bedroom, a
study, playroom or for some other purpose it is probable that the
caravan will be rateable. The valuer will then have to find the
rental value of the house, garden and caravan as if all three had
been provided by the hypothetical landlord.
9.90 If, however, the caravan is used for touring and is merely
stored in the garden, then the caravan is unlikely to be rateable.
Nevertheless the value of the garden may be increased if it can be
shown that the hypothetical tenant would be prepared to pay
additional rent for a garden in which a caravan can be stored. Such
additional value would seem to apply to all gardens in which it is
possible to store a caravan and not only those in which a caravan is
stored.
9.91 Other court decisions concerning caravans include:--
<1Mains v. Rees (V. O.),>1 1979 (L.T.).
<1Hastie v. Sharples (V.O.),>1 1979 (L.T.).
<1Phillips v. Dawes (V.O.),>1 1980 (L.T.).
232
<1Chapter 10>1
<2VALUATION OF DIFFERENT>2
<2TYPES OF PROPERTY---II>2
<2Residential Properties>2
10.1 Less than half the dwellings in England and Wales are let.
Of those which are let the majority are either:--
(1) rent controlled;
(2) rent regulated;
(3) owned by local authorities, housing associations or similar
bodies or
(4) let furnished.
10.2 It has already been shown that where the rent which a
landlord can recover is restricted by law, that rent does not
conform with the rating hypotheses. Thus rent controlled and rent
regulated rents are of little, if any, use when trying to find the
gross value of a dwelling.
10.3 Local authority and housing association rents are not
normally true open market rents, from a rating point of view,
because the dwellings are not let to the highest bidder in the open
market.
10.4 In the case of furnished rents it is virtually impossible to
know how much of the rent is attributable to the furniture, which
is of course not rateable.
10.5 Even though there is this extreme shortage of true open
market rental evidence the courts have up to the time of writing
insisted that the rental method of valuation should be used for
dwellings. Attempts to persuade the courts to accept valuations
based on the plentiful supply of capital values have failed despite
the Court of Appeals decision in <1Garton v. Hunter (V.O.),>1 1968.
10.6 In giving evidence to the Layfield Committee the Inland
Revenue Valuation Office expressed the view that there was
insufficient suitable rental evidence, to enable it to carry out
another revaluation of dwellings using the rental method of
valuation.<s1>s
10.7 The Layfield Report in 1976<s2>s and the Green Paper "Local
<s1>s Cmnd. 6453.
<s2>s Local Government Finance Cmnd. 6453.
233
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Government Finance" in 1977<s3>s advocated the idea that in future
revaluations, the assessment of dwellings should be based on their
capital value.
10.8 A percentage or percentages prescribed by Parliament,
would be applied to the capital value in order to arrive at the
equivalent of a rateable value.
10.9 But dispite all this it would seem, at the time of writing,
that the expected legislation by which dwelling houses were to be
valued on a capital basis, will not now be enacted in time for the
next revaluation.
<2The General Rate Act, 1970>2
10.10 Because dwelling-houses are so seldom let at true open
market rents, the General Rate Act, 1970, was enacted. The Act
applies to the determination of the gross value of dwellings for the
purposes of the 1973 valuation list and all subsequent valuation
lists.
10.11 The object of the act is to make admissible and relevant
as evidence, certain information which previously had not been
regarded as relevant or admissible. For example, the courts have
not generally allowed the rents of flats to be used as evidence of
the value of houses. This is because experience shows that the
level of rents at which flats let is frequently different from the level
of rents at which houses let. Similarly bungalows may let at a
different level of rents to that at which houses let.
10.12 In the past the courts have declined to accept the argu-
ment that assessments in a new valuation list should be compared
with assessments in the old valuation list. Thus if A claims that the
assessment of his house has increased three times between the old
valuation list and the new valuation list, but that B's assessment
has no more than doubled, this has in the past been regarded as
irrelevant by the courts. The justification for excluding such
evidence is that a re-valuation should be what its name implies,
that is to say a new valuation of each hereditament. Re-valuations
are necessary because changes in value occur between one pro-
perty and another and between one class of property and another.
If a re-valuation is carried out by applying a multiplier to the
assessments in the old valuation list, there is a danger that errors in
the old list will be carried into the new list.
10.13 The courts have also tended to regard as irrelevant, rents
<s3>s Cmnd. 6813.
234
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
and assessments of properties (comparable to the one under
appeal) where those properties are at a distance from the appeal
property and where there is evidence of rents and assessments
closer at hand.
10.14 All this has been changed as far as dwellings are con-
cerned, by the General Rate Act, 1970, with effect from the new
valuation list in 1973.
10.15 The 1970 Act refers to:--
(a) the rents at which <1other dwelling-houses>1 have been let; or to
(b) the relationship between the rents at which those <1other>1
<1dwellings>1 have been let and their gross values in the old
valuation list.
10.16 "Other dwelling-houses" mean dwellings other than the
one which is being valued.
10.17 The old valuation list is the one prior to the valuation list
for which the dwelling is being valued.
10.18 For the purposes of ascertaining the gross value of a
dwelling-house, the rents referred to in (a) above, or the rela-
tionship between rents and gross value referred to in (b) above,
shall be regarded as "relevant" and "admissible". The rents and
the relationship are admissible and relevant, whether they relate
to a dwelling of the same or a different description to the one
which is being valued. For example, the rent of a flat is admissible
and relevant, when valuing a house.
10.19 The rents and the relationship between the rents and the
gross value of those other dwellings are only admissible, if those
other dwellings are within the same or a contiguous valuation
panel area, to the one in which the property being valued is
situated. The evidence must therefore come from within the
valuation panel area in which the dwelling being valued is situated,
or from within one of the valuation panel areas which touch it.
10.20 The reason that the 1970 Act makes the evidence not only
admissible but also "relevant" is presumably to prevent the courts
from admitting the evidence, but then disregarding it on the
grounds that it is irrelevant.
10.20a The fact that the Act states that the evidence is to be
regarded as relevant, may not completely tie the hands of the
court. The court must consider all admissible and relevant evi-
dence, but it is for the court to decide what weight to attribute to
that evidence. The court may, therefore, attribute considerable
weight to the rent of a similar type of dwelling in close proximity to
the dwelling being valued. On the other hand it may attribute very
235
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
little weight to the relationship between the rent and the gross
value of some dissimilar dwelling many miles away.
10.21 A case on these lines came before the Lands Tribunal in
1974---<1Lamb v. Minards (V.O.),>1 1974. But surprisingly enough it
was the ratepayer who sought to rely on a multiplier. The
Valuation Officer, on the other hand, based his case largely on
rental evidence. The Lands Tribunal admitted and considered as
relevant, the relationships between the appeal house and other
houses in the old and the new valuation lists (the relationships in
the old and new lists were different). But the Tribunal, in
accordance with its previous practice, preferred to rely on the
small amount of rental evidence that the Valuation Officer was
able to produce, rather than on the relationships between the gross
values in the old and the new valuation lists.
10.22 The fact that the valuation officer is able to introduce into
court the relationship between the rent of a dwelling and its gross
value in the old valuation list, suggests that the valuation officer
may build up a pattern of relationships for different types of
dwellings in different areas. For instance, the valuation officer
may be able to show that in a particular area houses are letting at
three times their old gross value. Flats may be letting at twice their
old gross value, and bungalows at two and a half times their old
gross value. Since this type of evidence is, under the General Rate
Act, 1970, both admissible and relevant in court, the valuation
officer may be tempted to value dwelling houses, for a revaluation
merely by applying the appropriate multiplier to the gross value
which appeared in the old list.
10.23 According to the 1970 Act the valuation officer shall not
be held to have failed in the proper discharge of his duties by
reason of his having assessed a dwelling by reference only to such
rents or the relationships of the rents to the gross value.
10.24 If the courts uphold the use of a multiplier, it may be that,
in the absence of the introduction of capital value rating, the
re-valuation of dwelling-houses in the future will merely be a
matter of applying an appropriate multiplier to the gross values
contained in the old list.
<1Rental Evidence>1
10.25 The first stage in the valuation process is to collect
together all the true open market rents. Other rents should be
rejected.
10.26 The true open market rents will not necessarily be on the
terms that the landlord does the repairs and the tenant pays the
236
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
rates. It is quite possible, for example, to have a true open market
rent where the landlord pays the rates and the tenant does some of
the repairs. In such cases the rent must be adjusted to make it
conform with the definition of gross value. For instance, if the
landlord pays the rates, the amount of the rates must be deducted
from the rent.<s4>s This is done in order to find out the amount of rent
which the tenant would have paid, had the letting been on the
same terms as laid down in the definition of gross value. If the
tenant undertakes to do some of the repairs, the average annual
cost of those repairs should be added to the actual rent in order to
make the rent conform with the definition of gross value.<s5>s
10.27 The adjusted rent is known as "rent in terms of gross
value". <2"Rent in terms of gross value">2 may be defined as, the rent
which the tenant would have paid had the letting been on the same
terms as those laid down in the definition of gross value.
10.28 After adjustment the rents must be analysed by some
yardstick so that they can be used to value those houses where
there are no rents. The usual yardstick is the square metre of floor
area. The floor area of a house can be expressed in many ways
though there are two which are more commonly used than others,
One method is that of taking the <2"reduced covered area,">2 or
R.C.A. This involves measuring the property externally on all
floors and adding the resultant areas together. Thus if a house has
a 7 metre frontage and is 10 metres deep and is on two floors with
the first floor covering precisely the same area as the ground floor,
then the reduced covered area of that house will be 140 square
metres, i.e. 70 square metres on each floor. Another method is
that of the <2"effevtive floor area,">2 in which the floor area of the
habitable rooms plus the kitchen is taken, floor by floor, and
added together. This method of measurement (sometimes known
as the <2"carpet area")>2 takes no account of halls, passageways and
stairways, bathrooms or W.C.'s. The effective floor area of the
house just mentioned with a reduced covered area of 140 square
metres might be as little as 100 square metres. There are plenty of
other possible methods of measurement, such as internal dimen-
sions within the main walls, or internal measurements making
some arbitrary allowance for attics and so on. The choice of the
method is at the discretion of the valuer but he must use the same
method both to analyse his rents and to make his valuations.--<1"As>1
<1you devalue so must you value.">1
<s4>s See paragraphs 8.8 to 8.22.
<s5>s See paragraphs 8.23 to 8.36.
237
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
10.29 When the rents are analysed it will normally be found that
quite apart from variations from locality to locality there will be
substantial variations of the prices per square metre within the
locality because of different types of houses. There will be old
houses and new houses. The older houses will often be badly
planned and less economical and labour-saving to run. These old
houses will therefore show a lower price per square metre than
more modern houses which are otherwise comparable. The rent of
bungalows will frequently be found to average out at a higher price
per square metre than the rent of houses. There may also be a
difference between detached properties (whether houses or bun-
galows), semi-detached houses and properties in a terrace. It may
even be noticeable that houses at the end of a terrace show a
higher rate per square metre than those in the middle of a row.
The rents of flats usually show an even higher rate per square
metre than for bungalows.
10.30 From this it can easily be seen that it is quite useless to
adopt an overall analysis for the locality and hope to find any
common basis emanating therefrom. In each locality the prop-
erties, the rents of which are being analysed, must be carefully
segregated into types, and within each section the basis should be
ascertained. This basis can then be used to value other properties
which are generally similar and within the same locality.
10.31 A valuation for rating of a dwelling is not therefore
simply a matter of analysing the rents over the township and
applying a common basis willy nilly over the whole of the area.
Great care will have to be taken to see where the breaks come
between one locality and the next, for variation in rental levels
may not follow any obvious geographical feature. Thus, the
property on either side of a railway line may be influenced by the
railway and have a low basis of value. The railway line may not
form a break in the level of value but rather the centre line of an
area of low value.
10.32 Methods of analysis and comparison of rents by arith-
metical means must not be used too slavishly, so that the art of
valuation is completely overlooked. For example, there may be
two houses with identical ground floor plans but on the first floor
one may have three large bedrooms and the other four small
bedrooms covering a similar area. The two houses may have cost
virtually the same sum of money to build but in those areas where
there is a demand for four-bedroomed houses the rent for the
four-bedroomed house may be greater, whereas in other areas
where the demand is for rather more spacious but fewer rooms the
238
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
three-bedroomed house might well be found to command the
higher rent. Alternatively the two houses may be found to have
identical values.<s5a>s
10.33 There is no virtue in arithmetic by itself but merely as a
means of assisting the rating valuer in his valuation.
<1Fats>1
10.34 Where flats are let at rents which do not include payment
for services, the rents can be analysed and used in exactly the same
manner as for houses. But if the rents include an element of
payment for services then the cost of those services must be
deducted before the rent can be of assistance in ascertaining the
gross value of the flats.
10.35 One method is to deduct the total cost of the services for
the whole block of flats from the total rents for the whole block
(exclusive of rates). The resulting figure can then be apportioned
between the flats, i.e. the total of the rents for the whole block less
the total cost of services is divided by the total of the rents for the
whole block including the cost of services. The resulting figure is
multiplied, in turn, by the rent of each flat (including the cost of
services to that flat). The result is the value of each flat, excluding
the cost of services. (An alternative to this method is shown in the
example below.) It is assumed that the rents are all good rating
evidence and fairly reflect the rental relationship between the
flats, so that the apportionment can be done in the proportion of
those rents.
10.36 Section 23 of the General Rate Act, 1967, lays down
special provisions with regard to the deduction of services. These
provisions are dealt with in paragraphs 8.58 and 8.60. The main
points in section 23 are that:--
(i) where landlords' services are provided but paid for by the
tenants separately from the rent, then the cost of these
services is to be added to the rent, thus giving an inclusive
figure of rent plus services;
(ii) when deducting the cost of services from the inclusive
figure, no deduction is to be made for (a) any profit made or
likely to be made by the landlord in providing those
services; (b) the cost of repairs to and maintenance and
insurance of premises not forming part of the hereditament
(e.g. the common parts).
<s5a>s <1Barton-Grimley v. Truner (V. O.),>1 1974; <1Commins v. Partridge (V. O.),>1 1978 but
see <1Hawser v. Clark (V. O.),>1 1980.
239
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Example>1
10.36a A proposal was made on the 1st January, 1978, to lower
the rating assessments of 36 flats. The flats are of two types:--
(i) Type A--three bedroom flats, 110 square metres.
(ii) Type B--four bedroom flats, 165 square metres.
The flats are served by lifts. The rents include the cost of services.
The tenants are responsible for payments of rates and for internal
repairs and decorations; the landlord is responsible for all other
repairs and insurance. Rental values have risen since the date of
the last revaluation and so a tone of the list valuation is appropri-
ate in this case. A number of flats were let in 1971/2 at full open
market rents on three-year tenancy agreements. From these
lettings, the following was deduced:--
<1Flats>1 <11972 full rental value>1
Type A--ground floor #2,100 p.a.
1st to 4th floor #2,250 p.a.
5th floor #2,300 p.a.
Type B--ground floor #3,000 p.a.
1st to 4th floor #3,200 p.a.
5th floor #3,250 p.a.
10.36b At the time that these lettings took place, the flats were
free of rent control and rent regulation. Each flat forms a separate
hereditament. Because flats have a gross value, and because the
value "falls to be ascertained by reference to the rent payable",
section 23 of the General Rate Act, 1967, will apply.
10.36c When section 23 applies, if the cost of services is not
already included in the rent, then it must be added to the rent.
However, in this case the cost of services is already included in the
rent.
10.36d The rents must be adjusted so that they conform with
the definition of gross value. To this end the cost of repairs and
decorations borne by the tenant must be added to the rent.
<1Flats>1
<11972 full rental Estimated cost 1972 rental>1
<1 value including of internal re- value adjusted>1
<1 services; tenant pairs and de- for repairs but>1
<1 does internal re- corations (1972 including ser->1
<1pairs and decor- level of costs) vices>1
<1ations>1
Type A:
Ground floor #2,100 p.a. #180 p.a. #2,280 p.a.
1st to 4th floor #2,250 p.a. #180 p.a. #2,430 p.a.
5th floor #2,300 p.a. #180 p.a. #2,480 p.a.
240
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
<1Flats>1
<11972 full rental Estimated cost 1972 rental>1
<1value including of internal re- value adjusted>1
<1 services; tenant pairs and de- for repairs but>1
<1 does internal re- corations (1972 including ser->1
<1pairs and decor- level of costs) vices>1
<1ations>1
Type B:
Ground floor #3,000 p.a. #210 p.a. #3,210 p.a.
1st to 4th floor #3,200 p.a. #210 p.a. #3,410 p.a.
5th floor #3,250 p.a. #210 p.a. #3,460 p.a.
10.36e In this particular case the flats on the top floor are more
popular, and the flats on the ground floor less popular, than the
flats on the other floors. This is reflected in the rental values.
However, since the size of all the flats of a given type is the same,
the cost of internal repairs and decorations is the same despite the
fact that their rental values vary.
10.36f The total rental value of the flats, adjusted into rent in
terms of gross value, but including services, amounts to #104,370
p.a.
<1Cost of Services>1 (1972 level of costs):--
Wages (including National Insurance, uniforms, etc.) # 3,625
Cleaning materials # 105
Fuel for central heating and hot water # 5,331
Electricity (lifts and lighting) # 840
Third party insurance on lift and boiler # 95
Upkeep of gardens (part-time gardener) # 1,242
Depreciation of chattels # 400
Management of the services # 1,200
Total cost of services #12,838
10.36g In accordance with section 23 of the General Rate Act,
1967, no deduction has been made for:--
(a) any profit made, or which might be expected to be made, by
the landlord in providing those services;
(b) the cost of repairs to, and maintenance and insurance of,
premises not forming part of that hereditament, e.g. repairs
to the common parts of the block of flats.
10.36h It is submitted that:--
(a) cleaning of common parts is not "maintenance" within the
meaning of section 23;
241
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(b) third party insurance of the lift is not insurance of the
"premises";
(c) management of the services should be allowed as part of the
cost of providing the services.
10.37 Arguments can be produced for apportioning the cost of
services between the flats in many different ways. For example, it
can be argued that the ground floor tenant does not use the lift and
therefore, should not have to pay for it. It can be further argued
that the tenant on the top floor uses the lift more than the tenant
on the first floor and should, therefore, pay a higher proportion of
the cost of the lift.
10.38 A widely accepted method of apportioning the cost of
services is based on the argument that the benefit derived from the
provision of services is proportional to the value of the flat. To this
end the cost of services is expressed as a percentage of the rental
value of the flats:
Total cost of service
-------------------------------------------x 100 =
Total rental value of flats (including services)
rate per cent attributable to services
#12,838
------- x 100 = 12.3%
#104,370
10.39 It follows that the rent excluding the cost of services (i.e.
the rent in terms of gross value) is 87-7% of the rent which
includes the cost of services.
<1Flats>1
1972 <1rental value Rent in terms of>1
<1adjusted for repairs gross value i.e. Gross>1
<1but including ser- rent excluding the value>1
<1vices cost of services (say)>1
Type A:
Ground floor #2,280 p.a. #1,999-56 #2,000
1st to 4th floor #2,430 p.a. #2,131-11 #2,130
5th floor #2,480 p.a. #2,174-96 #2,175
Type B:
Ground floor #3,210 p.a. #2,815-17 #2,815
1st to 4th floor #3,410 p.a. #2,990-57 #2,990
5th floor #3,460 p.a. #3,034-42 #3,035
242
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
10.40 As a variation on the above method of valuation, the
valuer may add the rates paid by the tenant to the exclusive rent.
For this purpose the rates to be added to the rent are the rates
payable at the time that the rent was fixed. The cost of services is
then expressed as a percentage of the rent including rates.
10.41 After deducting the cost of services from each flat, the
valuer is left with a figure which is made up of rent and rates. It is
then only a matter of separating the rent from the rates; this can be
done mathematically, see paragraphs 8.13 to 8.17.
<1Agricultural Dwellings<s*>s>1
10.41a The law concerning the granting of relief to agricultural
dwelling-houses was considered in paragraphs 4.64 to 4.69. In
effect, an agricultural dwelling must be valued as if there was a
condition in the tenancy that the dwelling could only be used as an
"agricultural dwelling", i.e. it could only be occupied by a farmer
or a farm worker as specified in section 26(2) of the General Rate
Act, 1967.
10.41b The relief granted by section 26 does not always result in
a lowering of the gross value. For example, an agricultural
dwelling-house is situated 28 miles from London and is 7 minutes'
walk from the railway station. There is a first-class train service to
London. If the house was vacant and to let not only farmers, but
also businessmen working in London would wish to rent it.
Supposing the house was offered to rent by tender, it is possible
that the highest offer from a farmer would be #800 per annum,
whilst the highest bid from a businessman would be #1,500 per
annum. Because the house is an agricultural dwelling, the offers
from the businessmen must be ignored. The gross value of the
dwelling will be #800, which means that the provisions in section
26 have resulted in a relief of #700 gross value.
10.41c On the other hand an agricultural dwelling may be miles
from anywhere, in a position which is too remote even to attract
holidaymakers. If the house was offered to let by tender the
highest bid from a farmer might be #300 per annum, whilst the
highest bid from a non-farmer might be #52 per annum. In this
case the gross value of the farm house would be #300. The
provisions of section 26 would not have resulted in any relief.
10.41d A number of people today, although primarily engaged
in agriculture, nevertheless do not have to make a living by it. This
type of person when paying rent may be more influenced by the
quality of the farmhouse than by the quality of the agricultural
<s*>s The valuation principles are seemingly applicable to fish farm dwellings.
243
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
land, and consequently pay a higher rent for the house. The
Courts have considered a number of such cases and have decided
that no reduction should be made in the gross value of such a
house just because it is occupied with agricultural land.<s5b>s
10.41e There are basically two ways of approaching the valua-
tion of an agricultural dwelling. One is to value it in the same way
as an ordinary dwelling, and then make an allowance (where
appropriate) to reflect the fact that only farmers' rental bids are to
be considered. The second method is to take the value of the
whole farm and apportion it to find the value of the farm house.
10.41f It must not be forgotten that the value of a farm worker's
dwelling is not restricted to the amount that the farmer can deduct
from the worker's wages. A farmer may well be prepared to pay a
higher rent for a cottage in order to secure one for his worker.
<2Minor alterations to dwelling-houses or mixed hereditaments>2
10.42 Section 21 of the Local Government Act, 1974 applies to
dwelling houses and mixed hereditaments and provides that no
proposal shall be made for an increase in the <1gross value>1 by the
reason of the making of structural alterations on or after the 1st
April, 1974:--
(a) if and so far as the alterations are necessary for the purpose
of installing a system for providing heating in two or more
rooms, or
(b) if the proposal would be for an increase not exceeding such
an amount as the Secretary of State may by order specify.
10.43 The amount which the Secretary of State has specified is
#30.<s6>s
10.44 Put more simply this means that:--
(i) if a person installs central heating (regardless of the amount
by which it increases the rental value of the hereditament)
or
(ii) if a person carries out structural alterations of some other
kind, then provided these other alterations do not increase
the value of the dwelling by more than #30,
no proposal is to be made to increase the assessment of the
hereditament.
10.45 If a succession of improvements are made over a period
of time a running total is kept by the valuation officer and when
<s5b>s <1Todd v. Metcalfe (V. O.),>1 1958; <1Hammond v. Davey,>1 1957; <1Lewis v. Tudge,>1
1959, but see <1Parris v. Griffin (V. O.),>1 1974.
<s6>s Rating of Minor Structural Alterations to Dwellings (Specified Amount) Order
1974 No. 629.
244
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
the amount (excluding the amount attributable to central heating)
exceeds #30, a proposal will be made to increase the value of the
hereditament. The increased rates becomes payable from the date
of the most recent improvement.
10.45a The effect of section 21 is that in the case of a dwelling-
house or a mixed hereditament, anyone who installs central
heating or makes minor structural alterations in the period be-
tween revaluations, will not have to pay rates on these alterations
until the next revaluation. On the face of it this helps to overcome
one of the alleged defects in the rating system, namely that a
person may be deterred from improving his property because he
will have to pay increased rates. However, in practice, section 21
gives rise to a certain amount of discontent. For example, if one
occupier installs central heating just before a revaluation and his
next door neighbour installs it just after a revaluation, the latter
will escape rates on the central heating for up to 10 years, whilst
his next door neighbour living in an identical house has to pay full
rates.
10.45b Similarly if one person purchases a new house with
central heating fitted, whilst his next door neighbour buys an
identical house but has central heating installed after his house has
been assessed for rates, then the one occupier will pay rates on his
central heating system whilst the other will escape rates on his,
until the next revaluation.
10.45c Unfairness can also result in the following case. An
occupier demolishes a wooden garage and makes a proposal to
reduce the value of the hereditament by the amount attributable to
the wooden garage. Gross value of house with wooden garage
#420; gross value of wooden garage #20; gross value of house
without wooden garage #400. But the occupier now replaces the
wooden garage with a brick built garage, which has a gross value of
#30. However, the valuation officer is prevented, by section 21,
from making a proposal to increase the assessment to #430. It
follows that in this case the occupier has been able to replace a
wooden garage with a brick garage and at the same time obtain a
reduction in his rating assessment of #20 gross value, i.e. House
and wooden garage gross value #420; house and brick built garage
#400 gross value. This would not be regarded as fair by the
occupier next door, who had a brick built garage at the time of the
last revaluation and is paying rates on a gross value of #430.
10.45d Finally it should be noted that section 21 does not say
that the central heating or structural alterations are to be ignored
for rating purposes. Section 21 merely states that ". . . <1no proposal>1
245
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1may be made . . . for an increase in the gross value>1 . . .". The effect
of this is that if the occupier makes a proposal to reduce his rating
assessment, the court, when considering the value of the heredita-
ment, must take into account the value of any central heating or
structural alterations in existence at the date that the proposal was
made.<s6a>s This produces inconsistent results as compared with an
occupier who has not made a proposal.
10.45e Section 21 does not even save the valuation officer work
because improvements still have to be valued to see whether or not
they exceed #30.
<2Offices>2
10.46 There is usually adequate rental evidence to enable
offices to be valued by the rental method of valuation.
10.47 An entire office building may be let to a tenant, in which
case the tenant is normally liable for all repairs, insurance and
services. On the other hand an office building may be let in suites
of rooms; each suite forming a separate hereditament.
10.48 In the case of an office block let in suites, the landlord
may be liable for repairs to the exterior, structure and common
parts, and for insurance and services. In such a case the tenant will
probably be liable for repairs and decorations to the interior of the
suite. However, there is a growing practice of making the occupier
of a suite liable to pay a specified proportion of the total cost of
repairing, insuring and servicing the whole building.
10.49 Considerable care must be exercised in determining the
exact terms of the lease, before adjusting the actual rent so that it
becomes a <1rent in terms of gross value>1<s*>s or <1rent in terms of net>1
<1annual value>1 as the case may require. For examples of the
conversion of a rent in terms of the hypothetical tenancy see
chapter 8.
10.50 <1Premiums>1 are sometimes paid by office tenants. On
comparatively rare occasions but particularly following the sharp
drop in some office rents during the middle part of the 1970's,
"reverse" premiums have been paid.
10.51 A <1"reverse" premium>1 is a capital sum which a tenant pays
in order to get rid of a lease. It is usually paid where a tenant took
a lease of a property at a time when rents were high and disposed
of it at a time when rents were low. In such a case the outgoing
tenant may have had to pay a premium to the incoming tenant, in
<s6a>s <1White v. Bromidge (V.O.),>1 1979 (C.A.).
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
246
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
order to persuade him to take an assignment of the lease (at a rent
which at the time is above the full rental value of the property).
Alternatively the outgoing tenant may pay the landlord a premium
in order to make it worth his while to accept a surrender of the
lease. The landlord would then relet the property at its full rental
value, which would be lower than the rent under the surrender
lease.
10.51a In the case where a premium is paid, the annual
equivalent of the premium is found and added to the rent paid
under the lease. However, in the case where a reverse premium is
paid the annual equivalent of the reverse premium should be
deducted from the rent paid under the lease.
10.51b Particularly in the case of new or refurbished offices the
tenant may have spent sums of money on the hereditament. For
example, he may have paid for the erection of partitioning,<s6b>s false
ceilings, floor and wall finishes, the construction of a canteen, air
conditioning, electric wiring, lighting and other facilities. In so far
that these items form part of the hereditament and increase its
value in the open market, it may be necessary to find the annual
equivalent of the expenditure and add it to the rent being paid.<s6c>s
10.51c Although there are arguments to the contrary, the
practice has grown up of calculating the annual equivalent of a
premium or capital expenditure, for the period of the lease. If,
however, there is a rent review during the lease, whereby the rent
is to change to full rental value (including the value of any
improvements or alterations) then the annual equivalent will be
found for the period from the beginning of the lease up to the time
of the first review. It is usual to calculate the annual equivalent of a
premium or capital expenditure by dividing the sum by a figure of
years purchase, making allowance for a sinking fund but not
adjusting the sinking fund for tax. (see paragraphs 8.37 to 8.42h)
10.52 After excluding any rents which are not true open market
rents or which were not agreed at an appropriate time, the
remaining rents should be adjusted, to bring them in line with the
terms of the hypothetical tenancy, and then analysed. Office rents
are usually expressed as so many pounds per square metre.
10.53 When analysing office rents a sharp lookout should be
kept for a difference in the rental values of different floors or
different parts of floors. The ground floor is frequently found to
have a higher rental value than the upper floors. The value of
<s6b>s See paragraphs 5.85 to 5.104 concerning the rateability of partitions.
<s6c>s Alterations as a condition of lease see paragraph 8.37.
247
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
upper floors will depend to a large extent on whether or not there
are lifts and the adequacy of those lifts. If there is a good lift
service there may be little or no difference between the value of
the upper floors. On the other hand if there is no lift the upper
floors may decrease in value rapidly as they get higher.
10.54 Offices are measured internally and staircases, lifts, land-
ings and W.C.'s are usually excluded from the area. Sometimes
offices are measured so as to include internal partitions and
corridors and on other occasions so as to exclude them. There is a
tendency to measure offices which contain demountable partition-
ing "overall", so as to include the partitions and the corridors.
Offices with permanent partitioning are more often measured so
as to exclude the partitions and the corridors. Whichever method
is used it is important to compare like with like when analysing the
rents and valuing the offices.
10.55 Whilst permanent partitioning is invariably rateable as
being physically part of the hereditament, demountable partition-
ing may be either rateable or exempt depending on the circum-
stances. This matter is discussed in paragraphs 5.85 to 5.104.
10.55a Where an office building is let in parts it is usual for all
the parts which are occupied by the same tenant and which are
contiguous (i.e. touching) to be assessed as a single hereditament.
This is so even though it is not possible for the tenant to get from
one part of his office to another without using a corridor or
staircase shared by other tenants.<s7>s If, however, a tenant occupies
different parts of a building and those parts are not contiguous
because they are, for example, separated by offices occupied by
another tenant, then each part may form a separate hereditament.<s*>s
10.55b Some office users such as building societies, estate
agents, insurance brokers and banks require ground floor accom-
modation in shopping positions. Indeed the buildings which they
occupy are on occasions physically indistinguishable from shops.
Whether or not such hereditaments should be valued at the same
level of values as the adjoining shops is a matter which is not
entirely clear. It must be borne in mind that although the buildings
may be physically identical, nevertheless, planning permission
would be required to change from a shop use to an office use and
this may be hard to get. In addition it may be that an office user
and a shop user would fall into different modes of occupation. For
a more detailed examination of the principles lying behind this
problem see paragraphs 6.70 to 6.91.
<s7>s <1Hudson's Bay Co. v. Thompson (V.O.),>1 1957.
<s*>s But see paragraph 2.14.
248
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
<2Shops>2
10.56 The valuation of shops is one of the more difficult
problems in rating because of the immense diversity and quantity
of rental evidence, very little of which will at first sight show a
common basis. In any area of shops such as an ordinary shopping
street, it is usual to find a substantial proportion of the shops are
let. It is the sorting and sifting and eventual analysis of the rents
which is difficult.
10.57 As with houses, or, indeed, with any other general class
of property, care must be taken to see that the shops which are to
be considered at the same time, are within a locality sufficiently
small to enable direct comparison to be fairly made. It is no use
whatever attempting to analyse the rents of two shops a mile apart
and hoping to find any recognisable relationship between them.
10.58 Fundamentally, the rent of a shop must represent a
proportion of the excess of income over expenditure of a particular
type of trade carried on in a shop. It will be immediately apparent
that certain trades have a bigger retail profit than others and these
trades can afford to offer higher rents than the others. In the
general way the trades with the bigger margin of profit are the less
secure trades so that if the purchase price were being considered
the rates per cent at which the rent was capitalised would vary.
The rating valuer must consider rental value and not capital value
but nevertheless it is true to say that in the absence of evidence to
the contrary a row of identical shops should have identical
assessments.
10.59 Before the actual rents are considered and analysed the
shopping area should be carefully studied with particular reference
to noting, the location of places where cars can park, bus-stops,
pedestrian crossings, busy traffic intersections, areas of narrow
footpaths and wide footpaths, which is the shady side of the road
and which is the sunny side. A note should be made of any focal
point of attraction such as a cinema which draws crowds to it in the
evening, causing them to pass certain shop windows and not others
(thereby enhancing the advertising value of the former) but which
causes a break in the shopping frontage during the day. It must be
remembered that the shopping public is peculiarly fickle and it
may take a lot of research to discover why the shops at one end of
a town or in one particular block never do well while others
apparently identical do a flourishing trade. Sometimes wide foot-
paths are an advantage because they allow parking space for
perambulators, etc., and in other cases narrow footpaths are an
249
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
advantage because they give an atmosphere of bustle. In other
cases a nearby bus-stop is useful as people getting off the buses will
naturally gravitate towards the immediately adjacent shops. On
the other hand the forming of a bus queue may well obstruct the
footpath so as to make access to one or two shops almost
impossible. All these factors must be borne in mind when the rents
are analysed.
10.60 The first step in considering a main street of shops is
normally to do a physical survey, measuring the frontage and
depth of each shop in turn and noting all peculiar features such as
arcades, extensive windows, wide or narrow doors and the use, if
any, of the rear parts as store, canteen or restaurant, and the use
of basement floors and upper floors, if any. It is then usually best
to plot all the shops on to a plan of such a scale that the whole of
the shopping road can conveniently be viewed on one not too large
piece of paper. On this plan there would also be marked the
pedestrian crossings, bus-stops and all the other interesting and
important features which were noted while doing the survey.
10.61 In order to assist in the consideration of the rental
evidence it is also useful to put on the plan the trade carried on in
each shop together with brief details of the lease, if any. Further
details may have to be added as they are prepared from the
analysis.
10.62 The next task is to select, adjust and analyse the rents to
see if any common basis can be found. At first glance it may seem
impossible that there should be any basis at all and indeed it may
well be extremely difficult to find whether or not there is any such
basis, because there are various motives which guide shopkeepers.
10.63 Where the valuation is for the purpose of making a new
list, the valuation officer will be concerned, more or less, with
current rents. If, on the other hand, the valuation is for the
purposes of a proposal to alter the current valuation list, and if
values have risen since the date of the last revaluation, then the
valuer will need rents which were agreed at the time by reference
to which the last valuation list was made (in order to make a tone
of the list valuation). The valuer should, in the first instance
discard or treat with great suspicion any rents which do not
conform with the above dates.
10.64 Secondly, any rent for a term of years must be treated
carefully. The rating hypothesis requires one to find the <1rent on a>1
<1year to year basis,>1 that is, for one year certain with a reasonable
prospect of continuance. Any rent, therefore, which is based on a
lease for a term of years becomes of less value as evidence as the
250
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
term of the lease under review gets longer. This is particularly so if
no provision has been made in the lease for rent reviews.
10.64a In this connection it is well to mention the rents paid by
multiple concerns. These rents sometimes bear no recognisable
relationship to today's yearly rental value for several reasons,
amongst which are:--
(a) Many shops occupied by multiples are owned by a service or
holding company. Due to the relationship between the
trading company and the holding company the rents cannot
be regarded as true rents agreed in the open market.
(b) Many multiple shops are let on leases for 42 years or more.
10.65 For a period after the 1939/45 war these long leases did
not include rent review clauses. In the case of a long lease, without
a rent review clause, a multiple would sometimes gamble on
inflation continuing and so pay twice or even three times the rent
which would have been paid had the shop been let from year to
year. The justification for doing this was that if the pound
continued to fall in value, then in five or ten years the rent would
compare more or less favourably with a rent from year to year and
that for the final twenty years or so the multiple would be sitting at
a substantial profit rent. Rents paid in the hope of obtaining a
profit rent are virtually no use for rating purposes because they are
in essence different from a rent from year to year.
10.66 Today, multiples still tend to take long leases but the
leases usually include 3, 5 or 7 year <1rent review clauses>1 and so there
is less reason for the multiple to pay more rent now, in the hope of
getting a profit rent in the future.
10.67 Generally speaking it is true to say that the rent agreed
under any lease which contains rent reviews further apart than 7
years, should today, be treated with some suspicion. It should be
compared with the rents of similar properties where the rent
reviews are at 7 year intervals or less. The shorter the period
between rent reviews, the more similarity there is likely to be
between the rent under the lease and a rent from year to year.<s8>s
10.68 It should, however, be borne in mind that a long lease,
even with rent reviews, enables a tenant to plan his business with
more certainty than if he had a tenancy from year to year and for
this degree of certainty the tenant might be prepared to pay a
higher rent than on a letting from year to year. It would seem,
however, that purely from the <1security>1 point of view, the Lands
<s8>s See <1W. H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977 and <1F. W. Woolworth & Co.>1
<1Ltd. v. Moore (V.O.),>1 1978.
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<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Tribunal is usually prepared to treat a 21 year lease as being the
same as a rent from year to year and that on occasions they have
had regard to rents agreed on leases for 42 and even 99 years,<s9>s
(both included provisions for rent reviews).
10.69 In <1British Home Stores Ltd. v. County Borough of>1
<1Brighton and Burton (V.O.),>1 1958, Mr. H. P. Hobbs member of
the Lands Tribunal said: "Nothing that I have heard convinced me
that a rent for a term of 21 years fixed at or about the date of the
relevant proposal is materially different from the rent which can be
expected under the statutory terms. The hypothetical tenant is not
the tenant for one year only, but has a reasonable expectation of
the continuance of his tenancy; the amount of his rent may be
varied, as much on his initiative as on that of the hypothetical
landlord. When criticising lease rents, I think there is a tendency
to forget that under rating law nobody owns their own premises,
everybody occupies as a tenant and the tenancy is from year to
year and there is no opportunity whatever of getting a longer lease
and this applies not only to the property in question, but to every
other property and applies whether it be a house, a shop, a town
hall, a steel works or even a water undertaking. I agree that it is a
matter of conjecture and estimation as to just at what level rent
would settle in this year-to-year rating hypothesis, but as I have
said, I do not think that as far as shops are concerned the figure
would be very much removed from that fixed in the open market
on a lease up to 21 years".
10.70 However, there is no such thing as a hard and fast rule in
rating and in <1Fine Fare Ltd. v. Burton (V.O.)>1 and <1County Borough>1
<1of Brighton,>1 1958 (heard with the above case) the Lands Tribunal
had regard to the rent under a lease for 84 years (without a rent
review), but it did make an allowance in the rent because of the
length of the lease. (For further discussion on length of lease and
rent reviews see paragraphs 8.26 to 8.74)
10.70a Occasionally it will be found that a well-known multiple
tenant is paying rent on a lower basis than adjoining shops. One
reason for this could be that a developer of a new shopping
location realises that the success of his development depends on
attracting a well-known multiple to that location and accordingly
he lets the shop at a low rent to start with.
10.70b Sometimes it will be found that a shop-keeper owning a
substantial block of property will sell the freehold to an insurance
<s9>s <1Walls (V. O.) v. National Car Parks,>1 1977. See also <1National Car Parks Ltd. v.>1
<1Burrows (V. O.),>1 1977 where the Lands Tribunal had regard to a 99 year lease with
rent review clauses.
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company or other investor and take back a lease from the
purchaser. This is a financial arrangement to give the shop-keeper
some capital for improvements, alterations or expansion. The
rent agreed is not always the full rental value of the hereditament
and should be treated with caution. A clue as to whether the rent
is equal to the full rental can be obtained by carefully examining
the terms laid down in any rent review clause, to see whether
the revised rent is to be assessed on a basis which conforms with
the rating hypothisis.
10.70c In <1John Lewis & Co. Ltd. v. Goodwin (V.O.)>1 and
<1Another,>1 1980, the Lands Tribunal decided that a <1lease back rent>1
was not dependable evidence of market rental value. Mr. Walm-
sley pointed out that whereas a market rent is geared primarily to
profitability a lease back transaction is essentially a funding
operation in which the initial rent is geared to the relative
strengths of the property market and the money market, at the
time of the transaction.
10.70d He also pointed out that the traditional position of the
negotiators for a lease back rent is reversed. The potential tenant
is trying to push the rent up as high as possible (because the capital
sum which the tenant will receive is based on the initial rent).
Whereas the potential landlord is trying to depress the initial rent,
(in order to keep the price down).
10.71 Where rents are based on the renewal of an expired lease
there is good cause to doubt whether the new rent is of necessity a
fair reflection of current rental value. In some cases it is un-
doubtedly true that landlords are inclined to be lenient when
renewing a lease as it saves them the bother of finding a new
tenant and the possibility of having the shop void for a few weeks
or months, and also because they prefer to have in their shop a
tenant who has proved to be of some substance.
10.72 <2The Landlord & Tenant Act, 1954,>2 except in a few specific
cases, entitles a tenant to a new lease on the expiry of his old lease.
In the absence of agreement between the landlord and tenant on
the amount of rent to be paid under the lease, the rent will be fixed
by the court. Rents agreed under the shadow of the Landlord &
Tenant Act, 1954, as amended by the Law of Property Act, 1969,
must be examined with care since the Acts require that there shall
be excluded from the open market rental value any increase in
rental value due to:--
(a) goodwill and the fact that the tenant or his predecessor in
title has previously been in occupation of the premises;
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<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(b) any improvements carried out by the tenant or his predeces-
sor in title (other than as a condition of the lease) where
those improvements were carried out in the immediately
preceding term, or within the last 21 years.
10.73 For example, fifteen years ago a tenant extended his shop
by 20 feet and as a result the rental value is #1,200 p.a. instead of
#1,000 p.a. When agreeing a new rent the landlord would only be
entitled to #1,000 p.a. but the full rental value for rating purposes
would be #1,200 p.a. It can be seen from this example that careful
enquiry must be made before accepting that a renewed rent is the
same as the full rental value.
10.73a Another practice for the rating surveyor to be wary of,
when an existing tenant is found to have taken a new lease of the
same property, is that of "surrender and renewal". Because the
continuation of a shopkeeper's good will is so important to him, he
may not wait until his lease expires before renewing it.
10.73b As a condition of the grant of a new lease the landlord
may require the tenant to surrender his old lease, whilst it still has
some months or years to run. If the shopkeeper is enjoying a profit
rent, at the time that he surrenders his old lease, then in
surrendering the lease, the tenant is giving the landlord something
of value. In return for the surrender value of the old lease, the
landlord will, in all probability, agree to grant the new lease at a
rent lower than would otherwise be the case. It follows that where
a new lease has been granted before a previous lease has expired,
the rent under the new lease may not represent the full rental
value of the hereditament and it may therefore have to be adjusted
before it can be used for rating purposes. (See paragraphs 8.48 to
8.54b.)
10.74 In certain areas there is a scarcity of shop accommodation
whilst in others there is a surplus. For the moment we are
concerned only with the effect of the scarcity element which has
undoubtedly resulted in very high rents. To a certain extent it is
true to say that the <1scarcity rent>1 is the answer to the statutory
problem. If the rent which in fact is found in the open market is
very high then the assessment will be equally high and it is
impossible to divorce this level of market rental from the statutory
definition. On the other hand the Lands Tribunal has been very
unwilling to accept as a firm basis, the obvious scarcity rent. This
was particularly noted in the case of <1Moore v. Rees,>1 in 1952, where
it was decided that "there was no duty upon the Tribunal to adopt
a basis of value emerging from the combination of <1extreme scarcity>1
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<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
<1and dire necessity>1 and that it was permissible in deciding the
question of fact to endeavour to take a reasonable and sensible
view of the matter". One rather imagines that this extract means
that the rating valuer has to find the yearly rent with a reasonable
expectation of continuance and not the maximum blackmail rent
which is obtained at the moment without any reasonable prospect
of continuance. Where all or the majority of rents in an area
reflect scarcity, then there is little doubt that scarcity should be
taken into account in the assessment. (See paragraphs 6.98 to
6.99.)
10.75 For rating purposes we have to find the rent of a shop and
not the rent that <1a particular trade>1 would pay for that shop. The
question which the valuer must ask himself is, if this shop was
vacant, and to let, what rent would it command in the open
market, having regard to the competition or lack of competition
from all the different trades which would like to occupy it?
10.76 To a certain extent physical or planning constraints may
either enhance or diminish the value of a shop, by making it more
or less suitable for certain trades. For example, special planning
permission is needed before a shop can be used as a fish and
chip shop and if there happens to be only a limited number of
such shops but a big demand for them, then the rental value of
these shops will be higher than that of other shops. Nevertheless,
most shops can be used for a wide range of trades and the rental
level will be determined by one trade bidding against another.
10.77 When investigating the suitability of the rental evidence
special attention should be given where, for instance, shops have
been built by a council in a council estate, or by a development
corporation in one of the new towns. In such cases it is common
for the shops to be put out to tender and also common for each
shop to be <1tied to a particular trade.>1 This restrictive covenant on
trade may mean that the shopkeeper who goes there has a local
monopoly and is therefore prepared to pay a higher rent than he
would if there was no such monopoly. This may lead to some very
peculiar results. It is undoubtedly true that certain trades show a
bigger retail profit margin than others so that shops tied to certain
trades will command higher rents than others. As has been
explained earlier, it is found that in those trades, such as grocery,
where there are many multiple firms in competition, the rent
offered in order to secure a monopoly may be two or three times
what is ordinarily thought of as the open market value of the shop.
In other cases where there is no such competition the rent may
even be less than that which is ordinarily thought of as the current
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<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
rental value, because the shop can only be used for one of the less
profitable trades.
10.77a In one case where there was a row of eight shops let by
tender and where each trade had been assured of a monopoly by
the landlord, the rent paid by the most profitable trade was over
three times that paid for an identical shop which was restricted to a
less profitable trade. But according to the rating hypothesis all
eight shops should be assessed at the same figure. This is because
<1monopolies>1 or <1restrictions>1 resulting from a private agreement
between the actual landlord and the actual tenant should not be
reflected in the assessment. The reason for this is that at the time
of valuation the hereditament is deemed to be vacant and to let,
and the hypothetical landlord when letting to the hypothetical
tenant, would not grant any private monopolies or impose any
private restrictions.
10.78 If the landlord covenants in the lease not to let any of his
other shops to a grocer and if the other shops in the area all belong
to that landlord, then the tenant will have a monopoly as a
grocer. For this monopoly he would be prepared to pay rent,
over and above the rent that he would pay for the shop in the
normal way. This additional rent must be excluded from the rating
assessment.
10.79 A similar problem arises where the actual landlord im-
poses restrictions in the lease. For instance, there may be a
restriction in the lease against using the shop for any trade except a
chemist. It may be that in this particular location a chemist will not
have a very big turnover and will not, therefore, be able to afford a
very big rent. When valuing that shop for rating, the presence of
the restriction must be ignored. The valuer must ask himself how
much the shop would have let for had it been vacant and to let
without any such restriction. The answer is that it would probably
have let for more, to some trade other than a chemist.
10.80 The question in rating is not "what would a particular
trade pay for this shop?" but "what would the market pay for the
shop?"; bearing in mind that the market is made up of many
different trades, all bidding against each other to rent the shop.
10.81 A <1statutory monopoly,>1 a monopoly resulting from the
location of a hereditament or one resulting from the physical
characteristics of a property, should be reflected in the rating
assessment. This is because both the hypothetical tenant and the
hypothetical landlord would be affected by such a monopoly.
10.82 When the rents which do not conform with the rating
hypothesis have been placed to one side it will be found that the
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<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
rents which are left are beginning to show some form of pattern,
though it will by no means be regular. If, which is most improb-
able, all the shops in the High Street are the same size as to
frontage and to depth then <1prima facie>1 all the rents which have
been kept as typical rents should be equal, though this will never
be found to be the actual case. One part of a High Street is always
more popular than another. The shops of good repute tend to cling
together and form a centre of higher value. Various interruptions
in the flow of shoppers will cause breaks in the rental values. If
there is a break of say a bank, a post office or a public house
between one shop and the next, then that physical break will
nearly always provide a break in rental values and the shops one
side of the break will have a higher value than those the other side.
All the factors mentioned earlier such as bus-stops and pedestrian
crossings will be reflected in the rents of the shops and it is this
pattern which must be found. It is true to say that in nearly every
case that can be analysed it is quite wrong to adopt a uniform basis
for the whole length of the High Street. The rents once analysed
will reveal a pattern showing a preference for certain areas as
opposed to others and this preference must be reflected in the
rating assessments.
10.83 How then are the rents to be analysed? No hard and fast
rule can be laid down for the method whereby the rental evidence
of shops should be analysed. Shops above everything else require
great care and individual attention, for in the case of this class of
property there is so much apparently conflicting rental evidence
that to find a basis which suits all the available evidence is
sometimes almost impossible.
10.84 There are, however, certain principles which can be
applied. In some cases one principle may have to be abandoned in
favour of another and it is wholly erroneous as a matter of
valuation to value all shops everywhere on the same analytical
basis.
10.85 It must be apparent that the only evidence to be analysed
is that which has been sifted out of the mass of rental evidence as
being reliable. The comments above have endeavoured to explain
which rents can be accepted as reliable and which cannot. After
selecting those rents they must, where necessary, be adjusted so as
to become rent in terms of the hypothetical tenancy and only after
this can the rents be analysed.
10.86 The most common method of analysis is that which is
known as "zoning". Zoning is a method based on the fact that the
front part of a shop is usually more valuable than any other part.
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<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Where this assumption is not true the zoning method must either
be distorted or abandoned.
<1The Natural Zoning Method>1
10.86a We may imagine a row of shops thus:--
10.87 The shallowest shop shown above is 15 m deep. There is
of course no evidence of the way in which that rent is built up. It is
impossible to say as a matter of fact what price should be put on
the front 5 m or the last 5 m. All that the valuer knows is that for
the shop 5 m wide and 15 m deep the rent is #1,500 p.a. (on
average #20/m<s2>s) the depth of the front zone must therefore be 15 m
as the valuer has no information on which to break it down. The
next shop on which the valuer has any evidence is the shop 25m
deep with a rent of #2,100 p.a. and the next beyond that is 35m
deep with a rent of #2,500 p.a. This therefore tells the valuer that
the depths of his zones must be 15m, 10m and 10m respectively.
He can now say that the value of the second zone, from 15m to
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<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
25 m of depth, is #600 (i.e. #2,100 -- #1,500) and that of the third
zone, from 25m to 35 m, is #400 (i.e. #2,500-- #2,100).
10.88 On average every square metre of depth from 15 m to
25 m is worth #12, and every square metre of depth from 25 m to
35 m is worth #8. This evidence can now be used to value the shops
on the plan thus:--
<1Shops No. 3>1
1st zone, 15 m depth #1,500
2nd zone, 5 m depth at f12/m<s2>s # 300
Rental Value #1,800
<1Shop No. 7>1
1st zone 15m depth #1,500
2nd zone, 10m depth at #12/m<s2>s # 600
3rd zone, 5 m depth at #8/m<s2>s # 200
Rental Value #2,300
10.89 The above is the basic underlying theory of zoning. In
practice it will rarely be found that the matter is so simple, because
shops vary over a wide range in depth and frontage and the depths
will not vary in such convenient zones. It is generally true,
however, to say that the depth of the front zone should not be less
than the depth of the shallowest shop, for it must be repeated that
the valuer has no evidence on which this can be broken down.
10.90 The general approach is to select the rents which are
reliable as evidence of rental value and to separate the correspond-
ing shops into categories of depth. If it is found that there are a
number of shops with depths ranging between 8 m and 12m, then
10m might well be chosen as the depth of "Zone A". There may
then follow a few shops between 10m and 17m in depth. "Zone
B" might then be taken as 5m deep. If there is a further group
with depths approximating to 20 m, then "Zone C" would be 5 m.
We therefore have Zone A 10m
Zone B 5m
Zone C 5m
20 m
10.91 This has accounted for 20m of depth. Anything beyond
that might be treated as storage value only, apart from special
circumstances. All the rented shops in that shopping area would
then be devalued in these zones and the prices obtained therefrom
259
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
used to value the other shops and to iron out minor inconsistencies
in the rented shops.
10.92 The depth of zones must be dictated by the depths of
shops and the relationship of the value in one zone to another must
be dictated by the value revealed in the evidence. If a more
complicated example is taken the valuer should proceed as fol-
lows:--
<1Analysis of rents.->1
<1Shop 1>1
Frontage 5 m; depth 15 m; area 75m<s2>s let at #1,125 p.a. or on
average #15/m<s2>s
<1Shop 3>1
Accept the first 15 m of depth at #15/m<s2>s
Frontage 6m; depth 15m; area 90m<s2>s at #15/m<s2>s= #1,350
Remaining 6m of depth is therefore worth
#1,710 -- #1,350 = #360.
As the area of this second zone is 6 x 6m = 36m<s2>s the rent of
#360 p.a. is equal to an average of #10/m<s2>s.
First Zone: 15 m deep, is worth #15/m<s2>s (evidence of Shop No.
1).
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<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
Second Zone: 6 m deep, is worth #10/m<s2>s (evidence of Shop Nos.
1 and 3).
<1Shop 5>1
First Zone: 15 m of depth at #15/m<s2>s.
Frontage 8m; depth 15 m; area 120m<s2>s at #15/m<s2>s = #1,800
Second Zone: next 6m of depth at 10/m<s2>s.
Width 8m; depth 6m; area 48m<s2>s at #10/m<s2>s = # 480
Total of 1st and 2nd zones #2,280
Remaining depth, 4m is therefore worth
#2,600 -- #2,280 = #320
Third Zone: is 8m wide and 4m deep, giving an area of 32m<s2>s
which is worth #320 or an average #10/m<s2>s.
The analysis shows that the second and third zones have the same
value. In the case of these particular shops it is therefore necessary
to have only two zones:--
Zone A: depth 15 m<s2>s; value #15/m<s2>s.
Zone B: depth 10m<s2>s; value #10/m<s2>s.
Zone A Zone B
Shop -------------------- Total rent Rent Assessment
Area @ #15 Area @ #10 calculated passing
1 75 1,125 -- --- #1,125 #1,125 #1,125
3 90 1,350 36 360 #1,710 #1,710 #1,710
5 120 1,800 80 800 #2,600 #2,600 #2,600
<1Valuation of Shop No. 7>1
<1Frontage Depth Area>1
Zone A: 6m x 15 m =90m<s2>s at #15/m<s2>s #1,350
Zone B: 6m x 7m=42m<s2>sat#10/m<s2>s # 420
Assessment #1 ,770
10.93 The value per square metre found for each zone is an
average figure and it seems probable that in reality the value per
square metre at the front of a zone is higher than the value at the
rear of that zone. Some approximation of how the value of the
shop decreases foot by foot, as its depth increases, can be found by
plotting on a graph the average value of each zone against the
centre point of that zone (measured from the front of the shop).
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<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1The Arithmetical or Arbitrary Zoning Method>1
10.94 It is sometimes suggested that the principle of zoning
involves no more than the division of shops into a number of
zones, the depth of which is chosen arbitrarily and with little or no
regard to the actual depth of the shops. Having decided on the
depth of each zone the valuer, in an equally arbitrary way, decides
on the relationship of value between one zone and the next. For
example, he may decide that all the shops shall be divided into 5
metre zones and that the second zone will be half the value of the
first zone and that the third zone will be half the value of the
second zone and so on. (This is known as "halving back.") Such a
method cannot be theoretically supported as a method of valua-
tion, it is nothing more than an arithmetical formula which is
bound to produce inconsistant results in most cases.
10.95 Incorrect sizes of zones and incorrect relationships be-
tween the value of zones will probably produce answers which are
quite divorced from reality. Indeed by arbitrarily altering the
depth of the zones and the relationship of the value between
zones, rents can be analysed in different ways so that when applied
to a shop for which there is no rental evidence, different values
result.
10.95a The following calculation illustrates the danger:--
262
<1Example>1 :
<1Analysis by the Natural Zoning Method>1
<1Shop No. 1 Shop No. 2 Shop No. 3>1
Rent #4,000 p.a. Rent #5,800 p.a. Rent #6,400 p.a.
Frontage 10 m less rent attribut- less rent attribut-
Depth 20m able to Zone A able to first and
-------- #4,000 p.a. = second zones
Area 200m<s2>s #1,800 p.a. #5,800 p.a. =
#600 p.a.
Therefore #20/m<s2>s Rent attributable to Rent attributable to
is attributable to the second zone the third zone
the first zone #1,800 p.a. #600 p.a.
Second zone Third zone
Frontage 10m Frontage 10m
Depth 15m Depth 5m
Area 150m<s2>s Area 50m<s2>s
Therefore #12/m<s2>s is Therefore #12/m<s2>s
attributable to the is attributable to
second zone. the third zone.
Because the second and third zones analysed out at the same
figure, namely 12/m<s2>s, only two zones are called for:--
Zone A: 20m deep at #20/m<s2>s
Zone B: 20m deep at #12/m<s2>s
These zone prices are the same for all three shops.
<1Analysis by the Arithmetical or Arbitrary Method>1
10.96 When the arbitrary method of valuation is used the valuer
must decide:--
1. the depth of zone to be used, and
2. the monetary relationship between one zone and another.
In this case the valuer decides to use three 10 metre zones and a
remainder. He also decides that each zone is half as valuable as the
one immediately in front of it.
If Zone A is #x/m<s2>s then Zone B will be #x--<i2>i/m<s2>s
Zone C will B #--<i4>i/m<s2>s and the remainder will be 3x--<i8>i/m<s2>s
263
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Shop No. 1
Rent #4,000 p.a.
Zone A 10x10m=100m<s2>s
Zone B 10x10m=100m<s2>s
100x + <s100x>s<i2>i = #4,000
x = #26-66
Zone A #26-66/m<s2>s
Zone B #13-33/m<s2>s
Shop No. 2
Rent #5,800 p.a.
Zone A 10 x 10m= 100m<s2>s
Zone B 10 x 10m= 100m<s2>s
Zone C 10 x 10m= 100m<s2>s
Zone D 10 x 5m= 50m<s2>s
100x + <s100x>s<i2>i -- + <s100x>s<i4>i + <s50x>s<i8>i = #5,800
x = #32-00
Zone A #32.00/m<s2>s
Zone B #16.00/m<s2>s
Zone C #8.00/m<s2>s
Zone D #4.000/m<s2>s
Shop No. 3
Rent #6,400 p.a.
Zone A 10x 10m=100m<s2>s
Zone B 10x 10m=100m<s2>s
Zone C 10x 10m=100m<s2>s
Zone D 10x 10m=100m<s2>s
100x + <s100x>s<i2>i + <s100x>s<i4>i + <s100x>s<i8>i = #6,400
x = #34.13
Zone A #34-13
Zone B #17-06
Zone C #8-53
Zone D #4-26
10.97 The first thing to note about the arithmetical or arbitrary
method of zoning is that it does not give a consistent zone A price.
As the shops vary in size so does the zone A price. This disproves
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<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
the view expressed by some valuers that if the same mathematical
formula is applied to all shops then consistent results will be
obtained.
10.98 The only occasion when arbitrary zones will give a
consistent zone A price is when the arbitrary zones happen by
some chance to coincide with the natural zones and when the
arbitrary apportionment of values happens to coincide with the
true values.
10.99 The variation in zone A price is, in practice, usually
attributed to different lettings, by different landlords, to different
tenants, at different times. However, by experimenting with
various examples this can be shown not necessarily to be the case.
10.100 Having, by the use of the arbitrary zoning method,
arrived at a series of different zone A prices it is customary in the
absence of other considerations to take an average and round it
off.
Shop No. 1 Zone A price #26-66
Shop No. 2 Zone A price #32-00
Shop No. 3 Zone A price #34-13
3 #92-79
#30-93
Average Zone A price, say #31.
10.101 The results of the two different methods of valuation can
be seen when we use the analysed figures to make a valuation.
Valuation of Shop No. 4
10.102 Shop number 4 is identical in every way with shop
number 1. We know, therefore, that the valuation should result in
a figure of #4,000 p.a.
<1Natural Zoning>1 <1Arithmetical or Arbitrary Zoning>1
<1Method>1 <1Method>1
Zone A 200m<s2>s Zone A 100m<s2>s
Zone A Zone A
price #20/m<s2>s price #31/m<s2>s
--------- ---------
Value #4,000 p.a. Zone B 100m<s2>s #3,100
Zone B
price #15.5/m<s2>s
------------ #1,550
-------
#4,650 p.a.
10.103 The arithmetical or arbitrary zoning method has given
the wrong answer in the case of Shop No. 4. If the arbitrary zone A
265
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
price is now used to value shop numbers 1, 2 and 3, the wrong
answer will be found in each case.
10.104 Despite the fact that the arbitrary zoning method gives
the wrong answer in nearly every case, it is used widely in practice.
This is because it is very easier to apply. It is also argued that, if
the same arbitrary zones are used all over the country it enables a
shop in one part of the country, to be compared with a shop in
another part of the country. The justification for making these
countrywide comparisons has, as yet, not been satisfactorily
explained in rating terms.
10.104a Not withstanding the arbitrary zoning methods theore-
tical shortcomings it is universally adopted by the Valuation Office
of the Inland Revenue and accepted by the Lands Tribunal.
10.105 The error which results from the use of arbitrary zoning
becomes progressively less as the arbitrary zones get closer in size
to the natural zones and as the arbitrary relationship between the
values of the different zones gets closer to the natural relationship.
10.106 It is, therefore, of the utmost importance to see that the
valuation has been done as a valuation and not as a mere matter of
arithmetic.
<1Other Valuation Matters>1
10.107 Zoning is by no means the only practicable method of
valuation for shops although in most cases it is a very useful one to
adopt. There are many instances where other methods must be
investigated. In the case of an open store, such as a typical
Woolworths shop, the zoning method may be inapt.<s10>s Once the
public is inside the shop the whole layout is designed to attract the
customers to walk at will over the full extent of the sales floor, and
the front part of the sales floor earns little more than the rear part.
10.107a Certain trades, particularly gown shops, go out of their
way to provide a maximum area of window space by introducing
arcades whereby the public are invited to wander round gazing
into the windows without actually entering the sales space.
10.107b Some shops will inevitably be found on street corners
with the main frontage to one road and a return or side frontage to
another. The <2return frontage>2 is very often substantially longer
than the main frontage, but metre for metre is probably worth less
as the side street does not have the same publicity value as the
main street. It may be possible, when faced with such a problem,
<s10>s <1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Moore (V. O.),>1 1978. <1J. Sainsbury Ltd. v. Wood>1
<1(V. O.),>1 1980.
266
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--II>1
to compare the rents of other shops which have return frontages,
with the rents of shops which are similar in every way, except that
they do not have return frontages. If such comparisons can be
made, it will be possible to see how much extra rent the market
will pay for a return frontage and corner position. The extra rent
can be expressed as a percentage of the rent of a similar shop
which has no return frontage. If this type of analysis is performed a
number of times on different shops, a pattern of percentages will
begin to emerge. When it is necessary to value a shop which has a
return frontage but no rent, these percentages can be used to guide
the valuer in making his valuation.
10.108 When the side street is relatively unimportant from a
shopping point of view the percentage is likely to be fairly low;
when the side street is an important shopping street the percentage
will probably be much higher.
10.109 In the case of a shop with a return frontage where both
frontages face on to busy shopping pavements, zoning backwards
from one frontage may give a substantially different answer to that
obtained when zoning backwards from the other frontage.<s11>s A
good deal of common sense is needed in such cases and the valuer
should stand back from the problem and not allow himself to be
confused by the conflicting results produced by a strict application
of the zoning method. The question to be answered is what would
the hypothetical tenant reasonably be expected to pay for such a
shop having regard to its advantages and disadvantages.
10.110 Valuers have been known in the case of return frontages
to zone backwards from both frontages at the same time, dividing
the shop into wedges. The results obtained by this method are
highly questionable.
10.111 In the case where two shopping streets run parallel to
each other and a shop extends straight through from one street to
the other, it may be reasonable to zone backwards from each
frontage, provided it is borne in mind that the value of such a shop
is not necessarily the sum of the separated parts. An addition for
"throughness" may well be appropriate is such a case.<s10>s
10.112 Some trades use upper floors or basement floors as
additional sales space and it would be quite wrong to say that the
front part of an upper floor is worth any more than any other part,
unless indeed it can be suggested that the peak of value is around
the top of the staircase or lift where the public enter the sales
floor iia
<s11>s <1W. H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977-
<s11>sa <1john Lewis & Co. Ltd. v. Goodwin (V.O.)>1 and <1Another,>1 1979 (L.T.).
267
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
10.112a Some shops are very much bigger in area than others,
the extremes in the ordinary township being, for example, tobac-
conists' kiosks on the one hand and supermarkets on the other.
Is it fair to make a direct comparison between these two or should
some distinction be made, particularly on the grounds of quantity
or "quantum" as it is called? All these points require further
investigation and the first additional factor is what has been called
the "foot-in value".
10.113 The principle of the <2"foot in value">2 is that a particular
shopkeeper will give a certain amount of rent in order to have a
sufficient shop frontage in a particular shopping street to allow
room for his fascia board. He does not particularly mind how
much shop area there is behind, provided there is something
reasonable. What he wants is to get his name over a shop in a
particular road, and for that benefit he is prepared to pay a certain
amount of rent per metre frontage irrespective of depth. If this is
true then this "foot-in value" must be deducted from the rent
before it is analysed on the zoning method, otherwise like will not
be compared with like when the rent of a shop with "foot-in value"
is compared with another shop having no such element of value.
Where "foot-in value" applies, quite clearly the value is higher for
say a 10 m shop frontage than for a 5 m shop frontage, though
whether or not the "foot-in value" of the former is double that of
the latter, is a matter of considerable doubt. It is in still greater
doubt whether or not the "foot-in value" is in direct proportion to
the length of the shop frontage. It is almost inconceivable that a
shopkeeper would pay a greater "foot-in value" for a shop front of
6-1 m than he would for one of 6-5 m, though he might pay
something extra for the added area of window space, if any.
Because of the structure of the shop front and the building, it does
not always follow that extra shop frontage will provide extra fascia
board length and an extra area of window space.
10.114 It is probably true to say that "foot-in value" only
applies in expensive shopping areas such as the West End of
London and the main streets of the principal provincial towns. It
may apply elsewhere but only if there are some abnormal cir-
cumstances. It must also be remembered that when areas of high
value are being investigated any apparently minor disadvantages
such as a busy traffic corner, may well show more than a
proportionate drop in "Zone A" value, when compared with an
area of lower value, but may not affect the "foot-in value" at all.
The trader has got his "foot-in" that particularly desirable road
and will pay the price for this.
268
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
10. 115 The shape of a shop can have an effect on its value.
Columns projections, internal walls and changes in level <2may>2
make it difficult to lay the shop out in an efficient manner and will
almost certainly reduce its value as compared with a shop which
suffers none of these disadvantages.
10. 116 Considerable care must be taken when dealing with
disabilities. If the shops used as the basis of the rental analysis
suffer from disabilities then the analysed zone A price will reflect
these disabilities and problems will arise when valuing shops which
do not have such disabilities. Where possible it is best to avoid
basing the zone A price used for valuation, on shops which suffer
from disabilities which are not shared by other shops in the same
location; but of course this is not always possible.
10. 117 The proportions of a shop, as between frontage and
depth can also have an effect on value. For example, a shop with
a frontage of 6 metres and a depth of 18 metres is not likely to have
the same value as a shop with a frontage of 18 metres and a depth
of 6 metres. Nor is a strict application of the zoning method likely
to produce the right answer in the case of the second shop.
10.118 The <2quantity allowance>2 or <2quantum allowance>2 is a matter
which is the subject of much argument between rating valuers
when discussing shops.<s12>s The argument for a quantity allowance
is that if there are two shops, one having ten times the area of
the other but having the same depth, then the rental value of the
former will not necessarily be ten times the rental value of the
latter. The argument presumably springs from the contention that
things are cheaper "by the dozen", and also that a landlord is
prepared to give a reduction in rent if he is going to be saved the
bother of collecting numerous small rents. Whether or not a
quantity allowances is justified in any particular case can really
only be decided by investigation of the rental evidence. It may well
be that when rents are analysed it is not found possible to arrive at
a basis unless a quantity allowance is made for the biggest shops. If
this is the case then quite clearly a quantity allowance is justified
for the other equally big shops which are not let. On the other
hand, in certain areas it may well be argued, and justified on the
rental evidence, that the demand for big shops is just as keen, if
not more so, than the demand for small shops and if this is the case
the quantity allowance will not be justified. Indeed, if there is a
high demand for big shops in relation to the number available, it
<s12>s <1W H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977. <1John Lewis & Co. Ltd. v.>1
<1Goodwin (V.O.)>1 and <1Another,>1 1979 (L.T.).
269
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
may be that a tenant will pay proportionately more for a big shop
than a small one. In which case far from deducting a quantity
allowance it might be appropriate to add one. No hard and fast
rule can be laid down but it is probably fair to say that a quantity
allowance should only be made where the rental evidence clearly
justifies and supports it.
10.119 In <1W. H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977 the
Tribunal in dealing with the subject of "quantity allowance"
distinguished between "allowance for shape" and "allowance for
size."<s13>s The Tribunal pointed out that in so far that a large shop
was usually deeper than a small shop, the extra floor space had in
most cases already been valued at a lower figure, due to the fact
that when using the zoning method of valuation the rear part of a
shop is valued at a lower figure than the front part. The same
principle applies if a shop has several floors, because the upper
and lower floors are usually valued at a smaller figure than the
ground floor.<s14>s
10.120 If on the other hand a shop is large because it has a long
frontage in relation to its depth, then the zoning method of
valuation does not make an automatic allowance for the size of the
shop and in consequence an "allowance for shape" might be
justified. In the case where a shop of this type has a return
frontage a useful check can be made by zoning first from the main
frontage and then from the return frontage and comparing the
results.
10.121 In recent years, large shops have often been valued
adopting a lower rear zone price; thus when using the arbitrary
zoning method, shops may be valued at A, one half A and say
one-fifth or one-sixth of A for the rear zone (instead of one
quarter of A and a quantity allowance).
10.122 Alternatively the Lands Tribunal has on occasions
approved the valuation of large shops on the basis of a zone A and
remainder only. The remainder not necessarily bearing any fixed
relationship to the zone A price.
10.123 For detailed discussions and the Lands Tribunals views
on the rating of large shops and showrooms the reader is referred
to:--
<1William Hill (Hove) Ltd. v. Burton (V.O.),>1 1958
<1British Home Stores Ltd. v. County Borough of Brighton and>1
<s13>s See also <1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Christopher (V.O.)>1 and <1Lincoln>1
<1Corporation,>1 1972.
<s14>s <1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Christopher (V. O.)>1 and <1Lincoln Corporation,>1
1972.
270
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---II>1
<1Burton (V.O.),>1 1958
<1Fine Fare Ltd. v. Burton (V. O.)>1 and <1County Borough of Brighton,>1
1958
<1Welwyn Department Stores Ltd. v. Welwyn Garden City Urban>1
<1District Council and Pote (V. O.)>1 , 1959
<1Trevail (V.O.) v. F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd.>1 , 1967
<1Trevail (V. O.) v. C. & A. Modes Ltd.>1 , 1967
<1Trevail (V. O.) v. Marks & Spencer, Ltd.>1 , 1967
<1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Christopher (V.O.) and City of>1
<1Lincoln,>1 1972
<1Lotus & Delta Ltd. v. Culverwell (V. O.) and Leicester City>1
<1Council,>1 1976
<1Burroughs Machines Ltd. v. Mooney (V. O.), 1967>1
<1W. H. Smith & Son Ltd. v. Clee (V.O.),>1 1977
<1F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. v. Moore (V.O.),>1 1978
<1John Lewis & Co. Ltd. v. Goodwin (V.O.) and Another,>1 1979
271
<1Chapter 11>1
<2VALUATION OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROPERTY--III>2
<2Schools>2
11.1 For valuation purposes schools may be divided into two
broad groups:--
<1(1)>1 Schools, the running costs of which are borne by the Local
Education Authority.
<1(2)>1 Schools, the running costs of which are not borne by the
Local Education Authority.
(1) The first group of schools comprises "county" and "volun-
tary" schools. County schools are state schools and include
pn-mary, middle and secondary schools. The secondary schools are
usually called secondary modern, grammar or comprehensive.
Voluntary schools comprise church and other "non-provided"
schools. Section 30 of the General Rate Act, 1967, gives the
Minister of Housing and Local Government and the Secretary of
State for Education the power to make regulations, laying down a
formula for the valuation of these schools. Up to the time of
writing no regulations have been made. Despite this, it has been
the practice, since the 1956 revaluation, to value county and
voluntary schools by means of a non-statutory formula arrived at
by agreement between Local Education Authorities and the
Valuation Office of the Inland Revenue. The use of the non-
statutory formula was considered by the Lands Tribunali which
raised no objection in principle provided the formula resulted in a
correct assessment. Both section 30 and the unofficial formula are
derived from the contractor's method of valuation. The advantage
of using a formula is that once the formula has been agreed, all the
county and voluntary schools in the country can be assessed
quickly and with a minimum of dispute or recourse to the courts.
The provision of a formula for the assessment of schools, the
running costs of which are borne by the Local Education Author-
ity, is in line with the increasing practice of using formulas, where
public money pays the rates. Other examples are the assessment of
nationalised railways, gas, water and electricity undertakings.
<s1>s <1Dawkins>1 (V. O.) <1v. Leamingston Spa Corporation and Warwickshire County>1
<1Council,>1 1961.
273
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(2) The second group of schools range from small privately
operated schools which are usually kindergarten or preparatory, to
the schools of old foundations, generally of the public school or
old grammar school type. The larger type of school in this group
frequently include special facilities such as squash and fives courts,
boat houses and rifle ranges.
11.2 Some private schools are let at rents, and if a sufficient
number of rents is available as evidence in any particular locality, a
rental basis is undoubtedly the most satisfactory for a rating
valuation. The unit of comparison is usually that of the scholar,
"per capita". A useful guide in comparing schools is the number of
square metres of floor space available per scholar.
11.3 Where there are no rents, there is <1prima facie>1 a choice of a
profits method or a contractor's method.
11.4 There is no public school in the country let at a rack rent,
and few, if any, are of modern design, although many may have
one or more buildings which are modern.
11.5 In the <1Shrewsbury School>1 case<s2>s the Lands Tribunal consi-
dered the method of valuation to be used where there is no rental
evidence. The method approved by the Lands Tribunal was the
contractor's method. Because of the age of some of the buildings,
the effective capital value was arrived at by first estimating the cost
of providing equivalent buildings, but of modern design and
construction. Since some of the buildings were old and suffered
from serious disadvantages, by today's standards, a large disability
allowance (in the region of 70%) was deducted from the estimated
cost, in order to arrive at the effective capital value.
11.6 Architectural embellishment should be ignored<s3>s and the
valuer should rather concern himself with the straightforward
functional purpose of the school, on the theory of the "simple
substituted building" as it is called, whereby the valuer assesses
the rent that the school would pay for a simple functional building
devoid of any monumental or memorial character.
11.7 When making a contractor's valuation the Courts have
stated that in the first instance a commercial rate of interest should
be used for converting the effective capital value into a rent. If this
rule was strictly adhered to, the value of properties would fluctu-
ate widely according to the prevailing bank base rates.<s2a>s
<s2>s <1Shrewsbury School (Governors) v. Hudd>1 (V. O.), 1966 <1and Shrewsbury School>1
<1(Governors) v. Shrewsbury Borough Council and Plumpton>1 (V. O.), 1960.
<s2a>s But see <1Westminster City Corporation v. The Amer1can School in London and>1
<1Goodwin>1 (V.O.), 1980 (L.T.).
<s3>s <1Oxford University v. Oxford Corporation,>1 1902; <1Royal Medical Benevolent>1
<1College v. Epsom Union,>1 1902.
274
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
11.8 There is a strong feeling amongst valuers that the correct
rate to use, is the long term rate of return which the hypothetical
landlord might reasonably expect to receive from the hypothetical
tenant, if he invested in that particular class of property <s2a>s
11.9 In the Shrewsbury case, a rate of interest was used which
was below the commercial rate. The lower rate was adopted,
presumably in order to allow for the fact that schools of this type
could not afford to pay a rent based on a commercial rate of
interest. The adoption of a lower rate of interest illustrates once
again, that methods of valuation are only a means to an end, and
that the important thing is to find the rent which the hypothetical
tenant would pay for the hereditament and not to adhere slavishly
to a particular method of valuation.
11.10 In the Shrewsbury case the Lands Tribunal admitted and
approved as evidence, the assessments of public schools in other
parts of the country. These assessments were analysed by dividing
the number of pupils at each school into the assessment, which
resulted in an amount of gross value<s3a>s per pupil place. In this way
it is possible to see whether the relative advantages and disadvan-
tages of each school have been reflected in the rating assessment.
11. 11 In <1Eton College (Provost and Fellows) v. Lane>1 (V. <10.) and>1
<1Eton Rural District Council,>1 1971 the Lands Tribunal once again
approved the use of the contractors basis of valuation. The
Tribunal preferred it to an approach which sort to value Eton
College on the basis of figures obtained by analysing the assess-
ment of Shrewsbury School (which had itself been the subject of a
Lands Tribunal decision).
11.12 In the Eton College case the Lands Tribunal accepted a
valuation in which the effective capital value of each building was
arrived at by estimating the cost of replacing it by a new building of
the same size, shape and height, also of similar visual appearance
(but without any architectural embellishments or extravagances)
and having the same internal design. This notional building was
essentially a replacement in modern materials of the actual
building, being devoid for instance of central heating if the actual
building was not centrally heated. From the estimated building
cost a percentage was deducted to allow for age and obsolescence
before arriving at the effective capital value.
11. 13 This method can be contrasted with that in which the
construction cost of a simple substituted building is estimated. The
<s3a>s For the 1973 and earlier valuation lists schools were valued to gross value but see
paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
<s3b>s "Public House" is defined in the General Rate Act, 1967, s.20(2).
275
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
simple substituted building is not necessarily the same size and
shape as the existing building but it has the same functional
capacity. There are no excessive ceiling heights or over thick walls
and the building has modern facilities such as central heating,
improved lighting and better layout. The simple substituted build-
ing also excludes architectural embellishments and is built of
modern materials using modern methods. From the estimated cost
of constructing the simple substituted building a deduction is made
to allow for the age and obsolescence of the actual building.
11.14 Some of the smaller private schools are found in large
houses which have been converted for use as a school. In the
absence of rental evidence it may be possible to arrive at the
effective capital value by estimating the selling price of such a
house and making an allowance for the conversion.
11. 15 With a view to reducing the high cost of disputing
assessments placed on public schools, the Valuation Office of the
Inland Revenue have in conjunction with the Association of Public
Schools Bursars, codified a form of contractors method of valua-
tion for this class of hereditament. The method was used exten-
sively for the 1973 revaluation and is really no more than a
formalised contractor's valuation.
11.16 Whether or not the playing fields are part of the same
hereditament as the school buildings, the hereditament containing
the school buildings will require a gross value.<s4>s If, however, the
playing fields are separated from the school buildings to such an
extent that they form a separate hereditament, then the playing
fields may be assessed direct to a net annual value.
11.17 Some of the schools falling within the second group will
be eligible to receive relief under section 40 of the General Rate
Act, 1967, which makes provision for charities and other similar
organisations.
<2Public Houses<s3b>s and Beer Houses>2<s4a>s
11.18 Public houses and beer houses enjoy an element of
monopoly because the sale of alcoholic liquors is permitted only
on premises in respect of which a Justices' On Licence has been
granted. As such, licences are issued very sparingly according to
the needs of the neighbourhood. It follows that the owners of
licensed premises know that would-be tenants must compete for
<s4>s Section 19 General Rate Act, 1967, but see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
<s4a>s For further information on this subject see The Valuation of Licensed Premises
by R. W. Westbrook, Estates Gazette.
276
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
the occupation of one of the existing houses and must therefore
measure their rental bids by having regard not only to the trading
potentialities of the house in question but also to the element of
monopoly enjoyed by the owner's premises. Although many, if
not most, public houses are let to tenants the position is compli-
cated by the widespread custom of "tying" houses to a particular
brewery so that the tenant convenants to purchase from the
brewery all his supplies of beer, and sometimes of wines, spirits
and other drinks. In return the tenant may obtain the premises at a
reduced rent but in such a case he will probably have to pay more
for his beer than would be paid by a free tenant. However, in more
recent times there has been a tendancy for brewers to increase the
rent of "tied" houses but charge the tenant no more for his
supplies than a licensee, who is free of a tie, would have to pay.
11.20 As the majority of public houses are today owned by
brewery companies it follows that the majority are also tied and
that therefore the greater bulk of the rental evidence will be for
tied houses. The rating hypothesis assumes a tenancy free from
any such convenant, so that it is the free rent which has to be
estimated, (i.e. the tied rent does not conform with the rating
hypothesis and can not, on the face of it, be used on its own as
evidence of the hypothetical rent).
11.21 From 1898 until 1938 the valuation of public houses was
governed by the decision of the High Court in <1Bradford-on-Avon>1
<1Union v. White,>1 1898, which remained law until it was overruled
by the House of Lords in <1Robinson Bros. (Brewers) Limited v.>1
<1Durham County Assessment Committee,>1 1938.
11.22 The Robinson case completely overthrew both the deci-
sion in the Bradford case and also the method of valuation which
had been evolved to give effect to that earlier decision. The House
of Lords approved the contention that in assessing a public house
not merely the existence of competition between brewers was to
be taken into account but also the rental bids which would be
forthcoming from brewers as a result of that competition. (Brew-
ers can often afford to pay more rent for a public house than an
ordinary tenant because a brewer receives not only the retail profit
on the beer sold in the pub, but also the wholesale/manufacturers
profit.) In his judgment, Lord Macmillan held that in valuing a
hereditament (for example a public house), it was quite legitimate
to have in view its importance as an adjunct of another heredita-
ment (i.e. the brewery).
11.23 Although the majority of tied houses are owned by
brewery companies a number are in fact rented by brewers from
277
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the freeholders. There may therefore be a limited amount of direct
evidence of rental value to a brewer but of course it is most
unlikely that the premises will be found to be held on an annual
tenancy, since brewers usually enter into long-term leases. This
factor must be borne in mind when considering the weight to be
attached to any rental evidence and it must also be remembered
that the present trading position may well be very different from
that which existed at the time when the lease was granted.
11.24 Not all public houses are financially profitable as far as
brewers are concerned and in these cases there will be no overbid
from the brewer. The assessment will therefore be what an
ordinary tenant would pay by way of rent if he were not tied to a
particular brew of beer.
11.25 Although the specific point has never been tested in the
courts, it is assumed that the doctrine of <1rebus sic stantibus>1 implies
that not only the existence of the licence but also the value of the
licence must be reflected in the assessment, and this in the absence
of good rental evidence means that some sort of profits method
must usually be applied.
11.26 The shortage of good rental evidence has given rise to a
method of valuation which takes into account both the tied rent
which a brewer could exact from his tied tenant and the profit
which the brewer will make on the liquors supplied under the tie.
This is known as the "direct approach method" or the "direct
method". In estimating the tied rent it must be remembered that
duty and rates will be borne by the tenant-occupier and not by the
brewer-owner, despite the fact that the result of the competitive
bids between brewers may have been to cause the assessment to be
fixed at a figure higher than that which would be justified by the
profits of the tenant's retail trade alone.
11.27 The admissibility in court of the actual trading accounts,
of the actual tenant, of the actual hereditament, was established in
the case of <1Cartwright v. Sculcoates Union,>1 1899, on the ground
that all that could reasonably affect the mind of the intending
tenant ought to be considered. A similar line of argument was used
in the case of <1Watney Mann Ltd. v. Langley (V.O.),>1 1966, in which
it was decided that the valuation officer could require the occupier
of a public house to make a return disclosing the volume of his
trade .
11.28 In the method of valuation outlined above it will be
necessary first of all to estimate <1(a)>1 the tied rent, and <1(b)>1 the
brewer's wholesale profits arising out of the trade of the house.
The resulting aggregate figure of brewer's income is divided
278
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
between the amount that the brewer would require to retain as his
share and the sum which he would be prepared to pay as rent, the
brewer's rental bid being the assessment. It is in the estimation of
the brewer's bid, that the existence of competition between
brewers will be reflected; the keener the competition the higher
will be the percentage which the brewer is prepared to bid by way
of rent and the higher the rent.
11.29 The following example of the valuation of a public house
illustrates the "direct" method although the figures of wholesale
profit and so on are merely arbitrary.
<2>2<1Direct Approach Method of Valuation>1
<2>2<1Wet Trade>1
<1Brewer's Profit>1
Draught beer - 650 @ #6.30 #4,095
Bottled beer - 185 @ #7.60 #1,406
Wine & Spirits - 2600 gallons @ #0.90 #2,340
#7,841
Estimated Tied Rents:
2400
650 + 185 + ----
3
1,635 converted barrels @ #2.75 #4,496
Brewer's bid #12,337
50% #6,168
<1Dry Trade>1
Receipts for catering and letting of rooms: #38,000
@ 8%
Annual value #3,040
Brewer's bid 75% #2,280
Two amusement with prizes machines: #150
#8,598
Gross Value<s*>s #8,600
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g
279
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
1 1.29a The <2"direct method">2 of valuation is based on the
assumption that a brewer will take a tenancy of the public house
and that he will then sublet it to a "tied" tenant.
11.29b The income which the brewer will receive from the
subletting is made up of:--
<1(1)>1 the manufacturer's/wholesale profit on the tied drinks sold
in the pub;
(2) the tied rent which the tenant will pay the brewer;
(3) a share of the profits made from the amusement with prizes
machine/s.
11.29c The brewer will not be prepared to pay all this income to
his landlord by way of rent. This is because if he does, there will be
little or no financial advantage to the brewer in taking a tenancy of
the public house. However, the brewer will be prepared to pay by
way of rent, a percentage of the income which he expects to
receive from his tied tenant. The percentage will vary from pub to
pub and area to area depending amongst other things on the
competition for the pub, from other brewers, and from licensees
who wish to be free of any tie.
11.29d In valuing a public house, the volume of trade which the
hypothetical tenant would expect from the house, must first be
estimated. This is sometimes referred to as the "reasonable
maintainable trade." The hypothetical tenant's level of trade is not
necessarily the same as that of the actual tenant; although evi-
dence of the actual tenant's trade may be a useful guide.
11.29e The actual tenant might be a famous sportsman or have
some special skill in running a public house, not possessed by the
hypothetical tenant. Any trade resulting solely from these attri-
butes must be disregarded when valuing the hereditament. Simi-
larly the fact that the actual tenant is slothful, rude to customers
and generally does not run the premises to its full potential, must
also be disregarded when valuing a public house for rating
purposes.
11.29f Having found the "reasonable maintainable volume of
trade," this is then multiplied by the hypothetical manufacturer's/
wholesale profit per barrel of beer or per gallon of wine and spirit.
The resultant figure is the total manufacturer's/wholesale profit
which a brewer would expect to make as a result of taking a
tenancy of the public house.
11.29g The "wet" tied rent of a public house can be analysed by
dividing it by the number of "converted barrels" sold in that pub.
The "converted barrel" is a unit of comparison arrived at by
280
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
converting all alcohol sold on the premises into terms of barrels of
beer. In the above example this has been done by dividing the
number of gallons of wines and spirits by three and adding this to
the number of barrels of beer sold.
11.29h By analysing the "wet" tied rents of a large number of
public houses in this way, it is possible to arrive at a tied rent per
"converted barrel". The "wet" tied rent for a given public house,
can then be arrived at by multiplying the number of "converted
barrels", by the appropriate value per barrel.
11.291 The tied rent per barrel used to make the valuation,
should reflect such matters as the presence or absence of living
accommodation, the cost of running the public house (in so far
that some public houses are constructed so that they can be run
more efficiently and cheaply than others), the potential for
juke-boxes, bar billiard tables and other machines/facilities (with
the exception of amusement with prizes machines).
11.291 The brewer's manufacturer's/wholesale profit is then
added to the "wet" tied rent and the percentage of this sum which
a brewer would bid, by way of rent, is calculated. This may be
termed the "wet tied rent".
11.29k The gross receipts from catering, the letting of rooms
and other income producing facilities (except amusement with
prizes machines) are totalled and multiplied by a percentage, to
arrive at the rent which a tied tenant would pay the brewer for the
opportunity of carrying on this side of the business, (i.e. the "dry"
trade). The brewer would in turn be prepared to pay a percentage
of this sum, by way of rent, to his landlord. However, it should be
noted that the percentage used to arrive at the brewer's bid in the
case of the "dry" trade, will not necessarily be the same as the
percentage which he bid in the case of the "wet" trade.
11.291 Under the terms of most tied tenancies the licensee is
free to install machines, games and other facilities without paying
any additional rent to the brewer. The tied rent will therefore take
this potential into account.
11.29m However, in the case of "amusement with prizes
machines" (for which a licence is required) many tied tenancy
agreements are so worded that the brewer is able to take a
percentage of the profits made from the machines. It follows that if
a brewer expects to receive such profits he will be willing to pay
some additional rent for the public house.
11.29n The machines themselves are not rated and so the
increase in the assessment is restricted purely to the additional rent
which a brewer would pay for the right to receive a percentage of
281
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the net profits from such machines (after allowing for the payment
of prizes and the rent of the machines).
11.29o Amusement with prizes machines are a comparatively
new factor in the valuation of public houses. For the purposes of
the 1963 and 1973 valuation lists it would seem that the practice
has developed, of adding a lump sum on at the end of the
valuation, to reflect the potential for installing such machines.
<1Managed Houses>1
11.30 A brewer who controls a public house may put a manager
into it, instead of letting it to a tied tenant. The manager is
normally employed by the brewer and is paid a wage for managing
the pub plus perhaps some incentive payment. By this means the
brewer receives both the retail profit and the manufacturer's/
wholesale profit from sales in the public house but of course he has
to pay all the running expenses.
11.30a There seems to be a tendency to put managers into
public houses which have a high volume of trade and where that
trade is more dependant on the situation of the public house than
on the personality of the licensee. For example, public houses in
the principal office areas of the City of London are frequently
managed houses. Managers may also be found in public houses
which suffer from some defect, such as impending compulsory
purchase.
11.30b Managed houses are usually valued by the "direct"
method of valuation. The argument being that there is no differ-
ence in value between a public house which is let by a brewer to a
tied tenant and one which is managed.
<1Free Houses>1
11.30c Some public houses are not owned or leased by brewers
and these are run by licensees who are not normally subject to a
brewer's tie. These pubs are referred to as "free houses" and many
are owner occupied. Indeed in recent times brewers have been
selling quite a number of their public houses; notably those which
have a comparatively low volume of trade and/or, are inaccessible
to a brewery.
11.30d The reasons for these sales would seem to be the high
price obtainable for public houses in the open market and the high
cost, to a brewer, of maintaining a public house. It is not unknown
for the volume of trade to increase in a public house once it has
been sold to a free tenant.
282
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
11.30e There is no doubt that over the years brewers have
gained control of most of the public houses in England and Wales.
This they have done by outbidding other potential licensees and
where a public house is more valuable to a brewer than to anyone
else, the brewer's "overbid" should be reflected in the rating
assessment.
11.30f However, the position may be different where an in-
terest in a public house is not owned by a brewer and in particular
where a brewer has sold the pub to a non-brewer. In such a case it
can be argued that a brewer would pay no more for that public
house (and quite possibly less), than a non-brewer. It follows that
the brewer's "overbid" would not be applicable and such a pub
would in all probability be valued by means of a straightforward
profits valuation.
11.30g For an example of a profits valuation see paragraph
11.36a onwards.
<1Wine Bars>1
11.30h Wine bars must have an "on licence", (a licence for the
sale of intoxicating liquor on the premises). However, the "on
licence" granted to a wine bar, frequently contains restrictions on
the type of alcoholic liquor which can be sold. For example, the
"on licence" may not allow beer to be sold on the premises.
11.30i Where a wine bar is physically indistinguishable from
surrounding properties e.g. shops or offices, the minimum rental
value of the wine bar will be what it would let for if there was no
licence. To this, a sum may be added if it can be shown that the
hypothetical tenant would pay something extra for the benefit of
having a licence.
11.30j It follows that wine bars will normally be valued by
comparison with adjoining premises. If a sum is to be added to the
assessment, to reflect the value of the licence, this may be
calculated by taking a percentage of the alcoholic liquor sales. The
percentage should be arrived at by analysing the rents paid for
wine bars, and comparing them with the rents paid for physically
similar premises, which do not have licences. The extra rent (if
any) paid for a wine bar can be expressed as a percentage of the
liquor sales.
11.31 Where a <1public house>1<s3b>s is to be valued according to the
statutory tone of the list, the level of values, costs and percentages
applied should be those at the time that the valuation list was
made. However, section 20 of the General Rate Act, 1967, makes
it clear that the volume of trade on which the valuation is to be
283
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
based, is the volume at the date of the proposal (not as might have
been thought, the volume at the time of the last revaluation).
<2Residential Hotels and Clubs>2<s4a>s
11.32 Although many residential hotels and clubs are licensed
for the sale of alcohol, the receipts from this source usually
represent a comparatively minor proportion of the total trade and
therefore the premises do not often attract the competition of
brewers, who are more interested in the licensed rather than the
unlicensed trade. So far as the smaller type of hotel is concerned
there may be a certain amount of rental evidence which can form
the basis of assessments but the larger hotels and clubs are more
usually owner-occupied, so that recourse must be had to some
alternative method. As such premises are nearly always purpose-
built or adapted for their particular user, the method of receipts
and expenses is both appropriate and proper. A valuation on these
lines presents no special features but it must be remembered that
where the property is one that requires a gross value<s*>s, there will
be no sinking fund in respect of the structure, although there will
of course be the sinking fund allowance in respect of the tenant's
furniture, equipment and chattels.
11.33 The valuation will therefore be on the following lines:--
From the total gross receipts, estimated or actual, the cost of
purchases will be deducted (allowing for any increase or decrease
in stock during the year) thus leaving a gross profit; from the gross
profit the normal working expenses will be deducted--that is
wages, fuel, etc. The figures for repairs and maintenance of the
tenant's fixtures fittings and chattels will then be investigated and
probably averaged over two or three years. Repairs to the
structure are <1not>1 allowed, if the hereditament is valued to a gross
value<s*>s, as these are the hypothetical landlord's responsibility. A
sinking fund for the tenant's repairs and the tenant's sinking fund
for the tenant's chattels, etc., will also be calculated. The average
cost of tenant's repairs and the tenant's sinking fund will be
aggregated and also deducted from the gross profit to leave the
<1divisible balance.>1 From the divisible balance the tenant's share
must be deducted to leave rental value plus rates.
11.34 The tenant's share may be calculated in a number of
different ways, for example:--
(a) By taking a percentage of the annual turnover.
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
284
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
(b) By taking a percentage of the total capital which the tenant
has invested in the business, i.e. capital tied up in fixtures,
fittings, chattels, stock-in-trade and cash-at-bank, necessary
to run the business.
(c) By taking a percentage of the divisible balance.
11.35 In all three cases the percentage chosen must reflect
interest on the tenant's capital or alternatively interest on the
tenant's capital must be deducted as a separate sum before arriving
at the divisible balance.
11.36 Having deducted the tenants share the rental value can be
separated from the rates by using the formula shown in paragraph
8.16.
<1Example>1 :
11.36a Value for rating purposes the Kings Arms which is a
licenced hotel. Without consulting you, your client made a pro-
posal on the 19th November, 1978 to reduce the rating assessment.
The volume of trade and the hotel's profitability at the date of the
proposal were greater than in the years leading up to the last
revaluation. Your client owns a leasehold interest in the hotel. The
lease is for 99 years and has 14 years unexpired at a ground rent of
#84 per annum.
11.36b In the absence of any true open market rental evidence
it is likely that the profits or accounts method of valuation will
produce the most accurate answer.
11.36c Your client runs the hotel in a reasonably competent
way and his accounts may in general be taken as typical of those of
the hypothetical tenant.
11.36d A tone of the list valuation must be made in this case,
since the valuation results from the making of a proposal. The
volume of trade and profitability increased since the date of the
last revaluation so it will not be necessary to do a <1Barratt v.>1
<1Gravesend>1 valuation (i.e. value at the date of the proposal)
because this would result in a higher figure than the tone of the list
valuation. (The tone of the list valuation imposes a ceiling on the
value which can be entered in the valuation list.)
11.36e From the nature of the trade carried on, in the premises,
it is apparent that the hereditament is not a "public house," within
the definition contained in section 20 of the General Rate Act,
1967. The volume of trade is therefore not a "relevant factor"
within section 20(1)(a) and <1(2)(c)>1 of that Act and so the valuation
285
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
will be based on the volume of trade which existed prior to the last
revaluation.
11.36f Exactly which years accounts were used by the valuation
officer for the purposes of making the 1973 valuation list can only
be found out by investigation. Since accounts take some time to
produce and because work on the preparation of a valuation list
starts two or three years before the valuation lists comes into
force, it seems likely that the accounts for the year ending 31st
December, 1971 were those on which the 1973 revaluation was
based (i.e. the 1971 accounts established the tone of the list).
11.36g The Kings Arms accounts for the year ending the 31st
December, 1971 contain the following information:--
<1(a)>1 Gross Receipts
Apartments #97,562
Restaurant #89,467
Bar #52,171
<1(b)>1 Purchases
Consumables #74,171
(c) Consumable Stock
On 1st January #10,970
On 31st December #9,563
<1Working Expenses>1
<1(d)>1 Salaries and wages including national insur-
ance #73,182
(e) Electricity, gas, oil, solid fuel and water
(metered) #11,674
<1(f)>1 Stationery, printing, postage, telephones and
advertising #5,142
(g) Laundry and cleaning materials #4,862
(h) Ground Rent #185
<1(i)>1 Repairs of building #3,500
(j) Insurance of building #514
(k) Repairs and renewals of soft and hard fur-
nishing and equipment #7,243
<1(l)>1 Insurance of the contents and third party
insurance #850
<1(m)>1 Interest on overdraft at the bank #186
(n) Mortgage repayments #2,672
(o) Proprietor's drawings #1,862
(p) Rates #1,276
286
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
(q) Sundry expenses e.g. licence duty, flowers,
newspapers, bank charges, etc. #3,084
<1(r)>1 The value of the furniture and equipment in
1971 was #136,000 but it was insured for
#200,000 (its cost of replacement).
11.37 By looking at the accounts for the years before 1971 it can
be seen that there is no general upward or downward trend in the
profits. It would therefore have been reasonable for the valuation
officer to base his assessment for the new valuation list (which
came into force on the 1st April, 1973) on the 1971 accounts,
without making any allowance for any anticipated increase or
decrease in the value of the hereditament.
11.38 If the profits of a hotel vary from year to year but without
showing any marked upward or downward trend, the valuer may
take an average of the profits over a number of years.
11.39 Certain items in the accounts of the actual tenant must be
excluded from the profits valuation because they are not expenses
which the hypothetical tenant would incur. Other items must be
adjusted in order to conform with the terms of the hypothetical
tenancy. The question which the valuer must continually ask
himself is, ""would the hypothetical tenant occupying the heredita-
ment on the terms of the hypothetical tenancy incur this expendi-
ture." He should ask himself whether the hypothetical tenant
would incur any expenditure not shown in the actual tenant's
accounts.
11.40 Looking through the actual tenant's accounts 1971 the
following points should be noted:--
(c) By comparing the amount of stock held on the
31st December with that held on the 1st January it
will be seen that there has been a decrease of
#1,407. This amount should be added to the
purchases before deducting the combined figure
from the receipts. The reason is that the missing
stock was used in earning the gross profit.
Had the stock increased during the year, the
amount by which it increased should be deducted
from the purchases, because that amount had not
been used in earning the gross profits.
(d) The salaries and wages ought to be examined to
ensure that the proprietor is not in effect paying
himself part of the "tenant's share" in the form of
287
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
a salary. In which case the salaries and wages bill
should be decreased by that amount.
Conversely, if the actual tenant is performing
duties which are not reflected in the tenant's
share, such as acting as an unpaid barman, a sum
should be added to the wages bill to reflect the
necessary cost of employing extra help in the bar.
(e, f, & g) All expenses must be examined to see that they
are necessarily incurred in the running of the
business.
(h) The ground rent should be excluded from the
valuation because the hypothetical tenant is a
tenant from year to year and would not therefore
pay a ground rent. Had the tenant been paying
any other form of rent, it should be left out of
account at this stage because the rent and rates
are the sum to be found at the end of the
valuation.
(i & j) If the hereditament is being valued to gross
value,<s*>s the cost of repairing and insuring the
building should be excluded from the valuation
because in the case of gross value, the hypothetic-
al landlord is responsible for repairs and insur-
ance and not the hypothetical tenant.
If the hotel is to be valued direct to net annual
value,<s*>s then the hypothetical tenant will be re-
sponsible for the cost of repairs, insurance and
other expenses. In consequence the average
annual cost of repairing and insuring the heredita-
ment must be deducted from the gross profit.
There may also be a need to set up a sinking fund
to replace those parts of the hereditament which
are likely to wear out.
<1(k)>1 The repairs and renewals of the soft and hard
furnishings and equipment should be deducted
from the gross profit because it is an expense
which the hypothetical tenant would incur.
However, this sum is likely to vary from year to
year, in which case it is best to take an average
over a number of years. (An amount has been
included for renewals of furnishings and equip-
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g
288
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
ment and this takes the place of the sinking fund
referred to in paragraph 11.33.
(m) The actual tenant may or may not have an
overdraft at the bank and in any case the amount
of the overdraft will vary from tenant to tenant.
When valuing for rating purposes it is necessary
to calculate the total amount of capital which the
hypothetical tenant will need to invest in the
business. Interest is then allowed on this sum and
the resultant figure deducted from the net profit.
Alternatively interest on tenant's capital may be
reflected in the tenant's share.
11.41 The rate of interest applied to the tenant's capital may be
thought of in several ways and at the time of writing no clear rule
has been laid down.
11.42 If the tenant uses his own capital he will have to forego the
interest which he could have earned by investing that capital
elsewhere. Conversely, if he borrows the capital, he will have to
pay interest on it. The question arises, to what extent would the
hypothetical tenant put his own money into the business and to
what extent would he borrow the money needed to run the
business? This may well vary from one type of business to another.
In either case the money invested in the business is likely to be at
greater risk than money invested in a building society or similar
investment and this should be reflected either in the rate per cent
used to calculate the interest or in the amount of the tenant's
share. Because interest rates fluctuate, it is important to establish
the date by reference to which the rate of interest is to be found
and this will vary according to whether a tone of the list or a <1Barrat>1
<1v. Gravesend>1 valuation is being made.
(n) The hypothetical tenant is a tenant from year to
year and would not have a mortgage. Because the
hypothetical tenant pays a rack rent, his interest
in the property would not form a mortgageable
security.
(o) The proprietor's drawings should not be deducted
from the gross receipts because they are part of
the actual tenant's share.
<1(p)>1 The actual rates paid should not be deducted
from the gross receipts because it is the rent and
rates which we are trying to find and these will
emerge at the end of the valuation.
289
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
(r) The value of the furniture and equipment was
#136,000. This was the price at which they could
have been sold and it is this figure which is used to
calculate the tenant's capital because this is the
sum which the tenant is forgoing by using the
furniture and equipment in the business. The
furniture was insured for #200,000 because this is
what it would have cost to replace (various items
being purpose made for the hereditament).
<2>2<1Tone of the list Valuation of the Kings Arms Hotel>1
(Based on accounts for year ending 31st December 1971)
<1Note: In this example the hereditament is being valued to gross>1
<1value>1<s*>s
Gross Receipts:
Apartments #97,562
Restaurant #89,467
Bar #52,171
-------
#239,200
Less:
Purchases of consumables #74,171
Consumable stock:
On 1st January #10,970
On 31st December #9,563
------
#1,407
#75,578
--------
Gross profit #163,622
Less:
Working Expenses:
Salaries and wages including
national insurance #73,182
Electricity, gas, oil, solid
fuel and water (metered) #11,674
Stationery, printing, postage,
telephones, and advertising #5,142
Laundry and cleaning materials #4,862
Repairs and renewals of soft
and hard furnishing and
equipment #6,600
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g
290
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
Insurance of the contents and
third party insurance #850
Sundry expenses #3,084
#105,394
Net Profit #58,228
Less:
Interest on tenants capital:
Furniture and equipment #136,000
Average stock #10,000
Cash needed to run business
(say 3 weeks working expenses) #6,000
#152,000
at 7-5% #11,400
Divisible Balance #46,828
Less:
Tenant's share at 40% #18,731
Rent and Rates #28,097
Gross Value + Rates = #28,097
The Net Annual Value is the same as the Rateable Value in this
case so the above can be re-written.
Net Annual Value + Statutory Deductions + Rateable
Value x Rates in # = 28,097.
Let Net Annual Value and Rateable Value be X.
The Gross Value will exceed #430 so that the statutory deductions
expressed in relation to the Net Annual Value will be
NAV + 170
5
The rates in the # are 50p.
X + 170 50
X + ------- + X x --- = 28,097
5 100
X + 170 50X
X + ------- + --- = 28,097
5 100
100X + 20X + 3,400 + 50X = 28,097 X 100
170X = 28,09700 - 3,400
X = 16,508
291
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Net Annual Value and Rateable Value #16,508
Net Annual Value and Rateable Value #16,508
Add: Statutory deductions
#16,508 + 170
-------------
5 #3,336
-------
Gross Value #19,844
Gross Value rounded off G.V. #19,800
=======
<1Check the accuracy of calculations:>1---
Gross Value #19,844
Less: Statutory deductions
G.V. #19,844
-# 430 #100
-------
#19,414
16 2/3% #3,236 #3,336
------- ------ -------
Net Annual Value and Rateable Value #16,508
Ratesin# .50
-------
Rates Payable #8,254
Add: Gross Value #19,844
-------
Rent and Rates #28,098
=======
The slight difference between #28,097 and #28,098 is due to
rounding errors.
11.43 In this particular hotel the income from the bar trade is
low compared with that from the apartments and restaurant. In
consequence it is unlikely that a brewer would be interested in
renting the hotel. Had it been otherwise it might have been
necessary to reflect the brewers bid in the valuation.
11.44 The rates in the pound used in the above calculation are
neither the rates in the pound in 1971 nor the rates in the pound at
the date of the proposal. The reason for this is that although the
valuation is based on the 1971 accounts the valuation which was
originally carried out by the valuation officer was in anticipation of
the valuation list which was due to come into force on the 1st
April, 1973. The hypothetical tenant when deciding what rent he
could afford to pay would have regard to the anticipated rateable
value and the anticipated rates in the pound when the 1973 list
came into force. The rates in the pound usually change when a new
292
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
valuation list comes into operation and it is therefore necessary for
the valuation officer to try and estimate what the rates in the
pound will be, so that he can use this figure in his profits valuation.
11.45 Having carried out a profits valuation on the hotel it
would be prudent to analyse the assessments of other similar
hotels in the area and compare these with the assessment of this
hotel. One method of analysis is to use as the "unit of comparison"
the <1hotel bedroom>1 (distinguishing between single and double
rooms), the <1square metre>1 for restaurants, bars, conference rooms
etc. and the <1car space>1 in the hotel garage.
11.46 Some valuers adopt a "single bed unit" or s.b.u. as the
unit of comparison whilst others use a percentage on gross
receipts.
11.47 The valuation of a hotel was considered by the Lands
Tribunal in <1Strand Hotels Ltd. v. Hampsher (V. O.),>1 1977. Other
decisions of note include <1Centre Hotels (Cranston) Ltd. v. Ridgeon>1
<1(V. O.),>1 1977; <1Bass Charrington v. Padgett,>1 1969; <1Brickwoods Ltd.>1
<1v. Cousins (V.O.),>1 1968.
<1Proprietary Clubs>1<s4a>s
11.48 The smaller type of non-residential club usually depends
very largely on the sale of alcohol as a source of revenue but as
club licences are easily obtained there is not the same element of
monopoly as in the case of a public house. Clubs of this type are
often found in buildings which are otherwise occupied as suites of
offices with shops on the ground floor so that there will be a
considerable volume of rental evidence on which to base an
assessment. The common practice is to value the club premises on
the basis of such rental evidence, and some valuers make a small
addition to the answer so as to reflect the additional value which,
in their opinion, arises from the club licence.<s5>s
<1Registered Clubs>1
11.48a These are clubs which are owned jointly by their mem-
bers and so there is no question of a proprietor making a profit out
of the members, (as in the case of proprietary clubs).
11.48b Because the members own the club, when a member is
supplied with a drink there is no "sale", in the legal sense of the
word. The member is merely receiving something which he
already owns jointly with the other members. When he pays for
the drink, it is no more than a way of fairly distributing the cost of
running the club amongst the members.
<s5>s But see <1Midland Bank Ltd. v. Lanham (V.O.).>1 1977-
293
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
11.48c Because there is no sale when alcohol is supplied to a
member, there is no need for the club to have a licence for the sale
of intoxicating liquor. In consequence when renting premises, the
club is not restricted to taking a licensed property. Any suitable
premises will do and because there is no licence the landlord will
not be in a monopolistic position. It follows that the landlord will
not be able to demand a share of any profit which could be made
from alcoholic liquor consumed on the premises.
11.48d Premises occupied by a registered club will therefore be
valued in the same way as any other unlicensed premises, normally
by the rental method.
<1Licensed Restaurants>1
11.49 These are usually valued on the basis of rental evidence
provided by nearby shops, possibly with the addition of a small
sum in respect of the licence, but as some of these premises are
purpose-built or adapted, the evidence of the occupiers' accounts
may be relevant.
<1Off-Licences>1
11.49a Off-licence businesses are usually carried on in shop
premises. The valuation of the premises may therefore be based
on the rental evidence for similar shops.
11.49b Sometimes an addition is made to the shop assessment
in order to reflect the value of the licence, (i.e. a licence to sell
intoxicating liquor for consumption <1off>1 the premises). However,
"off-licences" are granted comparatively freely and there are a
large number in existence. As a result of this it is by no means
certain that a landlord could obtain a higher rent for a property
because it has the benefit of an off-licence. It is suggested that an
addition to the shop assessment should only be made where, it can
be shown from an analysis of off-licence rents, that tenants are
prepared to pay more than the normal shop rent because of the
licence.
<2Betting Offices>2
11.50 In order to operate a betting office a licence is required.
This licence gives the operator, if not a monopoly, then at least a
share in a monopoly in that area. The valuation of a betting office
was considered in <1Jack Swift Ltd. v. Dixon,>1 1968. On the facts of
this particular case the Lands Tribunal decided that the office
should be valued on the same basis as shops. However, it is
294
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
submitted that under certain circumstances a tenant might be
prepared to pay more rent for a shop, where there is a reasonable
expectation of obtaining a licence, than for a shop where there is
no such expectation. It is further submitted that in such a case
the additional rent should be reflected in the rating assessment.<s6>s
<2Theatres and Cinemas>2
11.51 Very few cinemas and theatres are let at true open market
rents and in the absence of such evidence some other method of
valuation must be used.
11.52 Theatres and cinemas both require a licence before they
may operate for public performances. The possession of such a
licence gives an element of monopoly to the landlord who is letting
the hereditament.
11.53 Today, however, this monopoly is likely to be of little
value as, with certain exceptions such as cinemas and theatres in
the middle of big cities, few cinemas and theatres can afford to pay
a rent based on todays cost of construction. Therefore, the
hypothetical tenant is in a position to say to the landlord that no
one could make big profits out of this kind of property and that he
will only offer a rent commensurate with his profit. From both
points of view therefore a profits valuation is justifiable.
11.54 Cinemas should be treated in a rather different way from
theatres. The difficulty in applying a profits valuation in practice is
that it is rare to find either a cinema or theatre which is
self-supporting and which is run as an individual house by an
individual occupier. Most cinemas today are organised into big
circuits or groups, which enable economies to be carried out in
their day-to-day operation and in some cases the occupation of the
cinema is in the same hands as the distribution of films and,
indeed, the production of the films.
11.55 A cinema circuit which occupies two cinemas in an area
may decide to show all the films which it thinks will provide the
biggest draw, at one of its cinemas. The less attractive films, and in
particular those that the circuit is forced to take as part of a deal
when securing the big draw films, will be shown at its other
cinema. This arrangement will distort the takings at the two
cinemas and will not necessarily represent the position if each
cinema was occupied by the hypothetical tenant.
11.55a "Bars" also affect the time at which newly released films
can be shown in cinemas. A <1"bar">1 is an arrangement which
<s6>s See also <1Ladbrook & Co. v. Mead (V.O.),>1 1969.
295
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
prevents cinema B from showing a film before cinema A has
shown the same film. Bars usually stem from the time when
cinemas were first built, the older cinema normally taking prece-
dence over the newer one. A bar of this type can have an
appreciable effect on the takings of the cinema which suffers from
the bar. This is because some cinema goers like to see films as soon
as they are released and in consequence go to the first cinema to
show the film.
11.56 With regard to theatres, once these are often run in
groups and many of them receive contributions from various
semi-official bodies to help them pay their way.
11.57 Full accounts for cinemas are rarely available, and those
for houses operated by the big groups or circuits are usually not
very helpful. Short-cut methods are therefore frequently used.
These are normally based on the admission monies as a yard-stick
(excluding any compulsory levy or other payments).
11.58 Some valuers prefer to use as a comparative method of
valuation, the assessment being expressed as so much per seat, but
no matter how the valuation is expressed it will nearly always have
as its basis a percentage of the admission monies.
11.59 If it can be shown that there is a particular house, either a
theatre or cinema, which is run to its best advantage as an
independent house with no ties to anyone in any direction then it
will be very difficult to resist the evidence of the actual accounts.
These are, unfortunately, very rarely found and the actual
accounts of cinemas or theatres will not usually be of very great
assistance to the rating valuer.
11.60 The usual method of valuation employed, is to estimate
the annual admission monies which the house is likely to receive.
The actual figure for past years may be given to the valuer by the
occupier or he may have to estimate it. If it is given to him by the
occupier then the valuer should express it in terms of so many <1"full>1
<1houses per week">1 for this is the most convenient method of
comparison. If the valuer has to estimate the income then the
usual method is by having regard to the probable number of full
houses per week.
11.61 A "full house" is the money which would be received by
the box office if all the seats were sold. This figure is then
multiplied by the estimated average number of times in a week
that the house will be filled. In estimating this multiplier regard
must be had to the possibility that the expensive seats may be filled
less frequently than the cheaper seats.
11.62 Excluding houses in the middle of large cities it will be
296
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
found that the number of full houses per week rarely exceeds
seven in the case of a cinema and three or four in the case of a
theatre. From the estimated weekly income the annual income is
calculated by multiplying by 52.
11.63 Cinemas and theatres also obtain income from the sale of
ice creams, sweets, cigarettes, hot dogs, drinks, screen advertising,
and on occasion from their car park. It is not unusual to find that
up to 25% of the income is made up of such items. The total
annual income for valuation purposes will, therefore, be the
admissions plus sales and other income, less film fund levy.
11.64 The value is estimated by taking a percentage of the total
annual income.<s7>s This percentage will vary according to the posi-
tion of the house, the local competition from other houses or from
other forms of entertainment such as speedway, greyhound racing,
etc., and in particular the estimated expenses necessarily incurred
to earn that income. For example, in some areas where competi-
tion is severe it may cost far more by way of advertisement to earn
the same income as a house in a less competitive situation. In the
case of cinemas (again excluding the central houses in a large city)
the percentage will usually vary from about 4 to 10. In the case of
theatres, where the necessary expenses are usually far higher than
those of a cinema and where the expected number of full houses is
less, so that there is a smaller margin of profit, the percentage will
rarely exceed 6 and may well be much lower.
11.65 A typical valuation of a cinema might run as follows:--
<1The Super Cinema>1
11.66 The valuation officer is preparing a new valuation list.
For the last three years the income of the cinema has been static.
The last complete year's accounts show the gross income (after
deduction of Film Fund Levy and V.A.T.) to amount to #206,153.
This figure includes receipts from screen advertising and sales of
confectionery.
The box office takings from a full house would be:--
Stalls: 600 seats at 95p #570
Balcony: 400 seats at #1-05 #420
"Full house value" #990
The gross takings, after deduction of levies, is the equivalent of
4 full houses a week.
<s7>s <1Rank Organisation Ltd. v. Billett,>1 1958.
297
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
Gross annual takings from all sources
after deduction of levy and V.A.T. #206,153
Having regard to the number of full
houses per week, the cost of running
the cinema and amount of competi-
tion from other forms of entertain-
ment, the hypothetical tenant would
be prepared to pay by way of rent 6%
of the gross takings 6%
#12,370 Rent
Gross Value,<s*>s say #12,400
<2Petrol Filling Station>2<s7a>s
11.67 Petrol filling stations are frequently owned by petrol
companies, who buy them in order to secure retail outlets for their
petrol. Thus, although the petrol company may let the filling
station to a tenant the lease will usually restrict (or "tie") the
tenant to selling his landlords brand of petrol.
11.68 The hypothetical tenant is not "tied" to a particular brand
of petrol and so the rent paid by a "tied" tenant is not by itself
good evidence of the open market rent which would be paid for a
petrol filling station.
11.69 A petrol company will often be prepared to pay more for
a petrol filling station than an ordinary tenant. This is because the
petrol company will earn not only the retail profit on the petrol
sales but also the wholesale or manufacturer's profit.
11.70 It follows that in many cases the hypothetical tenant for a
petrol filling station will be a petrol company and the petrol
company's "overbid" should be taken into account when valuing
the hereditament. The "overbid" is the amount which the petrol
company will pay over and above what an ordinary retailer
(dealer) would pay for the filling station. The situation is similar to
that of a public house and the decision in the case of <1Robinson>1
<1Brothers (Brewers) Ltd. v. Durham County Assessment Commit->1
<1tee,>1 1938 is equally applicable.
11.71 Although the theoretical existence of the oil companies's
"overbid" can be established, it is difficult in practice to discover
the amount of that bid.
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
<s7a>s For further information on this subject see The Valuation and Development of
Petrol filling Stations by J. R. E. Sedgwick and R. W. Westbrook, Estates
Gazette.
298
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
11.72 Despite the fact that petrol companies tend to buy petrol
filling stations there are occasions when they rent them and this
rental evidence may prove valuable. However, if the rent was
agreed on a long lease without frequent rent reviews or if the
petrol company has spent substantial sums on the property, the
rent may have to be disregarded as being too remote from that
which a hypothetical tenant would pay from year to year.
11.73 A petrol company's reason for purchasing a petrol filling
station is to secure an outlet for its particular brand of petrol and it
follows that the petrol company is principally interested in those
stations which have a high throughput of petrol. In the case of
garages with a low throughput it may well be that an ordinary
retailer (dealer) is prepared to pay as much if not more than a
petrol company.
11.74 Petrol companies are not particularly interested in invest-
ing capital in property as such, only in securing outlets for their
petrol. In consequence the petrol company is unlikely to pay any
more for the workshops and showrooms than is a dealer. Indeed
petrol companies prefer to purchase filling stations which have a
minimum of buildings and a maximum throughput, since in this
way they realise the maximum petrol sales for the lowest invest-
ment of capital.
11.75 Petrol filling stations usually enjoy a substantial element
of monopoly due to the difficulty of obtaining planning permis-
sion. It follows that in the absence of rental evidence some form of
profits valulation or quasi profits valuation may be applicable.
However, a strict profits or accounts valuation has never been
attempted in front of the Lands Tribunal. This may in part be
because of the difficulty of calculating the amount of the manufac-
turer/wholesaler's profit.
11.76 In practice there is used a method of valuation which is
based on the "throughput" of the petrol filling station.
11.77 The following three Lands Tribunal cases are authorities
for the rating valuation of petrol filling stations, namely:
<1Baird v. Wand & Andover Borough Council,>1 1957
<1H. A. Saunders v. Good,>1 1965
<1Petrofina (G. B.J Ltd. v. Dalby,>1 1967
11.78 All three cases support the view that the value of the
petrol filling station depends primarily on the throughput of
petrol. This is not surprising for the retailer will base his bid on the
amount of petrol sold, or "throughput". The petrol company will
also base its "overbid" on the amount of petrol sold.
299
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
11.79 Speaking generally the retail gross profit on a gallon of
petrol, at the time of the 1973 revaluation, varied from about 3-4p
to 4-2p, depending amongst other things on the octane or star
rating of the petrol. There is, however, a tendency for oil
companies to support individual operators to enable them to
undertake cut price selling. In consequence it is difficult, if not
impossible, to be precise about the gross profit per gallon.
11.80 The price the retailer actually pays to his supplier de-
pends on at least four things:--
<1(i)>1 whether or not he is tied to a single brand of petrol
(ii) the amount of "rebate" which he receives from his supplier
(iii) the size of his tanks i.e. the amount which he can take at
any one delivery (the "drop")
(iv) the distance of the filling station from the refinery or
distribution depot.
11.81 Because the cost of delivering petrol to filling stations is
high, petrol companies tend to give a discount if large quantities of
petrol can be delivered at one time. Conversely an additional
charge may be made if the petrol filling station is only capable of
accepting small "drops" (quantities). The discount can make a
difference to a retailer's profits and in turn the rent which he is
prepared to pay for a filling station.
11.82 The present trend towards mixer pumps and self-service
filling stations will also affect the stations profitability. This trend
came about because of the need to minimise overheads. It should
however be borne . in mind when valuing a self-service filling
station, that some expenses will increase. For example, the
amount of tenant's capital invested in the delivery pumps and
recording console and the cost of maintaining them will be much
higher in the case of a self-service station.
11.83 The petrol pumps and recording console are not part of
the hereditament and their value should not therefore be included
in the assessment. Where a petrol filling station is let the rent paid
may well include the pumps and recording console and so it will be
necessary to adjust the rent before using it for valuation purposes.
11.84 In the past some brands of petrol have been more popular
than others. Whether and to what extent this is still the case is
open to doubt. However, it should be borne in mind that the
hereditament must be valued as if it is vacant and to let and not as
if any particular brand of petrol is being sold. It follows that if due
to the brand of petrol being sold the filling station's sales are
unduly high or unduly low, it may be necessary to make an
300
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
adjustment to the actual throughput. It is the "throughput" which
the hypothetical tenant would achieve which must be taken into
account for rating purposes.
11.85 Occupiers who give trading stamps or other gifts or who
cut the price of their petrol or stay open all night, may consider-
ably increase their throughput. However, it must be borne in mind
that these attractions cost money and thus reduce the net profit on
each gallon of petrol sold. It may therefore be necessary for an
occupier who gives stamps or reduces the price of his petrol, to sell
very many more gallons in order to make the same net profit
overall, as an occupier who does neither of these things. This
should be borne in mind when valuing on the basis of throughput
and adjustments made where necessary.
11.86 An adjustment to the throughput figure may also be
necessary where a material amount of a filling station's throughput
stems from agency sales. These sales result from petrol companies
agreeing to supply large users with fuel at a discount price. Each of
the users vehicles is issued with a card which entitles it to draw
petrol or diesel from any garage which joins in the agency scheme.
In effect the garage is acting as an agent of the petrol company.
11.87 The significance of agency sales, from a valuation point of
view, is that the garage supplying the fuel does not receive as much
profit per gallon as it would if it were selling to a normal customer
and in consequence the tenant would pay a lower rent per
thousand gallons sold.
11.88 Analyses of profits and of rents indicate that a scale of
rental value per thousand gallons can be worked out: generally
speaking, the higher the throughput the more pro rata can be
afforded by way of rent. This is because:--
(1) the retailer's overheads do not increase in proportion to the
throughput and because
(2) the competition among petrol companies increases as the
throughput increases.
11.89 Thus a scale can be arrived at from, say, #3-00 per
thousand gallons upwards, for the 1973 revaluation figures ranged
generally from #3 gross value<s*>s to #7 gross value<s*>s per 1,000 gallons.
11.90 The throughput of the station will take care of the petrol
forecourt value. If there be additionally, a service bay, a work-
shop, showroom, car sales lot, etc., then these will be subject to
the normal methods of valuation and added onto the forecourt
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
301
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
value. Where the petrol sales element is but a small fraction of a
large town-centre showroom and workshop, care must be taken
not to duplicate values when adding the parts together, e.g. if the
position is such that a very high throughput is obtained, one
cannot value this throughput and simply add for the positional
value of the showroom as well without the risk of double valuing.
11.91 Unless enclosed in solid concrete the petrol storage tanks
themselves are not normally rateable (see <1Shell Mex v. Holyoak,>1
1959), but the pits in which they are sunk are rateable.
11.92 The question of whether, for the purposes of the 1973
valuation list, a petrol filling station should be valued to a gross
value<s*>s or direct to net annual value can give rise to doubt.
11.93 At the one extreme the only building on the hereditament
may be a small kiosk which houses the cash register. At the other
extreme the hereditament may include extensive showrooms,
workshops, stores and even a flat or house. The principles
underlying the decision whether to value to gross value<s*>s or direct
to net annual value are discussed in paragraphs 6.2 onwards.
11.94 A repair workshop attached to a retail garage is not an
industrial building within the meaning of section 19 of the General
Rate Act, 1967.<s*>s
11.95 In the case of <1Clymo v. Shell-Mex & B. P. Ltd.,>1 1963 (not
a petrol filling station case) it was held that a small piece of land
holding two underground petrol storage tanks was appurtenant to
the buildings within the same hereditament; the whole being used
as a petrol distribution depot. In consequence the hereditament
was valued to a gross value.<s*>s However, it is submitted that when
considering whether or not a hereditament is to have a gross
value,<s*>s there should be taken into account not only the size of the
buildings in relation to the land but also the primary use of the
hereditament. Largely for historical reasons most petrol filling
stations have a gross value.<s*>s
11.96 In the case of a petrol filling station the decision whether
to assess to a gross value<s*>s or direct to a net annual value can have
an effect on the rateable value. This is because if the only building
on the site happens to be a small kiosk, the cost of repairing it is
likely to be small in relation to the value of the hereditament. On
the other hand it must be borne in mind that petrol tanks do not
last for ever. Those encased in concrete (which usually form part
of the hereditament) may last for about 50 years. Those contained
in sand (these tanks do not usually form part of the hereditament)
may only last in the region of 25 years. The brick or concrete
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
302
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
chamber which contains the sand and tank is not plant but is
rateable as part of the surroundings in which the business is carried
on. Tanks encased in concrete are cheaper to install initially than
those held in sand but are more expensive to replace if the original
tank has to be removed. Nevertheless most tanks being installed
today are surrounded in concrete.
11.97 Depending on whether the hereditament is valued to a
gross value<s*>s or direct to net annual value, so the liability to set up
a sinking fund to replace the tanks will either fall on the landlord
or on the tenant.
11.97a Once the amendment to section 19 of the General Rate
Act, 1967 (made by the Local Government, Planning and Land
Act, 1980) has been brought into effect, all petrol filling stations
will, of course, be valued direct to net annual value.<s*>s
11.97b <1Valuation of the Billet Lane Petrol Filling Station and>1
<1Garage situated not far from London.>1
Petrol Sales Forecourt:
Including 5 x 2,000 gallon tanks in mass concrete, but excluding
the petrol pumps.
Notional Throughput:
350,000 gallons per annum @ #6-75 per 1,000 gallons #2,362
Forecourt:
Used for display of secondhand cars
10 car spaces @ #25/car #250
Buildings:
Accessories shop 27 m<s2>s @ #8/m<s2>s #216
1st Floor Offices
and Rest Room 48 m<s2>s @ #6-50/m<s2>s #312
Workshop 600 m<s2>s @ #5-50/m<s2>s #3,300
1st Floor Store 85 m<s2>s @ #3-50/m<s2>s #297
Toilets ----- #4,125
------
#6,737
------
Gross Value<s*>s say #6,735
------
<2Local Authority Occupations>2
11.98 Local Authority occupations can generally be divided
into types, (1) those which are essentially run at a loss as an
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
303
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
expense on the rate fund, and <1(2)>1 those which are commercial
undertakings which normally would show a profit.
11.99 The first of these classes would include mortuaries, refuse
destructors, fire stations and town halls. The second class would
include local authority restaurant services and in certain coastal
areas the organisation of a foreshore trading undertaking.
11. 100 The second of these two classes present no peculiar
problems. If the local authority is running a restaurant in the town
then it would be assessed as any other restaurant, that is on a
comparison of rents. If the Corporation is running a commercial
foreshore undertaking involving not only the hire of deck chairs
but also funfairs, donkey rides, sale of ice creams, etc., then,
provided there is a sufficient occupation of land to make the
Corporation rateable, the assessment would normally be arrived at
by the profits method.
11.101 It is with the former category that problems arise. The
principal items in this category will therefore be examined in some
detail.
<1Town Halls>1
11.102 The typical town hall is usually a somewhat pretentious
building housing not only the administrative offices of the local
council but also certain rooms and chambers for the meetings of
the council members and of the committees. It is not uncommon to
find the local library and museum within the same building.
Sometimes indeed there may be a hall which is available for public
letting.
11.103 It is almost impossible to conceive such a town hall being
occupied at a rent. In the ordinary way they are owner-occupied
by the local authority so that there is therefore no rental evidence.
Clearly the profits method is quite inapplicable, firstly because
there is no commercial interest, secondly because essentially it
must be run at a loss, a thirdly there is no monopoly in the
hereditament. One is therefore forced back <1prima facie>1 on to a
contractor's method of valuation.
11.104 The contractor's method involves estimating the capital
cost of providing the hereditament (land and buildings) and
applying a percentage to this in order to arrive at a rental figure.<s8>s
There are therefore two problems, the first to estimate the capital
value, and the second to decide on the rate per cent to be applied
thereto. The capital value required will normally be a close
<s8>s See paragraphs 7.38-7.55.
304
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
approximation of the estimated cost of reconstruction, always
remembering that although the town hall is by preference some-
what pretentious many of the buildings at present standing are
very much more ornate than they would be if designed today and
allowance will have to be made for much of the over-
ornamentation. The ordinary process involved will be some
method such as finding the gross internal floor area of the premises
or taking off estimated quantities in order to arrive at the cost of
reconstruction. If the actual building is built of materials which
would not now be used because of expense then allowance will
have to be made for that factor. Many town halls built in the
Victorian era are constructed principally of stone. Today this
would be an impossibly expensive material and the valuer should
envisage the use of a modern method of construction.
11.105 A percentage will have to be applied to the effective
capital value to convert it into a rental value. In the case of a town
hall (being valued for the 1973 revaluation) a percentage in the
region of 4% might have been applied to the effective capital value
of land and buildings. This percentage would give a gross value.<s*>s
11. 106 Many attempts have been made in the past to take a
lower percentage for local authority-occupied properties on the
assumption that the local authority could borrow money consider-
ably more cheaply than anyone else. So far these attempts have all
been unsuccessful, it having been held that the problem is not to
find the rent which one particular tenant might pay but the rent
which the market would expect to pay and that the peculiar
financial stability of one possible tenant which would enable him
to borrow money cheaply is not to over-rule the general rating
considerations. It must also be pointed out that the contention that
the local authority could borrow money cheaply is not always true.
From time to time in the past, local authorities have been able to
borrow money cheaply on certain conditions and on certain
lengths of loan period from such bodies as the Public Works Loan
Board. On a yearly basis, however, they have not had any such
ability in recent history. Furthermore, at the moment of writing
the Government have decided that local authorities are not to be
allowed this peculiar advantage and they are being forced on to the
ordinary money market to obtain their loans.
11. 107 If the town hall suffers from disabilities (e.g. poor
heating, lighting or ventilation or bad planning) a deduction must
be made to allow for these disabilities, before arriving at the rent
which the hypothetical tenant would pay. This deduction will
reflect the fact that the hypothetical tenant, presented with the
305
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
choice of a modern town hall or an old fashioned town hall, will
pay less rent for the old fashioned town hall than for the modern
one. The assessment of an old fashioned town hall must reflect this
fact. This deduction for disabilities is made from the estimated
capital cost of the property and the resultant figure is known as the
"effective capital value" of the hereditament.
11.108 If a town hall is very much out of date and bears little
resemblance to the type of building which would be constructed
today, then the valuer may use the <1"simple substituted building">1
technique of valuation described in paragraph 7.39.
<1Valuation of a Town Hall>1
11.109 A proposal was made on the 13 January, 1978 for a
reduction in the rating assessment of the Barcamstead Town Hall.
It is necessary to prepare a valuation in order to check the
correctness of the present assessment.
11. 110 The Town Hall includes a council chamber, mayor's
parlour, committee rooms, public hall, art gallery and departmen-
tal offices, and a car park. The town hall was built in 1921 and
lacks modern amenities.
11.111 There is no statutory formula for assessing town halls.
Town halls containing the above accommodation are not generally
let in the open market and there is in consequence no rental
evidence on which to base a rental valuation.
11.112 The profits or accounts method of valuation cannot be
used because there are no profits or accounts on which to base it.
11.113 The "contractor's basis" of valuation must therefore be
resorted to.
11.114 Section 20 of the General Rate Act, 1967, imposes a
ceiling on the rating assessment which results from the making of a
proposal. The assessment is not to exceed the value which would
have been ascribed to the hereditament, had the hereditament
existed in the year prior to the last revaluation.
11.115 Values have risen since the date of the last revaluation
(1st April, 1973) and consequently a "tone of the list" valuation is
called for in this case. There is no point in preparing a valuation,
based on values current at the date of the proposal, because the
assessment so produced would be higher than the ceiling value.
TONE OF THE LIST VALUATION OF BARCAMSTEAD TOWN HALL
<1Cost of building:>1
(Excluding ornamentation which is excessive by
today's standards)
306
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
Gross internal area 18,000 m<s2>s (measurements
taken between the internal faces of external
walls)
1973 list level of building costs #150/m<s2>s using
modern materials and methods and including
professional fees. #2,700,000
<1Cost of site works:>1
Including car park (1973 cost) #120,000
<1Land Value:>1
The land has been included at its 1973 list level of
value, on the basis that it could only be used
as the site of a town hall or other building
falling within the same mode of occupation<s8a>s
3-229 ha at #550,000/ha #1,776,000
----------
Cost of replacing existing town hall #4,596,000
Allowance for age and obsolescence, 55% #2,527,800
----------
Effective Capital Value of town hall #2,068,200
Taken at 4% to arrive at gross value #82,728
----------
Gross Value,<s*>s say #82,700
==========
11.116 The hypothetical tenant could build a new town hall for
#4,596,000 and so it follows that he is not going to pay this sum for
a town hall built in 1921 which lacks modern amenities. If the
hypothetical tenant is offered, for the same sum of money, a new
town hall and a 1921 town hall, he will normally chose the new
town hall. Only if the 1921 town hall is offered at a lower price,
will the hypothetical tenant be induced to take it. A 55%
allowance has therefore been made in the cost of building a new
town hall, in order to arrive at the figure at which the hypothetical
tenant would be induced to take the 1921 town hall. This figure is
the town hall's "effective capital value".
11.117 The 55% allowance has been applied to the value of the
land as well as the building. This is because the land and building
has to be valued <1rebus sic stantibus>1 (in its existing state). The
presence of the 1921 town hall on the land, reduces the value of
<s8a>s <1Dawkins (V. O.) v. Royal Leamington Spa Corporation & Warwickshire County>1
<1Council,>1 1961.
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
307
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the land. The hypothetical tenant would pay the full value of the
land, only if he could build a modern town hall on it. For further
discussion of the contractor's method of valuation see paragraphs
7.38 to 7.55.
<1Public Conveniences, Mortuaries, etc.>1
11.118 These properties present a problem in no way essentially
different from that of the town hall. The effective capital value
should be ascertained and taken at the usual rate per cent.
<1Other Local Authority Occupations>1
11. 119 For other non-profit-making occupations of the local
authority recourse should usually be had to the contractor's
method of valuation. In some cases there may be grounds for
comparing with nearby office or shop accommodation but this is
not the usual rule. Therefore when dealing with museums or
libraries the contractor's basis will usually be correct.
11. 120 As regards public parks these are for the most part
exempt from rating and the reader is referred to paragraphs 4.164
to 4.165.
<2Sewage Works>2
11.121 The valuation of a sewage works has never been an easy
problem.
11.122 By section 42 of the General Rate Act, 1967, no sewer as
defined in section 343, of the Public Health Act, 1936, and no
manhole, ventilating shaft, pumping station or other accessory
belonging to such a sewer shall be rated.
11.123 It is clear, therefore, that the rating valuer has no longer
to rate sewers. The difficulty comes, however, in distinguishing
between a sewer, pumping station, "other accessory" and a
sewage works. Almost inevitably part of any sewage works
includes a pumping station. Is a pumping station to be exempt or
not? Could it be said that a sewage disposal works is an accessory
belonging to a sewer? These, and other problems of rateability,
have now been considered by the Lands Tribunal and the cases
certainly seem to have upheld the common sense interpretation of
the Act, namely that the rateable sewage disposal works is the part
that purifies and disposes of the sewage; that anything along the
line of sewer is exempt; and that moving parts of items of plant,
like screens, are exempt. <1(See H. S. Jones (V.O.) v. The Eastern>1
308
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---III>1
<1Valleys (Mon.) Joint Sewerage Board,>1 1960 and <uH. J. Gudgion>u
<1(V. O.) v. Erith Borough Council and L. C. C.>1, 1960.)
11. 124 There is no reason why there should be any different
treatment as between one kind of sewage works and another. It is
now rare to find the old type of sewage farm in which the sewage
was spread in channels over agricultural land. For the most part
today there is some form of sedimentation as a primary treatment
followed by some form of purification of the liquid. The most
modern type is the activated sludge process.
11. 125 Since sewage works are not generally let or run at a
profit the contractor's method of valuation should be used.
11. 126 Some difficulty may occasionally be encountered in
deciding the effective capital value, particularly when, for exam-
ple, a works is in the process of being modernised and the
valuation has to be made during the rate prior to completion, or
where a works has been built to cope with future demands greater
than the present; each case must be taken on its own merits.
11.127 A typical valuation of a small sewage works might be as
follows:--
ROTREN END SEWAGE DISPOSAL WORKS
as at the 27th January, 1977
(tone of the list valuation)
<1Land:>1 E.C.V.
16 hectates at #2,500/ha #40,000
Roads, hard surfaces, etc. #30,000
<1Buildings:>1 #
Power House 24,000
Pump Houses 80,000
Garage, Maintenance Buildings, etc. 60,000
Administration Building 120,000
Canteen 10,000
Meter Houses 10,000
---------- #304,000
<1Plant:>1 #
Detritus Tanks 14,000
Screen Pits 8,000
Sedimentation Tanks 80,000
Filter Tanks 180,000
Storm Tanks 80,000
309
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Plant:>1 (cont.)
Pipes and Sewers 56,000
Electrical 40,000
#458,000
Effective Capital Value #832,000
Taken at 3 3/4% to arrive at Net Annual Value #31,200
--------
Net Annual Value say #31,000
========
3 3/4% was applied to the effective capital value (instead of the 4%
used for the town hall) because in this case the hereditament is
being valued direct to net annual value<s*>s and so the hypothetical
tenant will have to bear the cost of repairs, insurance and other
expenses. In consequence he would expect to pay a slightly lower
rent.
<2Church Halls>2
11.128 The law relating to the exemption of church halls was
discussed in paragraphs 4.110 to 4.118.
11.129 When a church hall is let (whether by way of tenancy or
licence) for some purpose other than:--
(i) religious worship or
(ii) for the purpose of the organisation responsible for the
conduct of the public religious worship in the church,
it loses its exemption from rates.
11.130 However, the hereditament will only be given a gross
value<s8b>s if the income from the lettings, other than those mentioned
in <1(i)>1 and (ii) above, exceeds the average annual expenditure
attributable to those lettings.
11.131 It would therefore seem possible for a church hall to lose
its exemption but to have no gross value<s8b>s. This would occur where
non-exempt lettings have taken place, but where there is no excess
of income over expenditure.
11.132 The gross value<ssb>s of the hall is to be assessed having
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
<s8b>s When the amendment of section 19 of the General Rate Act, 1967 (by the Local
Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980) takes effect, church halls will no
longer be valued to a gross value. It would therefore seem that some amendment
will have to be made to section 39 of the General Rate Act, 1967 if church halls are
to continue to receive partial exemption from rates.
310
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--III>1
regard only, to the excess of the non-exempt income over the
non-exempt expenditure. This in effect means that the hall is still
exempt from rates in so far that it is used for religious worship or
for the purposes of the organisation conducting that religious
worship.
11.133 In <1Williamson (V.O.) v. Hayes>1 and <1Hauber's Executors>1
<1and the Trustees of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Southwark,>1 the
Lands Tribunal considered the valuation of a church hall. Unfortu-
nately (from the reader's point of view) many of the figures were
agreed between the parties, prior to the hearing and so the
decision did not include a full valuation. Nevertheless the Tribunal
decided, in arriving at the gross value, that a deduction should be
made for the "tenant's share".<s9>s The tenant's share is that sum of
money which would induce a tenant to take on the tenancy and all
the attendant work and risk involved in arranging the lettings.
11.134 In the absence of a valuation which has been approved
by the courts, the following is put forward as one approach to the
problem:--
<1Valuation of St. Peter's Church Hall>1
Total payments received from all lettings of the hall.
(Whether by tenancy or licence) #3,346
<1Less:>1 Payments received from lettings, for religious
purposes and for use for the purposes of the
organisation responsible for the conduct of pub-
lic religious worship. (exempt lettings) #286
------
Income from non-exempt lettings #3,060
<1Expenses>1
Heating #1,036
Lighting #205
Water (metered) #32
Caretaker #1,260
Cleaning labour and materials
(toilet rolls etc.) #475
Laundry #210
Secretarial and Accounting work #323
Postage #32
Telephone (proportion of cost) #79
Licence Fee #20
<s9>s See paragraphs 7.78 to 7.83 concerning "tenants share".
311
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Expenses>1 (cont.)
Insurance of Furniture and
Equipment #20
Third Party Insurance #28
Depreciation of furniture and
equipment #600
Repairs to furniture and equipment #210
Other expenses:
Piano tuning etc. #35
Total expenses for the year #4,565
Number of hours for which hall is used:--
Non-exempt lettings 1,460 hours x 0.5435
Total use of hall 2,686 ------
Expenses apportioned to non-exempt lettings #2,481
Excess of income over expenditure for
non-exempt lettings (divisible balance) #579
<1Less:>1 Tenants Share<s10>s
<1including:>1----
<1(a)>1 time and trouble in arranging lettings
(b) relevant proportion of return on tenant's
capital (i.e. working capital,
furniture, equipment etc.)
(c)) risk (regarded as very small in the case of
a church hall) #290
Rent and Rates #289
Rates 50p in #
Gross Value<s8b>s say #210
Rateable Value #148
11.135 For an explanation of how the rent is separated from the
rates, see paragraphs 8.12 onwards.
11.136 No deduction has been made for the cost of repairs,
decoration or insurance of the building because under the defini-
tion of gross value<s*>s the hypothetical landlord is responsible for
these.
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
<s10>s <1Williamson (V.O.) v. Hayes and Hauber's Executors and the Trustees of the>1
<1 Roman Catholic Diocese of Southwark,>1 1959.
312 <1Chapter 12>1
<2VALUATION OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROPERTY---IV>2
<2Industrial Premises and Warehouses>2
12. 1 Industrial properties can be roughly divided into two
types. The first class comprises those which may be called general
industrial properties since they are not tied to any particular
industry. The second class consists of those which are purpose-
built for a particular job and are virtually unusable for any other
purpose. In this latter class there may be considered cement
works, steel works and paper mills.
12.2 The ordinary light industrial factory consists essentially of
an open workshop space with appropriate walls and roof and some
accommodation for offices, canteens and lavatories. When the
smaller properties of this class are under review it will be found
there is an abundance of rental evidence which the valuer can use.
The normal method of analysing the rental evidence, after the
unreliable rents have been discarded, is to apportion the rent on a
square metre basis, distinguishing office and workshop if there is
enough evidence to permit this. In this way there can quite easily
be built up a reliable rental basis which can be varied to suit the
details of any particular case.
12.3 There tends to be an optimum working height for indust-
rial floor space. This will vary according to the type of industry.
For example, a factory used for the assembly of electronic
equipment will not need so much height as a factory used for heavy
engineering purposes.
12.4 Too great a height can increase the running costs of a
factory because amongst other things it makes the factory more
expensive to heat. Conversely too low a working height may
restrict the use to which the factory can be put or create ineffici-
ency in operation. The height may, therefore, have an appreciable
effect on the rental value of industrial property.
12.5 In warehouses the working height is equally important and
can have a similar effect on rents. The optimum height in
warehouses is greatly affected by the use of fork lift trucks.
12.6 The weight which a floor can withstand is also an impor-
tant factor in both factories and warehouses and will have an effect
on the rent. This is particularly so when the accommodation is on
upper floors.
313
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
12.7 Generally speaking factories built entirely at ground floor
level are more flexible and will command higher rents than those
built on several floors.
12.8 Where a hereditament is on more than one floor its value
will be affected not only by the floor loading capacity but also by
the ease or otherwise with which raw materials, finished products
and equipment can be moved to and from the upper floors. It must
be remembered that fork lift trucks cannot climb stairs.
12.9 Other factors affecting the value of industrial premises and
warehouses include accessability, particularly in relation to the
motorway network, the presence or absence of a suitable labour
force and the provision of adequate public services. An eye must
be kept open for such things as low bridges or weight restrictions
on the approaches to the property.
12.9a It will be found that a higher rent will be paid per square
metre for a building with modern heating and modern layout and a
comparatively low rent for an old-fashioned installation. In nearly
every case, however, there will be an adequacy of rents on which a
basis can be formed.
12.10 The bigger non-purpose-built factories will not so often
be let. It is not common to find factories of more than say 8,000 m<s2>s
which are let and most of the rental evidence will be of factories up
to some 2,500 m<s2>s. When the bigger factories are considered,
therefore, there will probably be no rents that the surveyor can
use. His experience in smaller properties will, however, show a
general pattern of rents.
12.11 He may find that as the size of factories increase, the
rental value per square metre gets less. This is generally referred
to as a <1"quality allowance".>1<s1>s On the other hand, such rental
evidence as there is available may show that the rental value per
square metre remains constant no matter how big the factory. It is
possible to envisage cases where there is a shortage of large
factories, and where a tenant would be prepared to pay a higher
rent per square metre in order to achieve the greater efficiency
which results from one large factory unit. Generally speaking a
valuer should make a "quality allowance" in his valuation, only
when there is clear evidence that the rental value per square metre
varies as the size varies.
<s1>s See paragraph 10.118.
314
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property--IV>1
12.11a <1Example:>1
A TYPICAL VALUATION OF SMALL LIGHT ENGINEERING WORKS
<1Description Dimensions>1 <1Area>1 @ <1Value>1
<1metres>1 <1m>1<s2>s
I. <1Office Block.>1 Single storey build-
ing block and flat roof; steel and
glass partitions; electric fire heat-
ing; 3 m internal height.
Entrance Hall 3 x 3 9 --- ---
Office 4 x 3 12 15.00 180.00
Office 4 x 3 12 15.00 180.00
General office 8 x 3 24 15.00 360.00
Lavatories and washroom 1 x 3 ) 12 ---
Office 4 x 3 ) 12 15.0 180.00
2. <1Workshop Building.>1 Steel frame,
corrugated asbestos cladding;
north light roof on light steel
truss; conc. floor; 5 m height to
roof truss. Central heating, oil
fired/warm air.
Workshop 40 x 28 1,120 9.00 10,080.00
Works canteen 28 x 8 224 9.00 2,016.00
Kitchen 14 x 8 112 9.00 1,008.00
Works lavatories and
washrooms 16 x 9 144 --- ---
----------
#14,004.00
----------
Net Annual Value say #14,000
12.12 The price per square metre includes rateable plant and
machinery such as the electrical switchboard and the central
heating plant.
12. 13 When <2purpose-built factories>2 are under review it will
rarely if ever, be found that there is any rental evidence. As a
general rule purpose-built factories are owner-occupied. In this
context a purpose-built factory means one which cannot be used
for any purpose other than that for which it was built without
substantial structural alterations, so that <1rebus sic stantibus>1 it is
tied to one industry.
12.14 As there is no rental evidence in the ordinary way the
valuer will be forced to use the contractor's method of valuation
although once again as a matter of convenience he may relate his
valuation to a rate per square metre. There are many problems
peculiar to this kind of factory which do not occur in the case of a
general purpose factory. In any particular trade the manufacturing
process may be improved or altered from time to time so that a
purpose-built factory erected say in 1958 may be hopelessly
inadequate and uneconomical for the same trade today, and due
315
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
and proper allowance will have to be made for this when estimat-
ing the effective capital value. One method of approach might be
to value a factory as if it were of modern design and then make an
overall deduction because of its shortcomings.
12.15 Where a building is tied to a particular process it may well
be found that there is a bottleneck in one department which fixes
the optimum throughput of the factory. Thus, it is of little
advantage for a cement works to have an enormous capacity for
mixing slurry if the kilns in that works can only take a lesser
amount. The surplus capacity in one department is of little value
<1rebus sic stantibus.>1 The contractor's method therefore, will have to
be modified on suitable occasions to give effect to any such
limitation but only where the limitation is fixed by the rateable
structure. If the limitation is caused by non-rateable tenant's
chattels, that will not affect the rent.
12.16 A further consideration when dealing with this kind of
property is the general trade conditions in that industry. If, for
example, there is a slump in the cement industry it is probable that
the least economic units will be forced to be idle and the required
output will be shared amongst the economic plants, although no
particular unit will be working to maximum capacity. If there is a
surplus capacity in the industry and no cement works is operating
at full output then it is fair to say that no one would give a full rent
for a works which could only be used to part capacity. In this way
some form of partial user fraction may be required.
<1Plant and Machinery>1
12.17 Most factories will include some rateable plant and
machinery. Which plant and machinery is rateable and which is
not was considered in chapter 5. The problem now is to decide
how to value it. The law on the subject is clear insofar that it is to
be presumed that the landlord supplies not only the land and
buildings but also the rateable plant and machinery. What has to
be found is the rent which the hypothetical tenant would pay for
the property as equipped with the rateable plant and machinery.
From the valuation point of view rateable plant and machinery can
be divided into two groups:--
(i) Plant and machinery which is usually provided by the
landlord. Namely that concerned with heating, cooling,
ventilating, lighting, drainage, the supplying with water and
protection of the hereditament from fire; together with the
316
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---IV>1
basic equipment found in most factories such as transformers
and switch gear; lifts, elevators, railway lines <2and>2 tracks.
(ii) Plant and machinery which is normally provided by the
occupier for the purpose of his particular business.
12.18 The value of the plant and machinery normally provided
by the landlord will be reflected in the rent of the hereditament or
of comparable hereditaments. It is not, therefore, necessary to
value such plant and machinery separately because by basing the
valuation on the rents of similarly equipped hereditaments, the
value of the rateable plant and machinery will automatically be
included in the assessment.
12.19 The value of the plant and machinery supplied by the
occupier, is more difficult to determine and it is usually necessary
to resort to the contractor's method of valuation. The "effective
capital value" of the plant and machinery has to be found and a
percentage applied to it so as to convert it into a rental sum.
12.20 It is the effective capital value of the plant and machinery
as installed in the hereditament, which has to be found and not its
value in a manufacturer's catalogue or on the second-hand market.
12.21 In some classes of plant, obsolescence is an important
factor and great care will have to be taken to see that an
out-of-date or un-economic item of plant is valued at the correct
figure.
12.22 It is not only old or worn-out plant and machinery which
becomes obsolete. Due to rapid technological change and the
development of new processes, certain items of plant and machin-
ery may become obsolete even though they are comparatively
new. In such cases a suitable reduction should be made to reflect
the obsolescence, regardless of the fact that the equipment was
purchased only a short time ago.
12.23 The <1effective>1 capital value (as opposed to capital value) of
such items will require great care to ascertain. As a general rule,
for the purposes of the 1973 valuation list, plant which has a long
life, such as rolled steel joists for gantry rails, is rated at 5% on its
effective capital value; whereas other plant which is of shorter
economic life, either because it wears out or because the possibil-
ity of becoming obsolete is greater, is usually taken at 6%. In
certain cases there may be arguments for taking rates per cent
higher than these but this would be an exception and only
justifiable in peculiar trades.
12.23a A simple example of a rating valuation of a factory
containing some plant might be as follows:---
317
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<1Example>1 :
FRUIT CANNING FACTORY
<1Description Dimensions Area @ Value>1
<1metres m<s2>s>1 # #
1. <1Office Block.>1 Single storey
block; block partition walls; cen-
tral heating from radiators:
Enquiry office 3 x 2 6 18.00 108.00
Office 4 x 4 16 18.00 288.00
Office 4 x 4 16 18.00 288.00
General office 8 x 4 32 18.00 576.00
Cloaks 9 x 6 54 ---
Lavatories 2 x 6 12 ---
Office 4 x 4 16 18.00 288.00
2. <1Cannery.>1 Steel frame, asbestos
cladding; concrete floor; 7 m to
roof truss; north lights.
Unheated. Unloading
bay 13 x 20 260 4.50 1,170.00
Unheated. Empty tin
storage 26 x 20 520 4.50 2,340.00
Heated. Crating of full
tins 32 x 20 640 6.00 3,840.00
Unheated. Store and
loading bay 32 x 20 640 4.50 2,880.00
Heated and ventilated
by fans. Cannery 100 x 32 3,200 9.00 28,800.00
3. <1Garage.>1 Steel frame, asbestos
cladding; concrete floor,
unheated;7 m to eaves. 40 x 13 520 4.50 2,340.00
4. <1Railway Loading Dock.>1 Con-
crete loading platform, 1-25 m E.C.V.
height 70 x 4 #7,000
@ 5% 350.00
E.C.V.
Railway siding, 400m @ #12/m #4,800
@ 5% 240.00
5. External vertical steam-
heated oven for sterilising E.C.V.
cans; 16 m height; lagged 4 x 4 #30,000
@ 5% 1,500.00
45,008.00
Net Annual Value: #45,000
12.24 Other rateable plant and machinery such as electrical
switch gear, transformers and central heating plant is included in
the price per square metre, in the above example.
318
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---IV>1
12.25 It will be noticed that the existence of rateable plant in
the above example, increases the rateable value of the factory but
it is not always as easy as this. Cases can be visualised, and indeed
met in practice, where the presence of rateable plant may add little
if anything, to the rental value of the property as a whole. For
example, the disadvantage of having to operate a private sewage
works may outweigh the financial advantage in providing it. In
other words, although the value of the sewage disposal plant may
be added to the valuation, the disadvantage of having to operate
such a plant could well detract from the rental value of the
property. The valuer must not fall into the error of adding for all
rateable plant and forgetting to look at the overall market value of
the hereditament. An end allowance for disabilities may well be
justified.
12.26 The valuation officer can be required to supply a list of all
the rateable plant and machinery which he has taken into account
in his valuation of the hereditament.<s2>s He cannot, however, be
required to disclose the value which he has placed on that plant
and machinery; although this may well emerge in discussion.
12.27 It is not only factories which contain rateable plant and
machinery.
<1Gross or Net Annual Value for the 1973 and Earlier Valuation Lists.>1
12.28 For the purposes of the 1973 and earlier valuation lists,
"factories, mills and other premises of a similar character used
wholly or mainly for industrial purposes," did not have a gross
value but were valued direct to net annual value.<s3>s It must be
stressed that it was the use of which was made of the hereditament
and not the form in which it was constructed which was the
determining factor. Thus a church hall used as a factory would
have been valued direct to net annual value. Whilst a factory used
as a gymnasium would have been valued to gross value.<s*>s
12.29 Warehouses are non-industrial buildings and when asses-
sed on their own were valued to gross value.<s*>s
12.30 When a hereditament included both a factory and a
warehouse it was necessary to establish whether the principle use
of the hereditament was industrial or non-industrial. This is
because a single hereditament must have a single assessment which
<s2>s Section 21(2) General Rate Act, 1967.
<s3>s Section 19(2) & (6) General Rate Act, 1967, prior to its amendment by the Local
Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980.
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
319
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
means that it must be assessed either to gross value or to net
annual value; it is not possible to mix the two within a single
hereditament. Whether a hereditament is assessed to a gross value
or direct to net annual value will depend on the principle use to
which the hereditament as a whole is put.
<1Gross or Net Annual Value, for lists following the 1973 Valuation List>1
12.30a For the purposes of valuation lists following the 1973
valuation list, the Secretary of State may order that only heredita-
ments comprising a "dwelling-house", a "private garage" or
"private storage premises" shall have a gross value.<s4>s It follows that
after the order has been made, both industrial and non-industrial
hereditaments, such as warehouses, will be valued direct to net
annual value. <s*>s
<2Public Utility Undertakings>2
12.31 Public Utility Undertakings were prior to 1950 valued by
the profits method. This method was used because public utility
undertakings were not generally speaking, let, added to which
they enjoyed some element of monopoly.
12.32 Today, the major public utility undertakings have been
nationalised (i.e. railways, inland waterways, gas, water and
electricity undertakings) and their contribution towards rates is
calculated by means of formulae. Certain types of property
occupied by these nationalised undertakings, e.g. dwelling-houses,
showrooms, offices not on operational land, are excluded from the
formulae and should be valued in the normal way.
12.33 Under section 19 of the Local Government Act, 1974 the
Secretary of State has power to extend the use of formulae to
assess hereditaments occupied by the National Coal Board, and to
certain of the following:--statutory dock or harbour undertakings;
hereditaments used for the diffusion of television or sound pro-
grammes by wire, mines and quarries; Water Board; Electricity
Board and British Gas Corporation hereditaments; railway and
canal premises occupied by a Transport Board; and specified
equipment occupied by the Post Office.
12.34 Insofar that there are public utility undertakings or quasi
public utility undertakings which are not covered by a formula,
and in the absence of rental evidence, it is probable that the profits
<s4>s See section 19, General Rate Act, 1967, as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980.
<s*>s See paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
320
<1Valuation of Different Types of Property---IV>1
method of valuation will be applicable. There is no shortage of
case law to help the valuer when using the profits method for
public utility undertakings.
12.35 Public utility undertakings frequently extend into more
than one local government parish or rating area. Where this
happens the undertaking is valued as a whole and the total, or
<1cumulo value>1 as it is known, is apportioned between the different
rating areas.
12.36 For the purposes of the 1973 and earlier valuation lists,
section 19 of the General Rate Act, 1967<s4>s, provided that railway,
dock canal, gas, water or electricity undertakings or any public
utility undertakings shall be valued direct to net annual value.
These hereditaments will continue to be valued direct to net
annual value for the purposes of future valuation lists. <s*>s
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
321
<1Chapter 13>1
<2THE UNOCCUPIED RATE AND RATING SURCHARGE>2
<2Rating of Unoccupied Buildings and the Rating Surcharge>2
13.1 For over 300 years rating was primarily an occupier's tax,<s1>s
and it followed as a general rule that, if there was no occupier
there was no one who could be rated.<s2>s
13.2 However, unoccupied buildings still enjoy many of the
services paid for out of the rates e.g. fire service, police protection,
highway maintenance. In addition, it was argued that it was not in
the country's best interest to allow buildings to lie empty for long
periods. As a result of these considerations, Parliament passed an
Act in 1966,<s3>s which enabled rating authorities to charge a rate on
unoccupied buildings. This is known as the <1unoccupied rate>1 (some-
times referred to as the <1void rate>1 or the <1empty rate).>1
13.3 The unoccupied rate was not one hundred per cent suc-
cessful in encouraging owners to let empty buildings and in the
early 1970s Parliament became increasingly concerned by the
number of office buiIdings (particularly in central London) which
had been standing empty for long periods. Office rents, at that
time, were rising rapidly and there was a widely held belief that the
owners of offices were keeping them empty deliberately, in order
to make capital gains. With a view to stopping this practice
Parliament introduced in 1974,<s4>s a <1penal rating surcharge>1 (some-
times referred to as the <1commercial surcharge).>1
13.3a The rating surcharge provisions have now been sus-
pended but can be brought back into operation again by means of
an order made by the Secretary of State.<s4>sa
13.4 Whilst there are similarities between the "unoccupied
rate" and the "rating surcharge," they are nevertheless separate
and distinct rates.
<s1>s Poor Relief Act, 1601.
<s2>s 1n the City of London it was possible to levy a rate on unoccupied property under
the provision of a local act.
<s3>s Local Government Act, 1966.
<s4>s Section 16, Local Government Act, 1974 which became section 17A and 17B of
the General Rate Act, 1967.
<s4>sa Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980 section 41 and Rating
Surcharge (Suspension) Order 1980 No.2015, with effect from 1 April, 1981.
323
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<2The Unoccupied Rate>2
13.5 The provisions for the rating of unoccupied buildings are
now contained in section 17 and the first schedule<s4b>s of the General
Rate Act, 1967.
13.6 Only a hereditament which falls within the definition of a
<1"relevant hereditament",>1 is subject to the unoccupied rate. A
<1relevant hereditament>1 is defined as <1"any hereditament consisting of,>1
<1or of part of, a house, shop, office, factory, mill or other building>1
<1whatsoever, together with any garden, yard, court or other land>1
<1ordinarily used or intended for use for the purposes of the building>1
<1or part.">1<s5>s It is therefore buildings which are the prime target of the
unoccupied rate. Hereditaments which consist of land by itself,
advertising stations, sporting rights and other similar properties,
are not <1relevant hereditaments>1 and are not rateable when unoccu-
pied.
13.7 Where a hereditament includes both a building and land it
can only be a "relevant hereditament" if the land is <1"ordinarily>1
<1used or intended for use for the purposes of the building".>1<s6>s It would
therefore seem to follow that if the building is used for the
purposes of the land, rather than the other way round, the
hereditament cannot be a <1relevant hereditament.>1 An example of
this would occur where a hereditament consists of a playing field
and a pavilion; in this case the building would be used for the
purposes of the land and so the hereditament could not be a
<1relevant hereditament.>1
13.8 Whether or not to introduce the unoccupied rate into its
area is entirely at the discretion of the rating authority. It follows
that before advising a client in connection with the unoccupied
rate, it would be prudent to check whether or not the rating
authority has introduced the unoccupied rate into its area and to
make sure that all the procedures necessary for the introduction of
the rate have been followed.<s7>s
13.9 In order to introduce the unoccupied rate into its area, the
rating authority must pass a resolution. The resolution may apply
<s4b>s As amended by the Local Government Act, 1974 section 15 and by the Local
Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980, section 42 and schedule 34.
<s5>s Schedule 1, para. 15, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s6>s Schedule 1, para. 15, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s7>s Section 17 General Rate Act, 1967: In <1Sheffield City Council v. Graingers Wines>1
<1Ltd.,>1 1977 the fact that the Rating Authority has not specified in their resolution
the date for the commencement of the unoccupied rate did not invalidate the rate,
because all the notices and announcements following the resolution had contained
the date. See also <1Bar Hill Developments Ltd. v. South Cambridgeshire District>1
<1Council,>1 1979 (Q.B.D.); <1Brent L. B. C. v. Ladbroke Rentals Ltd.,>1 1979 (O.B.D.);
<1Graylaw Investments Ltd. v. Harlow District Council,>1 1979 (Q.B.D.).
324
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
to all "relevant hereditaments" in their area or only to certain
classes of relevant hereditaments. For example, a rating authority
may decide to rate unoccupied houses but no other class of
building. It cannot, however, single out individual properties from
within a class.
13.10 The rating authority also has discretion as to the "propor-
tion" of the rates which it will charge when buildings are unoccu-
pied. The resolution may specify any "proportion" up to a ceiling,
which is the full amount of the rates which would have been levied
had the building been occupied.<s7a>s Indeed, in the case of a dwelling
house, more rates may be payable when the house is unoccupied
than when it is occupied. This is because section 48 of the General
Rate Act, 1967 (reduced rates in the pound for dwellings) does not
apply when a house is unoccupied,<s8>s (unless the adoptive resolution
contains an appropriate modification).
13.10a However, the ceiling mentioned above can be altered by
an order made by the Secretary of State. At the time of writing the
Secretary of State has ordered a ceiling of one half of the rates
which would be payable if the owner was in occupation (disregard-
ing section 48). The ceiling does not apply to a house or part of a
house.<s8a>s
13.11 The resolution may lay down different "proportions" of
the rate for different classes of relevant hereditament. Further-
more it may specify different "proportions" for the same class of
hereditament situated in different parts of the rating authority's
area.<s9>s Thus, for example, a rating authority may resolve to collect
quarter rates from shops when they are unoccupied but half rates
from factories. Or they may resolve to levy half rates on factories
in one part of their area but only one third rates on factories in the
rest of their area.
13.12 There does not appear to be any power to enable a rating
authority to resolve to apply the unoccupied rate to a particular
class of property in one part of its area but not in another.
However, virtually the same result could be achieved by resolving
that a zero proportion of the rate, should be levied on unoccupied
properties in that part of the area in which the rating authority
does not want to collect the unoccupied rate.
13.13 Having passed a resolution to introduce unoccupied
<s7a>s General Rate Act, 1967, schedule 1, para. 1 (2C) and (2D).
<s8>s Schedule 1, para. 1(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s8a>s General Rate Act, 1967 schedule 1, para. (2E) see The Unoccupied Property
Rate (Variation of Current Ceiling) Order 1980 No.2012.
<s9>s Schedule 1, para. 2A, General Rate Act, 1967.
325
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
rating the rating authority can change its mind and pass another
resolution to discontinue it; and so on indefinitely. Or the rating
authority can pass resolutions to add further classes of heredita-
ment to the unoccupied rate or to remove classes of hereditament
from the unoccupied rate.
13.14 A resolution to introduce the unoccupied rate does not
take effect immediately, but must come into operation on the first
day of a rate period, following the passing of the resolution.<s7,10>s
Similarly a resolution to cease rating unoccupied hereditaments
must take effect on the last day of a rate period, following the
passing of the resolution. The exact date will be stated in the
resolution.<s7>s Resolutions passed by the rating authority must be
advertised in the prescribed manner.ii
13. 15 It is not always possible to arrange things so that an
occupier moves into a building, as soon as it becomes vacant. This
fact has been taken into account in the Act by providing that no
unoccupied rate will be charged during the period immediately
following the date on which a relevant hereditament becomes
unoccupied. This period is known as the <1"standard period'>1 and
was, at the time of writing, three months in length; accordingly no
unoccupied rate was payable for the first three months during
which a hereditament was vacant. The Secretary of State can alter
the length of the <1"standard period">1 by order. In addition, different
<1"standard periods">1 may be specified for different classes of
hereditament and for different rating areas.iia The unoccupied
rate starts the day after the "standard period" (or the "new house
period") expires<s11b>s and ends the day before the relevant heredita-
ment becomes occupied; or as the case may be, the day before it
ceases to exist.<s10,12>s This is known as the <1relevant period of vacancy.>1
13.16 In the case of a relevant hereditament which is a newly
erected or converted dwelling house, the three month rate free
period is extended to six months. This period is known as <1"the new>1
<1house period">1<s13>s and is subject to variation in the same way as the
"standard period".
<s10>s Three, or in the case of a newly erected dwelling-house 6 months, must elapse
after the coming into force of a resolution, before the unoccupied rate can be
charged on a relevant hereditament. This is so even though the hereditament was
unoccupied prior to the coming into effect of the resolution. (Schedule 1, para. 14,
General Rate Act, 1967.)
<s11>s Section 17(3), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s11>sa Schedule 1, para. 1, (1A), (1B), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s11>sb See paragraph 13.16.
<s12>s Schedule 1, para. 1(1) and 15 General Rate Act, 1967.
<s13>s Schedule 1, para. 1(4) and (5) General Rate Act, 1967.
326
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
13.16a The day on which the unoccupied rate becomes payable
is known as the <1"unoccupied rating day">1, (i.e. the day following the
end of the <1"standard">1 or <1"new house period").>1
13.17 The vacant period before and during which the unoccu-
pied rate is charged must be "continuous".<s14>s It follows that it
would only be necessary to occupy the building for one or two days
in the "standard period" in order to prevent the unoccupied rate
from ever being levied; or alternatively to bring the unoccupied
rate to an end, and to start again with another rate free "standard
period". To overcome avoidance tactics of this sort, the Act makes
special provision. Namely that where a relevant hereditament is
unoccupied, but becomes occupied again for a period of less than
six weeks, then the hereditament shall be deemed to be con-
tinuously unoccupied throughout that period.<s15>s However, the
hereditament is only deemed to be unoccupied for the purposes of
ascertaining the "standard or new house period" and the "relevant
period of vacancy". It follows that the person who occupies the
hereditament for a period of less than 6 weeks is liable to pay the
occupied rate for that period. (The unoccupied rate does not have
to be paid in addition to the occupied rate.)<s16>s
13.18 Another avoidance tactic which has been anticipated in
the Act is that of not completing a building which is under
construction, (or is being structurally altered) until such time as an
occupier has been found. If the rating authority suspects that such
tactics are being used, they can serve a <1"completion notice">1 (see
paragraphs 13.78 to 13.89).
13.19 There is no occupier to pay the rates in the case of an
unoccupied building and so the Act provides that the owner shall
be rated.<s17>s Indeed, the provisions of the General Rate Act, 1967
apply as if the hereditament was occupied by the owner through-
out the relevant period of vacancy. <1Owner>1 is defined in this case as
"the person entitled to possession of the hereditament or
building".<s18>s
13.20 If during the period that a hereditament is unoccupied,
one person ceases to be the person entitled to possession and
another person becomes entitled to possession, this makes no
difference to the unoccupied rate which continues regardless of
<s14>s Schedule 1, para. 1(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s15>s Schedule 1, para. 1(3), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s16>s Schedule 1, para. 12, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s17>s Schedule 1, para. 1(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s18>s Schedule 1, para. 15, General Rate Act, 1967; see also the owners special powers
contained in para. 11.
327
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
who the owner happens to be. This means that a new owner does
not automatically get a rate free "standard period". Indeed he
may have to start paying the unoccupied rate immediately, if the
hereditament has already been unoccupied for the "standard
period" or longer. The new owner merely steps into the shoes of
the previous owner.
13.21 Because the building is unoccupied there will be no
possessions on the premises and so the rating authority may not be
able to distrain on goods in order to recover unpaid rates. To
overcome this difficulty the Act provides that, in addition to the
normal means of recovery, the unoccupied rate is recoverable as a
"simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction".<s19>s
13.22 The unoccupied rate is not payable during any of the
following periods or for the "standard or new house period"
thereafter:--
(1) where the owner is prohibited by law from occupying the
hereditament or allowing it to be occupied;<s20>s
(2) where the hereditament is kept vacant by reason of action
taken by or on behalf of the Crown or any local or public
authority with a view to prohibiting the occupation of the
hereditament or to acquiring it;<s20>s
(3) where the hereditament is the subject of (a building
preservation notice as defined by section 58 of the Town &
Country Planning Act, 1971 or is included in a list com-
piled or approved under section 54 of that Act), or is
notified to the rating authority by the Minister as a building
or architectural or historic interest;<s21>s (The Department of
the Environment has advised that a grade 3 (Sup-
plementary List) building may not necessarily be
exempt).<s21a>s
(4) where the hereditament is the subject of a preservation
order or an interim preservation notice under the Ancient
Monuments Acts, 1913 to 1953, or is included in a list
published by the Minister of Public Building and Works
under those Acts;<s20,21a&b>s
<s19>s Schedule 1, para. 13, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s20>s Schedule 1, para. 2, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s21>s Schedule 1, para. 2(c), General Rate Act, 1967 as amended by section 291 and
schedule 23 Town & Country Planning Act, 1971.
<s21a>s Where only part of a hereditament is covered by a building preservation order
the hereditament is not exempt from the unoccupied rate, see <1Providence>1
<1Properties v. Liverpool City Council,>1 1980 (Q.D.B.).
<s21b>s But see <1Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act,>1 1979 schedule 4,
para. 10(b) and schedule 5.
328
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
(5) where an agreement is in force with respect to the heredita-
ment under section 56(1) (a) of the General Rate Act, 1967
(which relates to a voluntary compounding agreement,
whereby the owner agrees to pay the rates whether or not
the hereditament is occupied);<s20>s
(6) Where the hereditament is held for the purpose of being
available for occupation by a minister of religion as a
residence from which to perform the duties of his office;<s20>s
(7) where the owner is entitled to possession of the heredita-
ment only in his capacity as the personal representative of
a deceased person;<s22>s
(8) where there subsists in respect of the owner's estate a
receiving order made under the Bankruptcy Act 1914;<s22>s
(9) where the owner is entitled to possession of the heredita-
ment in his capacity as trustee under a deed of arrange-
ment to which the Deeds of Arrangement Act, 1914
applies;<s22>s
(10) where the owner is a company which is subject to a
winding-up order made under the Companies Act, 1948;<s22>s
(11) where the owner is a company which is being wound up
voluntarily under the Companies Act, 1948;<s22>s
(12) where the owner is entitled to possession of the heredita-
ment in his capacity as liquidator by virtue of an order
made under section 244 or 307 of the Companies Act
1948.<s22>s (It should be noted that a receiver appointed by
debenture holders has been held not to be exempt--
<1 Banister v. Islington>1 L.B.C. 1972.)
The Minister may extend the above list by making
orders.<s23>s
13.22a For further details concerning the unoccupied rate see
the following:--
(i) general provisions paragraph 13.60.
(ii) completion notices paragraph 13.78.
(iii) court decisions paragraph 13.90.
<2The Rating Surcharge>2
13.23 The rating surcharge is, at the time of writing suspended
from operation but it remains on the statute book and can be
brought back into force at any time.<s4a>s In the light of this its
provisions are described below.
<s22>s Rating (Exemption of Unoccupied Property) Regulations, 1967 No.954.
<s23>s Schedule 1, para. 3, General Rate Act, 1967.
329
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
13.23a The rating surcharge was introduced by section 16 of the
Local Government Act, 1974 with effect from the 8th February,
1974 and was incorporated by that Act into the General Rate Act,
1967 (sections 17A and 17B)<s23a>s. The first schedule of the General
Rate Act, 1967 was also made to apply to the rating surcharge,
with the exception of paragraphs 1, 2(c) and (d), 6, 12 and 14.<s24>s
13.24 When the first schedule of the General Rate Act, 1967 is
applied to the rating surcharge<s24>s:--
(i) reference to "paragraph 1" is to be read as reference to
"section 17A" General Rate Act, 1967
(ii) a "relevant hereditament" is to be read as a "commercial
building"
(iii) a "relevant period of vacancy" is to be read as a "period of
non-use"
(iv) "three months" is to be read as "six months".
13.25 The rating surcharge is unlike the unoccupied rate, in that
the rating authority has no choice as to whether or not to introduce
it.<s25>s A rating authority must levy the rating surcharge throughout
its area.<s25a>s
13.26 The surcharge applies to commercial buildings and not
just to offices. A <1"commercial building">1 means any hereditament
which requires a gross value,<s26>s with the exception of:--
(a) a dwelling house<s26>s (see paragraph 4.174)
(b) a lock-up garage<s26>s
(c) any private car parking space<s27>s
(d) any private storage premises<s27>s
Note: But see paragraph 13.34b
13.27 <1Dwelling house>1 "means a hereditament which, . . . is used
wholly for the purposes of a private dwelling or private
dwellings."<s28>s If the dwelling and its garage are assessed together as
<s23a>s Section 17B General Rate Act, 1967 has been amended by Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980 schedule 33 para. 10.
<s24>s Section 17B(6), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s25>s The rating surcharge is payable in an area even though the rating authority is not
levying the unoccupied rate in that area. <1(Dixon v. Harding and Others,>1 1976.)
<s25a>s Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980 sect1on 41 and Rating
Surcharge (Suspension) Order, 1980, No.2015 with effect from 1 April, 1981.
<s26>s Section 17B(2), General Rate Act, 1967: For meaning of dwelling-house in
connection with the rating surcharge see <1Kensington and Chelsea L. B. C. v. Victoria>1
<1Wine Co. Ltd.,>1 1977 paras. 13.111 to 13.116.
<s27>s Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations, 1975 No.226.
<s28>s Section 115 and schedule 13 General Rate Act, 1967 but see <1Kensington and>1
<1Chelsea L.B. C. v. Victoria Wine Co. Ltd.>1 , 1977 (Q.B.D.) and paragraph 4.174.
330
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
a single hereditament then the whole hereditament will be deemed
to be a dwelling house.<s29>s If, however, the garage is assessed as a
separate hereditament it will not be classed as a dwelling house.
This gives rise to the need for express exemptions in the case of
garages and stores which are hereditaments in their own right.
13.28 <1Lock-up garage>1 "means a hereditament having a floor
space not exceeding 240 square feet and used as a lock-up
garage."<s26>s
13.29 <1Private parking space>1 "means a hereditament having a
floor space not exceeding 240 square feet and constructed or
adapted for use wholly in connection with a dwelling house for the
parking of motor vehicles."<s27>s This definition differs from that of a
"lock-up garage" and would presumably apply to a car port. It
may also apply to a parking space under a block of flats or in a
multi-storey car park, provided it was "constructed or adapted for
use wholly in connection with a dwelling house for the parking of
motor vehicles."
13.30 <1Private storage premises>1 "means a hereditament con-
structed or adapted for use wholly in connection with a dwelling
house for the storage or accommodation of any of the following
articles belonging to persons residing in that dwelling house,
namely, household stores and other articles of domestic use and
light vehicles (that is to say, bicycles, tricycles, perambulators and
other similar vehicles) whether mechanically propelled or not."<s27>s
13.31 Those hereditaments which require a gross value are
"one or more houses or other non-industrial buildings, with or
without any garden, yard, court, forecourt, outhouse or other
appurtenance thereto, but without other land . . " <s30>s
13.32 It follows that, as with the unoccupied rate, the rating
surcharge is aimed at buildings and does not apply to land by itself,
sporting rights, advertising stations or similar hereditaments. But
unlike the unoccupied rate, the surcharge does not apply to a
factory, mill or any other hereditament which does not require a
gross value.
13.33 There are a number of possible reasons for exempting
dwelling houses and factories from the rating surcharge. One
reason might have been that insufficient of these properties were
being left empty to justify applying the surcharge. Another reason
might have been that the surcharge would have deterred develop-
ers from building houses and factories, for fear that they would
remain empty and become subject to surcharge.
<s29>s Schedule 13, para. 4, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s30>s Section 19(2), General Rate Act, 1967 and see paras. 6.4 to 6.13.
331
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
13.34 When a factory or other industrial hereditament becomes
vacant or otherwise ceases to be used wholly or mainly for
industrial purposes, it immediately falls into the class of heredita-
ments which require a gross value.<s*>s As a result, vacant factories
and other industrial hereditaments would have become subject to
the surcharge. This was apparently not what was intended and so
as to put matters right, an order was made to exempt from the
surcharge "hereditaments which have been and remain con-
structed or adapted as factories, mills or other premises of a
similar character for use wholly or mainly for industrial pur-
poses . . "<s31>s
13.34a In the <1Post Office v. Oxford City Council,>1 1980 (C.A.) a
garage had been used, for the sale of vehicles, accessories and
petrol but also as to most of its floor space and most of its staff for
servicing, repairing and preparing vehicles for sale. It was held not
to have been a factory or other premises of a similar character,
used wholly or mainly for industrial purposes.<s31>s This decision was
given despite the fact that the premises fell within the Factory Act,
1961. It followed that the Post Office was liable to pay the rating
surcharge on the hereditament throughout its period of "non-
use".
13.34b <1"Commercial building">1 will have a new definition when
changes are made in the classes of hereditament which require a
gross value.<s*>s However, although the definition will be new, it
would seem that the types of hereditament which will be subject to
the surcharge will remain substantially the same as at present.
13.34c The change in the definition will not take effect until, at
the earliest, the coming into force of the list which follows the 1973
valuation list.<s31>sa
13.34d The revised definition of <1commercial building>1<s31b>s is:--
. . . <1a hereditament whose net annual value falls to be ascertained>1
<1under section 19(3) of the General Rate Act, 1967 and which>1
<1consists of one or more non-industrial buildings,<s31c>s>1 with or without
a garden, yard, court, forecourt, outhouse or other
appurtenance<s31c>s belonging thereto, but without other land. . .
13.35 The <1surcharge>1 will be levied in the form of rates and will
<s*>s But see paragraphs 6.13a to 6.13g.
<s31>s Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations, 1974 No.1563.
<s31a>s Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980, section 47.
<s31b>s Section 17B General Rate Act, 1967 as amended by Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980 schedule 33, para. 10.
<s31c>s As defined in General Rate Act, 1967 section 19(6).
332
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
be 100% of "the normal rates" in the first 12 months of "non-use":
200% in the next 12 months; 300% in the next 12 months and so on
indefinitely.<s32>s The <1"normal rates">1 are the rates which would be
payable if the owner was in occupation.<s33>s
13.36 It should be noted that under certain circumstances the
unoccupied rate or even occupied rate, may have to be paid at the
same time as the surcharge.<s34>s
13.37 The surcharge becomes payable under the following
circumstances. "If for a continuous period exceeding six months a
commercial building is not used for the purpose for which it was
constructed or has been adapted, its owner shall pay in respect of
that period <1(the "period of non-use")>1 a surcharge. . . ."
13.38 <1"Not used">1 is not necessarily the same thing as "unoccu-
pied" (which is the word that triggers off the unoccupied rate).
"Not used" is qualified by the words "for the purpose for which it
was constructed or has been adapted. . . ." It follows that if a
building is being used for some purpose for which it was not
constructed and has not been adapted, then despite the fact that it
is fully occupied, it will never-the-less be classified as "not used"
for the purposes of the surcharge.
13.39 For example, a building constructed as a church hall, is
being occupied as a store, (without the building having been
adapted in any way). In such a case, the occupier would pay the
normal occupier's rate levied on the basis that it is occupied as a
store. But he would be liable to pay the rating surcharge, because
the building is "not used for the purpose for which it was
constructed or has been adapted". Presumably in a case of this
nature the occupier would, where possible, start immediate works
of adaption even though they were not strictly necessary.
13.40 It is difficult to see the justification for levying the
surcharge on buildings which are fully occupied, but which are not
being used for the purpose for which they were constructed or
have been adapted. Apart from this, considerable difficulty may
be experienced in trying to find out the purpose for which some
old buildings were constructed or adapted. In practice, however,
there is far more likelihood of finding the surcharge levied on
empty buildings. Such buildings will be both "not used" and
"unoccupied" and, unless otherwise exempt, the owner will be
<s32>s Section 17A(3) and (4) General Rate Act. 1967: The wording of subsection (3) is
not entirely clear as to the amount of the surcharge, but the Department of the
Environment Circular 49/74 clarifies the government's intention.
<s33>s Section 17A(3) and (4), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s34>s Section 17A(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
333
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
liable to pay both the unoccupied rate and the surcharge at the
same time.
13.41 A possible method of avoiding the rating surcharge would
have been, for example, to put a desk and a few filing cabinets into
one room of an office block and then claim that the whole block
was occupied. This device would probably have worked because
there is a principle in rating, that occupation of part of a
hereditament amounts to occupation of the whole hereditament.
However, the Act anticipated this method of avoidance by provid-
ing that "a hereditament shall be taken to be used on any day for
the purposes for which it was constructed or has been adapted if,
not less than four-fifths of it was used on that day". It follows that
if more than one-fifth of a hereditament is "not used", the
surcharge becomes payable in addition to the occupied rate.
13.42 This could operate harshly against an occupier who,
anticipating expansion, has taken more space than he can use at
present. Another example of a case in which the surcharge might
be payable, is that of a shop which has a basement. Depending
on the type of trade, the shopkeeper may have no use for
the basement; but if the basement extends under the whole
of the ground floor of the shop, it is likely to exceed one-fifth of
the hereditament and give rise to a surcharge.
13.43 It should be noted that in such a case the surcharge will be
payable on the whole of the hereditament, and not just the part
which is unoccupied.<s34>s In consequence the owner would have to
pay, on the whole hereditament, double rates in the first year,
treble rates in the second year, and so on.
13.44 The rating surcharge does not become payable until a
commercial building has been unused for a continuous period
exceeding 6 months (the "period of non-use"). However, the
surcharge differs from the unoccupied rate in so far that, once the
6 month period has expired the rating surcharge is back dated and
has to be paid from the start of the 6 month period.<s35>s
13.45 The same anti-avoidance provisions apply in the case of
the surcharge as apply in the case of the unoccupied rate, namely
that:--
(a) where an unused hereditament becomes used again for a
period of less than 6 weeks, the hereditament is deemed to
have been unused throughout that period.<s36>s
<s35>s Section 17A(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s36>s Section 17B(4), General Rate Act, 1957: It should be noted that schedule 1 para.
12 does not apply in the case of the rating surcharge.
334
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
(b) where an owner seeks to avoid the rating surcharge by not
completing the erection or conversion of a building, the
rating authority may serve a "completion notice"<s37>s, (see
paragraphs 13.78 to 13.89).
13.46 The surcharge is to be paid by the <1owner.>1 "Owner means
the person entitled to possession . . ."<s38>s A change of ownership
does not entitle the new owner to another 6 month period before
the surcharge becomes payable. The new owner, as it were, steps
into the shoes of the old owner and there is provision for
apportioning the surcharge between the two owners.<s38>s
13.47 "If during a period of non-use a commercial building is
divided into two or more hereditaments, the amount of any
surcharge imposed . . . in respect of those hereditaments shall be
the same as if it had been a separate hereditament from the
beginning of the period of non-use."<s39>s
13.48 If the rating surcharge is not paid the rating authority may
recover it:--
(a) by any of the usual methods for recovering a rate, including
distress, or
(b) as a simple contract debt, in any court of competent
jurisdiction.<s40>s
13.49 There is, however, one other very powerful inducement
to pay the surcharge. Namely that until paid, the rating surcharge
is to be "a charge on the land comprised in the hereditament"
(Registration of local land charges section 15 of the Land Charges
Act, 1925).<s41>s This is likely to deter anyone from purchasing the
property without the surcharge first being paid or without due
allowance being made in the purchase price, for the fact that the
purchaser will have to pay the surcharge. This is particularly so
because the land charge binds all interest in the hereditament and
not just the interest belonging to the person entitled to
possession.<s41a>s The unoccupied rate cannot be registered as a land
charge .
<s37>s Schedule 1, para. 8, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s38>s Section 17B(7), General Rate Act, 1967, see also the special provisions relating
to the owner contained in schedule 1 para. 11, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s39>s Section 17B(2), General Rate Act, 1967, but see also schedule 1 para. 10,
General Rate Act, 1967.
<s40>s Schedule 1, para. 13, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s41>s Section 17B(3), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s41a>s <1Wesminster City Council v. Haymarket Publishing Ltd.>1 , 1981 (C.A.).
335
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
13.50 The rating surcharge is not payable<s42>s where:--
(i) "the owner has tried his best to let the building"<s43>s (which
includes trying his best to assign the lease)<s44>s
(ii) the owner has tried his best to sell his interest in the
building<s49>s
(iii) the rateable value of the building does not exceed #2,000<s49>s
(iv) "the condition of the building makes it unfit for use for the
purpose for which it was constructed or has been adapted,
and it cannot be rendered fit at a cost which is reasonable in
relation to the value of that use"<s43>s
(v) "the owner is prohibited by law from occupying the here-
ditament or allowing it to be occupied"<s45>s
(vi) "the hereditament is kept vacant by reason of action taken
by or on behalf of the Crown or any local or public authority
with a view to prohibiting the occupation of the heredita-
ment or to acquiring it"<s45>s
<1Note;>1 The unoccupied rate exemptions which operate when
a building is the subject of a preservation order, do not
apply in the case of the rating surcharge.
(vii) "an agreement is in force with respect to the hereditament
under section 56(1)(a)" of the General Rate Act, 1967,
which relates to the voluntary compounding of an owner, by
which he has agreed to pay the rates whether the heredita-
ment is occupied or not<s45>s
(viii) the hereditament is held for the purpose of being available
for occupation by a minister of religion as a residence from
which to perform the duties of this office"<s45>s
(ix) a hereditament has been and remains constructed or
adapted as a factory, mill or other premises of a similar
character for use wholly or mainly for industrial purposes.<s46>s
(x) a Post Office hereditament is listed in the Rating Surcharge
(Exemption) Regulations, 1974 No. 1563, which include
<s42>s In some cases listed below the owner will not become liable for the surcharge
until 6 months after the end of the happening which gave rise to the exemption. For
example see schedule 1 para. 2, General Rate Act, 1967 and the decision in <1Brent>1
<1London Borough Council v. Alfa Romeo (Great Britain) Ltd.,>1 1977.
<s43>s Section 17A(2). General Rate Act, 1967: <1R. v. Daejan Properties Ltd. ex parte>1
<1Merton London Borough Council,>1 1978--"It is for them (the owners) to satisfy the
justices on the balance of probabilities and no more, either that they have done
their best to let, or that the condition of the building is such as to render it unfit."
<s44>s <1Brent L. B. C. v. Alfa Romeo (Great Britain) Ltd.>1 , 1977 (Q. B.D.)---in offering to
assign the lease the owner "tried his best to get a tenant 1nto possession" and this
was held to be sufficient to exempt the building from the rating surcharge.
<s45>s Schedule 1, para. 2, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s46>s Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations, 1974 No.1563.
336
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
amongst other hereditaments post offices, sorting offices
and buildings for housing or supporting telecommunication
apparatus.
(xi) "the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament
only in his capacity as the personal representative of a
deceased person"<s47>s
(xii) "there subsists in respect of the owners estate a receiving
order made under the Bankruptcy Act, 1914"<s47>s
(xiii) "the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament in
his capacity as trustee under a deed of arrangement to which
the Deeds of Arrangement Act, 1914 applies"<s47>s
(xiv) "the owner is a company which is subject to a winding-up
order made under the Companies Act, 1948"<s47>s
(xv) "the owner is a company which is being wound-up volun-
tarily under the Companies Act, 1948"<s47>s
(xvi) the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament in his
capacity as liquidator by virtue of an order made under
section 244 or 307 of the Companies Act, 1948.<s47>s
(xvii) (a) any person in good faith intends to carry out <1relevant>1
<1works,>1 and is trying his best to procure the carrying out
of those works or
(b) <1relevant works>1 are being carried out with reasonable
dispatch,
and in consequence thereof the building or such part as is
not used, cannot reasonably be used for the purpose for
which it was constructed or has been adapted<s48,49>s
<1"Relevant Works">1 means works to adapt the building or part
thereof, either
(1) to the reasonable requirements of a person who intends to
use the building, or that part, for the purpose for which it
was constructed or has been adapted<s48>s or
(2) for use for some purpose other than for which the building
was constructed or adapted.<s49>s
13.52 The exemption under (1) above may not be as wide as it
would appear at first glance. This is because in order to fall within
the definition of "relevant works", the works must be "to adapt
<s47>s Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations, 1976 No.982.
<s48>s Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings) Regulations,
1975 No. 1022.
<s49>s Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings) Regulations,
1977 No.1515.
337
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the building, or part thereof, to the reasonable requirements of a
person who intends to use the building." This could mean that the
exemption would not apply in the case where an owner is adapting
a building with the hope of finding a tenant in due course. It may
be however, that in this case, the surcharge could be avoided by
the owner trying to let the building whilst the works are being
carried out.
13.53 The Minister may, by making regulations, extend the list
of hereditaments or the circumstances, where the rating surcharge
is not payable.<s50>s
13.54 In determining whether or not the owner has tried his
best to let or sell the building<s43>s regard shall be had to the
following, as well as other relevant factors:--
(a) the rent sought, compared with rents of similar properties in
the area,<s51>s or as the case may be, the price at which the
interest has been offered for sale compared with the value
of a comparable interest in similar properties in the area.<s49>s
(b) the convenants and conditions subject to which the property
is being offered.<s49,51>s
(c) whether or not the owner indicated to prospective lessees
that he was prepared to let the building in parts.<s51>s
(d) the number and resources of the firms of estate agents
retained for letting or selling.<s51,49>s
(e) the nature and extent of advertising of the building by the
owner or those agents.<s49,51>s
The above tests clearly indicate that Parliament was concerned
that some owners would not make a genuine attempt to let or sell
their buildings.
13.55 A rating authority will need quite a lot of information
before it can decide whether or not to levy the surcharge for any
given building. To this end rating authorities have been given
power to serve a notice on the owner of any commercial building
requiring him to make a written return containing such particulars
as may be reasonably required by the authority for the purpose of
the rating surcharge. This power does not exist for the purposes of
the unoccupied rate.
13.56 The owner has 21 days in which to make the return. If he
fails to make one or knowingly or recklessly makes a false
statement, he is liable to a fine of #400 or imprisonment for a term
not exceeding two years or both.<s52>s
<s50>s Schedule 1, para. 3, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s51>s Section 17A(5), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s52>s Section 17B(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
338
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
13.57 It is interesting to note that although rating authorities
have been given power to require answers to questions, they have
not been given the power to inspect buildings, either for the
purposes of the rating surcharge or the unoccupied rate.<s53>s This
must make their task difficult, as for example, where they have to
establish whether or not more than one fifth of a building is
unused, for the purpose for which it was constructed or has been
adapted.<s54,55>s
13.58 In practice a rating authority might gain access to a
hereditament simply by asking the owner for permission to
inspect.
13.59 In the application of section 17A of the General Rate
Act, 1967 to the City of London "rates" means the aggregate of
the poor rate and the general rate.<s56>s
<2Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge General Provisions>2
13.60 The general rule is that the unoccupied rate and the rating
surcharge are to be levied on the basis of the rateable value in the
current valuation list.<s57>s If, however, the hereditament is not
included in the valuation list, the unoccupied rate and surcharge
are to be levied on the basis of the first rateable value to appear in
a valuation list, thereafter.<s57>s However, it has been held that a
rating authority can collect rates once the valuation officer has
made a proposal to assess an unoccupied or unused building. It is
not necessary for it to wait until a rateable value is entered in the
valuation list.<s57a>s
13.61 The valuation officer does not normally make a proposal
to enter a new hereditament in the valuation list until either:--
(i) the erection of the building has been completed or
(ii) it has been occupied,
which ever occurs first.
13.62 This creates a problem where a <1completion notice>1 has
been served but the erection of the building has not been
completed by the time that the unoccupied rate or surcharge
becomes payable. The problem is that although the owner is liable
to pay the rate, the rating authority cannot serve a demand note on
<s53>s Or for any other purpose connected with rating.
<s54>s Section 17B(5), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s55>s See paragraph 13.38.
<s56>s Section 17B(8), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s57>s Schedule 1, para. 5(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s57a>s <1Barr Hill Developments Ltd. v. South Cambridgeshire District Council,>1 1979
(Q.B.D.) and <1Brent L.B. C. v. Ladbroke Rentals Ltd.,>1 1979 (Q.B.D.).
339
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
him because the hereditament has no rateable value.<s57b>s It follows
that the rating authority will not be able to collect any rate at this
stage.<s57c>s
13.63 In such cases the unoccupied rate and/or surcharge, are to
be levied on the basis of the first rateable value subsequently to
appear in the valuation list.<s57a>s Since, in many cases, the first
rateable value will not appear in the list until the building has been
completed (or has been occupied) it may be several months or in
some cases years, before the rating authority will actually be in a
position to collect the rates.<s57c>s This state of affairs will no doubt
please the owner but will mean that the rating authority will have
to wait for its money. If the owner of a building where this
problem arises, is subject to both the full unoccupied rate and the
rating surcharge over a number of years, a vast sum of money
could be outstanding. Indeed it does not need much imagination to
envisage a case in which the outstanding unoccupied rate and
surcharge could come to more than the building is worth. At this
point it should be remembered that although the unpaid rating
surcharge can be registered as a land charge, the unoccupied rate
cannot, and so the rating authority may lose money if the owner
goes into liquidation or becomes bankrupt.
13.64 The problem of the rating authority not being able to
collect rates on an uncompleted building, because the building has
not yet been assessed, has largely been overcome in the case of
dwelling-houses. This involved a basic change in rating law, as
follows. The rating authority may request the valuation officer to
make a proposal to include in the valuation list a building which
when completed will be a "newly erected dwelling-house".<s58>s The
valuation officer, if he thinks fit, then has power to value the house
as if it has already been completed. This may involve the valuation
officer in a certain amount of speculation, but it means that a
demand note can be served on the owner. If after the rating
authority has made such a request the valuation officer gives
notice that he does not intend to comply with it, the rating
authority may within 28 days make its own proposal to assess the
dwelling-house. Clearly the accuracy of these predictive type
valuations is suspect. Provision has therefore been made for
adjustment, if once the dwelling is occupied, it is apparent that the
original rateable vaIue was wrong. It must be stressed that
statutory authority for this change in the rating law only exists
<s57b>s See paragraph 13.60.
<s57c>s But see paragraphs 13.64a to 13.64e.
<s58>s Schedule 1, para. 6, General Rate Act, 1967.
340
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
where, in the opinion of the rating authority, the building when
completed will be a dwelling-house. Paragraph 6 of schedule 1 of
the General Rate Act, 1967 which gives this statutory power does
not apply to the rating surcharge.<s58>s
13.64a However, in the case of the <1Civil Aviation Authority v.>1
<1Langford, (V.O.)>1 1978 the Lands Tribunal (Mr. Emlyn Jones)
when dealing with the valuation of an uncompleted office building,
said "It seems clear, therefore, that if it were right, notwithstand-
ing the service of a completion notice, that the hereditament, if in
fact incomplete, was to be valued as incomplete, the whole
purpose of the completion notice procedure would be frustrated. I
therefore arrive at the conclusion that where a completion notice is
served the hereditament which is deemed to be occupied by the
owner (under paragraph 1 of the schedule<s58a>s) is the hereditament
which is deemed to be completed (under paras. 8 and 9 of the
schedule)."<s58a>s
13.64b It follows that in the Lands Tribunal's judgment not only
dwelling-houses but other types of building may, in event of a
completion notice taking effect, be valued as if complete, even
though they are not complete. But if this was Parliament's
intention it is not immediately apparent why the special provision
made in paragraph 6 of schedule 1 of the General Rate Act, 1967,
namely to value incomplete buildings as if they were complete,
was expressly restricted to newly erected dwelling-houses.
13.64c This part of the Lands Tribunal's decision not only cuts
across the principle of <1rebus sic stantibus>1<s58b>s but may also conflict
with a series of decisions<s58b>s in the High Court and the Court of
Appeal which decided that before a building could become a
hereditament it must be complete, ready for occupation. In the
court's words, ready for the furniture to be moved in.
13.64d Furthermore, the provision for correcting valuation
errors,<s58d>s which are bound to occur when valuing a hereditament
in anticipation of its physical completion, would only seem to
apply in the case of dwelling-houses.
13.64e Finally, "the whole purpose of the completion notice
procedure" would not be "frustrated" had the Lands Tribunal's
decision been to the contrary effect. This is because the valuation
officer would merely have to wait until the building was complete
<s58a>s Section 17B(6), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s58b>s See paragraphs 6.71 to 6.89.
<s58c>s <1Watford Borough Council v. Parcourt Property Investment Co. Ltd.,>1 1971;
<1Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham L. B. C., 1975; Post Office v. Nottingham City>1
<1Council,>1 1975.
<s58d>s Schedule 1 para. 6(4) General Rate Act, 1967.
341
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
before valuing it. The liability to pay the rating surcharge or the
unoccupied rate is in any case backdated to the time that the
building is deemed to be complete or three months thereafter,
respectively. In consequence the only effect on the rating authority
of a hereditament not being valued as if complete (prior to its
completion) is that the authority would have to wait longer for its
money.
13.65 Special rules apply when a revaluation takes place be-
tween the time when a hereditament becomes the subject of an
unoccupied rate or surcharge, and the time when that heredita-
ment first appears in the valuation list. In such a case the valuation
officer shall, if requested by the rating authority or the owner,
issue a certificate stating what the rateable value of the heredita-
ment would have been, had it been included in the previous
valuation list. The full appeals procedure is available against such
a certificate just as if it were a proposal to alter the valuation list.
Where a certificate has been issued, the unoccupied rate and
surcharge will be levied on the basis of that certificate, for the
period during which the previous valuation list was in force.<s59>s
13.66 If at any given time a hereditament has more than one
"owner", the valuation officer has the power, to apportion the
rateable value between the different parts, to which the owners are
separately entitled. This power only exists where each of the
parts:--
(a) "consist of property suitable for inclusion in a valuation list
as a separate hereditament; and"
(b) "would be a relevant hereditament (or a commercial build-
ing) if it were included in a valuation list as a separate
hereditament "<s60>s
13.67 Where a building has become <1physically incapable of>1
<1occupation,>1 the owner is still liable to pay the unoccupied rate for
as long as it remains a hereditament. (See <1Easiwork Homes Ltd. v.>1
<1Redbridge London Borough Council,>1 1970.) It seems likely that
this decision would also apply in the case of the rating surcharge
(unless the building, in the case of the rating surcharge, could not
be rendered fit at a cost which is reasonable in relation to the value
of its use).<s61,61a>s
<s59>s Schedule 1, para. 5(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s60>s Schedule 1, para. 5(3), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s61>s Section 17A(2)(b), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s61a>s But see exemption from the rating surcharge where certain works are being
carried out---Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings)
Regulations S.I., 1975 No.1022 and S.I., 1977 No.1515.
342
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
13.68 In <1Easiwork Homes Ltd. v. Redbridge London Borough>1
<1Council>1 a block of flats was being modernised. The work involved
the removal of the plumbing, the renewal of the electric wiring,
water supplies, gas appliances and the replacement of the sanitary
ware. Some of the flooring had been taken up and replaced. The
rating assessments in the valuation list remained unaltered
throughout the period of modernisation. The Divisional Court
held that despite the fact that the flats could not physically be
occupied, the owner was still liable to pay the unoccupied rate.
13.69 In the light of this decision it would seem that where
alterations are being carried out the best course of action for the
owner, is to make a proposal to reduce the assessment of the
hereditament in the valuation list. As a general rule a heredita-
ment has to be valued in the physical state that it is at the date on
which the proposal is made and as if its physical state will never
change. In the light of this it is important to make a proposal as
soon as the hereditament becomes uninhabitable. If the proposal
is made before the works start or after they have been completed,
it will not have the desired effect.
13.70 The making of the proposal will not prevent the owner
from having to pay the unoccupied rate or the rating surcharge,
but hopefully it will reduce the amount which he has to pay <s61a>s
13.71 Where an owner carries out alterations to a building,
unless he is properly advised, he will in all probability not think of
making a proposal to reduce the rating assessment until it is too
late. However, all is not necessarily lost since "if in the course of
the exercise of their functions any information comes to the notice
of any local authority<s62>s which leads them to suppose that a
valuation list requires alteration as respects a hereditament" the
local authority has a <1duty>1 to notify the valuation officer so that he
can make a proposal to alter the valuation list.<s63>s
13.72 It seems likely that a local authority will become aware of
most building works in their area, whether as a result of an
application for planning permission, building regulation permis-
sion or as a result of observation. If the Local Authority fails to
notify the valuation officer of these works or if the valuation
officer due to pressure of work, does not make a proposal in time,
then the rating authority may be prepared to remit the rate on the
grounds of "hardship".<s64>s Failing this the owner may have other
remedies available to him.
<s62>s "Local authority" inc1udes a county council as well as a district council.
<s63>s Section 85, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s64>s Para. 3A schedule 1, General Rate Act, 1967.
343
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
13.73 In a case where a hereditament has become unfit for
occupation, it is not necessarily a good idea to have the heredita-
ment taken out of the valuation list. This is because where a
hereditament is not included in the valuation list, the unoccupied
rate and rating surcharge, will be levied on the first rateable value
subsequently to appear in the valuation list. This is likely to be the
value which the valuation officer places on the hereditament after
it has been renovated, and will be higher than the value which
would have been placed on it during the time that is was in an
unoccupiable state. It may be better therefore to make a proposal
to reduce the assessment of the hereditament to a nominal #1.
13.74 A surveyor acting for an owner who is paying or likely to
have to pay, the unoccupied rate or rating surcharge, may consider
whether the property can be brought within the scope of any of the
exemption provisions (see paragraphs 13.22 and 13.50). As for
example, by encouraging the appropriate authority to place a
preservation order on the building. However, the long-term
consequences of an action of this sort may be far reaching and the
advantages and disadvantages of taking such a step should be
carefully considered.
13.75 Rating authorities have the power to reduce or remit the
payment of any rate on account of the <1poverty>1 of the person liable
to pay it, and this power extends to the unoccupied rate and rating
surcharge.<s65>s In addition the rating authority has the power to
reduce or remit both the unoccupied rate and the surcharge, if
they consider that the payment would cause <1hardship>1 to the person
liable to pay the rate.<s66>s Hardship in this case may not mean only
financial hardship. In both cases the exercise of this power is
entirely at the discretion of the rating authority<s66a>s and this may
lead to a lack of uniformity in the way in which it is applied
throughout the country, although guidance has been issued in
Department of the Environment Circular 34/78.
13.76 If when it was last occupied section 40 of the General
Rate Act, 1967 <1(relief for charities and other organisations)>1 applied
to a relevant hereditament or commercial building, then the
hereditament may continue to receive relief during the period that
it is unoccupied.<s67>s However, it sometimes happens that a charity
was the last occupier of a hereditament which it does not own. As
<s65>s Section 53, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s66>s Schedule 1, para. 3A, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s66>sa See <1Abbeygate Properties Ltd. v. Ipswich B.C.,>1 1979 (C.C.); <1R. v. Liverpool>1
<1City Council, Ex-Parte Windsor Securities Ltd.,>1 1978 (C.A.).
<s67>s Schedule 1, para. 4, General Rate Act, 1967.
344
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
for example, where an owner lets a charity occupy vacant premises
pending their use for some other purpose. The Minister has
expressed the view that in such a case when the occupation by the
charity ceases, the charitable relief will not continue to apply
during any unoccupied period which follows. The reasoning
behind this is that, before relief can be given under section 40 of
the General Rate Act, 1976 a hereditament has not only to be used
for charitable purposes, but also occupied by a charity. Whilst
paragraph 4 of schedule 1 to the General Rate Act, 1967, deems
the hereditament to continue to be used for charitable purposes,
during the period of vacancy, paragraph 1 deems the hereditament
to be occupied by the owner (who is not a charity). It is therefore
reasoned that this prevents relief from being given after a charity
has vacated a property of which it is not the owner.<s68>s
13.76a Section 40 will also apply<s68a>s to any "relevant heredita-
ment" or "commercial building" to which section 40 did not apply
when the hereditament was last occupied, provided that:--
(a) it is owned by a charity (or trustees for a charity)
and
(b) they have given notice to the rating authority, that it is
intended that the hereditament shall be wholly or mainly
used for the purpose of that charity (or that charity and
other charities).
Section 40 shall cease to apply<s68a>s to the hereditament:--
(i) if the charity (or trustees) cease to own the hereditament,
or
(ii) if whilst still owning it, it ceases to be their intention to use
it for charitable purposes (as described above), or
iii) after two years have expired from the time of its acquisition
(or the passing of the Local Government, Planning and
Land Act, 1980, which ever is the later).
13.76b The above provisions mean that a charity will be able to
get relief under section 40 where, for example, it purchases a
property intending to use it for its own charitable purposes. The
relief will however, cease, after two years, or in event of the
property being sold or when there is no longer an intention to use
it for those charitable purposes.
13.77 An Electricity or Gas Board showroom which is unoc-
cupied is not subject to the unoccupied rate (nor presumably
<s68>s Rating Law and Practice 1st edition page 174.
<s66a>s Schedule 1, para. 4A, General Rate Act, 1967.
345
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
to the rating surcharge). This is because since it is not being <1used>1
by the Board for the sale, display or demonstration of apparatus
the hereditament is not to be included separately in the valuation
list but will be valued together with the Board's other property by
means of a statutory formula.<s69>s But see General Rate Act, 1967,
schedule 1 paragraph 1 (2A) <s69a>s
<2Completion Notices>2
13.78 During the time that a building is under construction or is
being structurally altered, it may become apparent to the owner
that he is not going to find an occupier for it by the time the
building is finished; or even by the end of the three or six month
period which follows the completion of the building. In such a case
the owner might be tempted to try to avoid the unoccupied rate
and surcharge, by not completing the building until an occupier is
found. The owner would be able to claim that because the building
is not complete, it is incapable of beneficial occupation and is
therefore not rateable. Alternatively he could argue that the
building should be valued in its unfinished state <1(rebus-sic stanti->1
<1bus)>1 which would result in a low assessment.
13.79 The parliamentary draftsman clearly envisaged avoidance
tactics of this type and made provision for them. Where a rating
authority is of the opinion that the erection of a building is
complete, or that the work remaining to be done is such that the
building can reasonably be expected to be completed within three
or six months (as the case may be), the rating authority may serve
a <1completion notice>1 on the owner.<s70>s
13.80 The completion notice will state either that the building is
complete or that it will be deemed to be complete on a certain
date. If the owner is not prepared to accept the date specified in
the completion notice, the owner and the rating authority can
agree some other date.<s70a>s Failing agreement the owner can appeal
against the compIetion notice within 21 days to the County Court,
on the grounds that the building is not complete or as the case may
<s69>s <1London Electricity Board v. Tower Hamlets London Borough Council,>1 1977 see
also section 34, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s69a>s As amended by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980, section
42.
<s70>s Schedule 1, para. 8(1), General Rate Act, 1967. The issuing of completion
notices may be delegated to an officer of the rating authority.
<s70>sa <1Brent L. B. C. v. Ladbroke Rentals Ltd.>1 , 1979 (Q.B.D.); <1Bar Hill Developments>1
<1Ltd. v. South Cambridgeshire District Council,>1 1979 (Q.B.D.).
346
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
be, that it cannot reasonably be expected to be completed by the
date specified.<s71>s (A special form is needed for this appeal.)
13.81 The effect of the completion notice is that from the date
specified (or such other date as is reached by agreement or fixed
by the Court) the building is to be treated as unoccupied.<s72>s It
follows that three or six months (as the case may be) after this
date, the unoccupied rate and the rating surcharge may become
payable.
13.82 The occupied rate will become payable as soon as the
building is occupied, whether this is before or after the date shown
in the completion notice. .
13.83 Where work on a building is not yet complete a problem
arises in connection with the service of the completion notice.The
problem is to decide by what date the building can reasonably be
completed (or might reasonably have been completed). Some
guidance is given in schedule 1 paragraph 9 of the General Rate
Act, 1967. This says, in effect, that where the work which has not
been completed is of a type which is "customarily done . . . after
the erection of the building has been <1substantially completed",>1
then the time <1"reasonably required for carrying out the work">1 shall
be estimated.<s73>s This time is then added to the date on which the
building was <1"substantially completed",>1 in order to give the date
on which the building is deemed to be complete. The date of the
deemed completion may be either before or after the service of the
completion notice.<s74>s However, it would appear that the rating
authority cannot serve a completion notice containing a <1deemed>1
<1completion date>1 which is earlier than the date of the service of the
completion notice<s70a>s (schedule 1 paragraph 8(1) General Rate
Act, 1967). It follows that the 3 or 6 month period (which must
elapse before the unoccupied rate or rating surcharge becomes
payable) cannot start to run prior to the date of service of the
completion notice. (See also <1Watford Borough Council v. Parcourt>1
<1Property Investment Co. Ltd.>1 , 1971 .)
13.84 The work which remains to be done after a building is
"substantially completed" is frequently of a type which cannot be
done until a tenant is found. For example, it may not be possible to
<s71>s Schedule 1, para. 8(4), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s72>s Schedule 1, para. 7, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s73>s Under para. 9, schedule 1, General Rate Act, 1967 the time "reasonably
required for carrying out the work" is to be estimated starting with the date on
which the building was "substantially complete" and not with the date on which the
completion notice was served---<1Graylaw Investments Ltd. v. Ipswich Borough>1
<1Council,>1 1978.
<s74>s <1Graylaw Investments Ltd. v. Ipswich Borough Council,>1 1978.
347
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
erect partitions to divide up a large area of office until the future
occupier has decided where he wants the partitions to go. But in
this connection the Court of Appeal has held that the time
"reasonably required" for carrying out such works does not
include the time needed to find a tenant.<s75>s
13.85 Where, as a result of structural alterations, a relevant
hereditament or a commercial building becomes a different here-
ditament or becomes part of a different hereditament or different
hereditaments, it shall be deemed for the purposes of the unoccu-
pied rate and rating surcharge to have ceased to exist, and to have
been omitted from the valuation list on the date on which the
structural alterations are completed.<s76>s The date on which the
structural alterations are deemed to be completed is apparently to
be determined in accordance with the completion notice
procedure.<s76>s However, nothing is to affect any liability to pay the
unoccupied rate or surcharge prior to the completion of the
structural alterations.<s77>s
13.86 The above provisions could have an appreciable effect on
the owner's rate liability when he carries out structural alterations,
because it is provided that if a hereditament is not included in the
valuation list, the rateable value to be used for the purposes of the
unoccupied rate and rating surcharge is to be the first value
subsequently ascribed to it in the list.<s78>s If an owner is to minimise
his rate liability, the full implications of these provisions should be
carefully considered before an owner starts to carry out work on a
building.
13.87 A completion notice served in respect of a whole build-
ing, which when completed will be occupied in parts (and thus
assessed as several different hereditaments) will be valid for each
separate hereditament carved out of the whole building. This was
the decision in the case of <1Camden London Borough Council v.>1
<1Post Office,>1 1978.
13.88 The facts in the above case were that Camden L.B.C.
served a single completion notice to cover all 36 floors of offices in
Euston Tower, which was at the time empty and not included in
the valuation list. Subsequently the Post Office took a lease of 14
of the 36 floors, and the valuation officer assessed these as a
separate hereditament. The Post Office argued that on a strict
<s75>s <1J.G.L. Investments Ltd. v. Sandwell District Council,>1 1977.
<s76>s Schedule 1, para. 10, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s77>s Schedule 1, para. 10, General Rate Act, 1967 and <1Easiwork Homes v. Redbridge>1
<1L. B. C>1., 1970.
<s78>s Schedule 1, para. 5(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
348
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
interpretation of the words contained in paragraph 8(1) of sche-
dule 1 of the General Rate Act, 1967 a completion notice could
only apply where there was coincidence between the building on
which the completion notice was served and the hereditament for
which the unoccupied rate was levied.
13.89 Lord Denning in the Court of Appeal said that "the
difficulty arises by reason of a few words in paragraph 8(1) which
authorise the rating authority to serve a completion notice when
they are of opinion that the 'building when completed will be
comprised in a relevant hereditament'. These words can only be
satisfied <1literally>1 when there is a coincidence between the building
and the hereditament. But this gives rise to such an absurd result
that there must be some mistake in drafting. Such mistakes do
occur from time to time: and when they occur, the courts must do
what they can to put things right. I think that the courts should
correct these words so as to read that the 'building when com-
pleted will be comprised in one or more relevant hereditaments'."
13.89a Where after the service of a completion notice/s for a
building, the rate free period (i.e. the "standard period") has
expired, any new hereditament carved out of that building (with-
out structural alteration) will not qualify for a new rate free
period.<s78a>s This restriction is necessary in order to insure that a
building once it is deemed to be complete, does not in effect
receive two rate free periods, (i.e. one as a whole building and a
second, one as each part of the building is carved out to form a
separate hereditament). If part only of the rate free period on the
whole building has elapsed, it would seem likely that the owner of
the part carved out will step into the shoes of the owner of the
whole and enjoy the benefit of the remaining part of the rate free
period.
<2The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge--Court Decisions>2
13.90 Since the introduction of the unoccupied rate and the
rating surcharge, the courts have given a number of decisions
which have helped to clarify the law.
13.91 <1In Watford Borough Council v. Parcourt Property Invest->1
<1ment Co. Ltd.,>1 1971<s79>s a developer erected an office building. The
entrance hall, stairs, landing, passenger lifts and toilets were
<s78a>s <1Brent L. B. C. v. Ladbroke Rentals Ltd.,>1 1980 (C.A.).
<s79>s Case heard in the Queens Bench Division but approved in certain respects by the
Court of Appeal in <1Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham London Borough>1
<1Council,>1 1975.
349
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
completed to the last detail including decorations but the office
area was left in an unfinished state. In particular the 63,000 square
feet of office space was in large open areas of up to 8,000 sq-uare
feet, wholly devoid of any partitioning. The office block remained
in this state for several years whilst the developer tried to find a
tenant.
13.92 The Rating Authority did not serve a completion notice
but nevertheless claimed that the building was complete and
subject to the unoccupied rate.
13.93 Schedule 1 of the General Rate Act, 1967 makes it clear
that before a building can become subject to the unoccupied rate it
must be a "relevant hereditament". The parties in this case agreed
that before a building, which is under construction, can become a
"hereditament" it must be "complete"; that is "ready for
occupation".<s80>s Therefore the first question which the Court had to
decide was whether the building was ready for occupation.
13.94 The Court decided that the question should be answered
by looking at the work which the tenant of the building would have
to do before occupying it. If a building lacks features which before
it could be occupied would have to be provided and when provided
would form part of the hereditament (i.e. not just the provision of
items in the nature of furniture) then prior to the provision of
these features the building is not "ready for occupation", not
"complete" and is therefore not a hereditament.<s81>s It must be
emphasised that the test is not what work the <1actual>1 tenant does in
order to make the building suitable for his own particular needs
but rather what work it would be essential for any tenant to do in
order to render the building ready for occupation.<s82>s
13.95 The Court decided that in this case, due to the very large
areas of undivided office space, a tenant would have to erect
partitioning in the form of internal walls before the building was
ready for occupation and that the partitioning would, when
erected, become part of the hereditament.<s83>s It followed that until
<s80>s This meaning of the word "completed" was approved by Lord Denning in the
Court of Appeal in <1Revenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham London Borough>1
<1Council,>1 1975.
<s81>s <1Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham L.B. C>1., 1975.
<s82>s The actual tenant in this case before going into occupation installed a kitchen,
canteen, goods lift and air conditioning for a computer but the Court decided that
these were not "an essential feature of any office building necessary to render it
ready for occupation". See also <1Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham L.B.C>1.,
1975.
<s83>s Unlike the partitioning in the case of <1Jarrold (Inspector of Taxes) v. John Good>1
<1& Sons Ltd.,>1 1962 which was held to be plant and which was not rateable.
350
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
the partitioning was erected the building was Dot complete, not a
hereditament and therefore not subject to the unoccupied rate.<s84>s
13.96 The Court was asked to decide that an alternative way for
a building to become a "completed" relevant hereditament would
be for it to be included in the valuation list. Although showing
some signs of doubt the Court came down against this proposition.
13.97 Having decided that the building was not a hereditament
and that it could not therefore be subject to the unoccupied rate, it
was not strictly necessary for the Court to decide the second
question raised in the case; namely whether a completion notice
has to be served before a newly erected building can become
subject to the unoccupied rate. However, since the point has been
argued before it, the Court gave a decision. For this purpose it had
to assume that its previous decision was wrong and that the
building was a completed building and thus a hereditament. The
question which would then have arisen was whether the heredita-
ment was an <1"unoccupied>1 relevant hereditament" within the
meaning of schedule 1 paragraph 1(1) of the General Rate Act,
1967. For if it was not an <1"unoccupied>1 relevant hereditament," it
could not be the subject of an unoccupied rate.
13.98 The Court decided that the building was a "newly erected
building" within the meaning of paragraph 7 of the first schedule<s85>s
and would remain so until it was first occupied. In the Court's view
such a "newly erected building" could only become an <1"unoccu->1
<1pied>1 relevant hereditament" if a completion notice was served in
accordance with the procedure set down in paragraph 8.<s86>s Since no
completion notice had been served the building was not an
<1"unoccupied>1 relevant hereditament" and in consequence was not
subject to the unoccupied rate.
13.99 In the case of <2Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham London>2
<2Borough Council, 1975>2 the Rating Authority had served a comple-
tion notice<s87>s on the owner claiming that office buildings, known as
the Stratford Centre, were "complete". Some of the floors in these
buildings comprised as much as 8,385 square feet of office space
without any partitioning. The Rating Authority contended that the
offices were complete because the building was <1structurally>1 com-
plete. However, the Court decided that "complete" for the
purpose of paragraph 8 meant complete in the sense of "ready for
<s84>s The Court said that it would not decide whether the absence of electrical fixtures
and fittings rendered the building incomplete.
<s85>s See also section 79(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s86>s See in detail the wording of schedule 1, para. 7, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s87>s Schedule 1, para. 8, General Rate Act, 1967.
351
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
occupation"<s88>s and not just "structurally complete". Whether or
not the building is capable of occupation is the test of completion.
In the absence of partitioning, the building was not capable of
occupation, not ready for occupation and so not complete. (This
decision was in keeping with that in <1Watford Borough Council v.>1
<1Parcourt Property Investment Co. Ltd.>1 , 1971.)
13.100 The Court went on to express the view that the same
test, namely that of readiness for occupation, would also apply in
the case of a building which had been structurally altered.<s89>s
13.101 Paragraph 8(5) of the first schedule of the General Rate
Act, 1967 provides that where there is an appeal to the Court
against the date of completion contained in a completion notice,
then if the appeal is not abandoned or dismissed the "building
shall be treated . . . as completed on such date as the court shall
determine". In <1Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham L. B. C.>1 the
Court of Appeal decided that before a County Court could give a
decision as to the date on which a building was completed,<s90>s it
must be presented with evidence on which to base its decision. In
the absence of such evidence the court was justified in not giving a
decision as to the date of completion.
13.102 In <2Post Offfice v. Nottingham City Council, 1975>2 the Court
of Appeal examined in greater depth the meaning of "completion
ready for occupation". The building in this case was being built as
a telephone exchange. The work remaining to be done at the time
of the County Court hearing<s91>s was the installation of:--
(a) electrical circuits for domestic purposes (i.e. electric light-
ing, lifts) and for the purposes of operating the exchange
equipment to be installed in the building;
(b) a transformer to supply electricity for both lighting and
equipment;
<s88>s There was no wiring for electric lighting and there was to be a 9 months wait for
G.P.O. telephones. The Court did not, however, come to a decision on these
factors but see <1Post Office v. Nottingham City Council,>1 1975.
<s89>s Bridge L.J. referring to schedule 1, para. 10, General Rate Act, 1967 said that
the word "structural" is used to describe the nature of the operation to which the
paragraph applies and not to indicate a test of completion of that operation. He
also expressed the view, that there is a difference between the word "completed" as
used in paras. 7, 8 and 10 and the meaning of "substantially completed" in para. 9.
This interpretation was confirmed by the Court in <1Post Office v. Nottingham City>1
<1Council,>1 1975.
<s90>s Schedule 1, para. 8(5), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s91>s The Court of Appeal agreed that the County Court should decide whether or not
the building was complete on the basis of the position known to the Court at the
date of the hearing and not on the basis of those factors known at the date that the
completion notice was served.
352
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
(c) the telephone exchange equipment;
(d) a ventilation system needed to ventilate the Post Office's
telephone equipment;
(e) kitchen equipment and
(f) three or four partitions.
13.103 Counsel for the Post Office contended that the building
would not be complete until the equipment for the telephone
exchange, or at least some of it, was moved into the building.
13.104 The County Court judge held that the building would
not be completed until the electrical wiring was carried out, the
transformer installed and the partitions erected. However, he
decided that for the building to be completed it was not necessary
for the Post Office equipment or the kitchen and ventilation
equipment to be installed.
13. 105 The Court of Appeal approved the County Court's
decision<s92>s and Brown L.J. went on to say that "the question is
whether the building, <1as a building,>1 is so far completed as to be
capable of occupation or ready for occupation for the purposes for
which it is intended--as a house, shop, office, factory or, in this
case, a telephone exchange". In the Ravenseft case the Court held
that the offices would not be completed until the partitions were
erected. They did not hold that it would not be completed until the
furniture was moved in. Indeed if a building is not completed until
the furniture is moved in, there would be no scope for levying the
unoccupied rate because on the moving in of the furniture the
building would be occupied (in a rating sense) and thus rateable in
the normal way.<s93>s
13.106 Brown L.J. did not think that it was necessary to resort
to section 21 and the 3rd schedule of the General Rate Act, 1967
(rateable plant and machinery) in order to decide whether the
items omitted from the building would, when supplied, become
part of the hereditament, or otherwise, whether they would
become part of the freehold. He preferred the "broader and
common sense test" mentioned above and on the basis of this test
the building could not be occupied <1as a building>1 for its intended
purpose, until the transformer and the electrical wiring had been
installed. This is because until the electrical wiring was carried out
<s92>s Brown L.J. would probably have included the ventilation equipment in with the
work which would have to be done before the building was completed. But see the
decision concerning air conditioning plant in <1Watford-Borough Council v. Parcourt>1
<1Property Investment Co. Ltd.>1 , 1971.
<s93>s See paras. 2.39 to 2.60.
353
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
and the transformer installed, it would not be possible to light the
building and operate the lifts.<s94>s
13.107 Cairns L.J. said: "I cannot accept the proposition that a -
building intended for a telephone exchange is only complete when
it is capable of immediate use as a telephone exchange. If that
were the test, a house could not be said to be complete until it had
been furnished, or a factory until the necessary tools for use in it
were available." "If the building is, in the ordinary sense, com-
plete, so that it is ready to be equipped for the intended purpose
by introducing some equipment which is not to be part of the
building, then in my opinion, the building is ready for occupation
for that purpose."
13.108 Three important points were established in <2Brent Lon->2
<2don Borough Council v. Alfa Romeo (Great Britain) Ltd., 1977>2.
Firstly, that an owner who has tried to assign his lease is exempt
from the rating surcharge on the grounds that "the owner has tried
his best to let the building". This decision was given on the basis
that an owner who has offered his lease for assignment has "tried
his best to get a tenant into possession" and thus is not guilty of the
mischief against which the surcharge is aimed.
13.109 Secondly, that the building in this case was not being
used "for the purpose for which it was constructed",<s95>s during that
period in which it was left vacant except for the carrying out of
works needed to prepare it for use as a spares organisation.<s96>s In
consequence an owner could be liable for the rating surcharge
during a period in which he is preparing a building for a use.
13.110 Thirdly, that the six month period of "non-use" does not
start to run until <1after>1 an owner has stopped trying to let the
building. In other words the period during which an owner is
trying to let his building cannot be counted towards the period of 6
months of "non-use", which must elapse before the surcharge can
be levied.
13. 11 1 The definition of "dwelling-house" was considered in
<2Kensington & Chelsea London Borough Council v. Victoria Wine Co.>2
<2Ltd., 1977.>2 A building had been constructed as a house in 1900 but
had been adapted so that it could be used either as a house or for
letting of rooms singly.
13.112 For a period of six months the building had not been
used at all and the Rating Authority levied a rating surcharge on
<s94>s This would appear to resolve the question concerning electrical wiring which was
left undecided in <1Ravenseft Properties Ltd. v. Newham L. B.C>1., 1975.
<s95>s Section 17A(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s96>s <1Arbuckle Smith & Co. Ltd. v. Greenock Corporation,>1 1960 (H.L.).
354
<1The Unoccupied Rate and Rating Surcharge>1
the owner. The owner intended to use the building on a service
tenancy basis either as a house or as two flats.
13.113 A "dwelling-house" is exempt from the rating surcharge
and the question was whether or not this building was a "dwelling-
house". "Dwelling-house" is defined as a hereditament which <1is>1
<1used>1 wholly for the purposes of a private dwelling or private
dwellings.<s97>s (A hereditament where the whole or substantially the
whole of the available accommodation is used for the letting of
rooms singly for residential purposes is not a "dwelling-house".)
13.114 It was argued by the Rating Authority that as the
building was not <1used>1 for anything, it was not a "dwelling-house"
and was therefore subject to the rating surcharge (i.e. that it was a
commercial building) .
13.115 The High Court decided that the phrase "is used", in the
definition of a "dwelling-house", means "exists for the use of" or
"is of the kind that is used for". It does not mean "is actually being
used".
13.116 The interpretation of the word <1used>1 does not seem to be
in keeping with the meaning given to the word by the courts on
other occasions and in particular with regard to industrial heredita-
ments and in the definition of agricultural land. However, if the
Court had decided that <1used>1 meant "actually being used", it would
have followed that vacant "dwelling-houses" would have been
subject to the rating surcharge despite the exemption given to
them in Section 17B(2) of the General Rate Act, 1967.
13. 117 <1In Henderson v. Liverpool Metropolitan District Council,>1
<11980>1 the ratepayer was in the course of erecting a new house, to be
know as Mimos, in the garden of an existing but unoccupied house
called Kennerdale. A completion notice was served but named
Kennerdale and not Mimos. The ratepayer claimed that the
completion notice was invalid but the Court held that it was valid,
because it clearly related to Mimos and the ratepayer was not
mislead.
13.118 The planning permission for Mimos had a condition in
it, that Kennerdale should be demolished within one month of
Mimos being occupied. The Court held that prior to the occupa-
tion of Mimos the ratepayer was neither prohibited by law from
occupying Kennerdale nor was it being kept vacant by reason of
action taken by the Local Authority. It followed that the unoccu-
pied rate was payable on Kennerdale as well as on Mimos.
<s97>s Section 115 and Schedule 13, General Rate Act, 1967 but see, as a matter of
interest, section 19(7) General Rate Act, 1967.
355
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
13. 119 <1The British Railways Board v. Leicester City Council, 1980>1
the ratepayers were owners of an unoccupied shop which formed
part of a railway station. The shop had been let out and was
entered as a separate hereditament in the valuation list. The Court
held that the shop was exempt under section 32(3) of the General
Rate Act, 1967.
356
<1Chapter 14>1
<2THE VALUATION LIST>2
<2The Preparation of a Valuation List>2
14.1 A valuation list is a list of all the rateable hereditaments
within a rating area. It contains amongst other things, the assess-
ment number, the address, a short description and the rating
assessment of each hereditament.
14.2 Valuation lists are prepared by valuation officers, em-
ployed by the Commissioners of Inland Revenue. Lists are pre-
pared as and when the Secretary of State Orders.<s1>s
14.3 After a new valuation list has come into force ratepayers
are entitled to make "proposals" to alter the list. For several years
after a revaluation, the valuation office and the courts are kept
busy settling the alterations which are to be made to the valuation
list as a result of these "proposals". By the time this work has
finished or sometimes even before it has been finished, the
valuation officer has to start work on the preparation of a new list.
The preparation of a new list is known as a <1"revaluation".>1
14.4 To carry out a revaluation the valuation officer needs
certain information about each of the properties which he is going
to value. Some of this information can be found by making an
inspection of the property but some cannot. In consequence the
valuation officer is entitled to serve a notice on the owner<s2>s and/or
the occupier and/or the lessee of any hereditament or premises
within the rating area, requiring a <1return>1 to be made containing
<1such particulars "as may be reasonably required,>1 for the purpose of
enabling the valuation officer to accurately compile the valuation
list.<s3>s
14.5 The valuation officer has a similar right to require a return
when a proposal has been made to alter the valuation list or when
he is thinking of making a proposal. In this case he may ask for
such particulars as may be reasonably required for the purpose of
enabling him to decide whether to make, or as the case may be,
object, to a proposal.
<s1>s See paragraphs 1.45-14.32.
<s2>s "Owner" means any person for the time being receiving the rack rent of the lands
or premises . . . whether on his own account, or as agent or trustee for any other
person, or who would so receive . . . that rent if the lands or premises were let at a
rack rent (Section 115, General Rate Act, 1967).
<s3>s Section 82, General Rate Act, 1967.
357
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
14.6 There is no statutory form laid down for these returns but
in practice they are normally in the form of a printed sheet of
questions, with space to fill in the answers. They are known as
<1"rent return forns">1 .
14.7 There are different types of rent return forms for different
types of properties, the questions varying according to the type of
property. Rent return forms usually include requests for informa-
tion concerning the name of the occupier, the owner, the date and
duration of the letting, the amount of rent paid, and any premium
paid or alterations carried out by the tenant.
14.8 It is not essential for the valuation officer to use a printed
form and he is perfectly entitled to write a letter asking questions.
14.9 If it can be shown in any case, that the printed form asks
for some particular which is not "reasonably required", then the
person on whom the form has been served is not bound to answer
that question. "Reasonably required" means "reasonably
necessary".<s4>s It is the method of valuation to be used when valuing
the property which will, in the main, determine what information
is reasonably required. For example, if a hereditament is to be
valued by the contractor's method of valuation it is probably
reasonable for the valuation officer to ask how much the heredita-
ment cost to construct or the sum for which it was purchased in the
open market. If on the other hand the hereditament is one which is
to be valued by the rental method of valuation, it is probably not
reasonable to ask for details of the cost of construction or the
purchase price of the property.
14.10 Following the case of <1Watney Mann Ltd. v. Langley>1
<1(Valuation Officer),>1 1966, it would seem that the valuation officer
is entitled to require details of the actual trade done, where this is
reasonably necessary in order to value a hereditament. The case
concerned a public house which was being valued on the basis of
the amount of liquor which could be sold.<s5>s However, in the case of
a shop which is valued by the rental method of valuation it is most
unlikely that the courts would uphold a request for information
about the volume of trade done in that shop.
14.11 It is not reasonable for the valuation officer to ask for
information which he could find out by making a survey of the
property.<s6>s
14.12 The person or persons on whom the notice requiring
<s4>s <1Watney Mann Ltd. v. Langley (V. O.)>1 1966.
<s5>s The "direct method" of valuation.
<s6>s <1Allchin v. Williamson (V.O.)>1 1966.
358
<1The Valuation List>1
information is served have 21 days after the date of service<s7>s of the
notice, to make a return in such form as is required and deliver it
to the valuation officer.
14.13 If the person served with the notice fails to comply with it
and has no reasonable excuse, he is liable on summary conviction
to a fine not exceeding #50. If after conviction the failure to make
a return continues (without reasonable excuse) that person is
guilty of a further offence and will be punished accordingly.
Deliberate falsehoods or statements made recklessly which are
false in a material particular render the culprit liable on summary
conviction to a fine not exceeding #200 and/or to a prison sentence
not exceeding three months.
14.14 Inspection of the property to be valued is a preliminary to
valuation. The valuation officer and any person he has authorised
in writing so to do, have the <1right to enter any hereditament>1 in the
area for which the valuation officer acts in order to survey and
value it.<18 This power may be exercised at all reasonable times>1
provided that not less than twenty-four hours' notice in writing has
been given; authorised persons must produce their authority if so
requested.
14.15 If any person wilfully delays or obstructs the inspection,
then that person will on summary conviction be liable to a fine not
exceeding #5.<s8>s
14.15a For how rent returns may be used in court see para-
graphs 14.90 to 14.93.
<1Form of the Valuation List>1
14.16 Once the necessary particulars have been collected and
inspections carried out, the hereditaments can be valued. The next
step is to make up the new valuation list, the form of which and the
entries to be made in it being prescribed by the <2Valuation List>2
<2Rules.>2<s9>s By virtue of these regulations, the list is divided into three
sections: Section I is completed during the preparation of the list;
Section II contains details of alterations made to the list after it has
become the list in force; and the entries in Section III are the totals
of values at the date when it becomes the current list for the rating
area. The schedule to the Valuation List Rules 1972 shows the
layout for the three sections of the list.<s10>s
<s7>s For details of how the notice may be served see section 109 General Rate Act,
1967.
<s8>s Section 86, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s9>s S.I. 1972 No. 1612. Variations are permitted provided the form remains
substantially to the same effect.
<s10>s See appendix C.
359
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
14.17 Where a rating area comprises more than one rating
district<s11>s the entries for each district are to be grouped and totalled
separately in the three sections of the valuation list.
14.18 If the valuation officer thinks fit he may enter under the
heading of "Exemptions (Contribution Cases)":-- (i) heredita-
ments in respect of which contributions in aid of rates are made,
e.g. Crown properties; (ii) hereditaments in respect of which
promoters of an undertaking are required by section 133 of the
Lands Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845 to make good any de-
ficiency of the general rate.
14.19 Statutory gas and electricity hereditaments shall be en-
tered at the end of Section I of the valuation list and where the
rating area comprises more than one rating district,ii shall not be
included in any division of that section.
14.20 Statutory water hereditaments and other hereditaments
assessed by means of a formula made by order of the Minister,
shall be entered as a separate group in Section I or I1 of the list; or
where the rating area comprises more than one rating district, as
separate groups in the appropriate divisions.
14.21 In the case of the 1973 valuation list, there is no column in
the list for the net annual value of the hereditament. This is
because no net annual value is to be shown in the list unless the
rateable value and the net annual value are different. In such a
case the net annual value will be entered in the gross value column
and the heading altered to read Gross Value/Net Annual Value.
To make doubly sure that there is no confusion the net annual
value figure will have "NAV" entered against it or an asterisk
referring the reader to a footnote.
14.22 Where an agricultural dwelling-house (within the mean-
ing of Section 26 of the General Rate Act, 1967) is included in the
Valuation list the description shall include the item "(AG)".
14.23 The way in which alterations are to be shown in the
valuation list is set out in the Valuation List Rules 1972 and
involves the use of different coloured inks.
<1Completion of the Valuation List>1
14.24 When the list has been prepared, the valuation officer
must insert in it a statement of totals of values in respect of the
whole rating area and of any district, or other area which is liable
to be charged separately in respect of any expenses. Then, not
<s11>s "Rating district" is defined in Section 45 General Rate Act, 1967 as amended by
Section 172 and Schedule 13 Local Government Act, 1972: A local government
parish is a separate district for rating purposes.
360
<1The Valuation List>1
later than the end of December preceding the date on which the
list is to come into force,<s12>s the valuation officer signs the list and
sends it, with a copy, to the rating authority.
14.25 Immediately the list is received, the rating authority have
to take such steps as they consider most suitable for giving notice
of the list, and of the rights of persons to inspect it and to make
proposals for its alteration. It should be noted that a proposal
cannot be made to alter the valuation list until the list has come
into force (i.e. on the 1st April).
<1Right to Inspect Documents>1
14.26 A ratepayer's right of inspection is not confined to a
valuation list about to come into force, but extends to the current
list, any previous valuation list, rate book, proposal, objection,
minutes of the proceedings of a local valuation court, and other
documents relating to rating assessments.<s13>s Inspections and the
taking of copies and extracts may be carried out at all reasonable
times without charge unless the document is more than ten years
old, when a small fee is payable.
14.27 A ratepayer (and any valuation officer) may exercise his
right of inspection in any area and not only in that in which he pays
his rates. For this purpose an occupier who pays an inclusive rent is
regarded as a ratepayer, and valuation officers of any area have
the same rights as ratepayers. A ratepayer may authorise an agent
to exercise the right of inspection on his behalf.
14.28 Any person who has custody of any document which a
ratepayer or valuation officer is entitled to inspect under the
provisions of section 108 of the General Rate Act, 1967 and who
obstructs the ratepayer or valuation officer in making an inspec-
tion or taking a copy thereof or an extract therefrom or demands
an unauthorised fee, shall on summary conviction, be liable for
each offence to a fine not exceeding #5.<s14>s
<1Alteration of the Valuation List before it comes into force>1
14.29 Under the procedure for the preparation of new valuation
lists as provided in the Acts of 1925 and 1948, persons aggrieved
with the contents of the list could take steps to have it altered
before it came into force, but this is no longer possible. Only the
<s12>s The Minister of Housing and Local Government may, either before or after the
end of December, allow an extended period the end of which is then substituted for
the end of December.
<s13>s Section 108, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s14>s Section 108(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
361
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
valuation officer is now permitted to cause the list to be altered
before the date on which it comes into force.<s15>s
14.30 If between the time of sending the list to the rating
authority and the date when it comes into force, it seems to the
valuation officer that, by reason of a <1"material change of circum->1
<1stances">1 which has occurred since the "time of the valuation", the
list ought to be altered in any respect he shall cause the alteration
to be made before that date. "Material change of circumstances"
is defined in section 68 of the General Rate Act, 1967, as meaning
a change of circumstances which consists of:--
(a) the coming into occupation of a newly erected or newly
constructed hereditament or of a hereditament which has
been out of occupation on account of structural alterations;
or
(b) a change in the value of a hereditament caused by the
making of structural alterations or by the total or partial
destruction of any building or other erection by fire or any
other physical cause; or
(c) the happening of any event whereby a hereditament or part
of a hereditament becomes, or ceases to be, not liable to be
rated; or
(d) a change in the extent to which any railway or canal
premises within the meaning of section 32 of this Act are
occupied for non-rateable purposes within the meaning of
that section; or
(e) property previously rated as a single hereditament becom-
ing liable to be rated in parts; or
(f) property previously rated in parts becoming liable to be
rated as a single hereditament; or
(g) a hereditament becoming or ceasing to be--
(i) a dwelling-house; or
(ii) a private garage or private storage premises within the
meaning of schedule 11 to this Act; or
(h) a hereditament being, in accordance with schedule 13 to this
Act, used to a greater or lesser extent for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings.
The "time of the valuation" in this context means the time by
reference to which the valuation officer prepared so much of the
list as is affected by the "material change of circumstances".
14.31 Where a valuation list is altered before it comes into
force, a line is drawn through the entries which are to be amended
<s15>s Section 68, General Rate Act, 1967.
362
<1The Valuation List>1
and a new page containing the amended entries is inserted in the
appropriate parts or divisions of Section I. A reference to the new
page containing the amended entry is then inserted in the valua-
tion list against each entry which has been struck through.<s16>s It is
expressely provided that alterations of this kind have to be made in
black ink.
<2Current and Future Valuation Lists>2
14.32 The valuation list, current at the time of writing, took
effect on the 1st April, 1973 (for details of earlier revaluations see
paragraph 1.45).
14.32a In the future, a new valuation list is to be prepared, by
the valuation officer, for each rating area. The list is to come into
force on the 1st April in such year as the Secretary of State may
order<s17>s (attempts to make quinquennial revaluations in England
and Wales have finally been abandoned).
14.32b In previous revaluations every rateable property was
revalued. However, from now on, the Secretary of State has the
power to order that only <1"specified hereditaments">1 will be
revalued.<s17a>s <1"Unspecified hereditaments">1 will be included in the
new valuation list at the same net annual value as they appeared in
the previous valuation list.<s17a>s
14.32c The above provisions will enable some classes of here-
ditament to be revalued whilst other classes are not. For example,
it would be possible to revalue all hereditaments except dwelling-
houses; if this was felt to be politically expedient.
14.32d The revaluation of some classes of hereditament and not
others, would at a time of rising values, result in a greater burden
of rates falling on the revalued properties. To overcome this
problem the Secretary of State has power to order an adjustment
to be made between a hereditament's net annual value and its
rateable value.
14.32e These adjustments must preserve the balance which
existed immediately before the revaluation. That is the balance
between the total of the rateable values of all those hereditaments
which have been revalued and the total of the rateable values of
<s16>s Valuation Lists Rules 1972 S.I. 1972 No. 1612.
<s17>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 68 as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980 section 28.
<s17a>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 19A added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act, 1980.
363
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
those which have not.<s17b>s In consequence those hereditaments
which have been revalued (the "specified hereditaments") will not,
as a group, bear a higher proportion of the total rate burden, than
they did before the revaluation. But the amount of rates paid by
individual "specified hereditaments," within that group, may alter
as a result of changes in their relative values.
14.32f It follows that there will be no change in the proportion
of the total rate burden borne by "unspecified hereditaments"
either. However, in the case of "unspecified hereditaments" there
will be no change in the proportion of the rate burden as between
one "unspecified hereditament" and another. This is because the
unspecified hereditaments will not have been revalued.
14.32g The adjustment between net annual value and rateable
value will be made either to "specified hereditaments" or "unspe-
cified hereditaments", as the order provides.
14.32h For the date by reference to which a hereditament has to
be valued for a new list, see paragraphs 6.47 to 6.47h.
<1Custody ofthe Valuation List>1
14.33 The valuation list is kept at the offices of the rating
authority and it is their duty to make such alterations to the list as
they are directed to do by the valuation officer acting in pursuance
of the statutory rules and the General Rate Act, 1967.
The ratepayer's right to inspect the list has been indicated
above.<s18>s
<2Alteration of the Current Valuation List>2
14.33a It is the valuation officer who should ensure that the
correctness of the valuation list is maintained. But <1all>1 local
authorities have a duty to notify the valuation officer if they have
any reason to believe that the valuation list needs altering.<s18a>s
<1Grounds for Altering the Valuation List>1
14.34 Although a new valuation list is prepared from time to
time, it is necessary to have machinery for the alteration of the list
in force. Such alterations are required in order to take account of
changes in the character of the occupation, physical changes to the
hereditament, changes in the surroundings and various other
<s17b>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 19B added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act, 1980.
<s18>s See paras 14.24 to 14.28.
<s18a>s Section 85, General Rate Act 1967 (see para. 14.47).
364
<1The Valuation List>1
changes. The correction of arithmetical and clerical errors may
also be necessary.
<1Alteration without a Proposal>1
14.35 On the direction of the valuation officer, the valuation list
may be altered at any time in order to correct clerical or
arithmetical errors, and the list has effect accordingly.<s19>s But if the
alteration is made in respect of any matter other than totals, the
valuation officer must send, before the alteration is made, a notice
of it to the occupier of the hereditament and to the rating authority
concerned; either of these parties may then make representations
within fourteen days of the service of notice.
14.36 Section 80 of the General Rate Act, 1967, prescribes a
second occasion when the valuation list can be altered without a
proposal. Where the rating authority requests the valuation officer
to delete from the list a hereditament which has ceased to exist,
then provided the valuation officer is satisfied that the heredita-
ment has ceased to exist, he can require the valuation list to be
altered without the use of a proposal. It is probable that the
valuation officer was relieved of the duty of serving a proposal in
the above case because of the difficulty of serving the proposal on
the occupier of a non-existent hereditament.
14.37 Section 80(4) of the General Rate Act, 1967 specifies one
or two other occasions on which the valuation list can be altered
without the serving of a proposal. But see also section 1(6) Rating
(Caravan Sites) Act, 1976 where single caravan assessments can be
deleted from the valuation list without making a proposal. This
may be done after the valuation officer has assessed a number of
leisure caravans as a single hereditament.
<1Alteration>1 by <1means of a Proposal>1
14.38 Apart from the exceptions mentioned above, once a
valuation list has come into force it can only be altered in the
manner provided by section 69 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
14.39 A proposal for the alteration of a valuation list in respect
of a hereditament (referred to in rating circles as <1"a proposal")>1
may be made at any time by <2"any person">2 (including a rating
authority) <2"who is aggrieved">2 by one or more of the following:--
(i) by the inclusion of any hereditament in the list; or
(ii) by any value ascribed in the list to the hereditament or
<s19>s Section 80, General Rate Act, 1967.
365
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
by any other statement made or omitted to be made in the
list with respect to a hereditament; or
(iii) in the case of a building or a portion of a building occupied
in parts, by the valuation in the list of that building or
portion of a building as a single hereditament.
14.40 A person can only make a proposal to alter the assess-
ment of a hereditament within a rating area in which he is a
ratepayer, or within a rating area which is within the same
precepting area<s20>s as that in which he is a ratepayer.<s21>s Only in these
circumstances can a person be "aggrieved" and thus be eligible to
make a proposal. It is not, however, necessary for a person to
show that he will be any better off financially (as a result of the
proposed alteration) before he can be classed as aggrieved. It is
enough for a person to think that there is an error in the valuation
list.<s21>s
14.41 It will be noticed that the statutory grounds of grievance
are broadly based and include practically all of the reasons which a
ratepayer might have for wishing the list to be altered--except:--
(i) unfairness;<s22>s
(ii) the absence of a property from the valuation list.
It follows that it is not possible for "any person" to make a
proposal to put a property into the valuation list.
14.42 One reason for this is that if "any person" could make a
proposal to put a hereditament into the valuation list, an undigni-
fied race might develop between the valuation officer and "any
person" to see who could make the first proposal to assess a new
hereditament. If " any person" won that race and if "any person's"
proposed value did not conform with the valuation officer's view
of the value which should go into the list, then the valuation officer
would have to object to "any person's" proposal. This could result
in lengthy negotiations and perhaps a hearing in court. As things
stand the valuation officer has the first opportunity to assess a new
hereditament and it is up to the occupier, owner or rating
<s20>s i.e: an area which is precepted on by the same authority or authorities which
precept on the area in which that person is a ratepayer. See paragraphs 1.51 to 1.55.
<s21>s <1Arsenal Football Club Ltd. v. Smith (V. O.) and Ende>1 1977 (House of Lords).
Note: A person who receives the rents from a building which has been assessed as a
single hereditament under section 24 of the General Rate Act, 1967, can be an
aggrieved person, see also <1John Walsh Ltd. v. Sheffield City Council and Tranter>1
<1(V.O.)>1 1957 (C.A.).
<s22>s See paragraph 14.48.
366
<1The Valuation List>1
authority to object to the valuation officer's proposal if they
disagree with it.
14.43 The valuation officer being completely impartial cannot
be "aggrieved"! He has therefore had to be given specific power to
make proposals.<s23>s
14.44 The valuation officer's power to make proposals is much
wider than "any person's" power. He can at "any time make a
proposal for any alteration of the valuation list" and this includes
the right to make a proposal to put a new hereditament into the list
for the first time.
14.45 There are two exceptions to the general rule that "any
person" cannot make a proposal to include a new hereditament in
the valuation list. The exceptions are contained in section 69(3)
and schedule 1 paragraph 6(1) and <1(2)>1 of the General Rate Act,
1967, and provide that where the rating authority have requested
the valuation officer to include a hereditament in the valuation list
and the valuation officer has declined, then the rating authority
may make a proposal to include the hereditament in the valuation
list.
14.46 In connection with any proposal which has been made, or
which he himself intends to make, a valuation officer may at any
time require the owner or occupier or lessee of any hereditament
or premises in the area to make a <1return of such particulars as may>1
<1be reasonably required.>1<s24>s The rules concerning such returns are
similar to those relating to returns that are required for the
preparation of a new valuation list, and these have been described
above.<s25>s The right of the valuation officer, and of his duly
authorised representative, to <1enter on a hereditament>1 in order to
survey and value it may also be exercised in connection with a
proposal.
14.47 To help valuation officers keep valuation lists up-to-date,
<1local authorities>1 have a duty to notify them of any information
coming into their possession which suggests that a list requires
alteration in respect of a hereditament.<s26>s
14.48 Attention is drawn to the fact that unfairness is not a
ground on which a proposal may be made, and in <1Ladies Hosiery>1
<1and Underwear Ltd. v. W. Middlesex A. C.>1 , 1932, it was held that if
a hereditament has been correctly assessed according to the
definition of gross value (or net annual value) the assessments
<s23>s Section 69(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s24>s Section 82, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s25>s See paragraphs 14.4 to 14.13.
<s26>s Section 85, General Rate Act, 1967.
367
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
cannot be altered merely because similar hereditaments in the
vicinity have been under-valued. The ratepayer's remedy in such
circumstances was said to be to make proposals for the increase in
the values of the other properties.<s27>s
<1Procedure relating to Proposals>1
14.49 A <1proposal>1 is only valid if it complies with <1all>1 of the
following conditions:<s28>s
(i) it is made in writing and, except where it is made by the
valuation officer, is served on the valuation officer;
(ii) it specifies the ground on which the proposed alteration is
supported;
(iii) it complies with any requirements of any regulations<s29>s
made by the Minister with respect to the form of proposals
and otherwise with respect to the making thereof.
With reference to the second condition, the ground on which the
alteration is supported must be one or more of those listed in
Section 69 of the General Rate Act, 1967 <s30>s
14.50 If an alteration in value is sought the precise figures
required should ideally be inserted in the proposal form. The Lands
Tribunal and the Court of Appeal have held that the absence of
these figures did not invalidate the proposal,<s31>s but his decision was
reached before the current regulations came into force. It is
undoubtedly better practice, and in view of the doubt, also wiser,
to insert the figures required.
14.50a In deciding whether or not a proposal was valid, Scott
L.J. said, in the Court of Appeal: "The proposal must give
sufficient information to enable the assessment committee<s31a>s to
know:--
(1) whether an increase or decrease is asked for;
(2) to which of the existing valuations in the rate book the
proposal refers;
(3) what is the ground of complaint as to the existing valuation
on that head;
<s27>s But see <1Arsenal Football Club Ltd. v. Sm1th (V.O.) and Ende>1 1977 (House of
Lords) concerning the courts view of fairness and uniformity.
<s28>s Section 69(5), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s29>s Valuation List (Proposals for Alteration) Regulations, 1974; S.I. 1974 No. 2213.
<s30>s See paragraphs 14.39 to 14.42.
<s30a>s R <1v. Winchester Area Assessment Committee Ex parte Wright>1 1948 (CA)
decided under section 237 Rating and Valuation Act, 1925.
<s31>s <1Jollys (Oldham) Ltd. v. Almond (V. O.)>1 1951.
<s31a>s Replaced by the Local Valuation Court.
368
<1The Valuation List>1
and it is enough to state "incorrect or unfair"<s31>sb unless there is
some unusual ground, in which case it ought to be specified."<s30a>s
14.50b Where a proposal asks for a reduction in the assessment
of a hereditament, it is not open to a court to increase the
assessment. Nor can the court reduce the assessment below the
figure asked for in the proposal, (but see paragraph 14.86).
14.50c Likewise if the proposal asks for the assessment of a
hereditament to be increased, it is not open to the court to reduce
the assessment. Neither is it open to the court to increase the
assessment above the figure asked for in the proposal.
14.50d Following the same line of reasoning it is not open to a
court to direct that two or more hereditaments should be com-
bined into a single assessment unless this has been asked for in the
proposal. Likewise it is not open to a court to divide a heredita-
ment into two or more hereditaments unless this has been asked
for in the proposal.
14.50e The reason for this limitation on the court's powers is
that the court can only ". . . <1give effect to the contention of the>1
<1appellant if and so far as that contention appears to the court to be>1
<1wellfounded."<s31c>1 The maker of the proposal is the appellant31d>s and
his contention is contained in the proposal. It follows that the
decision of the court is limited on the one side by what is currently
in the valuation list and on the other side by the alteration asked
for in the proposal.
14.50f Once a person has made a proposal he cannot alter his
contention except by withdrawing the proposal and making a new
proposal.<s31e>s
14.50g In <1Liverpool City Council v. British Transport Hotels>1
<1Ltd.,>1 and Another (C.A.) the ratepayer made a proposal on which
were printed the words "Alteration which that person or body
hereby proposes should be made in the valuation list" against
which was typed "That the Assessment should be deleted from the
Valuation List." Following this were printed the words "Grounds
on which that alteration is proposed" against which was typed
"That the Assessment is incorrect, excessive and bad in law."
14.50h Because the ratepayers had asked that ". . . the Assess-
ment should be deleted . . ." the Lands Tribunal took the view
<s31b>s It should be noted that "unfairness' is no longer specified as a ground for
making a proposal. See paragraphs 14.41 and 14.48.
<s31c>s Section 76(5), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s31d>s Section 73(2)(b), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s31e>s <1Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council v. Shell UK Ltd. and Another>1 1980
(CA).
369
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
that the only options open to the court were either to delete the
hereditament from the list or alternatively to leave it as it stood in
the list.
14.50i The Court of Appeal on the other hand read the
proposal that ". . . the Assessment should be deleted . . ." in
conjunction with the grounds, namely "That the Assessment is
incorrect, excessive and bad in law." Read in this way and having
regard to the use of the word "excessive," the Court of Appeal
decided that, it was quite clear that, what the maker of the
proposal was asking for was: (i) that the assessment should be
deleted, but failing this (ii) that the assessment should be reduced
in value.
14.50j One lesson to be learned from the above case is that
although it is not expected that the maker of a proposal will
necessarily employ a lawyer to draft his proposal, nevertheless
considerable thought should be put into the wording of the
proposal to ensure that it covers all eventualities. This may mean
wording the proposal as a series of alternatives or making several
different proposals. For example, the grounds might be "that the
hereditament should be deleted from the valuation list or alterna-
tively that the assessment should be reduced to a net annual value
of #1."
14.51 In order for a rating surveyor to be able to make a
proposal to alter the valuation list before the end of a rate period
or before the end of six months from the time that the valuation
list came into force,<s32>s it is frequently necessary for the surveyor to
make his proposal before he has finalised his valuation. (This is
known as a <2protective proposal.)>2 In consequence he may insert a
nominal figure of #1 where he is asked to state on the proposal
form the alteration proposed. By the time that the surveyor starts
his negotiations with the valuation officer and well before going to
the local valuation court the surveyor should have arrived at a
more definite figure.
14.52 In the past some surveyors when making protective
proposals have avoided putting a definite figure in their proposal
and have merely stated that there should be a "reduction in the
gross value" (or as the case may be the net annual value). This
however might leave it open to the valuation officer to reduce the
rating assessment by #1 and in this way, dispose of the proposal.<s33>s
It would not be very pleasing to the surveyor or his client if, on
<s32>s See paragraphs 14.148-14.163.
<s33>s See paragraph 14.59.
370
<1The Valuation List>1
finalising his valuation, the surveyor discovered that the heredita-
ment had been over assessed by several thousand pounds.
Although the surveyor could always make another proposal, the
reduction obtained on the second proposal would not necessarily
be backdated as far as the reduction on the first proposal.<s34>s
14.52a The fact that the court is limited by the contention of the
appellant when coming to its decision, sometimes gives rise to
difficulties. For example, where the occupier has made a proposal
asking for a reduction in the assessment but where it is subsequent-
ly found that as well as being reduced in value the hereditament
should be divided into two.
14.52b One way of overcoming this difficulty is to make
use of the <2agreement procedure.>2<s34a>s When using this procedure the
alteration made in the list is not limited by the contention in
the proposal. Thus it is possible to agree to an increase in
an assessment when the proposal asks for a reduction or to agree
to a division of an assessment when the proposal asks that the
hereditament should be exempt because it is used for agricultural
purposes.
14.53 The Valuation List (Proposals for Alteration) Regula-
tions, 1974, <s35>s provide that a proposal shall be in the form set out
in the schedule to the regulations, or a form substantially to the
like effect. It would be prudent, however, in every case, to make
proposals on the prescribed form (copies of which can be obtained
from the Inland Revenue Valuation Office) since this will ensure
that the proposal is not rendered null and void on a technicality.
14.53a Where the valuation officer has not made the proposal
himself, he must, within twenty-eight days after the date when the
proposal was served on him, send a copy of it to the occupier of the
hereditament to which it relates and to the rating authority for the
area in which the hereditament in question is situated.<s36>s The
copies of the proposal must be accompanied by a written state-
ment of the right of objection to the proposal conferred by section
70 of the General Rate Act, 1967. If the valuation officer makes a
proposal, he must send a copy of it to the occupier and to the
rating authority within seven days after the proposal was made.
14.53b The alteration in the valuation list which results from the
<s34>s See paragraphs 14.148to 14.163a.
<s34a>s Section 72, General Rate Act, 1967 see paragraphs 14.61 to 14.63b.
<s35>s S.I. 1974 No. 2213.
<s36>s But if either of these persons made the proposal, a notice will not, of course, be
sent to him.
371
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
making of a proposal, cannot take effect earlier than the beginning
of the rate period in which:--
(i) the proposal was served on the valuation officer, or
(ii) the proposal was served on the occupier of the heredita-
ment, in the case where the valuation officer made the
proposal (see paragraphs 14.148 to 14.163a).
There is often as a result of this, a scramble to make sure that
proposals are served before the end of the rate period. In order to
achieve this a proposal must be served (in accordance with section
109 of the General Rate), before midnight on the last day of the
rate period. For example, in the case of a 12 month rate period,
before midnight on the 31st March.
14.53c It would not seem to matter that the proposal is served
on a Sunday or a bank holiday or if served on business premises
(including the valuation office) that those premises have closed for
that day. The only difficulty in this respect is that the wise
precaution of obtaining the occupier's/valuation officer's signa-
ture, as proof of service, would not be possible. Added to this is
the probability that the occupier/valuation officer, will almost
certainly date stamp the proposal as if it had been received on the
day on which he reopened his premises. Date stamps can be
important as evidence of the date of the service of documents.
However, there are other ways of arranging for proof of the time
of service.
14.53d Where service is made by post then provided the
proposal is properly addressed and prepaid, ". . . service is
deemed . . . to have been effected at the time at which the letter
would be delivered in the ordinary course of post," unless the
contrary is proved.<s36a>s Clearly the use of first or second class post
could prove significant and some form of certificate of posting
would seem to be a wise precaution.
14.53e The hereditament to which the proposal relates may be
part of a larger building e.g. a suite of offices on the eighth floor of
an office building which is in multi-occupation. In this connection
and having regard to the need from time to time to serve proposals
by hand, outside normal business hours, it is perhaps relevant to
note that section 109(1)(d) refers to ". . . fixing it on some
conspicuous part of the <1premises,">1 (as opposed to fixing it on some
conspicuous part of the <1hereditament).>1
14.53f It is sufficient to address a proposal to the "occupier",
stating the address of the hereditament or to the "valuation
<s36a>s Section 7, 1nterpretat1on Act, 1978.
372
<1The Valuation List>1
officer." It is not necessary to specify the name of the occupier or
the valuation officer.
14.54 The persons who may <2object to a proposal>2 are the owner
or occupier of the whole or any part of a hereditament to which a
proposal relates, or the rating authority for the area in which the
hereditament is situated, or the valuation officer. Except in the
case of the valuation officer, an objection to a proposal is made by
the objector serving a notice on the valuation officer. This must be
done within twenty-eight days from the date when the copy of the
proposal was served on the occupier, or as the case may be, on the
rating authority.
14.55 It will be noticed that although the owner of the heredita-
ment is entitled to object to a proposal he is not one of the people
on whom the valuation officer is obliged to serve a copy of the
proposal (unless by chance the owner also happens to be the
occupier or the rating authority). In practice therefore the owner
may not object to a proposal merely because he does not know
that one has been made. The reason why the owner is not served
with a copy of a proposal may be that in the absence of a
comprehensive land registration system, there is frequently no way
in which the valuation officer can find out who the owner of a
hereditament is or what his address is.
14.56 <1An objection>1 must be in writing but there is no statutory
requirement that the objection should be made in a particular
form. An objector would therefore seem to have a choice between
using the objection form supplied by the Valuation Office or just
writing a letter objecting to the proposal.
14.56a It is not necessary for the maker of an objection to give
grounds for his objection and it will be noted that valuation
officers seldom, if ever, give grounds when objecting to a propos-
al. Indeed it can be dangerous to do so, since the court might
restrict an objector to the grounds contained in his objection. This
would prevent an objector from raising in court, perfectly valid
reasons why the court should not give effect to a proposal, merely
because those reasons were not included in his original grounds of
objection.
14.57 Within twenty-eight days of the date on which notice of
objection is served on him, the valuation officer must send a copy
of it to the person who made the proposal. For the moment it will
be convenient to defer consideration of a valuation officer's
objection to a proposal.
14.58 There are three possible consequences of making a
proposal. Firstly, a proposal is made but no objections are lodged
373
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
within the prescribed time limits, or, alternatively, any such
objection is unconditionally withdrawn. Secondly, objections are
made but the alteration of the list is agreed by all the parties
concerned. Thirdly, objections are made and not unconditionally
withdrawn.
14.59 In the first case, if no notice of objection is served on the
valuation officer within the twenty-eight days allowed, or any such
notice is unconditionally withdrawn and the valuation officer
either made the proposal himself, or is satisfied that it is well-
founded, then he must cause the valuation list to be altered so as to
give effect to the proposal (in this case there is no need for the
matter to go to court or to arbitration).
14.60 The alteration, however, may be delayed up to four
months<s37>s from the date when the proposal was served on the
valuation officer, since he has a longer period than other people in
which to object to the proposal (see below). But if the valuation
officer does not intend to object to the proposal, or if he made the
proposal himself, the alteration might well be made in consider-
ably less than four months.
14.61 Secondly, even if objections to a proposal are main-
tained, the list may be altered without reference to a local
valuation court or to an arbitrator if all of the parties concerned
are agreed on the alteration to be made. The persons whose
agreement is requisite for this purpose are: the valuation officer
the proposer, any objector to the proposal whose objection has
not been unconditionally withdrawn, the occupier of the heredita-
ment to which the proposal relates, and the rating authority unless
they have notified the valuation officer that they do not wish to be
included either generally or as respects a class of hereditaments
which includes the hereditament to which the proposal relates.<s38>s
14.62 If these persons agree on an alteration to the list, and the
agreement is reached without, or before the determination of, any
appeal to a local valuation court (or reference to arbitration) with
respect to an objection to the proposal, then the valuation officer
must cause the agreed alteration to be made in the list.
14.63 It is expressly provided that the alteration agreed may be
different from that contained in the proposal, so a compromise
agreement is possible.<s39>s It follows that the agreement reached is
<s37>s 6 months, in the case where the proposal was served on the valuation officer
before the first anniversary of the coming into force of the va1uation list to which
the proposal relates (Section 71, General Rate Act, 1967).
<s38>s But duplication of consent is not necessary e.g. if the valuation officer made the
proposal his consent is only required once and not as the proposer as well.
<s39>s Section 72, General Rate Act, 1967.
374
<1The Valuation List>1
not limited by the figures contained in the proposal, as it would be
if the matter went to court or to arbitration.<s40>s
14.63a It is not enough that two or more of the parties sign the
agreement forms; all the parties have to sign (except as noted in
paragraph 14.61). Neither can two or more of the parties by
agreement limit the contention contained in the proposal and thus
restrict the rights of one of the other parties.<s31e>s
14.63b For example, a hereditament is shown in the valuation
list with a net annual value of #100,000 and the valuation officer
makes a proposal to increase the net annual value to #200,000. The
valuation officer and the ratepayer subsequently agree that the
hereditament should be assessed at #150,000 and sign agreement
forms. This, however, will not prevent the rating authority (which
has not signed the agreement forms) from asking the court to
direct that the hereditament should be entered in the valuation list
at #200,000. In other words there is no way in which the maker of a
proposal can change the contention contained in that proposal
unless he withdraws the proposal and makes another.<s31e>s
14.64 In cases falling within the third category, a reference to
the local valuation court or to an arbitrator is inevitable unless the
proposal is withdrawn. If notice of objection to the proposal has
been served and not unconditionally withdrawn, the valuation
officer must send a copy of the proposal and of every notice of
objection which has not been unconditionally withdrawn to the
clerk of the appropriate valuation panel. The valuation officer may
despatch these documents at any time not later than four months<s41>s
from the "relevant date" (i.e. the date when the valuation officer
made the proposal, or when it was served on him, as the case may
be). The real purpose of permitting a period of waiting up to four
months seems to be to allow the valuation officer ample time in
which to decide whether to object, and to allow the other parties
ample time to withdraw or reach agreement.
14.65 An objection to a proposal may be made by the valuation
officer at any time within three months<s42>s of the date on which the
proposal was served on him. This is accomplished by the valuation
officer giving written notice of objection to the proposer. If the
proposer does not withdraw his proposal within fourteen days of
<s40>s See paragraph 14.85.
<s41>s 6 months, in the case where the "relevant date" falls before the first anniversary
of the coming into force of the valuation list to which the proposal relates.
<s42>s 5 months, in the case where the proposal was served on the valuation officer
before the first anniversary of the coming into force of the valuation list to which
the proposal relates.
375
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
receiving the valuation officer's notice of objection, he will be
treated as intending to appeal against it. Where the proposal is not
withdrawn, the valuation officer must send a copy of the proposal
to the clerk of the appropriate local valuation panel together with
a copy of his notice of objection and of any other notice of
objection which has not been unconditionally withdrawn; this
action must be taken not less than fourteen and not more than
twenty-eight days after he has served his notice of objection to the
proposal. It will be observed that if the valuation officer were to
defer making an objection to a proposal until the end of the three
months allowed to him it is still possible to complete the necessary
procedure within four months from the relevant date, but no
doubt many cases will be dealt with more expeditiously.
14.66 Where a valuation officer sends a copy of the proposal to
the clerk of the local valuation panel, he must forthwith notify the
fact that he has done so to the proposer, to any objector a copy of
whose notice of objection was sent with the copy of the proposal,
and to the rating authority. The transmission of a copy of the
proposal to the clerk of the local valuation panel has effect as an
appeal to the local valuation court, by the proposer, against any
objections which were made to his proposal. It follows from this
that in any local valuation court proceedings which follow, the
maker of the proposal is the "appellant".
14.67 It is provided in section 57(2) of the General Rate Act,
1967, that where an owner has been made liable for rates under
section 55 of the General Rate Act, 1967, or has entered into an
agreement under section 56 of that Act<s43>s in respect of any
hereditaments, then for the purposes of objections, proposals, and
appeals he is deemed to stand in the same position as the occupier.
This rule does not, however, prejudice the rights of the occupier of
the hereditaments in question. Similarly, for the purposes of the
unoccupied rate and the rating surcharge, the owner is to be
treated as the occupier. (See chapter 13.)
14.67a Reference has been made above to the withdrawal of a
proposal and the withdrawal of an objection. Quite often the
maker of a proposal decides, when he investigates a case further,
that he does not want the valuation list to be altered. Or
alternatively, that he is unable to substantiate the grounds for the
alteration which he has proposed. In either event there is little
point in his pursuing the proposal.
14.67b This raises the questions:--
<s43>s See paragraphs 3.33 to 3.47.
376
<1The Valuation List>1
(i) can the maker of a proposal withdraw it and if so
(ii) up to what stage in the proceedings can he withdraw it?
14.67c It is perhaps rather surprising, that there is no express
statutory power which gives the maker of a proposal the power to
withdraw it. There are, however, references to the withdrawal of a
proposal, contained in the General Rate Act, 1967 notably in
sections 73, 74 and 115 (4).
14.67d In practice there does not seem to be any dispute over
whether or not a proposal can be withdrawn up to the point in time
when there is an appeal to the local valuation court. (See sections
73 and 74 General Rate Act, 1967.)
14.67e However, despite the fact that in practice many
thousands of proposals have been withdrawn after there has been
an appeal, a Local Valuation Court for the London Central
Valuation Panel Area has decided that a proposal cannot be
withdrawn after the date of appeal.--<1Great Portland Estates Ltd.>1
<1v. Hardy,>1 1980 (L.V.C.).
14.67f In this case the question concerned whether a proposal
could be withdrawn by its maker, after there had been an appeal to
the court but before the court had given its decision. (See section
115(4) General Rate Act, 1967.) The Local Valuation Court
concluded that there was no statutory authority which enabled a
proposal to be withdrawn after an appeal has been made.
14.67g However, it must be appreciated that there is a differ-
ence between the withdrawal of a <1proposal>1 on the one hand and
the withdrawal of an <1appeal>1 on the other.
14.67h It would seem that a court has the power to allow the
maker of a proposal to withdraw his <1appeal,>1 provided that:--
(1) none of the other parties to the case wish the case to be
heard and that
(2) in the court's view, it is not against the public interest for the
<1appeal>1 to be withdrawn.
14.67i In <1Great Portland Estates Ltd. v. Hardy,>1 1980 the Local
Valuation Court's decision was based on the Court of Appeal's
reasoning in <1Hanson v. Church Commissioners,>1 1977. This was not
a rating case but one concerning the withdrawal of an objection to
the determination of a "fair rent." The Local Valuation Court
thought that the circumstances in the two cases were sufficiently
similar to justify the application of the Hanson decision to the
rating situation.
14.67j Whether or not the Local Valuation Court's reasoning
377
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
will be upheld by the higher courts remains to be seen. In the
meantime, (because the decision of one local valuation court does
not bind another) considerable confusion is likely to result
throughout the Country, with some local valuation panels accept-
ing withdrawals of proposals and others not.<s43a>s
14.67k It is to be hoped that the uncertainty caused by the
decision will be ended in the not too distant future by means of
some statutory provision. Until then it would probably be unwise
to reply on the purported withdrawal of a <1proposal,>1 after the date
that an appeal has been made. This is because it might be open to
one of the parties to raise the matter at some future date and
require the court to hear the case. It would be safer to ask the
court to sanction a withdrawal of the <1appeal.>1
14.67l With regard to the withdrawal of an <1objection>1 to a
proposal, the Divisional Court in <1R. v. East Norfolk Local>1
<1Valuation Court, Ex-parte Martin,>1 1951, decided that an <1objection>1
could be withdrawn before the hearing of the appeal.
14.67m However, in the light of <1Re Brixham Urban District>1
<1Council,>1 1954 the learned editors of Ryde on Rating raise a doubt
as to whether the withdrawal of an <1objection>1 could be made if one
of the other parties to the appeal wanted to be heard.
<2Appeals to the Loeal Valuation Court>2<s44>s
14.68 Appeals against objections to proposals, which may be
conveniently referred to as rating appeals, are normally heard in
the first instance by a tribunal known as the "local valuation
court".<s45>s
14.69 Under the provisions of the Local Government Act, 1948
each county council was required to submit a scheme to the
Minister for setting up a <1"local valuation panel or panels">1 for its
area.<s46>s It is from these panels that the members are selected to
<s43a>s For a fuller discussion of the likely effects of the decision in the Great Portland
Estates case see "Can a Proposal be Withdrawn," Estates Gazette 5th July, 1980
page 39 onwards together with the correspondence in subsequent issues up to and
including the 20th September.
<s44>s Sections 76, and 88 to 95, General Rate Act, 1967; Rating Appeals (Local
Valuation Courts) Regulations 1956 (S.1. 1956 No. 632); Local Valuation Panels
(Jurisdict1on) Regulations 1967 (S.1. 1967 No. 636).
<s45>s Although by agreement it is possible to refer an appeal to arbitration. See
paragraphs 14.143 to 14.147.
<s46>s New schemes for local valuation panels had to be submitted by the "new" county
councils following local government reorganisation under the Local Government
Act, 1972. See Schedule 13 para. 29 Local Government Act, 1972; Local Valuation
Panels Regulations S.I. 1975 No. 905 and section 91, General Rate Act, 1967.
378
<1The Valuation List>1
make up the "local valuation courts", which will be held in
different places throughout the county.
14.70 The scheme submitted by the county council must specify
the number of members who will make up the panel, by whom
they are to be appointed and their tenure of office. It will also
provide for the appointment of a chairman and deputy chairman, a
clerk and with the approval of the Minister such other salaried
staff as may be necessary.
14.71 A member of the local authority within the area over
which the local valuation panel exercises jurisdiction is not barred
from membership of the panel; nor is the owner or occupier of
property within such area, although no one may act in relation to
any property which he himself owns or occupies.
14.72 There are three disqualifications from membership of a
local valuation panel, namely bankruptcy, imprisonment for more
than three months without the option of a fine and being over the
age of 72. This last disqualification may have been found necessary
because members of local valuation panels are not paid<s47>s and in
consequence a number of them are drawn from the ranks of the
retired.
14.73 There are no positive qualifications for service on a local
valuation panel, and it follows that the members of the court are
not necessarily knowledgeable about rating matters (although
there are some notable exceptions). This is a point which the
surveyor would do well to bear in mind when presenting a case to
the court. The Clerk to the Local Valuation Panel, on the other
hand, is usually well-informed on rating law and valuation and he
or she may well advise the court. However, it is expressly provided
that the functions of the clerk do not extend to making
valuations.<s48>s
14.74 Normally, a rating appeal is heard by a <2local valuation>2
<2court>2 constituted from the panel for the area in which the
hereditament is situated, and if the panel area is split into
divisions, then, where practicable, every appeal will be heard
within the division of the area of the panel in which the heredita-
ment is to be found. In cases where an undertaking extends into
the area of several local valuation panels, there are special rules
for ascertaining which panel has jurisdiction. Thus, for example, it
is provided that if the valuation is made by the profits method, or it
<s47>s Unlike members of a Rent Assessment Committee who are paid. However,
members of the Local Valuation Court may be able to claim travelling, subsistence
and other expenses.
<s48>s Section 92(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
379
is claimed should be made on that basis, the court shall be
constituted from the panel within whose area are situated here-
ditaments occupied for the purpose of the undertaking having in
aggregate a greater rateable value than similar hereditaments in
the area of any other panel (the current valuation lists are used for
the purpose of making this test).<s49>s
14.75 Special rules also apply where hereditaments are within
the same curtilage or are contiguous and in the same occupation,
but are not within the area of a single local panel.<s50>s
14.76 The transmission of a copy of a proposal by the valuation
officer to the clerk of the local valuation panel automatically has
effect as an appeal by the maker of the proposal and no action
need be taken by him. On receipt of the copy of the proposal by
the clerk of the panel, it is the duty of the chairman or a deputy
chairman to arrange for the convening of the local valuation court.
The Act of 1967 provides that such courts are to be convened as
often as may be necessary for the purpose of hearing and
determining rating appeals. The clerk must give not less than
<2fourteen day's notice>2 of the date, time and place of the hearing to
the appellant and all objectors. The sittings of the court must be
advertised by notice affixed to the offices of the local valuation
panel as well as to the offices of the rating authority or posted in
some conspicuous place within the rating area.
14.77 A local valuation court consists of either the chairman or
deputy chairman, together with two other members, of the local
valuation panel selected in accordance with the scheme under
which the panel is constituted. But if the parties appearing before
the court on the hearing of the appeal so agree, the court may
consist of any two of the persons just mentioned (this usually
occurs when one member of the court is indisposed). Where a
two-member court is unable to agree on a decision the appeal has
to be heard by another local valuation court.
14.78 The procedure of local valuation courts is laid down in
regulations<s51>s but the Act of 1967 itself contains one or two rules.
14.79 Cases before a local valuation court are heard in public
unless a party to an appeal applies for a private hearing (in
camera) and satisfies the court that his interests would be prejudi-
cially affected by a public hearing. Although the court has power
<s49>s Section 88(2) t0 (4), General Rate Act, 1967; para. 3 Rating Appeals (Local
Valuation Courts) Regulations, 1956 (S.1. 1956 No. 632); Local Valuation Panels
(Jurisdiction) Regulations, 1967 (S.1. 1967 No. 636).
<s50>s Local Valuation Panels (Jurisdiction) Regulations 1967 (S.I. 1967 No. 636).
<s51>s Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts) Regulations 1956 S.I. 1956 No. 632.
380
<1The Valuation List>1
to take evidence on oath it does not usually do so.<s52>s The
proceedings are reasonably informal so as not to discourage
ratepayers from appearing in person; those who do not make a
personal appearance may be represented by counsel, solicitor,
surveyor or by any other representative.
14.80 The <2persons entitled to appear>2 before the court are: the
appellant; the valuation officer; the owner and occupier of the
hereditament to which the appeal relates; the rating authority for
the area in which the hereditament is situated; and any objector
who is not one of those persons already named. Any person
entitled to appear before the court may be heard as a party to the
appeal and may examine any witness and call witnesses. The rating
authority may appear by their clerk or other officer duly appointed
for the purpose or by counsel or solicitor.<s53>s
14.81 Even if a person entitled to appear does not wish to take
any part in the proceedings, it is important that an appearance
should be made in order to preserve the right of appeal to the
Lands Tribunal, for it seems that an appeal to the Tribunal only
lies if the appellant appeared before the local valuation
court.<s54>s
14.81a If a person entitled to appear does not do so, the court
may, upon being satisfied that notice of the hearing was given and
advertised, proceed with the hearing on the assumption that such
person does not desire to be heard.
14.82 <2At the hearing,>2 the appellant will begin unless the court,
with the appellant's consent, otherwise determine; the other
parties to the appeal are then heard in such order as the court may
direct. The actual court proceedings might be illustrated briefly by
reference to a simple case, in which the valuation officer is the
appellant and the occupier is the only party who desires to be
heard; it is assumed that the valuation officer appears in person
and the occupier is represented by a surveyor.
14.83 The valuation officer opens by making a statement of his
case and when he has done so the surveyor may cross-examine
him. It is then the surveyor's turn, and he, too, states his case.
Such a statement may be made in three ways, viz., by reading a
prepared document, or by talking from notes, or by giving an
address without notes of any kind. Of these methods, the second is
probably best; reading a statement is apt to give the impression
<s52>s Section 76, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s53>s But no member of the local valuation panel from which the court is constituted
may act in relation to an appeal as representative for any person entitled to appear.
<s54>s See <1Haslam v. Carr (V.O.)>1 1950.
381
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
that the reader does not know his subject, and an address given
without any aids to memory may lead to the omission of vital
points. When this statement has been made it is the valuation
officer's turn to cross-examine. The proceedings are then com-
pleted by the surveyor making his final speech, which will be
followed by that of the valuation officer, the appellant always
being entitled to the last word. But it should be remembered that
the appellant is not permitted to introduce a new point into his
closing address, he is only entitled to refer to statements which
have already been made.
14.83a In practice the procedure in local valuation courts varies
widely. Sometimes a party will only be given one opportunity to
speak. In view of this, unless the procedure in the particular court
is well-known to the surveyor, it would be prudent to arrange
one's speech on the assumption that this will be so. In other courts,
far from each party speaking once only, the proceedings are
allowed to degenerate into an argument with, on occasions, the
panel members joining in.
14.83b Generally speaking, the surveyor who is not thoroughly
familiar with the ways of a particular court should be prepared for
any eventuality and not allow himself to be put out by unaccus-
tomed proceedings.
14.84 At this stage the court adjourns, (or at least the members
put their heads together) to consider their decision. The decision
of the majority of the court becomes the decision of the court. If
the court comprises only two members who are unable to agree,
then the appeal has to be re-heard by another local valuation
court.
14.84a <2The decision of the court>2 must be in writing, signed by
the chairman of the court, and must give directions to the
valuation officer concerning the manner in which the hereditament
is to be treated in the list.
14.85 These directions must be such as appear to be necessary
<1to give effect to the contention of the appellant if and so far as that>1
<1contention appears to the court to be well-founded.>1 This means that
the Local Valuation Court is limited in the decision which it can
arrive at. It can decide that the assessment in the valuation list is
correct or that the assessment contained in the proposal is correct
or it can give a decision which falls somewhere between the two.
But the court does not have the power to increase an assessment if
a proposal has been made to reduce it or vice versa. (See
paragraphs 14.50b to 14.50j.)
382
<1The Valuation List>1
14.86 There is nevertheless a danger in making a proposal to
reduce the rating assessment of a hereditament before fully
investigating the correctness or otherwise of that assessment. The
danger is that following the receipt of a proposal the valuation
officer will look again at his valuation and he may find that, by
error, he has under assessed the hereditament. In such a case the
valuation officer might feel obliged to make a proposal to increase
the assessment. If the matter then goes to court the ratepayer's
proposal to reduce the assessment and the valuation officer's to
increase it, will probably be heard at the same time. It will then be
open to the court to raise or lower the assessment within the limits
of the figures contained in the two proposals.
14.87 Minutes of the meetings of the court have to be kept and
these are open to inspection by ratepayers.<s55>s
14.88 A copy of the <2local valuation courts decision,>2 including a
statement of the right of appeal, is sent to every party who
appeared, and to the valuation officer where he is not a party to
the proceedings. An appeal to the Lands Tribunal against the
decision may be made by any person who appeared before the
local valuation court.
14.88a The local valuation court must furnish a statement of the
reasons for its decision, if requested to do so, on or before the
giving or notification of its decision. (Section 12 Tribunals and
Inquiries Act, 1971.)
14.88b The statement may be either written or oral. It shall be
taken to form part of the court's decision and accordingly to be
incorporated in the record.
14.88c The Act does not state that the person requesting the
reasons must be a party to the proceedings. However, it does say
that the court may refuse to furnish the reasons to a person not
primarily concerned with the decision, if the court is of the opinion
that to furnish them would be contrary to the interests of any
person primarily concerned.
14.88d A local valuation court does not have the power to order
one party to the proceedings to pay the <2costs>2 incurred by any other
party to the proceedings. So each party has to bear his own costs.
This at least, means that no one will be put off appealing to the
local valuation court for fear of having to pay the other parties'
costs.
<s55>s Section 47(3), Local Government Act, 1948, as amended by paragraph 15,
Schedule 4, Local Government Act, 1966. Section 108, General Rate Act, 1967.
Minutes of the proceedings of a local valuation panel have also to be kept but these
are not open to public inspection.
383
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
14.89 Before considering an appeal to the Lands Tribunal it is
necessary to look at the procedure to be followed should the
valuation officer wish to use "rent returns" as evidence either
before the local valuation court or the Lands Tribunal.
<1Use ofRent Returns in Court or at Arbitration>1
14.90 The valuation officer's right to require occupiers, owners
or lessees to make returns of particulars relating to premises or
hereditaments has already been described.<s56>s It was also possible
for similar returns to be collected under the Rating and Valuation
Act, 1925 (sections 40 and 41) and the Valuation (Metropolis)
Act, 1869 (sections 55--57). The valuation officer, frequently has at
his disposal a considerable amount of evidence relating to values in
the rating area for which he is responsible, but the manner in
which this evidence may be used in rating appeals is regulated by
section 83 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
14.91 This section applies to any returns of the kind just
mentioned together with returns made at the request of the
valuation officer before the Valuation for Rating Act, 1953, was
passed but in anticipation of that Act,<s57>s and it is provided that the
valuation officer may only use such returns in "valuation proceed-
ings" if certain conditions are fulfilled.<s58>s He must give not less
than fourteen days' notice, specifying the returns he intends to use
and the hereditaments to which they relate, to the person who
made the relevant proposal and to any objector whose notice of
objection to the proposal has not been unconditionally withdrawn.
The valuation officer must permit any such person to inspect and
take extracts from the returns described in the notice, provided
that not less than twenty-four hours' notice is given. It is expressly
stated, however, that these provisions do not apply to <1"any>1
<1proceedings relating to the ascertainment of the net annual value>1
<1of a hereditament on the profits basis;">1 unless the returns could
be so used quite apart from section 83 of the General Rate Act,
1967.
14.92 Where the valuation officer intends to use as evidence
particulars contained in returns, the other parties to the proceed-
ings, on whom notice will have been served, also, have the right to
use returns for the same purpose. Any such person may give notice
<s56>s See paragraphs 14.4 to 14.13.
<s57>s See Section 83 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
<s58>s i.e., any proceedings on or in consequence of an appeal to a local valuation court
and any proceedings on or in consequence of a reference to arbitration. Section
83(9) General Rate Act, 1967.
384
<1The Valuation List>1
to the valuation officer specifying one or more other heredita-
ments as being hereditaments which are comparable in character
or otherwise relevant to his case and requiring the valuation officer
to permit him to inspect and to take extracts from all returns in the
possession of the valuation officer which relate to those heredita-
ments named in the notice. The valuation officer must also
produce to him at the hearing such of those returns as previously
he has informed the valuation officer he requires. But the number
of <1hereditaments>1 specified in the notice to the valuation officer
must not exceed the number of <1hereditaments>1 contained in the
valuation officer's notice relating to the returns. It will be seen that
unless the valuation officer intends to use returns in his possession
no other person to the appeal can demand returns for use in the
proceedings. Thus, whether returns are used, and if so the number
of hereditaments covered by them, are matters at the discretion of
the valuation officer.
14.92a It may at first sight seem eminently fair, that the other
parties to the proceedings, can chose to use rent returns for the
same number of hereditaments as that chosen by the valuation
officer. But whereas the valuation officer is able to look at all the
rent returns in his possession, before selecting those which he
intends to use, the other parties cannot.
14.92b As far as the other parties are concerned the selection of
rent returns has to be done blind and it is rather like a lucky dip in
a bran tub. Quite often the rent return for the selected heredita-
ment will reveal it to be owner occupied and so there will be no
rent passing. Or perhaps, in the case of the chosen hereditament,
there will be no rent return in the valuation officer's possession,
which has any relevance to the date of valuation.
14.93 Where the valuation officer is served with a valid notice
relating to returns but fails to comply with it, the person who
served the notice may bring the issue to the court or tribunal
before which the valuation proceedings in question are to be
brought.<s59>s If the court or tribunal is satisfied that it is reasonable to
do so, then the court or tribunal may, by order, direct the
valuation officer to comply with the notice. An appeal lies from
the decision of a local valuation court on such an application as if it
were a decision in the valuation proceedings to which the applica-
tion relates. In proceedings on an arbitration, the arbitrator may
require the valuation officer to comply with the notice served on
him.
<s59>s For the manner in which such application is to be referred to the local valuation
court---see The Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Court) Regulations, 1956. S.I.
1956 No. 632, Rule 12.
385
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
<2Appeals to the Lands Tribunal>2
14.94 Appeals from the Local Valuation Court are to the Lands
Tribunal, which was set up under the Lands Tribunal Act, 1949.
The procedure for appeal is laid down in the Lands Tribunal
Rules.<s60>s
14.95 Any person <1who appeared before a local valuation court>1
on the hearing of a rating appeal and is aggrieved by the decision
of the court, may institute an appeal to the Lands Tribunal<s61>s
within 28 days from the date of the decision.<s62>s The Tribunal would
now appear to have power to extend this time limit, in common
with other time limits set out in the Lands Tribunal Rules<s62a>s
14.96 It should be noted that the <1"date of decision,>1<s62>sb is the date
endorsed on the document recording that decision, issued by the
local valuation court. This is not necessarily the same date as that
on which notification of the decision is received by the parties.<s63>s
14.97 There are no statutory grounds of grievance such as are
laid down in the case of a proposal. The appeal must be in writing
indicating an intention to appeal and may be made on Form 2 of
Schedule 1 of the Lands Tribunal Rules, 1975.<s64>s The appeal should
be accompanied by the following;<s64>s a copy of the decision
appealed against; a copy of the proposal or determination which
was the subject of the valuation court proceedings and the names
and addresses of the persons who appeared as parties to the
proceedings before the local valuation court. The appellant must
supply the Registrar with sufficient copies of the notice of appeal
for service on each of those persons and upon the valuation officer
(if he was not a party to the proceedings).
14.98 In addition to distributing the notices of appeal, the
Registrar must also inform the appellant and other interested
parties of the number of the appeal in the "register of rating
appeals" and tell the appellant of the date on which copies of the
notice of appeal were served.
<s60>s The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975, S.I. 1975 No. 299 as amended by the Lands
Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977, S.I. 1977 No. 1820. The Lands Tribunal
(Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105 and the Lands Tribunal (Amendment No. 2)
Rules 1981 No. 600.
<s61>s Section 77, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s62>s Rule 9; S.I. 1975 No. 299, see paragraph 14.81.
<s62a>s See amendment to Rule 48, made by Land Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981
No. 105.
<s62b>s Defined in Lands Tribunal Rules 1975. 2(2) as amended by Lands Tribunal
(Amendment No. 2) Rules 1981 No. 600.
<s63>s <1James v. Garrard (V. O.) and Cardiff City Council>1 1972.
<s64>s Rule 9(2) S.I. 1975/299.
386
<1The Valuation List>1
14.99 It will be observed from these conditions that unless a
person appeared before the local valuation <2court>2 he cannot be
party to an appeal to the Lands Tribunal against the decision of the
court,<s61>s and for this reason it is important that those entitled to do
so should enter an appearance at the local valuation court in order
to preserve their right of appeal. The Lands Tribunal Rules
expressly provide that the valuation officer is not entitled to
appear at the hearing of an appeal if he was not a party to the
proceedings before the local valuation court.<s65>s
14.100 Every person upon whom a copy of the notice of appeal
is served must, if he intends to appear at the hearing of the appeal
before the Tribunal, give written notice of his intention to do so.<s65>s
Such notice must state whether he intends to appear separately or
jointly with some other person; the grounds on which he intends to
rely; whether he proposes to call an expert witness to give
evidence and must contain an address at which documents may be
served on him.<s65>s The notice must be served on the Registrar and
the appellant, within 21 days from the date of service of the copy
of the notice of appeal.<s65>s
14.101 In many cases notice of intention to appear will be
followed by the submission of more documents to the Registrar.
Where the net annual value of the hereditament exceeds #1,250 or
the appeal is on a point of law, then, within 28 days from the last
day for serving a notice of intention to appear, the appellant must
send to the Registrar, and to each party by whom notice has been
given, a "statement of his case", including the facts to be proved
and the points of law (if any) upon which the appellant intends to
rely at the hearing.<s66>s Any person who intends to oppose the appeal
has 28 days after receiving the copy of this "statement" to send
to the Registrar and to the appellant a "reply" which must
include information of a kind similar to that in the appellant's
""statement" <s66>s
14.102 Both "statement" and any "reply" must be accompa-
nied by every valuation of the hereditament (including particulars
and computations in support of such valuation) or a statement of
the value or values that the parties have agreed to attribute to the
hereditament in the event of the Tribunal allowing or dismissing
the appeal as the case may be.<s66>s A description of any comparable
hereditaments to which the appellant or other party intends to
refer must also be included. These documents must be supplied in
sufficient numbers to permit one to be served upon each of the
<s65>s Rule 10 S.I. 1975/299.
<s66>s Rule 11 S.I. 1975/299 amended by S.I. 1981/105.
387
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
other interested parties and the Registrar must distribute copies
within seven days after receiving all the documents required.
14.103 If, at the hearing of the appeal, any party seeks to rely
upon any valuation or other document which appears to the
Tribunal not to have been sent to the Registrar in accordance with
the rules prescribed, the Tribunal may adjourn the hearing on such
terms as to costs as it thinks fit.<s66>s Similarly, the appellant is not
entitled to rely on any grounds not stated in his notice of appeal or
statement of case, unless the Tribunal thinks it is just in all the
circumstances, and on such terms as to cost of adjournment as it
may think fit, to allow such additional grounds to be put forward
as appears to be material.<s68>s There does not, however, seem to be
any corresponding rule restricting other parties to the proceedings,
to the grounds contained in their reply. The appellant is not
limited to points which he took before the local valuation court
and he may introduce new material provided that the rules of the
Tribunal are followed.<s69>s
14.103a The Tribunal (or the registrar) at the request of one of
the parties or of its own accord, may order<s69>sa any party:--
<1(a)>1 to deliver to the registrar any document or other informa-
tion, which the Tribunal may require and which it is in the
power of the party to deliver.
(b) to give every other party a chance to see and take copies of
(a) above.
<1(c)>1 to state whether any specified document or class of docu-
ment has been in his possession, custody or power and when
he disposed of it.
(d) to deliver to the registrar further and better particulars of
the grounds on which he intends to rely and any relevant
facts and contentions.
(e) to answer interrogatories on affidavit relating to any matter
at issue between the applicant and the other parties.
<1(f)>1 to deliver to the registrar a statement of agreed facts, facts
in dispute and the issue or issues to be tried.
But the Tribunal has no power to order the disclosure of informa-
tion which is contrary to the public interest.
14.104 The Lands Tribunal sits in such places in England and
Wales as the President may determine, and the hearings are public
67
68 Rule 43 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s69>s <1Aston & Sonr, Ltd. v. Charles (V. O.)>1 1953.
<s69a>s Rule 40 added by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
388
<1The Valuation List>1
except where the Tribunal is acting as arbitrator under a reference
by consent. Under certain circumstances the Tribunal can deter-
mine a matter without an oral hearing.<s70>s
14.105 Not less than 14 days' notice of the place and approxi-
mate date of the hearing must be given by the Registrar, to each
party to the proceedings, but if either of these is not convenient a
party may make an interlocutory application to the Registrar. If
the appellant fails to appear at the time and place appointed for
the hearing the Tribunal may dismiss the appeal, and if any other
party does not appear the Tribunal may hear and determine the
appeal and make such order as to costs as it sees fit. Provided that
in the above cases, if the absent party makes application within 7
days of the proceedings being dismissed or determined and if the
Tribunal is satisfied that the absent party had sufficient reason for
his absence, the Tribunal may set aside the dismissal or determina-
tion (on such terms as to costs or otherwise as it thinks fit).<s71>s
14.105a The Tribunal (or the registrar) may, on the application
of one of the parties or of its own accord, order a <2pre-trial>2
<2review.>2<s71>sa The object of the pre-trial review is to facilitate the
proceedings.
14.105b At the pre-trial review the Tribunal (or the registrar)
will endeavour to get the parties to make such admissions and
agreements as ought reasonably to be made by them. Any party
seeking a specific direction should, so far as practicable, make
application on the pre-trial review. A failure to do so, without
sufficient reason, will result in the party having to bear the costs of
a subsequent application.
14.105c On the pre-trial review the Tribunal (or the registrar)
shall give all such directions as appear necessary or desirable to
secure the just expeditious and economical disposal of the pro-
ceedings.
14.106 Any point of law which appears to be at issue in the
proceedings may, on the application of any party, be disposed of at
a preliminary hearing of the Tribunal, but if the Tribunal is of the
opinion that the decision on such point of law substantially
disposes of the proceedings the argument may be treated as the
hearing of the case.
14. 107 At the hearing, unless the Tribunal otherwise directs,
the appellant will begin and the other parties are then heard in
<s70>s Rule 33A, Lands Tribunal Rules 1975 added by rule 8, Lands Tribunal
(Amendment) Rules 1977.
71 Rule 53 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s71a>s Rule 45a added by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
389
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
such order as the Tribunal may determine. Any party may appear
in person or by counsel or solicitor or by any person allowed by
leave of the Tribunal to appear instead.
14.108 It is very rare indeed for a surveyor to be given
permission to represent one of the parties. In consequence the
only real alternatives which a party has, is to be represented by a
lawyer or to conduct his own case. Surveyors can be called to give
evidence but they are not normally allowed to present their client's
case. The valuation officer being a party to the proceedings can of
course present his own case, as well as giving evidence.
14.109 Evidence may be given orally on oath, or, if so ordered
or agreed, by affidavit.<s72>s
14. 110 The Lands Tribunal may make an order, that it will
determine an appeal without an oral hearing. Any party to the
proceedings may request it to do so.<s70>s
14.111 If the Tribunal makes an order that there is to be no oral
hearing it has the power to require any party to furnish "such
statements of case, or reply thereto, or further and better particu-
lars thereof, as the Tribunal may specify." Quite apart from the
Tribunal's power to require the above submissions, any party
"may submit in writing to the Tribunal any representations which
he wishes the Tribunal to take into consideration".
14.112 Submissions required by the Tribunal or representations
made by the parties must be sent to the Registrar together with
sufficient copies for all the other parties within 28 days of the order
or requirement. The registrar shall within 7 days of receipt
distribute the copies to the other parties. If a party, having
received copies of submissions as above, wishes to make any
representations to the Tribunal, they must do so within 28 days
and the same provisions as above apply as regards the supply and
distribution of copies. "But no party to any proceedings shall
make any representations on more than one occasion in those
proceedings except by the leave of the Tribunal or the registrar."
14.113 The Tribunal may at any time and for any reason change
its mind and hear orally, proceedings which it had previously
decided not to hear orally.
14.114 If the valuation officer wishes to use rent return forms as
evidence at the Lands Tribunal hearing he must follow the
procedure laid down in section 83 of the General Rate Act, 1967
(see paragraphs 14.90 to 14.93).
14.115 The Tribunal like the parties to agree as many things as
<s72>s Rule 39 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
390
<1The Valuation List>1
possible before the hearing and they are liable to become irritated
if such items as the area of land and buildings, plans and other
documents of a factual nature have not been agreed prior to the
hearing.
14.116 The Tribunal has a statutory right to inspect the land or
hereditament which is the subject of the proceedings. So far as
practical the Tribunal may do likewise for any comparable land or
hereditaments to which the attention of the Tribunal has been
drawn. Where the Tribunal intends to enter on any premises the
parties are entitled to attend the inspection.
14.117 The Tribunal usually gives its decision in writing
together with a statement of the Tribunal's reasons for its decision.
Exceptionally the Tribunal may give its decision and reasons
orally, if it is satisfied that no injustice or inconvenience would be
occasioned to the parties.<s73>s The Tribunal shall give such directions
with respect to the manner in which the hereditament is to be
treated in the valuation list as appear to the Tribunal to be
necessary to give effect to the contention of the appellant, if and so
far as that contention appears to be well-founded. The Tribunal is
limited to directing that only those alterations be made to the list
which result from contentions raised by the appellant.<s74>s
14. 118 It has been held in a case where only the ratepayer
appealed against the Local Valuation Court's decision, that the
Tribunal had no power to increase the assessment above the figure
determined by the Local Valuation Court.<s74a>s It follows, therefore,
that if both parties are aggrieved by the Local Valuation Court's
decision then both parties should appeal. In this connection it may
be advisable to find out from the valuation officer and the rating
authority, whether or not they intend to appeal. The reason being
that if the valuation officer or the rating authority appeals and the
ratepayer does not, the ratepayer stands to have his assessment
increased but it is not within the power of the Tribunal to decrease
it.
14.119 Where a value determined by the Tribunal is dependant
upon the decision of the Tribunal on a question of law which is in
dispute in the proceedings, the decision must contain alternative
values (if any) which would have been determined if the question
of law had been decided otherwise.
14.120 Copies of the decision (or where the decision is given
<s73>s Rule 54, Lands Tribunal Rules 1975 No. 299.
<s74>s See paragraphs 14.85 to 14.86 and also <1Ellerby v. March>1 1954 (CA).
<s74a>s <1Ellerby v. March>1 1954 (CA).
<s75>s---
391
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
orally a statement of its effect) are sent to every party who
appeared before the Tribunal, to the valuation officer and also to
the clerk of the relevant local valuation panel. If the Court of
Appeal subsequently gives directions for the amendment of the
Tribunal's decision, the Registrar will send copies of the amended
decision to those persons who were supplied with a copy of the
original.
14.121 The Tribunal may order that the costs of any proceed-
ings before it incurred by any party shall be paid by any other party
and may tax or settle the amount of any costs so ordered to be
paid.
14.122 The Tribunal usually awards costs to the person who
succeeds in his contentions. However, the Tribunal has been
known to exercise considerable discretion both as to whether or
not costs should be awarded and as to the amount of those costs.
The way that the parties have conducted themselves and their
general approach to the matter in dispute would on occasions seem
to have had a bearing on the Tribunal's decision as to costs.
14.123 Any party may ask that the taxation of the costs be
reviewed.<s76>s
14.124 The service of any note or document is to be in
accordance with rule 57 of the Lands Tribunal rules.
14.125 If it appears to the President that any case coming before
the Tribunal calls for special knowledge and that it would be
desirable for the Tribunal to be assisted by assessors, he may direct
that the Tribunal shall hear or determine the case with the aid of
an assessor or assessors.<s77>s
14.126 Where more than one notice of appeal has been given in
respect of the same land or hereditament any party may apply to
the registrar to have the appeals consolidated. Or the Tribunal may
order consolidation without any such application from a party.<s78>s
14.127 Where two or more notices of appeal have been given in
respect of different lands or hereditaments raising the same issues,
an application may be made by any party that the appeals may be
heard together. Or, the Tribunal may order that the appeals be
heard together without any such application by a party.<s78>s
14.128 Where two or more appeals appear to the President of
the Tribunal to involve the same issues, he may with the written
consent of all the parties, direct that one appeal (to be selected by
him) shall be heard in the first instance as a test case and that the
<s76>s Rule 56 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s77>s Rule 35 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s78>s Rule 36 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
392
<1The Valuation List>1
parties to each appeal shall be bound by the decision of the
Tribunal on the appeal so selected. The parties retain their right to
require the Tribunal to state a case for the decision of the Court of
Appeal.<s79>s
14.129 If it appears to the Tribunal that any party has failed in
accordance with the rules to send a copy of any document to any
other party (or to the Registrar) the Tribunal may direct that a
copy of the document shall be sent. The Tribunal may also direct,
that the hearing be adjourned and that the party at fault pay any
additional costs occasioned thereby.<s80>s
14.130 Interlocutory applications are provided for under rule
45.
14.131 Extensions of time are dealt with under rule 48.
14.132 An appeal may be withdrawn by sending to the registrar
a written notice of withdrawal signed by all parties to the proceed-
ings or by their solicitors or agents.<s81>s
14.133 An appellant may at any time before the hearing, apply
to the President for an order to dismiss the proceedings and the
President may make such order as is just.<s81>s
14.134 Where the parties to any proceedings have agreed upon
the terms which they wish the Tribunal to make, particulars of the
terms, signed by all the parties (or by their solicitors or agents)
shall be sent to the registrar, and any order may be made by the
Tribunal in accordance with those terms in the absence of the
parties. Such an order is known as a <1"consent order">1<s82>s
14.135 Where any party has failed to pursue any proceedings
with due diligence or has failed to comply with any of the rules, the
registrar may, after giving the parties an opportunity to be heard,
make an order that the proceedings be heard by the Tribunal or
make such other order as may be appropriate for the purpose of
expediting or disposing of the proceedings.<s81>s
14.136 Any failure on the part of any person to comply with the
provisions of the Lands Tribunal's rules shall not render the
proceedings or anything done in pursuance thereof invalid unless
the President or the Tribunal so directs.<s83>s
14.137 Any party to the proceedings may subpoena people or
documents. -
14.138 The Lands Tribunal is not bound by its own decisions
<s79>s Rule 37 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s80>s Rule 41 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s81>s Rule 51 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s82>s Rule 55 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
<s83>s Rule 60 S.I. 1975 No. 299.
393
but nevertheless it appears to be generally consistent in its
decisions.
<2Appeal Against Decisions of the Lands Tribunal>2
14.139 Strictly speaking, there is no appeal against a decision of
the Lands Tribunal for such a decision is final.<s84>s But any person
aggrieved by the decision as being erroneous in point of law may
require the Tribunal to state a case for the decision of the Court of
Appeal. The Court of Appeal will not, however, disturb any
finding of fact.
14.140 A person who requires the Tribunal to state a case must
serve the Registrar with a written notice to this effect within six
weeks of the date of the decision. As soon as may be, the member
or members of the Tribunal by whom the decision was given must
state and sign the case and send it to the person aggrieved. The
case stated must set forth the facts on which the decision was based
and the decision of the Tribunal thereon.
14.141 The next step by the aggrieved person is to make known
his decision to refer the issues to the Court of Appeal. Within 21
days after receiving the case, he must send a copy of it to every
other party to the proceedings before the Tribunal together with a
notice of motion to the Registrar of the Tribunal. Then, within 2
days after the service of notice of motion, the aggrieved person
must lodge the case and two copies of the notice with the proper
officer of the Court of Appeal. The case is thereupon entered in a
list kept for the purpose, and there will be an interval of at least 21
days before the hearing.
14.142 It is possible to appeal to the House of Lords against the
decision of the Court of Appeal but only with the permission of the
Court of Appeal or the House of Lords.
<2Arbitration>2
14.143 As an alternative to an appeal to a local valuation court,
the persons who would be entitled to appear and be heard in a
rating appeal<s85>s may, by agreement in writing, agree to refer to
arbitration any matter which would otherwise fall to be heard or
determined by such a court.<s86>s
14.144 The award of the arbitrator may include any directions
which might have been made by the local valuation court and
<s84>s Section 3(4), Lands Tribunal Act, 1949.
<s85>s See paragraph 14.80.
<s86>s Section 78 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
394
<1The Valuation List>1
effect shall be given to them as if they had been given by that
court.
14.145 By virtue of section 1(5) of the Lands Tribunal Act,
1949, the Tribunal may act as an arbitrator under a reference by
consent, and if arbitration is agreed upon the Tribunal may hear a
rating appeal in the first instance without prior proceedings before
a local valuation court.<s87>s
14.146 By this means the decision of the Lands Tribunal is in
effect obtained in one step. This saves the time and expense of
going to the local valuation court and is appropriate where it is
apparent, to all concerned, that a particular case will end up
before the Lands Tribunal regardless of what decision is given by
the local valuation court. In practice, however, the Inland Re-
venue Valuation Office is frequently reluctant to agree to submit
an appeal to arbitration and in consequence the procedure is used
less than might otherwise be the case.
14.147 As in the case of decisions on appeals from a local
valuation court, the decision of the Tribunal on a reference must
be in writing and contain a brief statement of the reasons for the
decision.
<2Effect of a Proposal>2
14.148 Where a proposal is made by the valuation officer the
general rule is that any alteration in the valuation list takes effect
from the beginning of the rate period in which the proposal was
served on the occupier of the hereditament. If a proposal is made
by anyone else, then the general rule is that it takes effect from the
beginning of the rate period in which it was served on the valuation
officer.<s88>s
14.149 The application of this rule is best illustrated by an
example:--A rate period runs from 1st April--31st March. On the
first of August a proposal is served on the valuation officer in
consequence of which the rateable value is decreased from #3,000
to #2,500. If the rates in the pound are 50p, the rates payable for
the whole of that and any subsequent rate period, will be #1,250.
Even if the proposal is the subject of a court hearing or hearings
(when several years could pass before a final decision is given) the
general rule still applies and the alteration will be backdated to the
1st April in the rate period in which the proposal was served.
<s87>s Only certain provisions of the Arbitration Act 1950, apply where the Tribunal
acts as arbitrator.
<s88>s Section 79 of the General Rate Act, 1967; see also <1Foleshill R.D. C. v. Perkins>1
1931 (Kings Bench Division).
395
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
14.150 There are, however, exceptions to the general rule.<s88>s In
these cases the alteration in the valuation list has effect as from the
date when the new altered hereditament came into occupation, or
as from the happening of the event by reason of which the
alteration is made (but not earlier than the beginning of the rate
period in which the proposal was served).
14. 151 The alterations in the valuation list which are covered by
these exceptions are:--
(a) the inclusion in the valuation list of a newly erected or newly
constructed hereditament or an altered hereditament which
has been out of occupation on account of structural
alterations; or
(b) a change in the value of a hereditament caused by the
making of structural alterations or by the total or partial
destruction of any building or other erection by fire or any
other physical cause; or
(c) the happening of any event whereby a hereditament or part
of a hereditament becomes, or ceases to be, not liable to be
rated; or
(d) a change in the extent to which any railway or canal
premises within the meaning of section 32 of this Act<s89>s are
occupied for non-rateable purposes within the meaning of
that section; or
(e) property previously rated as a single hereditament becom-
ing liable to be rated in parts; or
(f) property previously rated in parts becoming liable to be
rated as a single hereditament; or
(g) a hereditament becoming or ceasing to be:--
(i) a dwelling-house; or
(ii) a private garage or private storage premises within the
meaning of schedule 11 to this Act; <s89>s or
(h) a hereditament being, in accordance with schedule 13 to this
Act,<s89>s used to a greater or lesser extent for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings.
14.152 Thus, suppose that a newly erected house is first occu-
pied on the 1st August, 1978 and a proposal is made on the 31st
March, 1979 to include the house in the valuation list at a rateable
value of #500. If the period of the rate is from the 1st April, 1978 to
the 31st March, 1979 and the rates in the pound are 50p, then the
amount of rates due for that rate period will be:--
<s89>s General Rate Act, 1967.
396
<1The Valuation List>1
#500 x 50p <ix>i Number of days from 1st August to 31st March
100 Number of days from 1st April to 31st March
14.153 If in the above case the proposal had not been served
until some time in the rate period 1st April, 1979 to 31st March,
1980, then rates could only be charged from the 1st April, 1979
and not from the 1st August, 1978.<s90>s
14.154 The above example does not take account of any
unoccupied rate which may be payable.<s9>si
14.155 Where a proposal is made partly for one of the reasons
listed in section 79 of the General Rate Act, 1967 and partly for
some other reason it is probable that the provisions of section 79
will not apply in determining the date on which the proposal takes
effect.<s92>s
14.156 Special rules apply where a proposal is made in connec-
tion with a hereditament which is subject to the rating surcharge or
the unoccupied rate and in particular where a revaluation occurs
between the time when the hereditament becomes liable to the
above rates and the time when the proposal or proposals are
made. (See chapter 13.)
14.157 Section 28 of the General Rate Act, 1967 prescribes the
date on which an advertising station is deemed to come into
existence.
14.158 If under the provisions of section 21 of the Local
Government Act, 1974 no proposal is made to increase the
assessment of a dwelling-house or mixed hereditament, as a result
of the making of structural alterations, but subsequently as a result
of further structural alterations a proposal is made, then the
proposal shall take effect from the date of those further alterations
(or from the beginning of the rate period in which the proposal was
made whichever is the later).<s93>s
14.159 Where rates have already been paid according to the
value shown in the valuation list but a proposal is subsequently
made in pursuance of which the list is altered, then if the extent of
the liability for rates is affected by the alteration, the difference, if
too much has been paid, will be refunded, or, if too little has been
paid, will be charged and may be recovered as if it were arrears of
the rate.<s88>s
14.160 However, where a person ceased to occupy or own a
<s90>s <1Foleshill R. D. C. v. Perkins>1 1931.
<s91>s See Chapter 13.
<s92>s Cox & C. <1(Watford) Ltd. v. Bushey U.D.C.>1 1961; but it must be borne in mind
when reading this decision that statutory tone of the list did not apply at that time.
<s93>s See paragraphs 10.42 to 10.45.
397
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
hereditament before the date on which the proposal was served,
there is no liability on that person to pay or receive any difference
in the rates brought about as a result of that proposal.<s94>s
14.161 Special rules apply to the alteration of the assessment of
statutory railway and canal hereditaments, statutory gas, water
and electricity hereditaments, National Coal Board heredita-
ments, and certain hereditaments which are subject to the unoccu-
pied rate or rating surcharge.
14.162 In addition to the mandatory provisions mentioned
above, which oblige a rating authority to refund an over-payment
of rates, section 9 of the General Rate Act, 1967 in certain
circumstances gives the rating authority a discretionary power to
refund rates.
14.163 Notwithstanding the fact that, in general, the effect of a
proposal is retrospective, any valuation on which the proposal
rests is deemed to be made at the date when the proposal was
made. For example, in January 1976, a proposal was made to
reduce the value of a hereditament and although the alteration in
pursuance of this proposal was effective from 1st April, 1975, the
value of the hereditament has to be found in the light of conditions
and circumstances existing in Janaury 1976.<s95>s
14.163a The effect of a person making a proposal on the rating
authorities ability to collect rates, is dealt with in paragraphs 15.18
and 15.21.
<2Manner in which the Valuation List is Altered>2
14.164 The manner in which a valuation list is to be altered in
pursuance of a proposal is prescribed by the Valuation List Rules,
1972 No.1612. Alterations made to a valuation list after it has
come into force are entered in Section II of the list. Except for
some additional columns, one of which is to show the rateable
value in the list before the alteration was made, Section II is
substantially in the same form as Section I. Existing entries in the
list have to be struck out in red ink, and a note made referring to
the sheet in Section II containing the new entry.<s96>s
14.165 Special rules concerning the type of entry to be made in
Section II, such as, for example, including an item "(AG)" in the
description of an agricultural dwelling-house, are the same as
those which apply to Section I.
<s94>s Section 79, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s95>s <1Barrett v. Gravesend A.C>1., 1941, but see Section 20 of the General Rate Act,
1967, for exceptions to this rule.
<s96>s Rule 13 Valuation List Rules 1972 but see also rule 14.
398
<1Chapter 15>1
<2RATING ADMINISTRATION>2
<2Making the Rate>2
15. 1 The general rate levied by rating authorities<s1>s was first
introduced by the Rating and Valuation Act, 1925. It is a
consolidation of a number of rates (including the poor rate) each
of which was previously levied separately.<s2>s It is the only rate now
levied in respect of local government expenditure, for the special
rate, which prior to 1st April, 1956 used to exist in rural rating
areas, has been abolished.<s3>s
15.2 By section 2 of the General Rate Act, 1967, the general
rate must provide for such part of the total estimated expenditure
to be incurred by the authority during the rate period as is not to
be met by other means or by means of excepted rates.<s4>s Water and
sewerage rates fall within the definition of "excepted rates" and
are collected by the Water Authority.<s4a>s
15.3 The sum to be raised by the rating authority must include,
moneys payable under precept to any other authority, amounts to
cover expenditure previously incurred, contingencies, and such
sums as may be necessary to defray expenses which may fall to be
met before the date on which the proceeds of the next subsequent
rate will become available. Thus, to this extent the general rate
may cover retrospective and prospective expenditure.
15.4 The general rate must be levied at a uniform rate in the
pound throughout the rating area.
15.5 The arrangement, whereby different rates in the pound are
charged on different hereditaments within one rating area, is
known as "differential rating".<s5>s For example, where an amount of
<s1>s The rating authority for an area is the "district council". The county council,
parish councils and coramunity councils precept on the district council. For further
details see paragraphs 1.51 to 1.55.
<s2>s See paragraph 1.36.
<s3>s Section 4(1), Rating and Valuation (Miscellaneous Provisions), Act, 1955.
<s4>s Section 2, General Rate Act, 1967: "excepted rate" is defined in section 115
General Rate Act, 1967.
<s4a>s Sometimes the water-rate is physically collected by the rating authority on behalf
of the "water authority."
<s5>s Differential rating was expressly preserved by section 2(4), General Rate Act,
1967, but see section 117(5)(b), section 147, Local Government Act, 1972 and also
the reduction in rates in the pound for domestic hereditaments and mixed
hereditaments under section 48 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
399
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
money is by virtue of a parish precept or in some other way
chargeable separately on part only of a rating area<s6>s the rating
authority shall levy that amount on that part of the area together
with and as an additional item of the general rate. Thus if the cost
of street lighting is to be borne only by those parts of the rating
area which have street lighting, then the cost of lighting would be
levied on those areas in addition to the general rate.
15.6 Another example of differential rating is where two or
more rating areas have been combined together to form one rating
area, and where the rates in the pound in the former areas were
appreciably different. In such a case the rates in each of the former
areas are usually brought into line by a series of steps over a
number of years, until the rates in the pound are the same
throughout the whole area. This is normally provided for in a local
Act of Parliament.<s7>s
The general rate in the pound is to be reduced by a prescribed
amount when applied to a domestic hereditament or a mixed
hereditament.
15.7 A rating authority has a discretionary power to make a
supplementary rate at any time if it thinks it necessary to do so
having regard to the requirements of their area.<s8>s Also precepting
authorities can at any time issue a supplementary precept.<s9>s
15.8 The rate must be made by resolution of the rating author-
ity and must specify the amount per pound of rateable value at
which the rate is to be levied.<s10>s
15.9 Normally, a rate is made by reference to the rateable
values contained in the valuation list in force at the time when the
rate is made and for this purpose the list is conclusive, but there is
an exception to this rule when a new valuation list is to come into
force. Section 2(4)(b) of the General Rate Act, 1967, provides that
in such circumstances the rating authority may make a rate by
reference to the new list for the year, or any part of the year,
beginning with the day on which the list is to come into force,
notwithstanding that the list is not in force at the time when the
rate is made.
15.10 The rate does not necessarily commence on the date
when the resolution is approved by the rating authority, but begins
<s6>s Section 147, Local Government Act, 1972.
<s7>s This is a form of differential rating permitted under section 117(5)(b), General
Rate Act, 1967.
<s8>s Section 3(5), General Rate Act. 1967.
<s9>s Section 149, Local Government Act, 1972.
<s10>s Section 3(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
400
on the day immediately following the end of the previous rate, so
that there is no period when there is no rate in existence. The
length of the period of the rate is at the discretion of the rating
authority, subject to the rule that in the case of the last rate made
in respect of any financial yearii the rate period shall terminate on
the last day of the year. The usual period of a rate is six or twelve
months,<s12>s with the rate payable by half-yearly instalments. The
date on which the rate terminates must be specified in the rate.
15.11 The Poor Relief Act, 1743, first made it necessary for a
"rate book" to be kept. The rate book was kept by the rating
authority and contained such information as the amount of the
rate due for each hereditament, the amount paid, any arrears, and
the name of the person liable to pay the rate. Any ratepayer was
entitled to inspect the rate book and take copies.
15.12 The necessity to keep a rate book in the prescribed form
restricted the introduction of modern accounting methods,
accounting machines and computers.
15.13 The Rating and Valuation Act, 1961, made it unnecessary
to keep a rate book. The ratepayer's right to inspect the rate book
was replaced by the right of a person who is liable to pay rates on a
particular hereditament to require the rating authority to provide
him with a statement of the rates payable or paid in respect of that
hereditament.<s13>s
15.14 The rating authority's accounts are subject to district
audit and must contain certain prescribed information.<s14>s
<2Publication of the Rate>2
15.15 Notice of every rate must be given by the rating authority
within twenty-one clear days after the rate has been made (i.e.,
twenty-one days after the date when the resolution approving the
rate was passed), and if this notice is not given in the form required
by statute the rate is not valid.<s15>s Three ways are prescribed for
giving notice of the rate. The notice may be fixed on or near to the
principal door of churches and chapels of the Established Church
within the rating area at which divine service is performed; or it
<s11>s The financial year must end on 31st March (section 3(3), General Rate Act,
1967). hence 1st April is always the beginning of a new rate period.
<s12>s See paragraphs 15.37 to 15.45.
<s13>s Section 10, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s14>s Rate-accounts (amendment) Regulations 1966, S.1. 1966 No. 1130 which
amended the Rate-accounts Regulations 1962 S.1. 1962 No. 8.
<s15>s Section 4, General Rate Act, 1967, as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980 section 44 and schedule 34 part IX.
401
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
may be displayed in some public or conspicuous place within the
rating area; or the notice may be published in one or more
newspapers circulating in the area. Different methods of publica-
tion may be used as respects different parts of the rating area.
<2Amendment of the Rate>2
15.16 The rating authority have wide powers to make any
amendments to the rate which appear to be necessary in order to
make it conform with the enactments relating to it.i<s6>s An amend-
ment may be made to the current rate or to the last preceding
rate.<s16>s Looked at another way, this means that it is possible to
amend a rate whilst it is current or during the rate period
immediately following that in which it was current.<s17>s In particular,
the rating authority may correct any arithmetical or clerical error
in the rate, or correct any erroneous insertions, omissions or
misdescriptions and such amendments will have effect as if they
had been contained in the rate as originally made.
15.17 There is a limitation on the right to make amendments
where the effect of them is to alter the rateable value of a
hereditament or to charge to the rate a hereditament not shown,
or not separately shown in the valuation list. Apart from the
correction of clerical or arithmetical errors, such amendments
must be made only when necessary either to bring the rate into
conformity with the valuation list or where a proposal for a
corresponding alteration of the valuation list has been made by the
valuation officer.<s16>s
15.18 If a hereditament is not shown or is not shown separately
in the valuation list but the valuation officer makes a proposal to
include it in the valuation list, there seems little doubt that even
before the valuation list is altered the rating authority is entitled to
collect rates on the hereditament.<s18>s
15.19 There is, however, some doubt as to whether the rating
authority is entitled to collect rates on the basis of a proposal,
made by the valuation officer, to increase the assessment of a
hereditament which is already in the valuation list.<s19>s
<s16>s Section 6, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s17>s This provision does not entitle a rating authority to collect rates for any time
earlier than the start of the rate period in which the proposal to assess the
hereditament was made: <1Foleshill R.D.C. v. Perkins,>1 1931.
<s18>s Section 6(2)(b), General Rate Act, 1967, see also <1B. Kettle Ltd. v. Newcastle>1
<1under Lyme B. C.>1 1979 (C.A.).
<s19>s Rating & Valuation, March 1975, page 72, but see also Rating & Valuation
Reported, June 1980, page 144.
402
<1Rating Administration>1
15.20 In any case, no rates can be collected on the basis of a
proposal made by any other person until the valuation list is
altered.
15.21 If effect, or full effect, is ultimately not given to the
valuation officer's proposal, and the amount of the rate levied in
pursuance of the amendment is affected, the difference, if too
much has been paid, shall be repaid or allowed, or, if too little has
been paid, shall be paid and may be recovered as if it were arrears
of the rate.<s20>s
<2Appeals against the Rate>2
15.22 The Poor Relief Act, 1601, gave the right to appeal to
quarter sessions (now the Crown Court<s21>s) against the poor rate
and for more than three hundred years this remained the principal
remedy of an aggrieved rate-payer, but the grounds on which an
appeal now lies are so limited that appeals against the rate are not
very frequent. This is largely because of a limitation imposed by
section 7 of the General Rate Act, 1967, which provides that no
appeal against the rate shall lie if relief may be obtained by means
of a proposal for the amendment of the current valuation list or by
means of an objection to such a proposal or by means of an appeal
against such an objection. In view of the wide terms in which the
statutory grounds for making a proposal are drawn,<s22>s it will be
appreciated that there are few grievances which are not within
their scope.
15.23 The appeal is made to the Crown Court by "any person
who:--
(a) is aggrieved by any rate; or
(b) has any material objection to the inclusion or exclusion of
any person in or from, or to the amount charged to any
person in, any rate; or
(c) is aggrieved by any neglect, act, or thing done or omitted by
the rating authority".
15.24 There is a time limit for appeal against the rate<s23>s but the
limit may be capable of extension by the Crown Court.<s24>s
<s20>s Section 6(2), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s21>s The Courts Act, 1971 abolished Ouarter Sessions and transferred their jurisdic-
tion (from the 1st January, 1972) to the Crown Courts which were set up under that
Act.
<s22>s See paragraph 14.39.
<s23>s Section 7(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s24>s See Crown Court Rules.
403
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
15.25 In view of the limitation on the grounds of appeal
indicated above, the principal grounds of appeal against the rate
are that the rate has not been made in the manner required by
statute; or the rate was not duly published; or the rate was not
made according to the rateable values shown in the valuation list in
force; or the rate was for purposes outside the powers of the rating
authority; or the rate was made on a person who was not liable to
pay it.
15.26 An appeal against the rate also appears to be the
appropriate method of contesting an amendment to a rate other
than one in consequence of an alteration of the valuation list.
15.27 If the Crown Court is satisfied that relief should be given,
the rate must be amended, but, if necessary, the rate will be
quashed. Where the extreme action of quashing the rate is taken,
it is provided that all sums of money in respect of the rate shall still
be levied and collected from any person as if there had been no
appeal to sessions, and such sums will be treated as payments on
account of the next effective rate.<s25>s
15.28 There is a right of appeal from the decision of the Crown
Court to the High Court.
<2Rating Authority's Duty in Respect of a New Valuation List>2<s26>s
15.29 On coming into force of a valuation list the rating
authority shall enter in part 3 of the list the total rateable values for
the rating area, rating districts and any other parts of the area
which are liable to be charged separately in respect of any
expenses. Separate records may also be kept of the totals of values
of particular kinds of hereditament.<s27>s
15.30 Where alterations are made to a new list before it comes
into force,<s26>s the rating authority is required to alter the totals of
values for the relevant pages in section 1. When after the coming
into force of a valuation list an alteration is made to the list, the
rating authority shall cause an alteration to be made in the totals
contained in part 3 of the list.
<2Collection of Rates>2
15.31 It has already been stated that it is normally the occupier
<s25>s Section 7(5), General Rate Act, 1967, but see the discretion given to the Court in
section 7(6) and the provision in section 7(3).
<s26>s The Valuation Lists, Rules 1972, S.1. 1972 No. 1612.
<s27>s See paragraphs 14.16 to 14.23.
404
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
15.25 In view of the limitation on the grounds of appeal
indicated above, the principal grounds of appeal against the rate
are that the rate has not been made in the manner required by
statute; or the rate was not duly published; or the rate was not
made according to the rateable values shown in the valuation list in
force; or the rate was for purposes outside the powers of the rating
authority; or the rate was made on a person who was not liable to
pay it.
15.26 An appeal against the rate also appears to be the
appropriate method of contesting an amendment to a rate other
than one in consequence of an alteration of the valuation list.
15.27 If the Crown Court is satisfied that relief should be given,
the rate must be amended, but, if necessary, the rate will be
quashed. Where the extreme action of quashing the rate is taken,
it is provided that all sums of money in respect of the rate shall still
be levied and collected from any person as if there had been no
appeal to sessions, and such sums will be treated as payments on
account of the next effective rate.<s25>s
15.28 There is a right of appeal from the decision of the Crown
Court to the High Court.
<2Rating Authority's Duty in Respect of a New Valuation List>2<s26>s
15.29 On coming into force of a valuation list the rating
authority shall enter in part 3 of the list the total rateable values for
the rating area, rating districts and any other parts of the area
which are liable to be charged separately in respect of any
expenses. Separate records may also be kept of the totals of values
of particular kinds of hereditament.<s27>s
15.30 Where alterations are made to a new list before it comes
into force,<s26>s the rating authority is required to alter the totals of
values for the relevant pages in section 1. When after the coming
into force of a valuation list an alteration is made to the list, the
rating authority shall cause an alteration to be made in the totals
contained in part 3 of the list.
<2Collection of Rates>2
15.31 It has already been stated that it is normally the occupier
<1Rating Administration>1
of a hereditament who is liable to the rating authority for rates.<s28>s
This liability is not affected by any agreement, between the
landlord and tenant, to the effect that the landlord will pay the
rates.<s28a>s
15.32 Rates are charged on persons who were in occupation
when the rate was made and on those in occupation during part of
a rate period. A person in occupation at the beginning of the rate
period is liable, in the first instance, to pay rates for the whole of
the rate period, but adjustments are made if the occupation does
not endure for so long.<s29>s Similarly, if occupation commences after
the beginning of the rate period, the occupier will be liable for the
rate until the end of the rate period, but again an adjustment will
be made if occupation ceases before that date.
15.33 A person who occupies for only part of a rate period is
liable to be charged with a proportion only of the total amount of
the rate; this proportion is that which the number of days during
which he is in occupation bears to the total number of days
comprised in the rate period. Where a person has paid to the end
of the rate period but ceases to occupy before that time, he is
entitled to recover from the rating authority the excess of rates
paid except in so far as he has previously recovered the sum due
from the incoming occupier. For example, suppose the total rate
period is 365 days, the rateable value of the hereditament is #300
and rates are 75p in the pound. <1A>1 is in occupation at the
commencement of the rate period, but leaves after 73 days and is
immediately succeeded by <1B. A>1, being in occupation at the
commencement of the rate period, will be liable, in the first
instance, for the whole of the rates, namely, #225, but his ultimate
liability will be seventy-three 365ths, i.e. one-fifth, of this sum,
namely #45. <1B>1 will be liable for four-fifths of #225, but will be
given relief if he ceases to occupy before the termination of the
rate period. If <1A>1 has paid the whole amount due, he will be able to
recover #180 from the rating authority unless he has recovered it
from <1B>1.
<2Rate Demands>2
15.34 Rates are collected by the rating authority sending out
<s28>s Cases where the owner is made liable for rates have been considered in chapter
3.
<s28a>s But see the rating authorities dicretionary power to collect rates from the
landlord where the tenant pays an inclusive rent, (paragraphs 3.5O-3.54).
<s29>s But see paragraphs 15.37 to 15.46, regarding the payment of rates by instal-
ments.
405
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
demand notes to all ratepayers, and it will be seen later that unless
a demand note is sent out the rating authority cannot take action to
recover the rates. The demand note must include: <1(a)>1 the situation
and brief description of the hereditament to which it relates; <1(b)>1
the rateable value of the hereditament and, where it differs from
the rateable value, also the net annual value; (c) the amount in the
pound at which the rate is charged; (d) the period in respect of
which the rate is to be paid (e) the amounts in the pound which are
being levied for the purposes respectively of the rating authority
and of each precepting authority; (f) the amount, if any, in the
pound which is being levied as an additional item of the rate.<s30>s
15.35 The Rate Demands Rules, 1981<s3>si specify a large amount
of other information which must be given on the rate demand
note.
15.36 A demand note must be served on the ratepayer in any
one of the ways laid down by Section 109 of the 1967 Act. It may
be delivered to the ratepayer; or left at, or posted to his usual or
last known place of abode (in the case of a company at its
registered office); or sent by post; or delivered to some person on
the premises to which it relates, or, if there is no person on the
premises to whom it can be delivered, then it may be fixed on
some conspicuous part of the premises; or, without prejudice to
any of the above methods, where the hereditament is a place of
business of the ratepayer, by leaving it at, or posting it to, the
ratepayer, at the place of business. It is sufficient if the demand
note is addressed by the description of the "owner" or "occupier",
as the case may be, of the premises (naming the premises), without
any further name or description.
<2Payment of Rates by Instalments---Discretionary>2
15.37 Basically rates are payable in one lump sum at the
beginning of the rate period (usually 12 months in length).
However, by section 3(4) of the General Rate Act, 1967, where
the rate period exceeds three months, the rating authority may
collect rates by instalments. This power to levy rates by instal-
ments applies to all classes of property but is operated <1purely at the>1
<1discretion>1 of the rating authority.
<s30>s Section 5(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s31>s S.1. 1981 No. 328.
406
<1Rating Administration>1
<2Payment of Rates by Instalments--Mandatory>2
15.38 Parliament felt that, in a society in which it was possible
to pay for a holiday by easy instalments, it was too big an
imposition for the average occupier to have to pay his rates in one
or two lump sums.
15.39 Without in any way affecting the rating authorities
discretionary power to levy rates by instalments, Parliament
introduced a new scheme which all rating authorities <1must>1 operate
(Section 50 and the 10th schedule of the General Rate Act, 1967 as
amended by the Local Government Planning and Land Act,
1980).
15.40 The new scheme entails the <1right>1 to pay rates in ten
instalments. It applies to any person who is the occupier of a
hereditament which is:--
(i) a "domestic hereditament" or
(ii) any other type of hereditament, the rateable value of which,
is not less than the lower prescribed limit and not more than
the upper prescribed limit.
15.40a Saving the exceptions mentioned below, the scheme
therefore includes all domestic hereditaments. Other types of
hereditament come within the scheme, only if the rateable value of
the hereditament concerned falls within the prescribed limits.
15.40b <1"Domestic hereditament">1 means a hereditament which is
either:--
(a) a dwelling-house or
(b) not a dwelling-house, but a hereditament which is used
mainly for the purposes of a private dwelling or private
dwellings (within the meaning of section 115(3) of the
General Rate Act, 1967).
15.40c With regard to other types of hereditament (at the time
of writing) the lower prescribed rateable value limit is #100 and the
upper prescribed rateable value limit is #2,000, except in Greater
London where the higher rateable value limit is #5,000.<s32>s
15.41 The above scheme does not apply:--
(i) where the occupier is a tenant or licensee of the rating
authority, who pays his rates as part of his rent or
(ii) where the owner of the hereditament is compounded under
sections 55 or 56 of the General Rate Act, 1967 or under a
local Act.
<s32>s Payment of Rates by Instalments (Prescribed Sums) Order 1981 No. 2011.
407
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
15.42 The scheme operates as follows. If an occupier, who is
eligible under the above scheme, serves notice on the rating
authority<s33>s he becomes entitled to pay his annual rates in not less
than ten equal instalments (any odd amount may be added to the
first or last instalment). The rating authority must send him, in
writing, the number of instalments, the dates on which they
become due, and the amount of each instalment. There are time
limits within which the above notice has to be served on the rating
authority.<s33>s
15.43 If an occupier gets into arrears with his instalments then
the whole of the rates for that rate period become payable in one
lump sum (provided that the rating authority has served notice to
terminate the agreement before taking recovery action). This
provides a considerable incentive to keep up to date with the
instalments and it saves the rating authority the burden of having
to go to court ten times in one year in order to recover the rates.
15.44 A person who pays his rates by instalments is not entitled
to a discount for prompt payment of rates.<s35>s
15.45 Full details concerning the serving of notices and the
termination of instalments are contained in schedule 10 of the
General Rate Act, 1967.
<2Lettings Not Exceeding 3 Months>2
15.46 Under section 58 of the General Rate Act, 1967, where a
hereditament is let to the occupier for a term not exceeding three
months:--
(a) the occupier shall be entitled to deduct any amount paid by
him in respect of rates upon that hereditament from the rent
due or accruing due to the owner, and every such payment
shall be a valid discharge of the rent to the extent of the
rates so paid;
(b) the occupier shall not be compelled to pay to the rating
authority at any one time or within any four weeks a greater
amount by way of rates than would be due for one-quarter
of the year.
<s33>s Paragraph 1, schedule 10, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s34>s--
<s35>s Section 50(3), General Rate Act, 1967.
408
<1Rating Administration>1
<2Discounts>2
15.47 By <2section>2 54 of the General Rate Act, 1967,<s36>s the rating
authority have a <1discretionary>1 power to give a discount in respect
of the prompt payment of rates. This discount, of such amount as
may be specified in the resolution, is not given to owners who have
been compounded for rates (because they are already entitled to a
discount) but otherwise must be granted to all ratepayers who pay
the sum due before the date fixed in the resolution. Except that
the discount is not payable where the occupier elects to pay his
rates by instalments under section 50 of the 1967 Act or when he
receives a discount under section 51 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
15.48 Under <2section 51>2 of the 1967 Act<s37>s a rating authority has a
<1discretionary>1 power, exercisable by passing a resolution, to allow a
discount to any occupier of a <2dwelling-house>2 who is entitled to give
notice under section 50(1) of the 1967 Act (i.e., right to pay rates
by instalments). The discount may be of any amount specified in
the resolution but the rates must be paid before a prescribed date.
Again, it is not possible to pay rates by instalments under section
50 of the 1967 Act and enjoy this discount or, at the same time, to
receive a discount under section 54.
<2Recovery of the Rate>2
15.49 Since liability for a rate is created by statute and not
common law, it follows that a rate can only be recovered in the
manner prescribed by statute.<s38>s The principal remedy is contained
in section 96 of the General Rate Act, 1967, which provides that in
cases of refusal to pay the rates, they may be recovered by <2distress>2
and sale of the defaulter's goods.
15.50 If there has been neglect or refusal to pay the rate after it
as been legally demanded, and at least seven days have elapsed
e the demand was made,<s39>s the rating authority may commence
eedings to recover the amount due by distress. The first step is
e rating authority to <2make a complaint>2<s40>s to a justice of the
praying that the defaulter be summoned to appear before
<s36>s As amended by 7th schedule Local Government Act, 1974.
<s37>s As amended by section 42 and schedules 7& 8, Local Government Act, 1974.
<s38>s <1Liverpool Corporation v. Hope,>1 1938, but see Schedule 1 para. 13 and sections
57 to 59, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s39>s Section 96 of the General Rate Act, 1967. But the rate becomes due and payable
on the date on which it is made and published.
<s40>s The forms of complaint are given in schedule 12 of the General Rate Act, 1967.
409
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the magistrates court to show cause why the rate has not been paid
and the reasons for which the payment is refused.
15.51 There are a number of grounds on which a defendant may
<2resist the issue of a warrant of distress>2 but these are complex and
an exhaustive account of them is outside the scope of this book.<s41>s
However, broadly speaking they fall within the following
groups:--
(1) the rate is defective due to, for example, the way that it was
made, publicised, demanded or that it was not made in
accordance with the valuation list.
(2) the defendant is not the person liable to pay the rate.
(3) the rate has already been paid.
(4) the ratepayer is entitled to some relief or allowance which
has not been granted.
15.52 Where a rating authority attempts to collect rates from a
person for a hereditament of which he only occupies part, and
where the part which he occupies should have been assessed as a
separate hereditament, then that person will not be liable to pay
rates on the whole or any part of the hereditament. But this only
applies if the description in the valuation list clearly mentions a
part or parts of the hereditament which the person does not
occupy,<s42>s (see paragraphs 2.114a to 2.114f).
15.53 For example, if a hereditament is described in the valua-
tion list as "shop, offices and factory" rateable value #15,000, but
the person from whom the rating authority is attempting to collect
the rates only occupies the factory, then that person can not be
required to pay any rates for that hereditament. The rating
authority has no power to apportion the #15,000 rateable between
the factory and the remainder of the hereditament. The practical
remedy in such a case is for the rating authority to make, or ask the
valuation officer to make, a proposal to assess the factor separ-
ately. However, the effect of the proposal can only be backdated
to the beginning of the rate period in which it was made and
the part occupation existed before the beginning of the rate
it would seem that the occupier of the factory and anyone who
occupied the shop and offices would escape rates for that period.
15.54 If on the other hand a person is charged rates on a
hereditament described in the valuation list as "factory", but in
fact he only occupies part of the factory, then it will not be
<s41>s See Rating Law and Practice, 1st edition, pages 198 to 200.
<s42>s <1Camden London Borough Council v. Herwald>1 1978 (Court of Appeal): <1Man->1
<1chester Overseers v. Headlam and London and North Western Railway Co>1. 1888.
410
<1Rating Administration>1
apparent from the valuation list that he is only in occupation of
part of the hereditament and in consequence he will be obliged to
pay rates on the whole factory.
15.55 In this case the ratepayer's remedy is to make a proposal
to have the part of the factory which he occupies separately
assessed. But once again the effect of the proposal will only date
back to the beginning of the rate period in which the proposal was
made and the ratepayer may well find himself out of pocket.
15.56 The entry in the valuation list ". . . . <1.at the date of the>1
<1making of the rate, shall be conclusive evidence for the purposes of>1
<1the levying of that rate of the values of the several hereditaments>1
<1included in the list.">1<s43>s In other words the entry in the valuation list
is conclusive as far as rate collection is concerned.
15.56a This is interpreted quite literally and even if the entry in
the valuation list can be shown to be wrong or the entry was made
without following the correct statutory procedures, the magistrates
are still bound to issue a distress warrant if the rates are not paid.
The ". . . . <1justices are not required or indeed entitled to go behind>1
<1the entries in the valuation list.">1<s43>sa
15.56b For example the valuation officer makes a proposal, to
alter the valuation list, but fails to serve it on the occupier in
accordance with the requirements of the Act (e.g.: he serves it on
the wrong person<s43b>s or serves it late,<s43c>s so that the occupier has no
time to make an objection). Nevertheless, the proposed alteration
is made in the valuation list and the rating authority serve a
demand note on the occupier requiring the payment of rates. The
occupier does not pay. In such case the justices must issue a
distress warrant<s44>s and may not concern themselves with the flaws
in the procedure which gave rise to the entry in the list. If the entry
in the valuation list is wrong this is no valid defence in proceedings
for distress. If there has been some error, then the remedy, if there
is one lies elsewhere.
15.56c If the value or the description in the list is wrong then the
correct remedy is for the ratepayer to make a proposal to alter the
valuation list.
15.57 The justices have no power to withhold the warrant on
<s43>s Section 67(6), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s43a>s <1R. v. Thames Magistrates' Court Ex Part. Christie,>1 1977 (Q.B.D.).
<s43b>s <1County and Nimbus Estates Ltd. v. Ealing London Borough Council,>1 1979
(Q.B.D.) and footnote 43a
<s43c>s <1Pebmarsh Grain Ltd. v. Braintree District Council,>1 1980 (Q.B.D.).
<s44>s The sum authorised to be levied by distress may include costs as well as the rate
due.
411
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
the ground of the poverty of the defaulting ratepayer, but- the
rating authority may remit <2the whole>2 or pad of the <2payment>2 on
the grounds of <2poverty.>2<s45>s In the case of the unoccupied rate or the
rating surcharge, the rating authority have power to reduce or
remit these rates on the grounds of <2hardship.>2
15.58 Any person who was a party to the proceedings before
the justices or is aggrieved by the determination of the court may
question the proceedings, on the ground that it is wrong in law or
is in excess of jurisdiction, by applying to the justices to state a
case for the opinion of the <2High Court on>2 the question of law or
jurisdiction involved.<s46>s
15.59 Distress may be levied on the defaulter's goods anywhere '
within the county in which the rating area is situated, and if the
goods to be found there are insufficient then those outside the
county may be seized.
15.60 If, however, there is not sufficient distress, proceedings
may be commenced with a view to committing the defaulter to
prison. A <2warrant for commitment to prison>2 will be <2granted>2 only if
the justices are satisfied that the failure to pay was the result of
<1wilful refusal or culpable neglect,>1<s47>s and if they think fit to issue the
warrant. At the committal proceedings the magistrates can en-
quire into whether or not the person they are considering commit-
ting to prison is the rateable occupier of the hereditament.<s47a>s
15.61 Where a warrant is issued, the defaulter may be kept in
prison for any time not exceeding three months unless the amount
due is paid before this time has expired. In cases where the justices
decline to issue a warrant, they may remit the whole or part of the
amount due. After a person has served his prison sentence it is the
practice of most if not all rating authorities to write off the rates for
the non-payment of which he was sent to prison. This is done, not
because it is expressly provided for by statute but because there is
no practical alternative.
15.62 Once a distress warrant has been executed an <2appeal lies>2
<2to the Crown Court>2 against the distress, but it would appear that
there is no appeal against a warrant for committal to prison.
15.63 As an alternative to obtaining a warrant for distress, a
rating authority may, where a landlord is liable for rates and the
rates are "in arrear", direct any tenant, licensee or lodger, who
pays rent for the whole or part of the hereditament, to <2pay his rent>2
<s45>s Section 53, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s48>s Section 87, Magistrates Court Act, 1952.
<s47>s Section 103(1), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s47>sa <1R. v. Ealing Magistrates' Court Ex Parte Coatsworth,>1 1980 (Q.B.D.).
412
<1Rating Administration>1
<2to the rating authority>2 until the arrears of rates have been paid.<s48>s It
is also <2possible>2 for the rating authority to present a <2bankruptcy>2
petition in respect of unpaid rates,<s49>s and they may also petition for
the <2winding up>2 of a limited company on the same ground.<s50>s
15.64 Where an owner is <2compounded>2 i.e. is rated or has
undertaken to pay or collect rates, under sections 55 and 56 of the
General Rate Act, 1967, the amount due is recoverable from him
(or from the agent who collects the rent)<s51>s in "the same manner as
from occupiers.
15.65 If the owner has undertaken to collect rates on behalf of
the rating authority, the amount due from him is the same
proportion of the total amount of rates due as the aggregate
amount of rent and rates collected bears to the aggregate amount
of rent and rates due.<s52>s
15.66 Even though the owner of a rateable hereditament has
become liable for rates, the goods and chattels of the occupier may
be distrained and sold for payment of any rates that accrue during
his occupation and which remain unpaid. It is provided, however,
that before such distress is levied the rate must have been
demanded from the occupier and he must have failed to pay the
rate within fourteen days. No greater sum shall be raised by such
distress than shall at the time of making it be actually due from the
occupier for rent of the premises on which the distress is made. In
such cases the occupier is entitled to deduct the amount of rates for
which distraint is made, together with expenses of distraint, from
the rent due or accruing due.<s53>s
15.67 In addition to the above remedies, where an owner:--(i)
has undertaken, whether by agreement with the occupier or with
the rating authority, to pay rates, or (ii) has otherwise become
liable to pay rates, fails to pay any rate, the occupier may pay that
rate and deduct the amount of the payment from his rent. A
receipt for the rates so paid shall be a valid discharge for the
amount of rent.<s54>s
15.67a Where a hereditament is occupied on the terms that the
owner will pay the rates e.g.: the property is let at an inclusive
rent, then the rating authority may recover the rates from the
<s48>s Section 61, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s49>s <1Re McGreavy,>1 1950.
<s50>s <1Re North Bucks Furniture Depositories Ltd.,>1 1939.
<s51>s Section 57, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s52>s Section 56(5), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s53>s Section 62, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s54>s Section 59, General Rate Act, 1967.
413
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
owner (or the agent who collects the rent).<s54>sa Recovery will be
made in the same way as if the owner (or agent) was the rateable
occupier.
15.67b This power is entirely discretionary. The rating author-
ity cannot recover from the owner a sum which exceeds the rate
content of the rent actually received by the owner. In other words
the owner cannot be required to pay to the rating authority, more
than he has actually received by way of rates from the occupier,
(see paragraphs 3.50 to 3.54).
15.67c Where any rates are due on a <1domestic hereditament,>1
from a person who has an interest in the hereditament, then that
person and the rating authority may agree:--
(a) that the rates outstanding, together with interest on that
sum, shall be secured by way of mortgage, on the rate-
payer's interest in the hereditament, and
(b) that the rating authority shall not excercise its powers to
recover the outstanding sum, by distress or otherwise.<s54b>s
This is a particularly suitable way of securing eventual payment of
outstanding rates; for example, in the case where a retired person
has a very low income but owns a house.
15.67d In the case of the <1Rating Surcharge,>1 this can be secured
by registering it as a <1land charge,>1 against all interests in the
hereditament.<s54c>s This does not force anyone to pay the surcharge
but it makes it very difficult for the owner to sell or mortgage the
hereditament.
15.68 It has been held that proceedings for the recovery of rates
will be barred under the Limitation Act, 1939, if they are not
commenced within six years of the first demand for payment.<s55>s
15.69 In the case of the unoccupied rate or the rating surcharge
the property will frequently be empty and so the remedy of
distraint may not be very effective. An additional remedy has
therefore been provided in the case of these two rates, namely to
recover the rate as a simple contract debt in any court of
competent jurisdiction.<s56>s The normal methods for recovery of a
rate may also be applied against the owner<s57>s who is treated as
<s54a>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 60 as amended by the Local Government,
Planning and Land Act, 1980. See paragraphs 3.50-3.54.
<s54b>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 107A.
<s54c>s General Rate Act, 1967 section 17B (3).
<s55>s <1China v. Harrow U.D.C.,>1 1954.
<s56>s Schedule 1, para. 13, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s57>s Schedule 1, para. 15, General Rate Act, 1967 (for unoccupied rate) or section
17B(7), General Rate Act, 1967 (for rating surcharge).
414
being in occupation during "any relevant period of vacancy" or
during the period of "non-use".
15.70 In the case of the rating surcharge only, any amount
unpaid may be registered as a local land charge.<s58>s This is likely to
deter anyone from purchasing the property until the surcharge has
been paid.
<2Refund of Overpayments>2
15.71 In the past, a person who paid rates for which he was not
liable as a result of a mistake in law (as opposed to a mistake of
fact) was unable to recover them. This was because the rating
authority argued that it had no power to refund rates, once they
had been paid. This injustice has been corrected by giving the
rating authority a discretionary power to refund overpayments of
rates on the following grounds:---<s59>s
<1(a)>1 the amount of any entry in the valuation list was excessive;
or
<1(b)>1 a rate was levied otherwise than in accordance with the
valuation list; or
(c) any exemption or relief to which a person was entitled was
not allowed; or
(d) the hereditament was unoccupied during any period; or
(e) the person who made a payment in respect of rates was not
liable to make the payment.
15.72 Application for repayment must be made before the end
of the sixth year after that in which the amount was paid. Thus in
the case of an overpayment which has been made for say ten years,
it is only possible to obtain a refund for seven of those years.
15.73 No refund can be made if the overpayment was charged
on the basis, or in accordance with the practice, generally prevail-
ing at the time when the payment was demanded. It follows that,
if, as a result of a change in case law or statute law a person's
liability to pay rates is reduced, he is prevented from obtaining a
refund in respect of previous years.
15.74 Before making a refund on grounds (a) or <1(c)>1 the rating
authority must obtain a certificate from the valuation officer
stating how the hereditament should have been treated in the
valuation list. The certificate is binding on the rating authority
only in terms of the value(s) contained therein.
<s58>s Section 17B(3) General Rate Act, 1967, section 15, Land Charges Act, 1925.
<s59>s Section 9, General Rate Act, 1967.
415
<1Principles and Practice of Rating Valuation>1
15.75 However, if the valuation officer issues a certificate this
does not mean that the rating authority is bound to grant a refund.
The grant of a refund is entirely at the discretion of the rating
authority and the Lands Tribunal has no power to direct the rating
authority to make a refund.<s59a>s
15.76 Refunds must be paid in other cases, as for example:--
(i) where the overpayment was made as a result of a mistake
of fact;
(ii) where in the case of an appeal against the rate the court
orders a refund;<s60>s
(iii) where a person who has paid rates for the full rate period
goes out of occupation before the end of that rate period;<s61>s
(iv) where the valuation list is altered as a result of the making
of a proposal any refund will be made as from the date
when the alteration is deemed to have taken effect.<s62>s
(v) where rates have been paid as a result of the valuation
officer making a proposal, but effect or full effect is
ultimately not given to the proposal.<s63>s (In other words
where the valuation list is not subsequently altered in
accordance with that proposal.)
<s59a>s <1White v. Bromidge>1 (V. O.), 1979 (C.A.).
<s60>s Section 7(4)(b). General Rate Act, 1967.
<s61>s Section 18(4), General Rate Act, 1967.
<s62>s Section 79, General Rate Act, 1967.
<s63>s Section 6(2), and Schedule 1, para. 11(3), General Rate Act, 1967.
416
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
<2LEASE RENTS AND THE HYPOTHETICAL TENANCY>2
<2By Philip Bowcock, B.Sc. (Est. Man.), A.R.1.C.S., A.R.V.A.>2
<2Lecturer in Valuation, Department of Land Management and Develop->2
<2ment, University of Reading>2
In a number of cases Which have been heard by the Lands Tribunal
details of rents paid under leases for various terms have been
presented as evidence of annual value. It has been argued for the
occupier that the hypothetical tenant Would pay less on an annual
tenancy than for a term of years at a fixed rent because he would
be expecting rents to rise; therefore an over-payment during the
early years Would be offset by under-payment during the latter
part of the term. Alternatively, it has been suggested that the
landlord Would be prepared to let at a lower rent for a term of
years since his income Would be more secure than if he let on an
annual basis. Very little effort seems to have been made, however,
to quantify the extent of any divergence between lease rents and
annual rents.
Some idea of the attitude of the Lands Tribunal may be gleaned
from the cases of <1Cresta Silks v. Peak (V.O.)>1 (1958) 171 E.G. 907
and <1Naylors (Reading) Ltd. v. Gaylard (V. O>1.) (1958) 172 E. G.
253. Both cases concerned shops in good positions and both
decisions Were given by the then President of the tribunal, Sir
William FitzGerald. In the former case the rents paid under leases
of comparable properties seem to have supported an overall price
of about 508. per sq. ft., but the occupiers contended that a
reduction of 20 per cent should be made to adjust this to the basis
of an annual tenancy. It is clear from the decision that the
hereditament Was in a first-class area.
The decision states:
--(The appellant) says that a term of years gave a certainty and in
consequence that the rent expected by a landlord for such a term of
years would be higher than a rent from year to year which is, of course,
the basis of the statutory assessment. The issue resolves itself into the
proposition whether the assumption made . . . was justified. The
valuation officer said it is not, and that in fact rents have increased since
the leases were made. . . .
--I think it would be extremely difficult to estimate, for the purpose of
the statutory assessment, what the effect of a term of years would be. It
might indeed work the other way. A landlord might be prepared to take
A1
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
a lower rent for the certainty of a long lease to a satisfactory tenant.
The conclusion I have come to is that no such deduction should be
allowed and that the assessment should be based on the yearly rent
irrespective of the length of the lease. I think it desirable that I should
emphasise that I am dealing with the particular facts of this case only."
In <1Naylor's>1 case the tribunal concluded that 25s. per sq. ft. for
zone A was supported by the lease rents of other hereditaments,
but the President's decision makes a reduction of 19% to 21s. for
zone A to allow for the terms of the hypothetical tenancy. After
reviewing <1Cresta Silks,>1 it goes on:
"I have come to the conclusion that this case falls within the
reservation I there made and I think that here the state of the market
and other circumstances are different from the Bournemouth <1[Cresta>1
<1 Silks]>1 case."
"Why I come to this conclusion is because of the very definite
evidence of Mr. Morton, who has had 10 years' experience of letting
and selling shops in this particular street, and more especially because
of the particular letting of No. 9. In the case of this shop he conducted
the negotiations between the landlord and tenant, and it was agreed
both between landlord and tenant that a higher rent would be charged
for a longer lease. These particular circumstances are probably
accounted for by the fact that Reading is a rapidly-expanding industrial
town. There is no doubt that both landlords and prospective tenants are
banking on a continued expansion and are insuring against it. I
therefore accept his figure of 4s. per sq. ft. as representing the value of
the long lease of these premises. Having accepted the valuation officer's
figure of 25s. per sq. ft. in the first factor that would reduce the amount
at which I assess zone A to 21s. per sq. ft."
A <2Measure of Uncertainty>2
Several quantitative criticisms may be made of these decisions.
In the first place the tribunal thought that a term of years might or
might not produce a higher rent than a tenancy from year to year.
This immmediately suggests that there is a probability element
inherent in the approach to Which statistical techniques might be
applied, but no further consideration was given to this. Second,
the tribunal was at pains to emphasise that in different cases it
might come to different decisions as to whether or not an
adjustment should be made. Again we have a probability consid-
eration--the probability that the tribunal will deal with the same
problem in the same way--and no doubt a little research through
past decisions could provide a measure of this. The third criticism
is the assumption that the calculation of any adjustment is too
difficult to be carried out. The purpose of this paper is to consider
A2
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
the basis for such an adjustment and to show that relatively simply
techniques may be used in its calculation.
In a time of complete economic stability there would presum-
ably be no great advantage either to landlord or tenant in having a
lease for seven, 14 or more years, and it might be expected that an
annual tenancy Would be as satisfactory. The agricultural industry,
for example, perhaps enjoys greater economic stability than most,
and the annual tenancy--though admittedly it is protected--is still
the basis of the majority of agricultural lettings. Industries with
scope for growth and change and With prospects--actual or
potential--of future increase in turnover and profits, have tradi-
tionally preferred the tenancy for a term of years, and it would
seem that there may be some connection; a non-stable industry
looks to reduce uncertainty by taking a term of years in preference
to the annual tenancy. Since the objects of such an industry are
continued growth and increasing profits, and since entrepreneurs
are generally optimistic, they are likely to foresee a time When
they Will be able to pay higher rents than at present. This,
however, would require a rent rising annually, and in order to
obtain the stability they are, it is suggested, prepared to pay more
in earlier years to have the advantage of fixed rents and greater
certainty. At the time of negotiating the lease it Would seem that
both parties must have in mind some idea of the different
possibilities.
The terms of the hypothetical tenancy do not appear to exclude
an annual revision of the rent and this view seems to have been
supported by the tribunal in <1L. & A. Black Ltd. v. Burton (V.O.)>1
(1958) 172 E.G. 562.
". . . The argument concerning the element of security can very
easily be exaggerated, for the hypothetical tenant is not the tenant for
one year only, but has a reasonable expectation of the continuance of
his tenancy. The rent may be varied from year to year but the tenant
can confidently expect to remain in possession. The date when the lease
was entered into is important, for the rise in rents during the past few
years has been such that the statutory rent today may easily be higher
than the rent reserved under a 21-year lease entered into some years
before."
This suggests that in times of rising rents the hypothetical tenant
may be required by his landlord to pay a higher rent each
year--and presumably he will be willing to do so if the value of his
occupation has increased. It is precisely because of this possibility
that he may be willing to pay more in the early years of a lease in
order to fix the rent for a number of years.
A3
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
<2Annual Equivalents>2
Consider the situation where a property has been let for #1,000
per annum on a five-year lease. It is assumed by all parties, on the
basis of previous experience and future expectations, that annual
values are increasing at 3% per annum and that this rate will
continue for at least the duration of the lease. The problem,
however, is to find the rent which would be paid on an annual
basis, assuming that the tenancy will continue from year to year,
but at a rent which may be increased each year by 3%. Clearly
there should be no difference in total between the two situations,
and therefore it is possible to follow an approach similar to that
used by Dr. Michael Greaves to find the equivalent rising rent by
capitalising the rent under the actual lease and then finding the
annual equivalent under the hypothetical lease. <s*>s
There is no question of sinking fund provision because each year
the tenant is paying something close to the full rental value: it is
therefore suggested that a single rate approach should be used.
Also, since the rent is a fixed payment, the correct rate of interest
to use in this capitalisation is one which assumes no future growth
of the income, i.e., the cost of capital. For the purpose of the
following calculations a rate of 10% is taken for this fixed income,
which with a growth of 3% per annum would lead to a normal
valuation at about 7% (actually 6-769%).
The formulae used are:
1 - (1 + i) <s-n>s
YP single rate = ------------------
i
i - j
Annual equivalent allowing for growth = -----------------
(1 + j)<sn>s
1 - (-----)
(1 + i)
Where i = the cost of capital
n = number of years
The calculation then becomes:
Rent on 5-year lease 1,000
YP 5 years 10% 3.7908
------
3,790.8
<s*>s M. J. Greaves, "The Valuation of Varying Profit Rents," <1Chartered Surveyor>1,
March 1969, p. 458.
A4
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
AE 5 years 10% allowing for growth at 3%:
0.1 - 0.03
---------------- = 0.2498
1 - (0.936)<s5>s
------
947.08
======
The effect of this may be shown as follows:
<2Table I>2
<1Annual>1 <1Present>1 <1Annual>1 <1Present>1
<1Year>1 <1Rent>1 <1PV# 10%>1 <1Value>1 <1Rent>1 <1PV# 10%>1 <1Value>1
1 947.08 0.909 860.98 1,000 0.909 909.09
2 975.49 0.826 806.19 1,000 0.826 826.45
3 1,004.76 0.751 754.89 1,000 0.751 751.31
4 1,034.90 0.683 706.85 1,000 0.683 683.01
5 1,065.95 0.621 661.87 1,000 0.621 620.92
-------- --------
3,790.78 3,790.78
<1(Note: Present Values are shown to 3 digits only but calculations were in fact made to>1
<110 digits.)>1
We thus see that so far as the parties are concerned, it is
immaterial Whether the rent is #947 rising to #1,065, or a constant
#1,000 per annum.
The next Consideration is Whether the rate adopted for the cost
of capital of 10% is correct. In practice this might be a matter for
considerable argument were it not for the fact that it is of relatively
little significance. Table II shows the effect of varying the cost of
capital rates between 5% and 15% and assuming a growth rate of
3% per <2annum>2 in each case.
<2Table II>2
<1Cost of Capital>1(%) <1Adjusted Rent>1
5 944.49
7.5 945.80
10 947.08
12.5 948.33
15 949.54
As the adjusted rent would almost certainly be rounded to #945
or #950, the rent Chosen for cost of capital is likely to be
immaterial and it becomes clear that the important factor is the
anticipated rate of growth. In general, so far as rating is con-
cerned, it is relatively simple to find the valuation officer's idea of
groWth over the last 10 years by comparing a sample of old and
new list figures for the type of property under consideration. Thus
A5
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
a rise of gross values by a factor of 2-5 over the period 1963-1973
Would imply an annual rise of 9-6% per annum assuming that the
rise is constant each year. It is not suggested that this figure is
necessarily a guide to the future, but, taken with other information
in a particular area, it should not be unduly difficult to estimate the
market's expectation of future growth.
<2Mid-Lease Rents>2
The situation a few years after the commencement of the lease
will now be examined. Referring to Table I, it may be seen that at
the end of the third year the rental value on an annual tenancy
would be very close to the rent actually paid under the lease. If the
parties to the actual lease Were correct in their assumptions about
future trends, and the time of valuation is three years after the
grant of the lease--a not unusual situation--then the rent paid
under the lease Would be very close to the rent under the annual
tenancy. This is because the annual tenancy rent was lower at the
commencement and has taken three years to rise to the level of the
lease rent. In subsequent years it is obvious that the lease rent Will
be below the annual tenancy rent.
Some examples may help to show the effect of this argument:
<1Example 1: Naylors (Reading) Ltd. v. Gaylard>1
Certain aspects of this case were discussed earlier, but more
detailed consideration will now be given. The facts as reported
were that the property was let on lease for 21 years and the local
valuation court had previously confirmed the assessment of gross
value of #700. Although not mentioned in the decision it is
understood that the term commenced in 1950 and the rent was
#725 for the whole term, the tenant being liable for internal
repairs. The appellant contended that the gross value should be
#535 and the tribunal decided #605. The 1963 assessment was
#1,220, subsequently reduced to #1,200 and the 1973 gross value is
#2,600, which shows an increase over the period 1956-1973 of
about 8% p.a. This of course is not necessarily the expectation of
the parties in 1950 but would seem to support the contentions at
the I957 appeal that a substantial degree of growth was antici-
pated. Taking a cost of capital rate of 10% as before, and growth
rates of 6%, 7% and 8%, the following results are obtained:
A6
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
<2Table III>2
<1Anticipated Growth Rates>1
6% 7% 8%
Lease rent, 21 years 725 725 725
Conversion factor 0.6399 0.5890 0.5409
Annual rental value, 1950 464 427 392
Amount #1, 5 years, at growth rate 1.338 1.403 1.469
Annual rental value, 1955 620 599 576
The tribunal's decision might therefore be interpreted as an
expectation in the minds of the parties of values rising rather less
than 7% p.a. when the lease Was negotiated in 1950, an expecta-
tion subsequently justified by events.
<1Example 2: Cresta Silks Ltd. v. Peak>1
The decision in this example Was also quoted earlier, and the
question of assessment will now be considered. At the tribunal the
valuation officer produced details of 43 rent returns. It seems to
have been agreed that most of these were of no assistance and the
decision appears to have been based on only seven rents.
In order to convert a lease rent to an annual equivalent rent it is
first necessary to make an estimate of the groWth rate (if any)
expected by tenants in negotiations at about the time of the lease.
Of the leases quoted in the 43 returns, 16 were on rising rents, and
seven of these were excluded because of premiums, assignments,
surrenders or other considerations which it was not possible to
quantify. Of the remaining nine rising rents, six commenced
before 1937 and three after 1946, and a subjective examination of
these suggests that:
(<1a>1) in the period 1929--1936 the expectation during negotiations
was that rental values would rise by about 2-5% p.a.;
(<1b>1) the actual increase between this period and 1947--1953 When
new leases Were negotiated Was about 5% p.a.; and
(<1c>1) after 1946 the expectation of increase in value was possibly
about 3% p.a.
The rent paid for the appeal hereditament Was one of the seven
rents referred to above: the lease was for 20 years frorn 1947 at a
rent of #800 for the first three years, #1,000 for the next four years
and #1,250 thereafter. Some improvements had been made and
the tenant Was liable for repairs except to the structure. The
valuation officer made adjustments to the rent actually being paid
at the time, Which produced a rent in terms of gross value of
A7
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
#1,710, and then assessed it at #2,100 G.V. The Local Valuation
Court reduced this to #2,000.
It is doubtful Whether this rent could be considered as evidence
of the value in 1956 because it was negotiated nine years earlier
and the assessment suggests that the valuation officer had ignored
it. The increments suggest that the parties anticipated an increase
in the values of about 6-5% p.a., Whereas after allowing for the
improvements, the increase suggested by the valuation officer
represented about 11% p.a. It is thought that there is too wide a
difference between the times of valuation for this rent to be
considered and it Will therefore be disregarded.
The remaining six rents of properties in Westover Road are set
out in Table IV with details of the term and the equivalent rent in
terms of gross value after allowing for repairs, etc. There Was some
divergence between the three expert Witnesses as to the amount of
adjustments, so to simplify the matter the figures submitted by the
valuation officer will be adopted.
<2Table IV>2
<1Rent adjusted>1
<1Date>1 <1Term>1 <1Rent>1 <1Repairs>1 <1by V.O.>1 <1G. V.>1
No. 5 1953 61/4 1550 100 1650* 1750
6 1953 7 1550 100 1650 1650
7 1953 71/4 1700 125 1825 1850
11 1952 14 650 60 710 1025
16 1948 7/7/7 600/660/720 50 710 900
21 1948 42 1200 125 1325 1925
<s*>s The lease was assigned in 1956, but this transaction has been disregarded.
If these rents are now adjusted by the method previously
demonstrated we have the results shown in Table V.
<2Table V>2
<1Conversion>1
<1Unadjusted>1 <1factor>1 <1Amt. #1 until>1 <1Adjusted>1
No. 5 1550 0.927 1.0927 100 1669.48
6 1550 0.923 1.0927 100 1664.75
7 1700 0.921 1.0927 125 1836.04
11 650 0.857 1.1255 60 686.99
16 600 0.924 1.2668 50 752.18
21 1200 0.734 1.2668 125 1240.12
A comparison of rents as adjusted by the valuation office with
annual equivalent rents shows a correlation coefficient of -995 and
a slope of 1.0037, the latter suggesting that, on the basis of this
A8
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
limited sample, the overall impression of the level of values in the
mind of the valuation officer was about .37% too low. Such a
difference is unlikely to have had much effect on the assessments.
It is possible, of course, that the growth anticipated when leases
were negotiated was greater or less than 3% p.a. and it is also
relevant to consider whether the repairs and adjustments used by
the other expert witness were a more accurate reflection of the
average annual cost. Using the growth rate of 5% and repairs
allowances made by the other expert witnesses, however, pro-
duces only relatively minor variations in the figures given above.
<1Example 3: Austin Motor Co., Ltd. v. Woodward (V. 0.)>1 (1968)
206 E.G. 68.
This concerned the valuation of a car factory, and the decision
was based substantially on the rent paid for a part of the
hereditament, known as East Works. This had been fixed in 1961,
two years before the revaluation, under an option in a previous
lease at #8,900 "corresponding for all practical purposes With the
statutory definition of rateable value." Certain adjustments Were
made before the rent Was reduced to a price per sq. ft., but the
consideration here is whether the rent does in fact correspond with
the statutory definition. A 21-year lease at a fixed rent would be
unusual in today's circumstances, but even at that time one Would
have supposed that the parties had in mind the possibility of rising
rental values. Table VIa shows the conversion factors for various
rates of interest for cost of capital and for growth under a 21-year
lease.
<2Table VI>2
Growth % <1Cost of Capital %>1
6 8 10 12
1 0.92296 0.92894 0.93456 0.93978
2 0.84965 0.86077 0.87133 0.88123
3 0.78014 0.79560 0.81043 0.82447
4 0.71449 0.73352 0.75197 0.76960
5 0.65273 0.67461 0.69604 0.71672
If the cost of capital rate is taken as 10%, as before, and at the
commencement of the lease the parties anticipated a rate of
increase of rental values of 2% p.a. (probably fairly modest) then
the rent around which the tribunal's decision was baped could have
been adjusted as follows:
<sa>s The figures in Table VI are taken from "Property Valuation Tables" by Philip
Bowcock (Macmillan). Readers should note that these are based on the stock
market interpretation of the rate of interest, which produces figures slightly
different from those obtained from the use of the formula discussed above.
A9
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
Rent on 21 year lease #89,000
Factor to convert to annual tenancy,
cost of capital 10%, growth 2% 0.87133
-------
Rent on hypothetical tenancy, 1961 77,548
Increase in rental value, 2 years, 2% p.a. 1.0404
-------
Rental value in year of revaluation 80,681
If this had been used as the basis on Which to value the Whole
factory, then the resulting rateable value might have been of the
order of #570,000 instead of #630,000.
<2Conclusion>2
The cases considered in detail suggest that though one might
expect a tendency for hereditmants to be over-assessed when the
value is based on a lease rent, in fact this does not always happen.
This is partly because of the time-lag between the date of the fixing
of the rent and the date of assessment, and also, possibly because
of a tendency by valuation officers to assess some cases at rather
modest figures. lt is apparent, however, that an over-assessment
might occur at a time of steeply-rising rental values if the valuation
officer started with a lease rent agreed two or three years before a
revaluation and projected forward to a higher <2annual>2 rental value
for the new assessment.
The annual rental value at the mid-point of a lease will generally
not be vastly different from the lease rent assuming that rental
values have risen as anticipated, and therefore a seven-year lease
fixed three years before a revaluation would be quite likely to give
a fair measure of annual rental value at the required time. A lease
longer than this, however, such as one for 14 or 21 years, would
appear not to be satisfactory in this respect even though the
tribunal has accepted such evidence. It is submitted, therefore,
that a subject estimate of an adjustment is not adequate, and a
proper mathematical calculation should be made to quantify the
required factor. Furthermore, while such a calculation would have
been somewhat tedious until recently, there are now techniques
available which will perform this operation accurately and rapidly,
and it should no longer be necessary for learned and experienced
members of courts to assume that this would be too difficult.
This paper has put forward a method by which lease rents may
be adjusted using certain assumptions. Many other assumptions
A10
<1Lease Rents and the Hypothetical Tenancy>1
might be made--for instance the hypothetical tenancy assumes an
annual rent but does not specify Whether this is to be paid annually
in arrears or in advance, quarterly, or at some other period, yet,
this factor will clearly have some bearing on the assessment.
Premiums also may have to be brought into the calculation, and
this raises the question as to whether the amount of the premium
considered should be net, after tax. It is hoped, however, that the
argument has illustrated the rather unsatisfactory approach to this
problem in the past, and suggested more suitable methods of
dealing with such cases.
<1(The writer is indebted to Mr. H. M. Wilks, B.Sc., F.R.I. C.S.,>1
<1F. R. V.A., F.I.A rb., of Wilks, Head & Eve., and Mr. D. J, Morton,>1
<1F.R.I.C.S., of Dunster & Morton, for their assistance in providing>1
<1detailed information concerning the cases in which they gave>1
<1evidence.>1)
<2Appendix B -- Statutes>2
B1
<2Contents>2
factory and Workshop Act 1901 B5
Open Spaces Act 1906 B9
Rating and Valuation (Apportionment) Act 1928 B10
Land Drainage Act 1930 B11
Public Health Act 1936 B12
Physical Training and Recreation Act 1937 B13
Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944 B14
Education Act 1944 B15
Water Act 1945 B16
National Assistance Act 1948 B17
Lands Tribunal Act 1949 B18
Arbitration Act 1950 B25
Mines and Quarries Act 1954 B31
Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1958 B33
Housing (financial Provisions) Act 1958 B34
Mental Health Act 1959 B35
Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 B36
factories Act 1961 B37
Housing Act 1961 B41
General Rate Act 1967 B42
Transport Act 1968 B178
Caravan Sites Act 1968 B182
General Rate Act 1970 B183
Rating Act 1971 B185
Tribunal and Inquiries Act 1971 B188
Town and Country Planning Act 1971 B189
B3
<1Contents>1
Local Government Act 1972 B190
Gas Act 1972 B194
Water Act 1973 B195
Local Government Act 1974 B196
General Rate Act 1975 B203
Rating (Charity Shops) Act 1976 B204
Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 B205
Land Drainage Act 1976 B208
General Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977 B210
National Health Service Act 1977 B211
Interpretation Act 1978 B212
Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 B228
Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 B235
<1Factory & Workshop Act 1901>1
<2Factory & Workshop Act 1901>2
<1This Act has now been repealed but is included here for historical reasons>1
<1so that earlier decisions of the courts can be better understood. (See>1
<1Factories Act 1961.j>1
<2147>2.--(1)..............................................................
Provided that yards, playgrounds and places open to the public view,
schoolrooms, waiting rooms and other rooms belonging to the factory or
workshop, in which no machinery is used or manufacturing process
carried on, shall not be taken to be any part of the factory or workshop
within the meaning of this enactment; and this enactment shall not apply
to a domestic factory or workshop.
<2Factories and workshops to which Act applies>2
<2149.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the following
expressions have in this Act the meanings hereby assigned to them; that is
to say:--
The expression "textile factory" means any premises wherein or within
the close or curtilage of which steam, water or other mechanical
power is used to move or work any machinery employed in prepar-
ing, manufacturing or finishing or in any process incident to the
manufacture of cotton, wool, hair, silk, flax, hemp, jute, tow,
china-grass, cocoa-nut fibre or other like material, either separately
or mixed together or mixed with any other material, or any fabric
made thereof:
Provided that print works, bleaching and dyeing works, lace
warehouses, paper mills, flax scutch mills, rope works and hat works
shall not be deemed to be textile factories:
The expression --non-textile factory" means--
<1(a)>1 any works, warehouses, furnaces, mills, foundries or places
named in Part One of the Sixth Schedule to this Act; and
<1(b)>1 any premises or places named in Part Two of the said schedule
wherein or within the close or curtilage or precincts of which
steam, water or other mechanical power is used in aid of the
manufacturing process carried on there; and
(c) any premises wherein or within the close or curtilage or precincts
of which any manual labour is exercised by way of trade or for
purposes of gain in or incidental to any of the following purposes,
namely--
(i) the making of any article or of part of any article; or
(ii) the altering, repairing, ornamenting or finishing of any
article; or
(iii) the adapting for sale of any article,
and wherein or within the close or curtilage of precincts of which
steam, water or other mechanical power is used in aid of the
manufacturing process carried on there:
The expression "factory" means textile factory and non-textile factory
or either of those descriptions of factories:
The expression "tenement factory" means a factory where mechanical
power is supplied to different parts of the same building occupied by
B5
<1Factory & Workshop Act 1901>1
different persons for the purpose of any manufacturing process or
handicraft, in such manner that those parts constitute in law separate
factories; and, for the purpose of the provisions of this Act with
respect to tenement factories, all buildings situate within the same
close or curtilage shall be treated as one building.
The expression --workshop" means--
(a) any premises or places named in Part Two of the Sixth Schedule
to this Act which are not a factory; and
(b) any premises, room or place, not being a factory, in which
premises, room or place or within the close or curtilage or
precincts of which premises any manual labour is exercised by
way of trade or for purposes of gain in or incidental to any of the
following purposes, namely--
(i) the making of any article or of part of any article; or
(ii) the altering, repairing, ornamenting or finishing of any
article; or
(iii) the adapting for sale of any article,
and to or over which premises, room or place the employer of the
persons working therein has the right of access or control:
The expression "workshop" includes a tenement workshop.
The expression --tenement workshop" means any workplace in which,
with the permission of or under agreement with the owner or
occupier, two or more persons carry on any work which would
constitute the workplace a workshop if the persons working therein
were in the employment of the owner or occupier.
(2) A part of a factory or workshop may, with the approval in writing of
the chief inspector, be taken for the purposes of this Act to be a separate
factory or workshop.
(3) A room solely used for the purpose of sleeping therein shall not be
deemed to form part of the factory or workshop for the purposes of this
Act.
(4) Where a place situate within the close, curtilage or precincts
forming a factory or workshop is solely used for some purpose other than
the manufacturing process or handicraft carried on in the factory or
workshop, that place shall not be deemed to form part of the factory or
workshop for the purposes of this Act, but shall, if otherwise it would be a
factory or workshop, be deemed to be a separate factory or workshop and
be regulated accordingly.
(5) A place or premises shall not be excluded from the definition of a
factory or workshop by reason only that the place or premises is or are in
the open air.
(6) The exercise by any young person or child in any recognised
efficient school, during a portion of the school hours, of any manual
labour for the purpose of instructing the young person or child in any art
or handicraft, shall not be deemed to be an exercise of manual labour for
the purpose of gain within the meaning of this Act.
B6
<1Factory & Workshop Act 1901>1
SIXTH SCHEDULE
LIST OF FACTORIES AND WORKSHOPS
PART I
NON-TEXTIE FACTORIES
(1) "Print works," that is to say, any premises in which any persons are
employed to print figures, patterns or designs upon any cotton, linen,
woollen, worsted or silken yarn or upon any woven or felted fabric not
being paper;
(2) "Bleaching and dyeing works," that is to say, any premises in which
the processes of bleaching, beetling, dyeing, calendering, finishing,
hooking, lapping and making up and packing any yarn or cloth of any
material or the dressing or finishing of lace or any one or more of such
processes or any process incidental thereto are or is carried on;
(3) "Earthenware works," that is to say, any place in which persons
work for hire in making or assisting in making, finishing or assisting in
finishing earthenware or china of any description, except bricks and tiles
not being ornamental tiles;
(4) "Lucifer-match works," that is to say, any place in which persons
work for hire in making lucifer matches or in mixing the chemical
materials for making them or in any process incidental to making lucifer
matches, except the cutting of the wood;
(5) "Percussion-cap works," that is to say, any place in which persons
work for hire in making percussion caps or in mixing or storing the
chemical materials for making them or in any process incidental to making
percussion caps;
(6) "Cartridge works," that is to say, any place in which persons work
for hire in making cartridges or in any process incidental to making
cartridges, except the manufacture of the paper or other material that is
used in making the cases of the cartridges;
(7) "Paper-staining works," that is to say, any place in which persons
work for hire in printing a pattern in colours upon sheets of paper, either
by blocks applied by hand or by rollers worked by steam, water or other
mechanical power;
(8) "Fustian-cutting works," that is to say, any place in which persons
work for hire in fustian cutting;
(9) "Blast furnaces," that is to say, any blast furnace or other furnace
or premises in or on which the process of smelting or otherwise obtaining
any metal from the ores is carried on;
(10) "Copper mills";
(11) "Iron mills," that is to say, any mill, forge or other premises in or
on which any process is carried on for converting iron into malleable iron,
steel or tin plate or for otherwise making or converting steel;
(12) "Foundries," that is to say, iron foundries, copper foundries, brass
foundries and other premises or places in which the process of founding or
casting any metal is carried on; except any premises or places in which
such process is carried on by not more than five persons and as subsidiary
to the repair or completion of some other work;
(13) "Metal and india-rubber works," that is to say, any premises in
which steam, water or other mechanical power is used for moving
machinery employed in the manufacture of machinery or in the manufac-
B7
<1Factory & Workshop Act 1901>1
ture of any article of metal not being machinery or in the manufacture of
india-rubber or gutta-percha or of articles made wholly or partially of
india-rubber or gutta-percha;
(14) "Paper mills," that is to say, any premises in which the manufac-
ture of paper is carried on;
(15) "Glass works," that is to say, any premises in which the manufac-
ture of glass is carried on;
(16) "Tobacco factories," that is to say, any premises in which the
manufacture of tobacco is carried on;
(17) "Letterpress printing works," that is to say, any premises in which
the process of letterpress printing is carried on;
(18) "Bookbinding works," that is to say, any premises in which the
process of bookbinding is carried on;
(19) "Max scutch mills";
(20) "Electrical Stations," that is to say, any premises or that pad of
any premises in which electrical energy is generated or transformed for
the purpose of supply by way of trade or for the lighting of any street,
public place or public building or of any hotel or of any railway, mine or
other industrial undertaking.
PART II
NON-TEXTILE FACTORIES AND WORKSHOPS
(21) --Hat works," that is to say, any premises in which the manufac-
ture of hats or any process incidental to their manufacture is carried on;
(22) --Rope works," that is to say, any premises being a ropery,
ropewalk or rope work in which is carried on the laying or twisting or
other process of preparing or finishing the lines, twines, cords or ropes
and in which machinery moved by steam, water or other mechanical
power is not used for drawing or spinning the fibres of flax, hemp, jute or
tow and which has no internal communication with any buildings or
premises joining or forming part of a textile factory, except such
communication as is necessary for the transmission of power;
(23) "Bakehouses," that is to say, any places in which are baked bread,
biscuits or confectionery from the baking, or selling of which a profit is
derived;
(24) "Lace warehouses," that is to say, any premises, room or place
not included in bleaching and dyeing works as herein-before defined, in
which persons are employed upon any manufacturing process or handi-
craft in relation to lace, subsequent to the making of lace upon a lace
machine moved by steam, water or other mechanical power;
(25) "Shipbuilding yards," that is to say, any premises in which any
ships, boats or vessels used in navigation are made, finished or repaired;
(26) "Quarries," that is to say, any place, not being a mine, in which
persons work in getting slate, stone, coprolites or other minerals;
(27) "Pit-banks," that is to say, any place above ground adjacent to a
shaft of a mine, in which place the employment of women is not regulated
by the Coal Mines Regulation Act 1887, or the Metalliferous Mines
Regulation Act 1872, whether such place does or does not form part of the
mine within the meaning of those Acts.
(28) Dry cleaning, carpet beating and bottle washing works.
B8
<1Open Spaces Act 1906>1
[(29) Laundries carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain, or
carried on as ancillary to another business or incidentally to the purposes
of any public institution.]<s1>s
1. Added by the Factories and Workshop Act 1907 s.1.
<2Open Spaces Act 1906>2
<220. Definitions>2
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,--
The expression --open space" means any land, whether inclosed or not,
on which there are no buildings or of which not more than one-
twentieth part is covered with buildings, and the whole or the
remainder of which is laid out as a garden or is used for purposes of
recreation, or lies waste and unoccupied;
...........................................................................
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.44>1
B9
<1Rating and Valuation (Apportionment) Act 1928>1
<2Rating and Valuation (Apportionment) Act>2
<21928>2
<1This Act has now been repealed but is included here for historical reasons>1
<1and because it may have a relevance to the words--non-industrial building">1
<1contained in the General Rate Act 1967 s.19(2)>1
<2Definition of industrial hereditaments>2
3.--(1) In this Act the expression --industrial hereditament" means a
hereditament (not being a freight-transport hereditament) occupied and
used as a mine or mineral railway or, subject as hereinafter provided, as a
factory or workshop:
Provided that the expression industrial hereditament does not include a
hereditament occupied and used as a factory or workshop if it is primarily
occupied and used for the following purposes or for any combination of
such purposes, that is to say--
<1(a)>1 the purposes of a dwelling-house;
<1(b)>1 the purposes of a retail shop;
<1(c)>1 the purposes of distributive wholesale business;
<1(d)>1 purposes of storage;
<1(e)>1 purposes of a public supply undertaking;
<1(f)>1 any other purposes, whether or not similar to any of the foregoing,
which are not those of a factory or workshop.
(2) for the purposes of this Act--
[(a)t a hereditament shall not be deemed not to be occupied and used
as a factory or workshop by reason only of the fact that the
owner or occupier of the hereditament is the only person
working therein or that no other person working therein is in
his employment; and
1. Added by Local Government Act 1929 s.69.
(b)] any place used by the occupier for the housing or maintenance
of his road vehicles or as stables shall, not withstanding that it is
situate within the close, curtilage or precincts forming a factory
or workshop and used in connection therewith, be deemed not
to form part of the factory or workshop, but save as aforesaid,
the expressions --factory" and --workshop" have respectively
the same meanings as in the Factory and Workshop Acts 1901 to
1920.
(3) Where two or more properties within the same curtilage, or
contiguous to one another, are in the same occupation and, though
treated as two or more hereditaments for the purposes of rating and
valuation by reason of being situate in different parishes or of having been
valued at different times or for any other reason, are used as parts of a
<1Land Drainage Act 1930>1
(4) In this Act the following expressions have the meanings hereby
respectively assigned to them, that is to say:--
--Mine" has the meaning assigned to it by section one hundred and
twenty-two of the Coal Mines Act 1911, or section forty-one of the
Metalliferous Mines Regulation Act 1872, as amended by subsection
(2) of section nineteen of the Mining Industry Act 1920, as the case
may require, but also includes any premises, place, or works,
whether below ground or above ground, primarily occupied and used
for the purpose of draining or otherwise protecting from damage any
mine or group of mines or occupied and used for pumping or raising
brine for the purpose of manufacture or sale from shafts, wells,
springs, or mines:
--Mineral railway" means a railway, tramway, or ropeway used
primarily for the transport of minerals gotten from a mine, or from
two or more mines, to a freight-transport hereditament or between
any two such hereditaments or to any dock not being a freight-
transport hereditament and in the latter case includes also such dock:
--Public supply undertaking" means any undertaking primarily carried
on for the supply of gas, water, electricity or hydraulic power for
public purposes, or to members of the public, or to any one or more
undertakings carried on under any special Act or Order having the
force of an Act:
"Retail shop" includes any premises of a similar character where retail
trade or business (including repair work) is carried on.
<2Land Drainage Act 1930>2
<1Referred to in the General Rate Act 1967 s43 and in the Rating (Caravan>1
<1Sites) Act 1976 s.1(8).>1
<1But the 1930 Act has been repealed and replaced by the Land Drainage Act>1
<11976.>1
B11
<2Public Health Act 1936>2
<2Public Health Act 1936>2
269 ........................................................................................
(8) For the purposes of this section--
(i) the expression --moveable dwelling" includes any tent, any van
or other conveyance whether on wheels or not, and, subject as
hereinafter provided, any shed or similar structure, being a tent,
conveyance or structure which is used either regularly, or at
certain seasons only, or intermittently, for human habitation:
Provided that it does not include a structure to which the
building byelaws of the local authority apply;
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.48(5).>1
<2343>2--(1)..........................................................
"drain" means a drain used for the drainage of one building or of any
buildings or yards appurtenant to buildings within the same
curtilage;
"sewer" does not include a drain as defined in this section but, save as
aforesaid, includes all sewers and drains used for the drainage of
buildings and yards appurtenant to buildings;
<1Referred to in the General Rate Act 1967 s.42.>1
B12
<1Physical Training and Recreation Act 1937>1
<2Physical Training and Recreation Act 1937>2
<2Extension of powers of local authorities>2
4.--(1) A local authority may acquire, lay out, provide with suitable
buildings and otherwise equip, an maintain lands, whether situate within
or without their area, for the purpose of gymnasiums, playing fields,
holiday camps or camping sites, or for the purpose of centres for the use of
clubs, societies or organisations having athletic, social or educational
objects, and may manage those lands and buildings themselves, either
with or without a charge for the use thereof or admission thereto, or may
let them, or any portion thereof, at a nominal or other rent to any person,
club, society or organisation for use for any of the purposes aforesaid.
The authority may also provide and, where necessary, arrange for the
training of, such wardens, teachers and leaders as they may deem
requisite for securing that effective use is made of the facilities for
exercise, recreation and social activities so provided.
Repealed by Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976
sch.2, but see also s.19.
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.44.>1
<1Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944>1
<2Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944>2
<2Provision for registered persons who are seriously disabled of employment,>2
<2or work on their own account, under special conditions.>2
<215.>2--(1) Facilities may be provided as specified in this section for
enabling persons registered as handicapped by disablement who by reason
of the nature or severity of their disablement are unlikely either at any
time or until after the lapse of a prolonged period to be able otherwise to
obtain employment, or to undertake work on their own account (whether
because employment or such work would not be available to them or
because they would be unlikely to be able to compete therein on terms
comparable as respects earnings and security with those enjoyed by
persons engaged therein who are not subject to disablement), to obtain
employment or to undertake such work under special conditions, and for
the training of such persons for the employment or work in question.
(2) The nature of the facilities to be provided under this section shall be
such as the Minister may determine, and the Minister may with the
approval of the Treasury make arrangements for the provision thereof by
any of one or more companies which may be formed for that purpose and
incorporated under the Companies Act 1929, at his instance, being a
company required by its constitution to apply its profits, if any, or other
income in promoting its objects and prohibited thereby from paying any
dividend to its members, or by any association or body, being an
association or body so required and prohibited, which appears to the
Minister to be able and willing to provide the requisite facilities in an
efficient and proper manner.
(3) The objects of any company to be formed for the purposes of this
section may include all such objects as appear to the Minister to be
requisite for enabling it to act effectively for those purposes, and any such
company shall be constituted so as to enable all or any of its operations to
be controlled by the Minister or persons acting on his behalf as may
appear to the Minister to be requisite.
(4) The Minister, or with his authorisation any such company associ-
ation or body as aforesaid providing facilities under this section, may
defray or contribute towards expenses incurred by persons for whom
facilities are provided under this section in travelling to and from the place
where they are employed or work or where training is provided, and may
make payments to or in respect of such persons, up to such amounts as the
Minister may with the approval of the Treasury determine and in such
manner as he may determine.
<1Referred to in the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 s.2(2)(e).>1
B14
<1Education Act 1944>1
<2Education Act 1944>2
<29.>2--(2) Primary and secondary schools maintained by a local education
authority, not being nursery schools or special schools, shall, if established
by a local education authority or by a former authority, be known as
county schools and, if established otherwise than by such an authority, be
known as voluntary schools:
Provided that any school which by virtue of any enactment repealed by
this Act was to be deemed to be, or was to be treated as, a school provided
by a former authority shall, not withstanding that it was not in fact
established by such an authority as aforesaid, be a county school.
<1Referred to in the General Rate Act 1967 s.30.>1
<1Water Act 1945>1
<2Water Act 1945>2
<2Schedule 3>2
"statutory undertakers" means any persons authorised by an enactment
to construct, work or carry on any railway, canal, inland navigation,
dock, harbour, tramway, gas, electricity, water or other public
undertaking;
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.31(3)>1
<1But see Water Act 1973 s.11(6) and 38(1)>1
<1National Assistance Act 1948>1
<2National Assistance Act 1948>2
<2Welfare arraagements for blind, deaf, dumb and crippled persons, etc>2
<229.>2--(1) A local authority shall have power to make arrangements for
promoting the welfare of persons to whom this section applies, that is to
say persons who are blind, deaf or dumb, and other persons who are
substantially and permanently handicapped by illness, injury, or congeni-
tal deformity or such other disabilities as may be prescribed by the
Minister.
(2) In relation to persons ordinarily resident in the area of a local
authority the authority shall, to such extent as the Minister may direct, be
under a duty to exercise their powers under this section.
(3) The arrangements made by a local authority under this section shall
be carried into effect in accordance with a scheme made thereunder.
(4) Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions or subsection
(1) of this section, arrangements may be made thereunder--
(a) for informing persons to whom arrangements under that subsection
relate of the services available for them thereunder;
(<1b>1) for giving such persons instruction in their own homes or elsewhere
in methods of overcoming the effects of their disabilities;
(<1c>1) for providing workshops where such persons may be engaged
(whether under a contract of service or otherwise) in suitable work,
and hostels where persons engaged in the workshoPs, and other
persons to whom arrangements under subsection (1) of this section
relate and for whom work or training is being provided in pur-
suance of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944, may live;
(<1d>1) for providing persons to whom arrangements under subsection (1)
of this section relate with suitable work (whether under a contract
of service or otherwise) in their own homes or elsewhere;
(<1e>1) for helping such persons in disposing of the produce of their work;
(<1f>1) for providing such persons with recreational facilities in their own
homes or elsewhere;
(<1g>1) for compiling and maintaining classified registers of the persons to
whom arrangements under subsection (1) of this section relate.
<1Referred to in the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 s.2(3)>1
B17
<1Lands Tribunal Act 1949>1
<2Lands Tribunal Act 1949>2
<1Arrangement of Sections>1
Section
1. Establishment and jurisdiction of Lands Tribunal.
2. Members, officers and expenses of Lands Tribunal.
3. Procedure, appeals, costs and fees.
4. Power to add to jurisdiction of Lands Tribunal.
5. Repealed.
6. Compensation for loss of office.
7. Savings, etc.
8. Interpretation.
9. Application to Northern Ireland.
10. Short title, commencement, transitional provisions and repeal.
SCHEDULES:
First Schedule.--Procedural Provisions of Acquisition of Land
Act Amended and Applied.
Part I.--Amendments.
Part II.--Provisions Reprinted as Amended.
Second Schedule.--Repeals.
An Act to establish new tribunals to determine in place of official
arbitrators and others certain questions relating to compensation for the
compulsory acquisition of land and other matters, to amend the
Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act 1919, with
respect to the failure to deliver a notice of claim, and for purposes
connected therewith. [14th July, 1949-]
Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
<2Establishment and jurisdiction of Lands Tribunal>2
<21>2.--(1) There shall be set up, to exercise the jurisdiction hereafter
mentioned in this Act, the following tribunals, namely--
<1(a)>1 a tribunal for Scotland, to be called --the Lands Tribunal for
Scotland"; and
<1(b)>1 a tribunal for the remainder of the United Kingdom, to be called
--the Lands Tribunal."
(2) Except in so far as the context otherwise requires, references in this
Act to the Lands Tribunal shall be taken, in relation to Scotland, as
references to the Lands Tribunal for Scotland.
(3) There shall be referred to and determined by the Lands Tribunal--
B18
<1Lands Tribunal Act 1949>1
<1(a)>1 any question which is by any Act (including a local or private
Act) directed, in whatever terms, to be determined by a person
or one or more persons selected from either of the following
panels, that is to say,--
(i) the panel of official arbitrators appointed under the
Acquisition of Land Act; and
(ii) the panel of referees appointed under Part I of the
finance (1909-10) Act, 1910;
or which is so directed to be determined in the absence of
agreement to the contrary;
(<1b>1) any other question of disputed compensation under the Lands
Clauses Acts, where the claim is for the injurious affection of any
land ...........................................................................
(c) any question arising ... .....................................................
<s3>s as to the apportionment mentioned in section one hundred
and sixteen of the Lands Clauses Consolidation Act 1845, of any
rent charge or other matter to which that section applies;
(d) any dispute arising in relation to the determination of the
development values of interests in land by the Central Land
Board or other authority prescribed under section sixty of the
Town and Country Planning Act 1947;
(e) any question on which, but for this provision, an appeal or
reference to the county court would or might be made by virtue
of section ... ..... <s1>s sixty-two or eighty-seven of the Local Govern-
ment Act 1948.
(4) The Lands Tribunal shall also exercise--
<1(a)>1 the jurisdiction conferred on the Authority under section eighty-
four of the Law of Property Act 1925 (which relates to the
discharge and modification of restrictive covenants); and
(<1b>1) any other jurisdiction conferred by any Act (including a local or
private Act), or instrument made under any such Act, on a
person or one or more persons selected as mentioned in para-
graph (a) of the last foregoing subsection ............................ <s2>s
(5) The Lands Tribunal may also act as arbitrator under a reference by
consent, and any agreement entered into before the commencement of
this Act which provides for referring any matter to arbitration by a person
or one or more persons selected as aforesaid shall, subject to any
subsequent agreement, have effect as if it provided for referring the matter
to arbitration by the Lands Tribunal.
(6)-(8) <1Omitted>1
1. Words repealed by General Rate Act 1967 s.117. sch. 14 part I.
2. Words repealed by Land Compensation Act 1961 s.40(3), sch. 5.
3. Words repealed by Compulsory Purchase Act 1965 s.39(4). sch. 8.
<2Members, officers and expenses of Lands Tribunal>2
2.--(1) The Lands Tribunal shall consist of a President and such
number of other members as the Lord Chancellor may determine, to be
appointed by the Lord Chancellor.
(2) The President shall be either a person who has held judicial office
under the Crown (whether in the United Kingdom or not) or a barrister-
B19
<1Lands Tribunal Act 1949>1
at-law of at least seven years' standing, and of the other members of the
Lands Tribunal such number as the Lord Chancellor may determine shall
be barristers-at-law or solicitors of the like standing and the others shall be
persons who have had experience in the valuation of land appointed after
consultation with the president of the Royal Institution of Chartered
Surveyors.
(3) In the case of the temporary absence or inability to act of the
President, the Lord Chancellor may appoint another member of the
Lands Tribunal to act as deputy for the President, and a member so
appointed shall, when so acting, have all the functions of the President.
(4) If a member of the Lands Tribunal becomes, in the opinion of the
Lord Chancellor, unfit to continue in office or incapable of performing his
duties, the Lord Chancellor shall forthwith declare his office to be vacant
and shall notify the fact in such manner as he thinks fit, and thereupon the
office shall become vacant.
(5) Subject to the last foregoing subsection, the appointment of a
member of the Lands Tribunal shall be for such term as may be
determined by the Lord Chancellor, with the approval of the Treasury,
before his appointment, and shall be subject to such conditions as may be
so determined, and a person who ceases to hold office as a member of the
Lands Tribunal shall be eligible for re-appointment thereto.
(6) There may be paid to the members of the Lands Tribunal such
remuneration, and such travelling and subsistence allowances, and to
persons who have been members thereof such superannuation allo-
wances, as the Lord Chancellor may, with the approval of the Treasury,
determine.
(7) The Lord Chancellor may appoint such officers and servants of the
Lands Tribunal as he may, with the approval of the Treasury as to
numbers and remuneration, determine.
(8) The remuneration and allowances of members and superannuation
allowances of past members of the Lands Tribunal, the remuneration of
the officers and servants appointed by the Lord Chancellor, and such
other expenses of the Lands Tribunal as the Treasury may determine,
shall be defrayed out of moneys provided by Parliament.<s4>s
(9) In relation to the Lands Tribunal for Scotland this section shall have
effect with the substitution--
(a) of references to the Lord President of the Court of Session or, in
subsections (5) to (8), to the Secretary of State for references to
the Lord Chancellor;
(b) of a reference to the chairman of the Scottish Branch of the
Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for the reference to t e
President of that institution;
(c) of references to an advocate for references to a barrister-at-law.
4. See Administration of Justice (Pensions) Act 1950 s.13(2) and Pensions (Increase) Act 1971
s.5(1), sch.2.
<2Procedure, appeals, costs and fees>2
<23.>2--<sa>s(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the jurisdiction of the
Lands Tribunal may be exercised by any one or more of its members, and
references in this Act to the Lands Tribunal shall be construed according-
ly.
B20
(2) The member or members who is or are to deal with any case shall
be selected as follows:--
<1(a)>1 the President may select a member or members to deal with a
particular case or class or group of cases; or
<1(b)>1 the President may select for a class or group of cases members
from amongst whom a member or members to deal with any
particular case shall be selected, and the selection from amongst
those members of a member or members to deal with a particular
case shall then be made either by the President or, if he so
directs, by one of those members appointed by the President to
be their chairman.
This subsection shall apply to the selection of a member of the Lands
Tribunal for the purposes of subsection (6) of section one of this Act as if
the case were one to be dealt with by the Lands Tribunal.
(3) Where a case is dealt with by two or more members of the
Tribunal--
<1(a)>1 if the President is one of them he shall preside at the hearing and,
if he is not, one of them shall be nominated to preside at the
hearing by the person selecting them to deal with the case;
<1(b)>1 a decision shall be taken, in the event of a difference between the
members dealing with the case, by the votes of the majority and,
in the event of an equality of votes, the person presiding at the
hearing shall be entitled to a second or casting vote.
(4) A decision of the Lands Tribunal shall be final:
Provided that any person aggrieved by the decision as being erroneous
in point of law may, within such time as may be limited by rules of court,
require the tribunal to state and sign a case for the decision of the court
and, where the decision of the Lands Tribunal is given on a review by way
of appeal of the previous decision of another person, that person if
dissatisfied with the decision of the Lands Tribunal shall be treated for this
purpose as a person aggrieved thereby.
(5) Subject to the following provisions of this section, the Lands
Tribunal may order that the costs of any proceedings before it incurred by
any party shall be paid by any other party and may tax or settle the
amount of any costs to be paid under any such order or direct in what
manner they are to be taxed.
(6) Subject to the provisions of this Act, rules may be made for
regulating proceedings before the Lands Tribunal and, subject to the
approval of the Treasury, the fees chargeable in respect of those
proceedings, and may in particular--
<1(a)>1 make provision--
(i) as to the form in which any decision of the Tribunal is to be
given, and as to the amendment of any such decision in
pursuance of any directions which may be given by the court
dealing with an appeal under this section;
(ii) as to the time within which any proceedings before the
Tribunal are to be instituted;
(iii) as to the evidence which may be required or admitted in any
such proceedings;
B21
<1Lands Tribunal Act 1949>1
<1(b)>1 provide for the Tribunal to [be assisted by]<sb>s assessors when
dealing with cases calling for special knowledge and, subject to
the approval of the Treasury, for making payments to the
assessors as part of the expenses of the Tribunal;
(c) apply in relation to the Tribunal any of the provisions of the
Arbitration Acts 1889 to 1934 <sa1>s
[(6A) It is hereby declared that this section authorises the making of
rules which allow the Tribunal to determine cases without an oral hearing.
(6B) The rules shall require that the determination without an oral
hearing of any disputed claim for compensation which--
<1(a)>1 is payable in respect of a compulsory acquisition of land, or
<1 (b)>1 depends directly or indirectly on the value of any land, shall
require the consent of the person making the claim.
(6C) Where the Tribunal determine a case without an oral hearing,
subsection (3) of this section shall apply subject to such modifications as
may be prescribed by the rules.]<sb>s
(7)<sa2>s.
(8) Where the Lands Tribunal acts as arbitrator, the Arbitration Acts,
1889 to 1934, shall apply only in so far as they are applied by rules made
under this section.
(9) <1Omitted.>1
(10) Rules made under this section shall provide for preserving, so far
as appears to the rule-making authority to be practicable, the effect of
things done before the commencement of this Act in or for the purposes
of the exercise of any jurisdiction transferred by this Act to the Lands
Tribunal, and those rules may exclude the operation of this Act, in whole
or in part, in relation to any proceedings pending at the commencement of
this Act.
(11) Subject to the following subsection--
<1(a)>1 the court referred to in subsection (4) of this section shall be the
Court of Appeal;
<1(b)>1 the rule-making authority for the purposes of this Act shall be
the Lord Chancellor.
(12) <1Relates to Scotland.>1
<sa>s See Tribunal and Inquiries Act 1971 s.18.
<sa1>s See Arbitration Act 1950 as amended.
<sa2>s Repealed by Land Compensation Act 1961 s.40(3). sch. 5.
<sb>s See Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, sch. 33 para. 3.
<2Power to add to jurisdiction of Lands Tribunal>2
<24>2.--(1) His Majesty may by order in Council direct that questions
which are required or authorised by any Act (including a local or private
Act), or instrument made under any such Act, to be determined by any
statutory tribunal shall or may be determined instead by the Lands
Tribunal if it appears to His Majesty--
(a) that the questions are appropriate for the Lands Tribunal as
involving valuation of land=or for other reasons; and
B22
<1Lands Tribunal Act 1949>1
<1(b)>1 that it is desirable to transfer the jurisdiction to determine those
questions from the first-mentioned tribunal to the Lands Tribun-
al either--
(i) to promote uniformity of decision; or
(ii) to use economically the services of those having experi--
ence in the valuation of land or other special
qualifications; or
(iii) to make possible the winding up of statutory tribunal
having little work to do.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall authorise a transfer of the jurisdic-
tion conferred on a statutory tribunal by or under an Act passed after this
Act unless that Act contains a direction to the contrary;
Provided that where the jurisdiction is first conferred on the tribunal by
or under an Act so passed sub-paragraphs (i) and (ii) of paragraph <1(b)>1 of
the foregoing subsection shall not apply.
(3) An Order in Council under this section may contain such sup-
plementary and consequential provisions as appear to His Majesty to be
expedient, and any such provisions may be revoked or varied by a
subsequent Order in Council or, if the Order in Council so provides, by
mles made under this Act.
(4) Without prejudice to the generality of the last foregoing subsection,
the provisions thereby authorised to be contained in an Order in Council
shall include provisions for the following purposes, that is to say--
<1(a)>1 making decisions of the Lands Tribunal in the exercise of the
jun-sdiction transferred enforceable in the same way as those of
the statutory tribunal from which the jurisdiction is transferred;
<1(b)>1 making special provision as to the selection of members to deal
with a case and as to their sitting with assessors;
<1(c)>1 applying with or without modifications to the exercise of that
jurisdiction by the Lands Tribunal, or repealing, any provisions
as to procedure which governed its exercise by the said statutory
tribunal;
<1(d)>1 preserving the effect of things done in or for the purpose of the
exercise of that jurisdiction by the said statutory tribunal.
(5) Where the Lands Tribunal is exercising a jurisdiction transferred to
it by virtue of this section, section three of this Act shall have effect
subject to the provisions of any Order in Council under this section with
respect to that jurisdiction.
(6) Any Order in Council under this section shall be subject to
annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(7) In this section the expression --statutory tribunal" means any
Government department, authority or person entrusted with the judicial
determination as arbitrator or otherwise of questions arising under an Act
of Parliament, except that the expression does not include-
<1(a)>1 any of the ordinary courts of law or a tribunal consisting of one or
more judges of any of those courts; or
<1(b)>1 an arbitrator unless the person to act as arbitrator is designated,
or is to be selected from a class or group of persons designated,
by the Act or instrument requiring or authorising arbitration.
<25>2.--<1Repealed>1 by <1Land Compensation Act 1961 s.40(3), sch. 5>1.
<26>2.--<1Omitted.>1
B23
<1Lands Tribunal Act 1949>1
<2Savings, etc.>2
<27.>2--(1) The transfer of any jurisdiction to the Lands Tribunal by or
under this Act shall not affect the principles on which any question is to be
determined or the persons on whom the determination is binding, or any
provision which requires particular matters to be expressly dealt with or
embodied in the determination, or which relates to evidence ............
(2) The transfer to the Lands Tribunal by subsection (4) of section one
of this Act, or by an Order in Council under section four thereof, of any
jurisdiction conferred on some other tribunal or person by an instrument
made under any Act shall not be taken as affecting the power by virtue of
which that instrument was made, and the provision conferring that power
shall accordingly have effect as from the transfer as if it directed the
jurisdiction to be exercised by the Lands Tribunal as provided by or under
this Act, except in so far as provision to the contrary is thereafter made in
pursuance of the said power.
(3) Nothing in this Act shall affect the operation of any enactment
applying or giving power to apply the Acquisition of Land Act or any
provision thereof in relation to the exercise of a jurisdiction not transfer-
red by or under this Act, except that any enactment applying or giving
power to apply subsection (2) of section five of that Act as aforesaid shall
have the like operation in relation to section five of this Act.
9. Repealed by Land Compensation Act 1961 s.40(3), sch. 5.
<21nterpretation>2
<28>2.--(1) In this Act--
--the Acquisition of Land Act" means the Acquisition of Land (Assess-
ment of Compensation) Act 1919;
--arbitrator", in relation to Scotland, means arbiter;
--barrister-at-law" means a member of the bar whether of England or
Northern Ireland or both.
(2) Except in so far as the context otherwise requires, any reference in
this Act to an enactment shall be construed as referring to that enactment
as amended, extended or applied by any other enactment.
(3) Any power under this Act to make rules shall be exercisable by
statutory instrument, and the Statutory Instruments Act 1946, shall apply
to a statutory instrument containing rules made under this Act by the
Lord President of the Court of Session in like manner as if the rules had
been made by a Minister of the Crown.
<2Application to Northern Ireland>2
<29.>2--(1) This Act shall not affect the law in force in Northern Ireland,
except in relation to the transfer of any jurisdiction to the Lands Tribunal
under section four thereof and in relation to any jurisdiction so transfer-
red.
(2)--(3) <1Omitted.>1
<2Short title, commencement, transitional provisions and repeal>2
<210.>2--(1) This Act may be cited as the Lands Tribunal Act 1949.
(2) Sections one to four of this Act shall come into force on such day as
His Majesty may by Order in Council appoint, and different days may be
appointed for Scotland and for the remainder of the United Kingdom.
B24
<1Arbitration Act 1950>1
(3) References in this Act to the commencement thereof refer, in
relation to any part of the United Kingdom, to the beginning of the day so
appointed for that part, and the following provisions shall have effect as
respects proceedings begun before the commencement of this Act,
namely:--
(a) subsection (2) of section six of the Acquisition of Land Act shall
not apply to any decision of the High Court or of either division
of the Court of Session giving the opinion of that court or
division on a case stated under that section except a decision
given before the date of the passing of this Act, and there shall be
the same right of appeal against any such decision given on or
after that date as against the final decision of an action in that
court or division:
10
(<1b>1) section five of this Act shall have effect with the modifications
necessary to adapt it to proceedings before an official arbitrator
instead of the Lands Tribunal.
(4) <1Omitted.>1
<2First and Second Schedule-->2<1Omitted>1
10. Repealed by the Tribunals & Inquiries Act 1958 s.15, sch. 2, part 1.
<2Arbitration Act 1950>2
<2Arrangement of Sections>2.
PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS AS TO ARBITRATION
<1Effect of Arbitration Agreements, &c.>1
Section
1. Authority of arbitrators and umpires to be irrevocable.
2. Death of party.
3. Bankruptcy.
4. Staying court proceedings where their is submission to arbitration.
5. Reference of interpleader issues to arbitration.
<1Arbitrators and Umpires>1
6. When reference is to a single arbitrator.
7. Power of parties in certain cases to supply vacancy.
8. Umpires.
9. Agreements for reference to three arbitrators.
10. Power of court in certain cases to appoint an arbitrator or umpire.
11. Reference to official referee.
B25
<1Arbitration Act 1950>1
<1Conduct of Proceedings, Witnesses, &c>1
12. Conduct of proceedings, witnesses, &c.
<1Provisions as to Awards>1
13. Time for making award.
14. Interim awards.
15. Specific performance.
16. Awards to be final.
17. Power to correct slips.
<1Costs, Fees and Interest>1
18. Costs.
19. Taxation of arbitrator's or umpire's fees.
20. Interest on awards.
<1Special Cases, Remission and Setting aside of Awards, &c.>1
21. Statement of case.
22. Power to remit award.
23. Removal of arbitrator and setting aside of award.
24. Power of court to give relief where arbitrator is not impartial or the
dispute involves question of fraud.
25. Power of court where arbitrator is removed or authority of arbitrator
is revoked.
<1Enforcement of A ward>1
26. Enforcement of award.
<1Miscellaneous>1
27. Power of court to extend time for commencing arbitration proceed-
ings.
28. Terms as to costs, &c.
29. Extension of s.496 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894.
30. Crown to be bound.
31. Application of Part I to statutory arbitrations.
32. Meaning of --arbitration agreement".
33. Operation of Part I.
34. Extent of Part I.
PART II
ENFORCEMENT OF CERTAIN FOREIGN AWARDS
35. Awards to which Part II applies.
36. Effect of foreign awards.
37. Conditions for enforcement of foreign awards.
38. Evidence.
39. Meaning of "final award".
B26
<1Arbitration Act 1950>1
40. Saving for other rights, &c.
41. Application of Part II to Scotland.
42. Application of Part II to Northern Ireland.
43. Saving for pending proceedings.
PART III
GENERAL
44. Short title, commencement and repeal.
SCHEDULES
first Schedule.--Protocol on Arbitration Clauses signed on behalf
of His Majesty at a Meeting of the Assembly of the League of
Nations held on the twenty-fourth day of September, nineteen
hundred and twenty-three.
Second Schedule.--Convention on the Execution of Foreign
Arbitral Awards signed at Geneva on behalf of His Majesty on
the twenty-sixth day of September, nineteen hundred and
twenty-seven.
<2An Act to consolidate the Arbitration Acts, 1889 to 1934. (28th July, 1950.]>2
Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
PART 1
GENERAL PROVISIONS AS TO ARBITRATION
<1Effect of Arbitration Agreements, Etc.>1
<2Authority of arbitrators and umpires to be irrevocable>2
<21.>2 The authority of an arbitrator or umpire appointed by or by virtue of
an arbitration agreement shall, unless a contrary intention is expressed in
the agreement, be irrevocable except by leave of the [Court of Appeal]<st>s
or a judge thereof.
1. Substituted by the Administration of Justice Act 1970 sch. 3. para 2.
<2Death of party>2
<22.>2--(1) An arbitration agreement shall not be discharged by the death
of any party thereto, either as respects the deceased or any other party,
but shall in such an event be enforceable by or against the personal
representative of the deceased.
(2) The authority of an arbitrator shall not be revoked by the death of
any party by whom he was appointed.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be taken to affect the operation of any
enactment or rule of law by virtue of which any right of action is
extinguished by the death of a person.
B27
<1Arbitration Act 1950>1
<2Bankruptcy>2
<23.>2--(1) Where it is provided by a term in a contract to which a
bankrupt is a party that any differences arising thereout or in connection
therewith shall be referred to arbitration, the said term shall, if the trustee
in bankruptcy adopts the contract, be enforceable by or against him so far
as relates to any such differences.
(2) Where a person who has been adjudged bankrupt had, before the
commencement of the bankruptcy, become a party to an arbitration
agreement, and any matter to which the agreement applies requires to be
determined in connection with or for the purposes of the bankruptcy
proceedings, then, if the case is one to which subsection (1) of this section
does not apply, any other party to the agreement or, with the consent of
the committee of inspection, the trustee in bankruptcy, may apply to the
court having jurisdiction in the bankruptcy proceedings for an order
directing that the matter in question shall be referred to arbitration in
accordance with the agreement, and that court may, if it is of opinion that,
having regard to all the circumstances of the case, the matter ought to be
determined by arbitration, make an order accordingly.
<2Staying court proceedings where there is submission to arbitration.>2
<24.>2--(1) If any party to an arbitration agreement, or any person
claiming through or under him, commences any legal proceedings in any
court against any other party to the agreement, or any person claiming
through or under him, in respect of any matter agreed to be referred, any
party to those legal proceedings may at any time after appearance, and
before delivering any pleadings or taking any other steps in the proceed-
ings, apply to that court to stay the proceedings, and that court 0r a judge
thereof, if satisfied that there is no sufficient reason why the matter should
not be referred in accordance with the agreement, and that the applicant
was, at the time when the proceedings were commenced, and still
remains, ready and willing to do all things necessary to the proper conduct
of the arbitration, may make an order staying the proceedings.
<2Reference of interpleader issues to arbitration>2
<25.>2 Where relief by way of interpleader is granted and it appears to the
High Court that the claims in question are matters to which an arbitration
agreement, to which the claimants are parties, applies, the High Court
may direct the issue between the claimants to be determined in accord-
ance with the agreement.
<1Conduct of Proceedings, Witnesses, &c>1
<2Conduct of proceedings, witnesses, &c>2
<212.>2--(1) Unless a contrary intention is expressed therein, every arbitra-
tion agreement shall, where such a provision is applicable to the refer-
ence, be deemed to contain a provision that the parties to the reference,
and all persons claiming through them respectively, shall, subject to any
legal objection, submit to be examined by the arbitrator or umpire, on
B28
<1Arbitration Act 1950>1
oath or affirmation, in relation to the matters in dispute, and shall, subject
as aforesaid, produce before the arbitrator or umpire all documents within
their possession or power respectively which may be required or called
for, and do all other things which during the proceedings on the reference
the arbitrator or umpire may require.
(2) Unless a contrary intention is expressed therein, every arbitration
agreement shall, where such a provision is applicable to the reference, be
deemed to contain a provision that the witnesses on the reference shall, if
the arbitrator or umpire thinks fit, be examined on oath or affirmation.
(3) An arbitrator or umpire shall, unless a contrary intention is
expressed in the arbitration agreement, have power to administer oaths
to, or take the affirmations of, the parties to and witnesses on a reference
under the agreement.
(4) Any party to a reference under an arbitration agreement may sue
out a writ of subpoena ad testificandum or a writ of subpoena duces
tecum, but no person shall be compelled under any such writ to produce
any document which he could not be compelled to produce on the trial of
an action, and the High Court or a judge thereof may order that a writ of
subpoena ad testificandum or of subpoena duces tecum shall issue to
compel the attendance before an arbitrator or umpire of a witness
wherever he may be within the United Kingdom.
(5) The High Court or a judge thereof may also order that a writ of
habeas corpus ad testificandum shall issue to bring up a prisoner for
examination before an arbitrator or umpire.
(6) The High Court shall have, for the purpose of and in relation to a
reference, the same power of making orders in respect of--
(<1a>1) security for costs;
(<1b>1) discovery of documents and interrogatories;
(<1c>1) the giving of evidence by affidavit;
(<1d>1) examination on oath of any witness before an officer of the High
Court or any other person, and the issue of a commission or
request for the examination of a witness out of the jurisdiction;
(<1e>1) the preservation, interim custody or sale of any goods which are
the subject matter of the reference;
(<1f>1) securing the amount in dispute in the reference;
(<1g>1) the detention, preservation or inspection of any property or thing
which is the subject of the reference or as to which any question
may arise therein, and authorising for any of the purposes
aforesaid any persons to enter upon or into any land or building
in the possession of any party to the reference, or authorising any
samples to be taken or any observation to be made or experiment
to be tried which may be necessary or expedient for the purpose
of obtaining full information or evidence; and
(<1h>1) interim injunctions or the appointment of a receiver;
as it has for the purpose of and in relation to an action or matter in the
High Court:
Provided that nothing in this subsection shall be taken to prejudice any
power which may be vested in an arbitrator or umpire of making orders
with respect to any of the matters aforesaid.
...........................................................................
B29
<1Arbitration Act 1950>1
<2Interim awards>2
<214.>2 Unless a contrary intention is expressed therein, every arbitration
agreement shall, where such a provision is applicable to the reference, be
deemed to contain a provision that the arbitrator or umpire may, if he
thinks fit, make an interim award, and any reference in this Part of this
Act to an award includes a reference to an interim award.
<2Power to correct slips>2
<217.>2 Unless a contrary intention is expressed in the arbitration agree-
ment, the arbitrator or umpire shall have power to correct in an award any
clerical mistake or error arising from any accidental slip or omission.
<218.>2--(3) Any provision in an arbitration agreement to the effect that
the parties or any party thereto shall in any event pay their or his own
costs of the reference or award or any part thereof shall be void, and this
Part of this Act shall, in the case of an arbitration agreement containing
any such provision, have effect as if that provision were not contained
therein:
Provided that nothing in this subsection shall invalidate such a provision
when it is a part of an agreement to submit to arbitration a dispute which
has arisen before the making of that agreement.
(4) If no provision is made by an award with respect to the costs of the
reference, any party to the reference may, within fourteen days of the
publication of the award or such further time as the High Court or a judge
thereof may direct, apply to the arbitrator for an order directing by and to
whom those costs shall be paid, and thereupon the arbitrator shall, after
hearing any party who may desire to be heard, amend his award by adding
thereto such directions as he may think proper with respect to the
payment of the costs of the reference.
(5) Section sixty-nine of the Solicitors Act 1932 (which empowers a
court before which any proceedings is being heard or is pending to charge
property recovered or preserved in the proceeding with the payment of
solicitors' costs) shall apply as if an arbitration were a proceeding in the
High Court, and the High Court may make declarations and orders
accordingly.
<2Interest on awards>2
<220.>2 A sum directed to be paid by an award shall, unless the award
otherwise directs, carry interest as from the date of the award and at the
same rate as a judgment debt.
<224.>2--(2) Where an agreement between any parties provides that
disputes which may arise in the future between them shall be referred to
arbitration, and a dispute which so arises involves the question whether
any such party has been guilty of fraud, the High Court shall, so far as may
be necessary to enable that question to be determined by the High Court,
have power to order that the agreement shall cease to have effect and
power to give leave to revoke the authority of any arbitrator or umpire
appointed by or by virtue of the agreement.
B30
(3) In any case where by virtue of this section the High Court has
power to order that an arbitration agreement shall cease to have effect or
to give leave to revoke the authority of an arbitrator or umpire, the High
Court may refuse to stay any action brought in breach of the agreement.
<1Enforcement of A ward>1
<2Enforcement of award>2
<226.>2 An award on an arbitration agreement may, by leave of the High
Court or a judge thereof, be enforced in the same manner as a judgment
or order to the same effect, and where leave is so given, judgment may be
entered in terms of the award.
<1Miscellaneous>1
<2Power of court to extend time for commencing arbitration proceedings>2
<227.>2 Where the terms of an agreement to refer future disputes to
arbitration provide that any claims to which the agreement applies shall be
barred unless notice to appoint an arbitrator is given or an arbitrator is
appointed or some other step to commence arbitration proceedings is
taken within a time fixed by the agreement, and a dispute arises to which
the agreement applies, the High Court, if it is of opinion that in the
circumstances of the case undue hardship would otherwise be caused, and
notwithstanding that the time so fixed has expired, may, on such terms, if
any, as the justice of the case may require, but without prejudice to the
provisions of any enactment limiting the time for the commencement of
arbitration proceedings, extend the time for such period as it thinks
proper.
<1The above sections are specifically referred to in the Lands Tribunal Rules>1
<11975 rule 38.>1
<1The Law of arbitration has ago been affected by the Arbitration Acts 1975 and>1
<11979.>1
<2Mines and Quarries Act 1954>2
<2Meaning of "mine" and "quarry">2
<2180.>2--(1) In this Act the expression --mine" means an excavation or
system of excavations made for the purpose of, or in connection with, the
getting, wholly or substantially by means involving the employment of
persons below ground, of minerals (whether in their natural state or in
solution or suspension) or products of minerals.
(2) In this Act the expression "quarry" means an excavation or system
of excavations made for the purpose of, or in connection with, the getting
of minerals (whether in their natural state or in solution or suspension)
or products of minerals, being neither a mine nor merely a well or
bore-hole or a well and bore-hole combined.
B31
<1Mines and Quarries Act 1954>1
(3) For the purposes of this Act--
(a) there shall be deemed to form part of a mine so much of the
surface (including buildings, structures and works thereon) sur-
rounding or adjacent to the shafts or outlets of the mine as is
occupied together with the mine for the purpose of, or in
connection with, the working of the mine, the treatment, prepa-
ration for sale, consumption or use, storage or removal from the
mine of the minerals or products thereof gotten from the mine or
the removal from the mine of the refuse thereof; and
(<1b>1) there shall be deemed to form part of a quarry so much of the
surface (including buildings, structures and works thereon) sur-
rounding or adjacent to the quarry as is occupied together with
the quarry for the purpose of, or in connection with, the working
of the quarry, the treatment, preparation for sale, consumption
or use, storage or removal from the quarry of the minerals or
products thereof gotten from the quarry or the removal from the
quarry of the refuse thereof:
Provided that there shall not, for the said purposes, be deemed to form
part of a mine or quarry premises in which a manufacturing process is
carried on otherwise than for the purpose of the working of the mine or
quarry or the preparation for sale of minerals gotten therefrom.
(4) for the purposes of this Act premises for the time being used for
depositing refuse from a single mine or quarry, being premises exclusively
occupied by the owner of that mine or quarry, shall be deemed to form
part of that mine or quarry, and premises for the time being used for
depositing refuse from two or more mines or quarries, being premises
occupied by the owner of one of those mines or quarries (either exclusively
or jointly with the owner of the other or any of the others) shall be
deemed to form part of such one of those mines or quarries as the Minister
may direct.
(5) for the purposes of this Act a railway line serving a single mine or
quarry (n0t being a railway line falling within subsection (3) of this section
or a railway line belonging to a railway company) shall be deemed to form
part of that mine or quarry and a railway line jointly serving two or more
mines or quarries (not being a railway line falling within subsection (3) of
this section or a railway line belonging to a railway company) shall be
deemed to form part of such one of them as the Minister may direct.
(6) for the purposes of this Act a conveyor or aerial ropeway provided
for the removal from a mine or quarry of minerals gotten therefrom or
refuse therefrom shall be deemed to form part of the mine or quarry.
<2Meaning of "owner">2
<2181>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, in this Act the
expression "owner" means, in relati0n to a mine or quarry, the person for
the time being entitled to work it.
(2) Where the working of a quarry is wholly carried out by a contractor
on behalf of the person entitled to work it, the contractor shall, to the
exclusion of that person, be taken for the purposes of this Act to be the
owner of the quarry.
(3) Where two or more persons are entitled to work a quarry indepen-
dently, that one of those persons who is the licensor of the others shall, to
B32
<1Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1958>1
the exclusion of the others, be taken for the purposes of this <2Act>2 to be the
owner of the quarry.
(4) Where the business of a person wh0, by virtue of the foregoing
provisions of this section is, for the purposes of this Act, to be taken to be
owner of a mine or quarry is carried on by a liquidator, receiver or
manager, or by some other person authorised to carry it on by an order of
a court of competent jurisdiction, the liquidator, receiver, manager or
other person shall be taken for the purposes of this Act to be an additional
owner of the mine or quarry.
(5) <1Relates to Scotland.>1
<1Referred to in the General Rate Act 1967 sch. 3. para. 5.>1
<2Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1958>2
<2Provision of sheltered employment by local authorities>2
<23.>2--(1) A local authority [may, with the approval of the Secretary of
State, and to such extent as he may direct in relation to persons ordinarily
resident in the authorities area shall]<s2>s make arrangements for the provi-
sion of facilities for any of the purposes mentioned in subsection (1) of
section fifteen of the principal Act (which relates to the provision for
registered persons who are seriously disabled of employment, or work on
their own account, under special condition, and of training for such
employment ~ of �work); �...............................................<s2>s
(2) The powers and duties of a local authority under subsection (1) of
this section shall be in lieu of any power or duty of the authority to make
arrangements for the same purposes under section twenty-nine of
the National Assistance Act 1948, or under section twenty-eight of the
National Health Service Act 1946, or section twenty-seven of the National
Health Service (Scotland) Act 1947.
(3) ..........................................................1&2
(4) The Schedule to this Act shall have effect for the purpose of
applying or adapting the enactments there mentioned for the purpose of
this section, and for making other provisions supplementary to this
section; and the foregoing subsections shall have effect subject to the
provision made by that Schedule.
(5) For the purpose of this section --local authority" means as respects
England or Wales, the council of a county [other than a metropolitan
county, or of a metropolitan district or London borough or the Common
Council of the City of London]<s2>s and, as respects Scotland, the council of a
county or of a large burgh within the meaning of the Local Government
(Scotland) Act 1947; and any small burgh within the meaning of that Act
shall be deemed to be included in the county in which it is situated.
(6) This section shall come into force on the first day of January,
nineteen hundred and fifty-nine.
1. Repealed by Local Authorities Services Act 1970 s.14(2), sch. 3.
2. Repealed and/or amended by Local Government Act 1972 s.195, sch. 23. s.272. sch. 30.
<1Referred to in the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 s.2(2)(f)>1
B33
<1Housing (Financial Provisions) Act 1958>1
<2Housing (Financial Provisions) Act>2
<21958>2
<2Dwellings qualifying for subsidies>2
<21>2.--(1) Exchequer subsidies shall be payable in accordance with the
provisions of this Act in respect of, and in certain circumstances in respect
of the site of, any new dwelling which is--
(<1a>1) provided by a local authority in exercise of their powers to
provide housing accommodation, or
(<1b>1) provided by a development corporation otherwise than in pur-
suance of authorised arrangements, or
(<1c>1) provided by a development corporation or housing association in
pursuance of authorised arrangements with a local authority;
and which is approved for the purposes of those provisions by the
Minister, and such a dwelling which is so approved is hereafter in this Act
referred to as an --approved dwelling".
<2Contributions for dwellings improved by local authorities>2
<29>2.--(1) With a view to encouraging the improvement of housing
accommodation by local authorities, the Minister may approve proposals
(hereafter in this and the next following section referred to as --improve-
ment proposals") submitted to him by a local authority for--
(<1a>1) the provision of dwellings by the authority by means of the
conversion of houses or other buildings,
(<1b>1) the improvement of dwellings by the authority,
and may, subject to and in accordance with the provisions of the next
following section, make a contribution towards the annual loss likely to be
incurred by a local authority as a result of giving effect to approved
improvement proposals.
<2Contributions for dwellings improved under arrangements with local>2
<2authorities>2
<212>2.--(1) Where arrangements have been made under section one
hundred and twenty-one of the principal Act by a local authority with a
housing association or, by virtue of section one hundred and twenty-five
of that Act, with a development corporation, the Minister shall make to
the local authority a contribution of a sum, payable annually for the
period of twenty financial years beginning with the year in which the
carrying out of the arrangements is completed, equal to three-quarters of
the annual loss determined by the local authority, with the approval of the
Minister, to be likely to be incurred by the corporation or association in
carrying out the arrangements, and the local authority shall pay to the
corporation or association for that period annual grants each of an amount
not less than the said sum:
...........................................................................
B34
<1Mental Health Act 1959>1
<2Power to make improvement grants>2
<230>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, a local
authority may give assistance in respect of--
(<1a>1) the provision of dwellings, by a person other than a local
authority or county council, by means of the conversion of
houses or other buildings,
(<1b>1) the improvement of dwellings by such a person,
by way of making a grant (hereafter in this Part of this Act referred to as
"an improvement grant") in respect of expenses incurred for the purposes
of the execution of works of conversion or improvement (hereafter in this
Part of this Act referred to as --improvement works") if, before the
improvement works are begun, an application in that behalf is made to the
authority by that person (hereafter in this Part of this Act referred to as
"the applicant") and approved by them.
..........................................................................
<2>2<1Referred to in the General Rate Act 1967 sch. 13>1
<2Mental Health Act 1959>2
<2Definition and classification of mentai disorder>2
<24>2.--(1) In this Act --mental disorder" means mental illness, arrested or
incomplete development of mind, psychopathic disorder, and any other
disorder or disability of mind; and --mentally disordered" shall be
construed accordingly.
.......................................................................
<2>2<1The term "mental disorder" is used in the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act>1
<2>2<11978 s.8.>1
B35
<1Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960>1
<2Caravan Sites and Control of>2
<2Development Act 1960>2
<1As amended by the Caravan Sites Act 1968 s.13.>1
<21.>2--(3) In this Part of this Act the expression "occupier" means, in
relation to any land, the person who, by virtue of an estate or interest
therein held by him, is entitled to possession thereof or would be so
entitled but for the rights of any other person under any licence granted in
respect of the land:
Provided that where land amounting to not more than four hundred
square yards in area is let under a tenancy entered into with a view to the
use of the land as a caravan site, the expression --occupier" means in
relation to that land the person who would be entitled to possession of the
land but for the rights of any person under that tenancy.
(4) In this Part of this Act the expression --caravan site" means land on
which a caravan is stationed for the purposes of human habitation and
land which is used in conjunction with land on which a caravan is so
stationed.
<2Interpretation of Part 1>2
<229.>2--(1) In this Part of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires--
--caravan" means any stmcture designed or adapted for human habita-
tion which is capable of being moved from one place to another
(whether by being towed, or by being transported on a motor vehicle
or trailer) and any motor vehicle so designed or adapted, but does not
include--
(<1a>1) any railway rolling stock which is for the time being on rails
forming part of a railway system, or
(<1b>1) any tent;
"caravan site" has the meaning assigned to it by subsection (4) of
section one of this Act;
"occupier" has the meaning assigned to it by subsection (3) of section
one of this Act and "occupied" and --occupation" shall be construed
accordingly.
<1Referred to in Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.6 but see Caravan Sites Act>1
<11968 below.>1
B36
<1Factories Act 1961>1
<2Factories Act 1961>2
<2Interpretation of expression "factory">2
<2175.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the expression
"factory" means any premises in which, or within the close or curtilage or
precincts of which, persons are employed in manual labour in any process
for or incidental to any of the following purposes, namely:--
<1(a)>1 the making of any article or of part of any article; or
(b) the altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, cleaning, or
washing or the breaking up or demolition of any article; or
<1(c)>1 the adapting for sale of any article;
(<1d) the slaughtering of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, asses or>1
mules; or
(e) the confinement of such animals as aforesaid while awaiting
slaughter at other premises, in a case where the place of
confinement is available in connection with those other premises,
is not maintained primarily for agricultural purposes within the
meaning of the Agriculture Act 1947, or, as the case may be, the
Agriculture (Scotland) Act 1948, and does not form part of
premises used for the holding of a market in respect of such
animals;
being premises in which, or within the close or curtilage or precincts of
which, the work is carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain and
to or over which the employer of the persons employed therein has the
right of access or control.
(2) The expression "factory" also includes the following premises in
which persons are employed in manual labour (whether or not they are
factories by virtue of subsection (1) of this section), that is to say:--
<1(a)>1 any yard or dry dock (including the precincts thereof) in which
ships or vessels are constructed, reconstructed, repaired, refit-
ted, finished or broken up;
<1(b)>1 any premises in which the business of sorting any articles is
carried on as a preliminary to the work carried on in any factory
or incidentally to the purposes of any factory;
<1(c)>1 any premises in which the business of washing or filling bottles
or containers or packing articles is carried on incidentally to the
purpose of any factory;
<1(d)>1 any premises in which the business of hooking, plaiting, lapping,
making-up or packing of yarn or cloth is carried on;
<1(e)>1 any laundry carried on as ancillary to another business, or
incidentally to the purposes of any public institution;
(f) except as provided in subsection (10) of this section, any
premises in which the construction, reconstruction or repair of
locomotives, vehicles or other plant for use for transport
purposes is carried on as ancillary to a transport undertaking or
other industrial or commercial undertaking;
(g) any premises in which printing by letterpress, lithography,
photogravure, or other similar process, or bookbinding is car-
ried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain or incidentally to
another business so carried on;
(h) any premises in which the making, adaptation or repair of
B37
<1Factories A ct 1961>1
dresses, scenery or properties is carried on incidentally to the
production, exhibition or presentation by way of trade or for
purposes of gain of cinematograph films or theatrical perform-
ances, not being a stage or dressing-room of a theatre in which
only occasional adaptations or repairs are made;
(<1j>1) any premises in which the business of making or mending nets is
carried on incidentally to the fishing industry;
(<1k>1) any premises in which mechanical power is used in connection
with the making or repair of articles of metal or wood incidental-
ly to any business carried on by way of trade or for purposes of
gain;
(<1l>1) any premises in which the production of cinematograph films is
carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain, so, however,
that the employment at any such premises of theatrical perfor-
mers w1thin the meaning of the Theatrical Employers Registra-
tion Act 1925, and of attendants on such theatrical performers
shall not be deemed to be employment in a factory;
(<1m>1) any premises in which articles are made or prepared incidentally
to the carrying on of building operations or works of engineering
construction, not being premises in which such operations or
works are being carried on;
(n) any premises used for the storage of gas in a gasholder having a
storage capac1ty of not less than five thousand cubic feet.
(3) Any line or siding (not being part of a railway or tramway) which is
used in connection with and for the purposes of a factory, shall be deemed
to be part of the factory; and if any such line or siding is used in
connection with more than one factory belonging to different occup1ers,
the line or siding shall be deemed to be a separate factory.
(4) A part of a factory may, with the approval in writing of the chief
inspector, be taken to be a separate factory and two or more factories
may, with the like approval, be taken to be a single factory.
(5) Any workplace in which, with the permission of or under agreement
with the owner or occupier, two or more persons carry on any work which
would constitute the workplace a factory if the persons working therein
were in the employment of the owner or occupier, shall be deemed to be a
factory for the purpose of this Act, and, in the case of any such workplace
not being a tenement factory or part of a tenement factory, the provisions
of this Act shall apply as if the owner or occupier of the workplace were
the occupier of the factory and the persons working therein were persons
employed in the factory.
(6) Where a place situated within the close, curtilage, or precincts
forming a factory is solely used for some purpose other than the processes
carried on in the factory, that place shall not be deemed to form part of
the factory for the purposes of this Act, but shall, if otherwise it would be
a factory, be deemed to be a separate factory.
(7) Premises shall not be excluded from the definition of a factory by
reason only that they are open air premises.
(8) Where the Minister by regulations so directs as respects all or any
purposes of this Act, different branches or departments of work carried
on in the same factory shall be deemed to be different factories.
(9) Any premises belonging to or in the occupation of the Crown or any
municipal or other public authority shall not be deemed not to be a
B38
<1Factories Act 1961>1
factory, and building operations or works of engineering construction
undertaken by or on behalf of the Crown or any such authority shall not
be excluded from the operation of this Act, by reason only that the work
carried on thereat is not carried on by way of trade or for purposes of gain.
(10) Premises used for the purpose of housing locomotives or vehicles
where only cleaning, washing, running repairs or minor adjustments are
carried out shall not be deemed to be a factory by reason only of
paragraph <1(f)>1 of subsection (2) of this section, unless they are premises
used for the purposes of a railway undertaking where running repairs to
locomotives are carried out.
<2General interpretation>2
<2176.>2--(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the
following expressions have the meanings hereby assigned to them respec-
tively, that is to say:--
"bakehouse" means any place in which bread, biscuits or confectionery
is or are baked by way of trade or for purposes of gain;
...........................................................................
"building operation" means the construction, structural alteration,
repair or maintenance of a building (including re-pointing, re-
decoration and external cleaning of the structure), the demolition of
a building, and the preparation for, and laying the foundation of, an
intended building, but does not include any operation which is a work
of engineering construction within the meaning of this Act;
.........................................................................
"chief inspector" means the chief inspector appointed under this Act,
and includes a deputy chief inspector;
...........................................................................
"class or description", in relation to factories, includes a group of
factories described by reference to locality;
...........................................................................
"cotton cloth factory" means any room, shed or workshop, or part
thereof, in which the weaving of cotton cloth is carried on;
...........................................................................
"machinery" includes any driving-belt;
...........................................................................
"owner"--
(a) as respects England and Wales, means the person for the time
being receiving the rackrent of the premises in connection with
which the word is used, whether on his own account or as
agent or trustee for another person, or who would so receive
the rackrent if the premises were let at a rackrent; and
<1(b)>1 <1Relates to Scotland.>1
...........................................................................
"prescribed" means prescribed by order of the Minister;
B39
<1Factories Act 1961>1
"prime mover" means every engine, motor or other appliance which
provides mechanical energy derived from steam, water, wind, elec-
tricity, the combustion of fuel or other source;
"process" includes the use of any locomotive;
"railway" means any railway used for the purposes of public traffic
whether passenger, goods, or other traffic and includes any works of
the railway company connected with the railway;
"railway company" includes the [British Transport Commission and] <s1>s a
company or person working a railway under lease or otherwise;
"sanitary conveniences" includes urinals, water-closets, earthclosets,
privies, ashpits, and any similar convenience;
"special regulations" means regulations with respect to which the
fourth Schedule to this Act has effect;
"ship", "vessel", and "harbour" have the same meanings as in the
Merchant Shipping Act 1894;
"tenement factory" means any premises where mechanical power from
any prime mover within the close or curtilage of the premises is
distributed for use in manufacturing processes to different parts of
the same premises occupied by different persons in such manner that
those parts constitute in law separate factories;
"tramway" means a tramway authorised by or under any Act of
Parliament and used for the purpose of public traffic;
"transmission machinery" means every shaft, wheel, drum, pulley,
system of fast and loose pulleys, coupling, clutch, driving-belt or
other device by which the motion of a prime mover is transmitted to
or received by any machine or appliance;
..........................................................................
"work of engineering construction" means the construction of any
railway line or siding otherwise than upon an existing railway, and the
construction, structural alteration or repair (including re-pointing
and re-painting) or the demolition of any dock, harbour, inland
navigation, tunnel, bridge, viaduct, waterworks, reservoir, pipe-line,
aqueduct, sewer, sewage works, or gasholder, except where carried
on upon a railway or tramway, and includes such other works as may
be specified by regulations of the Minister;
..........................................................................
(2) for the purposes of this Act, machinery or plant shall be deemed to
have been constructed or reconstructed, and a factory or building to have
been constructed, reconstructed, extended, added to, or converted for use
as a factory, before any date, if the construction, reconstruction, exten-
sion, addition, or conversion was begun before that date.
(3) for the purposes of this Act, a factory shall not be deemed to be a
factory in which mechanical power is used by reason only that mechanical
power is used for the purpose of heating, ventilating or lighting the
workrooms or other parts of the factory.
.......................................................................
(8) This Act shall in its application to London have effect as if for
references to district councils there were substituted, as respects the City
of London references to the common council, and as respects the
B40
<1Housing A ct 1961>1
remainder of the administrative county of London, references to metro-
politan borough councils.
(9) References in this Act to any enactment shall be construed as
references to that enactment as amended by any subsequent enactment,
including this Act.
1. Repealed by Transport Act 1962 s.95(2). sch. 12.
<2184>2.--(1) Nothing in this Act shall affect the definition of the express-
ions --factory" and --workshop" for the purposes of the Rating and
Valuation (Apportionment) Act 1928, but save as aforesaid references in
any enactment to a factory or workshop within the meaning of the factory
and Workshop Acts 1901 to 1929, or any of those Acts, shall be construed
as references to a factory within the meaning of this Act.
........................................................................
<2Housing Act 1961>2
<2Dwellings qualifying for subsidies>2
<21>2.--(1) Exchequer subsidies shall be payable out of money provided by
Parliament in accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act in
respect of, and in certain circumstances in respect of the site of, any new
dwelling which is--
(<1a>1) provided by a local authority in the exercise of their powers to
provide housing accommodation, or
(<1b>1) provided by a development corporation otherwise than in pur-
suance of authorised arrangements made with a local authority,
or
(<1c>1) provided by a development corporation in pursuance of autho-
rised arrangements made with a local authority, or
(<1d>1) provided by a housing association in pursuance of authorised
arrangements made with a local authority or special arrange-
ments made with the Minister,
and which is approved for the purposes of those provisions by the
Minister.
Such a dwelling which is so approved is hereafter in this Part of this Act
referred to as an --approved dwelling".
<2Advances to housing associations providing housing accommodation for>2
<2letting>2
<27>2.--(1) If a housing association registered under the Industrial and
Provident Societies Act 1893, submit to the Minister a scheme under
which they will provide housing accommodation and satisfy the Minister
that under the scheme the housing accommodation so provided will be
kept available for letting, except at such times and in such cases as the
B41
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Minister may approve, the Minister may in accordance with this section
make advances to the housing association.
...........................................................................
(8) In this section references to the provision of housing accommoda-
tion are references to the provision of housing accommodation whether by
building new houses, or by the conversion or improvement of existing
houses or other buildings.
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 sch. 13.>1
<2General Rate Act 1967>2
<2Arrangement of Sections>2
PART I
THE GENERAL RATE
Section
1. Rating areas and rating authorities.
2. The general rate.
3. Making of rate.
4. Publication of rate.
5. Demand note for rate.
6. Amendment of rate.
7. Appeal against rate.
8. Restriction on amount recoverable in certain cases.
9. Refund of overpayments.
10. Certificates and statements as to rate etc.
PART II
PROVISIONS AS TO PRECEPTS
11. Power and duty to make sufficient precepts.
12. Provisions as to precepts by certain authorities.
13. Precepts by other authorities.
14. Precepts--general.
15. General power for securing payment of precepts.
PART III
LIABILITY, VALUATION, RELIEFS, ETC.
<1Liability and assessment to rate>1
16. Liability to be rated in respect of occupation of property.
17. Liability to be rated in respect of certain unoccupied property.
B42
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
17A. Liability to progressive surcharge in respect of unused office, etc.,
property.
17B. Supplemental provisions as to section 17A.
18. General provisions as to liability and assessment to rate.
<1Valuation of hereditaments--general provisions>1
19. Ascertainment of rateable value--general rule.
19A. Time by reference to which valuations to be made.
19B. Adjusted rateable values.
20. Valuation according to tone of list.
21. Hereditaments containing plant and machinery.
22. Repealed.
23. Adjustment of gross value by reference to provision of or payment
for services, etc.
24. Buildings occupied in parts.
25. Hereditaments which are partly occupied.
<1Liability and valuation--special cases>1
26. Agricultural premises.
26A. Fish Farms.
27. Land used as plantation, etc.
28. Advertising stations.
29. Rights of sporting.
30. County and voluntary school premises.
31. Statutory water undertakings.
32. Railway or canal premises.
33. British Gas Corporation.
34. Electricity Boards.
35. Repealed.
36. Repealed.
<1Premises used for public purposes>1
37. Hereditaments occupied by or on behalf of Crown.
38. Contributions in aid of rates in respect of court buildings, police
stations, etc.
<1Miscellaneous exemptions and reliefs>1
39. Relief for places of religious worship.
40. Relief for charitable and other organisations.
41. Exemption for certain property of Trinity House.
42. Exemption of sewers etc.
43. Exemption of property of drainage authorities.
44. Exemption of parks, etc.
45. Repealed.
46. Relief for air-raid protection works.
47. Repealed.
B43
<1General Rate A ct 1967>1
<1Special reliefs in respect of dwellings>1
48. Reduction of rates on dwellings by reference to domestic element of
rate support grants.
49. Repealed.
50. Right to pay rates on dwelling by instalments.
51. Discount in respect of rates on dwelling-house.
52. Repealed.
<1General remissions, reductions and allowances>1
53. Reduction or remission of rate.
54. Uniform discount in respect of rates on all hereditaments.
PART IV
BEARING OF RATES BY PERSONS OTHER THAN OCCUPIER
55. Rating of owners instead of occupiers.
56. Payment or collection of rates by owners by agreement.
57. Provisions supplementary to ss.55 and 56.
58. Deduction of rates from rent by lessees for short terms.
59. Deduction from rent of rates omitted to be paid by owner.
60. Recovery of rates from owners.
61. Recovery of rates from tenants and lodgers.
62. Recovery of rates unpaid by owner.
63. Deduction from rent, etc. of rates by certain tenants of mines.
64. Deduction from rent of rate in respect of land used as plantation,
etc.
65. Deduction from rent in respect of rate for rights of sporting.
66. General provision as to deduction of rates from rent etc.
PART V
VALUATION LISTS
<1Maintenance of, and preparation of new, valuation lists>1
67. The valuation list.
68. New valuation lists.
<1Alterations of current valuation list>1
69. Proposals for alteration of current valuation list.
70. Provision for objections to proposals.
71. Unopposed proposals.
72. Agreed alterations after proposals.
73. Opposed proposals.
74. Proposals objected to by valuation officer.
75. Two or more proposals in respect of same hereditament.
76. Appeals to local valuation courts against objections to proposals.
77. Appeal from decision of local valuation court to Lands Tribunal.
78. Arbitration with respect to proposals.
79. Effect of alterations to valuation list made in pursuance of proposals.
B44
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
80. Alteration of valuation list without proposal.
81. Supplementary provisions as to proceedings.
82. Power for valuation officer to call for returns.
83. Use of returns as evidence.
84. Evidence of valuation lists.
85. Duty of local authorities with respect to alteration of valuation list.
86. Powers of entry of valuation officer.
87. Duty of rating authority to give effect to directions as to alteration of
list.
<1Local valuation courts and panels>1
88. Constitution of local valuation courts and panels.
89. Schemes for purposes of s.88.
90. Disqualification for membership of panels.
91. New schemes for purposes of s.88.
92. Staff, expenses etc., of local valuation panels and courts.
<1Supplementary provisions>1
93. Membership of local authority, etc. not to be disqualification in
certain cases.
94. Use of public rooms.
95. Remuneration and expenses of valuation officers.
PART VI
DISTRESS FOR RATES
96. Enforcement of payment of rates.
97. Application for warrant of distress.
98. Statement of case on application for warrant.
99. Execution of warrant of distress.
100. Costs of obtaining warrant of distress.
101. Charges for levying distress.
102. Imprisonment in default of sufficiency of distress.
103. Inquiry as to means before issue of warrant of commitment.
104. Attendance of default for purpose of inquiry.
105. Abatement of proceedings on payment of rate and costs.
106. Jurisdiction of justices.
107. Application of other Acts.
107A. Security for unpaid rates.
PART VII
MISCELLANEOUS AND GENERAL
108. Inspection of documents.
109. Service of notices, etc.
110. Inquiries.
111. Interest in municipal property not to disqualify.
112. Treatment of certain payments.
113. Power to make rules.
B45
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
114. Rules, regulations and orders--general provisions.
115. Interpretation.
116. Construction of references etc.
117. Repeals and savings.
118. Application to Isles of Scilly.
119. Short title, extent and commencement.
SCHEDULES:
Schedule 1--Rating of Unoccupied Property.
Schedule 2--Repealed.
Schedule 3--Classes of Machinery and Plant deemed to be Part of
Hereditament.
Schedule 4--Valuation of Water Hereditaments of Statutory
Water Undertaking.
Schedule 5--Railway or Canal Premises.
Schedule 6--The British Gas Corporation.
Schedule 7--Electricity Boards.
Schedule 8--Charities Excluded from Mandatory Relief.
Schedule 9--Repealed.
Schedule 10--Payment of Rates on Dwelling by Instalments.
Schedule 11--Repealed.
Schedule 12--Forms of Documents.
Schedule 13--Use of Premises as Private Dwelling.
Schedule 14--Repeals.
An Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to rating and valuation
in England and Wales. [22nd March, 1967]
<1Act excluded by Pensioners and family Income Supplement Payments Act 1972>1
(c. 75). s. 1 (6)
<1Function of Minister of Housing and Locai Government now exercisable by>1
<1Secrctary of State: S.I. 1970/1681>1
<1Words of enactment omitted under authority of Statute Law Revision Act 1948>1
<1(c.62). s.3>1
PART I
THE GENERAL RATE
<2Rating areas and rating authorities>2
<21.>2--(1) Subject to section 118(1) of this Act, the rating areas and the
respective rating authorities therefor for the purposes of this Act shall be
as follows--
<1rating area>1 <1rating>1
<1authority>1
each borough ... ... ... ... ...the borough
council
each urban or rural district ... ... ... ... the district
council
B46
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
the City of London ... ... ... ... ... the Common
Council
the Inner Temple ... ... ... ... ... the Sub-
Treasurer
the Middle Temple ... ... ... ... ... the Under-
Treasurer
(2) Every rating authority shall have power in accordance with this Act
to make and levy rates on the basis of an assessment in respect of the
yearly value of property in their rating area for the purpose of applying
the proceeds thereof to local purposes of a public nature.
(3) No authority or person other than the rating authority shall have
power to make or levy within any rating area any such rates as are
mentioned in subsection (2) of this section for the purpose so mentioned
other than excepted rates.
(4) All powers and duties in relation to the making, levying and
collection of such rates as are mentioned in subsection (2) of this section
for the purpose so mentioned which are not excepted rates and which, but
for this section, would in any rating area fall by virtue of any local Act to
be exercised and performed by any person other than the rating authority
shall be exercised and performed by that authority.
<2The general rate>2
<22>2.--(1) Every rating authority shall from time to time in exercise of
their powers under section 1(2) of this Act make such rates as will be
sufficient to provide for such part of the total estimated expenditure to be
incurred by the authority during the period in respect of which the rate is
made as is not to be met by other means or by means of expected rates,
including in that expenditure any sums payable to any other authority
under precepts issued by that other authority, together with such addition-
al amount as is in the opinion of the rating authority required to cover
expenditure previously incurred, or to meet contingencies, or to defray
any expenditure which may fall to be defrayed before the date on which
the moneys to be received in respect of the next subsequent rate made
under this subsection will become available.
(2) Where a [<s1>sdistrict council] apprehend that a precept will be issued to
the council to meet expenses of the council . . .<s2>sof a parish council or
parish meeting, being expenses which will be required to be defrayed out
of the proceeds of a rate for any rate period, but at the time when the
[<s1>sdistrict council] propose to make a rate the precept has not been issued,
the council may estimate for what amount the precept will be issued and
make the rate by reference to the estimate, and shall in a subsequent rate
period make any necessary adjustment by increasing or decreasing, as the
case may require, the amount to be levied in the . . .<s2>s parish as an
additional item of the rate.
(3) Any rate made by a rating authority under subsection (1) of this
section shall be made and levied as a single consolidated rate for the whole
of their rating area which shall be termed "the general rate" and be in lieu
of any other rates such as are mentioned in section 1(2) of this Act which
that authority have power to make other than excepted rates.
(4) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the general rate for any rating
area--
B47
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(<1a>1) shall be a rate at a uniform amount per pound on the rateable
value of each hereditament in that area, except that where any
amount is, by virtue of any precept or otherwise, chargeable
separately on part only of a rating area, the rating authority shall
levy that amount on that part of the area together with, and as an
additional item of, the general rate;
(<1b>1) shall be made and levied in accordance with the valuation list in
force for the time being, except that, where a new valuation list is
to come into force for that area, a rate for the year, or any part of
the year, beginning with the day on which the new list is to come
into force shall be made, and applied in relation to particular
hereditaments, by reference to that new list.
(5) Subsections (3) and (4)(a) of this section shall not apply to the City
of London and subsections (1), (3) and (4)(a) of this section shall not
apply to the Temples; but, subject to any express provision to the contrary
effect, any other provision of this Act with respect to the general rate
shall--
(<1a>1) in its application to the City of London, apply also in relation to
the poor rate, and
(<1b>1) in its application to the Temples, apply in relation to any rate in
the nature of a general rate levied in the Inner Temple or the
Middle Temple, as the case may be,
as it applies in relation to the general rate.
1. Words substituted by Local Government Act 1972 (c.1970), s.172, sch. 13 Pt. 11 para. 28(2).
2. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.1970), sch. 30.
<2Making of rate>2
<23>2.--(1) Every rate made by a rating authority shall be deemed to be
made on the date on which it is approved by the authority.
(2) for the purposes of the foregoing subsection, a resolution of a rating
authority as respects the making of a rate shall be taken to constitute
approval of the rate if the resolution specifies the amount per pound of
rateable value at which the rate is to be levied, notwithstanding that the
resolution--
(<1a>1) is made without reference to individual hereditaments; or
(<1b>1) does not take account of any privilege in respect of rating
conferred on the occupiers of hereditaments in any particular
part of the rating area, or on the occupiers of any particular
hereditaments; or
(<1c>1) does not take account of any amount leviable in part only of the
rating area together with, and as an additional item of, the rate.
(3) Subject to subsection (5) of this section, every rate shall be made in
respect of a period beginning immediately after the expiration of the last
preceding rate period and ending on such date, to be specified in the rate,
as may be fixed by the rating authority; and, in the case of the last rate
made in respect of any year, the date so fixed shall be the last day of that
year.
(4) Where a rate is made for a period exceeding three months, the
rating authority may declare that the rate shall be paid by instalments at
specified times.
B48
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(5) The rating authority may at any time make a supplementary rate if
they think it necessary so to do having regard to the requirements of their
area or to any precept.
(6) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to the City of London.
<2Dublication of rate>2
<24>2.--(1) Notice of every rate made shall be given by the rating authority
within [the period of twenty-one days beginning with the day on which]<sa>s it
is made, and the rate shall not be valid unless that notice is duly given in
accordance with subsection (2) of this section.
(2) Such notice as aforesaid may be given by such of the following
methods as the rating authority think fit, that is to say, by affixing the
notice at any time within the said period [. . . . .]<sb>s on or near to the doors
of churches and chapels in manner prescribed by section 2 of the Parish
Notices Act 1837, or by affixing the notice within the said period in some
public or conspicuous place or situation in each rating district affected, or
by publishing the notice within the said period in one or more newspapers
circulating in the area of the authority; and different methods of publica-
tion may be used as respects different parts of the area of the authority.
(3) This section shall not apply to the City of London.
<sa>s. Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.44.
<sb>s. Words deleted by Local Government Planning and Land Act 1980 sch. 34 pt. IX.
<2Demand note for rate>2
<25>2.--(1) Information with respect to the following matters shall be
included in the demand note on which the rate is levied, that is to say--
(<1a>1) the situation of the hereditament in respect of which the demand
note is issued and such description thereof reasonably necessary
for purposes of identification as may be prescribed;
(<1b>1) the rateable value and, where it differs from the rateable value,
also the net annual value of the hereditament;
(<1c>1) the amount in the pound at which the rate is charged;
(<1d>1) the period in respect of which the rate is made;
(<1e>1) the amounts in the pound which are being levied for the purposes
respectively of the rating authority and of each authority by
whom a precept has been issued to the rating authority or by
whom the rating authority (where that authority are a [<s3>s district
council]) apprehend that a precept will be so issued;
(<1f>1) the amount, if any, in the pound which is being levied
�(<1g>1) �[......................................................]<sa>s
(2) This section shall not apply to the City of London.
<1Section 5 excluded by Counter-Inflation Act 1973 (c.9). s.16(7)>1
<s3>s. Words substituted by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), s.172. sch. 13 Pt. II para. 28(2).
<sa>s Deleted by Local Government. Planning and Land Act 1980, sch. 33 para. 9 and 34 Pt. IX.
<1But see s.2 of the 1980 Act.>1
<2Amendment of rate>2
<26>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, the rating authority
may at any time make such amendments in a rate (being either the current
B49
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
or the last preceding rate) as appear to them necessary in order to make
the rate conform with the enactments relating thereto, and in particular
may--
<1(a)>1 correct any clerical or arithmetical error in the rate; or
<1(b)>1 correct any erroneous insertions or omissions or any
misdescriptions; or
<1(c)>1 make such additions to or corrections in the rate as appear to the
authority to be necessary by reason of--
(i) the coming into occupation of any hereditament which has
been newly erected or which was unoccupied at the time of
the making of the rate; or
(ii) any change in the occupation of any hereditament; or
(iii) any property previously rated as a single hereditament
becoming liable to be rated in parts.
(2) Where the effect of the amendment would be either--
<1(a)>1 to alter, otherwise than by way of correction of a clerical or
arithmetical error, the value on which a hereditament is rated; or
<1(b)>1 to charge to the rate a hereditament not shown, or not separately
shown, in the valuation list,
the rating authority shall not make any amendment of the rate unless
either the amendment is necessary to bring the rate into conformity with
the valuation list or a proposal for a corresponding alteration to the
valuation list has been made by the valuation officer; and if effect, or full
effect, is ultimately not given to such a proposal, and the amount of the
rate levied in pursuance of the amendment is affected, the difference--
(i) if too much has been paid, shall be repaid or allowed; or
(ii) if too little has been paid, shall be paid and may be
recovered as if it were arrears of the rate.
(3) In the foregoing provisions of this section (other than subsection
(1)(c)(i)) references to a rate shall be construed as references to that rate
as it has been applied in relation to particular hereditaments; and every
amendment made under paragraph <1(a)>1 or <1(b)>1 of subsection <1(1)>1 of this
section shall have effect as if it had been contained in the rate as first
applied in relation to the hereditament in question or, as the case may
require, as first amended in respect of that hereditament under paragraph
(c) of that subsection.
<2Appeal against rate>2
<27.>2--(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, any person who--
(a) is aggrieved by any rate; or
(b) has any material objection to the inclusion or exclusion of any
person in o0r from, or to the amount charged to any person in,
any rate; or
<1(c)>1 is aggrieved by any neglect, act, or thing done or omitted by the
rating authority,
may appeal . . .<s4>s [<s5>sto the Crown Court and such appeal shall be
commenced by giving notice to the appropriate officer of the Crown Court
within twenty-one days of--
B50
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1(a)>1 the date of publication of the rate under section 4 of this Act; or
<1 (b)>1 the act or thing done by the rating authority; or
<1(c)>1 the giving of notice for the purposes of this section to the rating
authority as to the neglect or omission concerned,
whichever is the latest] . . .<s4>s, and notice of any such appeal shall be given
to the rating authority and to any person other than the appellant with
respect to whom the rate may be required to be altered in consequence of
the appeal; and any such person shall, if he so desires, be heard on the
appeal.
(2) No appeal shall lie under this section in respect of any matter in
respect of which relief might have been obtained under Part V of this Act
by means of--
<1(a)>1 a proposal for the amendment of the current valuation list; or
<1 (b)>1 an objection to such a proposal; or
<1(c)>1 an appeal against such an objection.
(3) Any rate made by a rating authority shall be leviable and recover-
able notwithstanding that notice has been given of an appeal against the
rate under this section, except that, if such notice has been given by any
person to the rating authority, then until the appeal has been determined
or abandoned no proceedings shall be commenced or carried on to
recover from that person any sum greater than that at which the last
effective rate was charged in respect of the hereditament to which the
appeal relates.
(4) Where on an appeal under this section against any rate the court
sees just cause to give relief, then--
(a) subject to subsection (5) of this section, the court shall amend the
rate in such manner as the court thinks necessary for giving the
relief, but shall not quash or wholly set aside the rate;
(b) if it appears to the court that, as a result of any such amendment,
any sum paid in consequence of the rate by any person before the
hearing of the appeal ought not to have been paid by or charged
on that person, the court shall order that sum to be repaid to that
person by the rating authority together with all reasonable costs,
charges and expenses occasioned by that person having paid or
been required to pay that sum;
<1(c)>1 if the rate is amended so as to make chargeable any person not
previously charged or t0 increase the charge on any person, the
rate as amended shall be leviable on and recoverable from that
person in like manner as if it had always been in its amended
form.
(5) If, on an appeal under this section against any rate, the court is of
opinion that, for the purpose of giving relief to the appellant, it is
necessary that the rate should be wholly quashed, the court may quash the
rate; but in that case, subject to subsection (6) of this section, all amounts
charged by the rate shall be leviable and recoverable in like manner as if
no appeal had been made and, when paid or recovered, shall be treated as
payments on account of the next effective rate made for the rating area in
question.
(6) Where on an appeal under this section the court orders any rate to
be quashed, the court may order that any sum charged on any person by
B51
<1General Rate A ct 1967>1
that rate, or any part of a sum so charged, shall not be paid; and after the
making of such an order no proceedings shall be commenced or continued
for the purpose of levying or recovering that sum or part; but no person
shall be deemed a trespasser or liable to any action for any warrant, order,
act, or thing granted, made, executed or done by that person for the
purpose of levying or recovering any sum before he had notice in writing
of any order under this subsection providing for that sum not to be paid.
(7) In this section, references to a rate shall be construed as references
to that rate whether as originally made (in whatever form) or as it has
been applied in relation to particular hereditaments.
4. Words repealed by Courts Act 1971 (c.23), sch. 11 Pt 1V.
5. Words substituted by S.l. 1971/1292.
<2Restriction on amount recoverable in certain cases>2
<28.->2-(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, where in the case of any
hereditament--
(a) any value ascribed to it in a new valuation list prepared under
section 68 of this Act exceeds the corresponding value of the
hereditament as last previously determined; and
(b) the hereditament has not been substantially altered since its
value was last previously determined; and
(c) a proposal for the alteration of the list so as to reduce the value
so ascribed to the hereditament is served on the valuation officer
under section 69 of this Act before the end of the period of six
months beginning with the date on which the list comes into
force,
then, until that proposal has been settled, the amount recoverable in
respect of rates levied on the hereditament for the year beginning with the
date aforesaid, or for any subsequent year, shall not (in the case 0f any
such year) exceed the total amount 0f the rates levied on the hereditament
for the last year before that list came into force increased by half the
difference between that amount and the amount which would be recover-
able as aforesaid apart from this subsection.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall not apply unless--
<1(a)>1 the proposal referred to in paragraph <1(c)>1 thereof is served on the
valuation officer by the occupier of the hereditament and no
previous such proposal has been served on the valuation officer
in relation to the same list by any occupier of the hereditament;
or
(b) the said proposal is served on the valuation officer by the owner
of the hereditament, being a person who in pursuance of section
55 or 56 of this Act is rated or has undertaken to pay or collect
the rates in respect of the hereditament, and no previous such
proposal has been served on the valuation officer in relation to
the same list by any such owner of the hereditament.
(3) Where a change in the law determining the relationship between
the net annual value and rateable value of hereditaments of any specified
description, or of hereditaments generally, operates as from the coming
into force of any valuation lists (whether the change arises from the
B52
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
coming into operation, amendment or repeal of any provision or from the
fact that a provision applying to the previous lists or the last rate period
for which they were in force does not apply to the new lists), and so
operates as to increase the rateable values to which the change applies,
subsection (1) of this section shall have effect in relation to a hereditament
of which the rateable value as shlwn in the new list is affected by the
change as if for the reference to the total amount of rates levied on the
hereditament for the last year before the list came into force there were
substituted a reference to the total amount of the rates which would have
been levied thereon for that year if the rateable value for that year had
been related to the actual net annual value for the year in the same way as
it would have been related to the net annual value if the change had had
effect as respects that year.
[(4) The Secretary of State may by order provide--
<1(a)>1 for subsection (1) of this section to have effect as if a reference to
a fraction specified in the order were substituted for the refer-
ence to a half (or to a fraction specified in a previous order): or
(b) for the maximum amount that is recoverable by virtue of that
subsection to be the greater of--
(i) an amount calculated in accordance with the provisions
of that subsection (as modified by any provision made by
virtue of paragraph <1(a)>1 above), and
(ii) an amount equal to a percentage specified in the order of
the amount that would be recoverable apart from that
subsection;
and an order under this subsection may prescribe larger fractions or
percentages in relation to different years, rating areas or classes of
hereditament.
(5) An order under subsection (4) of this section shall be subject to
annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.]<sa>s
<sa>s Added by Local Government. Planning and Land Act 1980 s.35.
<2Refund of overpayments>2
<29.>2--(1) Without prejudice to section 7(4)(b) and 18(4) of this Act, but
subject to subsection (2) of this section, where it is shown to the
satisfaction of a rating authority that any amount paid in respect of rates,
and not recoverable apart from this section, could properly be refunded
on the ground that--
<1(a)>1 the amount of any entry in the valuation list was excessive; or
<1 (b)>1 a rate was levied otherwise than in accordance with the valuation
list; or
(c) any exemption or relief to which a person was entitled was not
allowed; or
(d) the hereditament was unoccupied during any period; or
(e) the person who made a payment in respect of rates was not liable
to make that payment,
the rating authority may refund that amount or a part thereof.
B53
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(2) No amount shall be refunded under subsection (1) of this section--
(a) unless application therefor was made before the end of the sixth
year after that in which the amount was paid; or
(b) if the amount paid was charged on the basis, or in accordance
with the practice, generally prevailing at the time when the
payment was demanded.
(3) Before determining whether a refund should be made under
subsection (1) of this section--
(a) in a case falling within paragraph <1(a)>1 of that subsection; or
(b) in a case falling within paragraph (c) of that subsection where the
exemption relief was one which ought to have appeared in the
valuation list,
the rating authority shall obtain a certificate from the valuation officer as
to the manner in which in his opinion the hereditament in question should
have been treated for the purposes of the valuation list, and the certificate
shall be binding on the authority.
<2Certificates and statements as to rate etc.>2
<210.>2--(1) A certificate signed by a duly authorised officer of a rating
authority--
<1(a)>1 stating that a rate has been made or published by the authority
on a date or dates specified in the certificate; or
<1(b)>1 stating the value at a specified date of a hereditament within the
authority's area, the amount of rates chargeable in respect of the
hereditament, or whether any, and if so what, amount has been
paid in satisfaction of rates due thereon,
shall be evidence of the matters stated in the certificate.
(2) A rating authority shall, on being so requested by a person who is or
was liable in respect of a hereditament in the area of the authority for
rates for any period in the current year or any of the nine years preceding
that year, give him a statement of the rates payable or paid in respect of
the hereditament for any of those years or any other year in respect of
which the person is still liable for arrears at the time of the request.
(3) Where a person satisfies a rating authority that he is or was liable, in
respect of a hereditament in the area of the authority, to indemnify any
0ther person for rates, he shall be entitled to the like statement under
subsection (2) of this section as that other person is entitled to.
PART II
PROVISIONS AS TO PRECEPTS
<2Power and duty to make sufficient precepts>2
<211.>2 Every authority having power to issue a precept to a rating authority
shall from time to time issue such precepts as will be sufficient to provide
for such part of the total estimated expenditure to be incurred by the
authority during the period in respect of which the precept is issued as is to
be met out of moneys raised by rates, together with such additional
amount as is in the opinion of the authority required to cover expenditure
previously incurred, or to meet contingencies, or to defray any expendi-
B54
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
ture which may fall to be defrayed before the date on which the moneys to
be received in respect of the next subsequent precept will become
available.
<1Section II excluded by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.13(6)>1
<2Provisions as to precepts by certain authorities>2
<212>2.--(1) The provisions of this section shall have effect in relation to
any precept issued to rating authorities by any of the following authorities,
namely, a county council, the Greater London Council, and the Receiver
for the Metropolitan Police District.
(2) The precept shall require the rating authority for each rating area
affected to levy, as part, or as an additional item, of the rate, a rate of such
amount in the pound as may be specified in the precept, being (subject to
subsection (10) of this section) the same amount in the case of each rating
area affected, and shall state the date or dates on or before which
payments are required to be made on account of the rate levied in
pursuance of the precept, and the amount of each such payment.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this section, the amount due under the
precept to the precepting authority shall be the amount produced by the
rate of the amount in the pound specified in the precept, and the rating
authority shall make payments in accordance with the requirements of the
precept on account of the amount due under it.
(4) for the purpose of enabling the precepting authorities aforesaid to
issue their precepts in manner required by this section, every rating
authority shall before 1st February in each year transmit to each of those
precepting authorities having power to issue a precept to that rating
authority an estimate of the amount, calculated in the prescribed manner,
which would be produced in the next year by a rate of [<s6a>s new penny] in
the pound levied in the rating area or part thereof, as the case may be, and
the aggregate amount of the payments required by the precept shall not
exceed the sum which a rate of the amount in the pound specified in the
precept would produce on the basis of the estimate for that year.
(5) Where a rating authority fail to transmit an estimate to any
precepting authority in accordance with subsection (4) of this section, the
precepting authority may make the estimate for the purposes of this
section in lieu of the rating authority.
(6) The precept must be issued, or information as to the amount in the
pound of the rate to be levied under it must be given, to each rating
authority affected not less than twenty-one days before the beginning of
the year or half-year, as the case may be, in which the rate is to be levied.
(7) The amount due under the precept shall be ascertained in the
prescribed manner; and--
(<1a>1) if that amount exceeds the aggregate amount of the payments
required by the precept, the balance shall be paid by the rating
authority to the precepting authority;
(<1b>1) if that amount is less than the aggregate amount of the payments
required by the precept, the balance shall be set off against any
amount required by the next precept issued to the rating
authority by the precepting authority.
(8) Where the amount due under the precept, or any part of that
B55
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
amount, is not paid on or before the date specified in the precept for
payment, the precepting authority may, if they think fit, require the rating
authority to pay, in accordance with subsection (9) of this section, interest
on that amount, or that part of the amount, and any interest so payable
shall be paid by the rating authority to the precepting authority in like
manner as if it were due under the precept.
(9) for the purposes of subsection (8) of this section interest shall be
calculated at the rate of six per cent. per annum [<s7>sor such other rate as
may be either prescribed or determined in a prescribed manner] and shall
commence to run from the date of payment specified in the precept,
except that no interest shall be charged--
<1(a)>1 in respect of any day before the expiration of six weeks from the
commencement of the year or half-year, as the case may be, in
respect of which the precept was issued; or
<1(b)>1 in respect of any day on which the aggregate amount of any
payments made under the precept is equal to or exceeds the sum
which bears to the aggregate amount of the instalments required
by the precept the same proportion as the number of days which
have elapsed since the commencement of the said year or
half-year, as the case may be, bears to the total number of days in
that year or half-year.
(10) The foregoing provisions of this section shall have effect with such
adaptations as are necessary by reason of any provision whereby a precept
in respect of particular expenditure is required to be issued in such
manner that--
<1(a)>1 a rate levied in respect of expenditure chargeable on part only of
the precepting authority's area is levied only on that part of that
area; or
<1(b)>1 rates of different amounts are levied on different rating areas.
(11) In the application of subsection (2) of this section to the City of
London, references to the rate shall be construed as references to the poor
rate.
<1Power to exclude s.12(6) given by Counter-Inflation Act 1973 (c.9), s.16(4)>1
6. Words substituted by Decimal Currency Act 1969 (c.19), Sch. 2 para. 28(1)(2).
7. Words inserted by Local Government Act 1974 (c 7), Sch. 7 para. 3.
<2Precepts by other authorities>2
<213.>2--(1) Any authority other than those referred to in section 12(1) of
this Act by whom precepts are issued to any rating authority, or any rating
authority to whom such precepts are issued, may make and submit to the
Minister a scheme for applying to those precepts the provisions of the said
section 12, subject to such modifications as may appear to be necessary
having regard to the basis of apportionment or the incidence of charge
existing immediately before the scheme is proposed to come into force;
and the Minister may, after giving any authorities concerned an opportun-
ity of objecting, by order confirm the scheme either without modifications
or subject to such modifications as he thinks fit:
Provided that, if an objection to any such scheme is made by any of the
authorities concerned and is not withdrawn, the order shall be provisional
only and shall not have effect unless and until confirmed by Parliament.
B56
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(2) A scheme duly made, submitted and confirmed in accordance with
the provisions of the foregoing subsection shall, subject to the provisions
of the confirming order, have effect as if enacted in this Act.
<2Precepts-generai>2
<214>2.--(1) Rules made for the purposes of sections 12 and 13 of this Act
under section 113 thereof--
(<1a>1) subject and without prejudice to subsections (1)(c) and (2) of the
said section 113, shall provide in what manner and to what extent
the cost of the collection of a rate, including any allowances
made under section 51, 54, 55 or 56 of this Act, and losses on
collection, are to be treated as deductions in estimating and
ascertaining the amount produced by the rate; and
(<1b>1) shall make provision with respect to any other matters for which
it appears necessary to make provision in order to carry the said
sections 12 and 13 into effect.
(2) Every precepting authority shall on issuing a precept to a rating
authority supply to the rating authority such information as is reasonably
necessary for the preparation of demand notes in accordance with section
5 of this Act.
<2General power for securing payment of precepts>2
<215>2.--(1) Where in pursuance of a precept issued to a rating authority by
any other authority any amount is payable directly or indirectly by the
rating authority to the precepting authority and, on an application for a
certificate under this section made by the precepting authority after
twenty-one days' notice given to the rating authority, the Minister is
satisfied that the rating authority have refused or through wilful neglect or
wilful default failed to raise that amount by a rate, or that, having raised
the amount by a rate, the rating authority have refused or through wilful
neglect or wilful default failed to pay the amount due under the precept,
the Minister may issue a certificate to that effect and thereupon--
(<1a>1) the precepting authority shall have the like power of applying for
a receiver, and
(<1b>1) a receiver may on such an application be appointed in like
manner, and when appointed shall have the like power,
as if--
(i) the precepting authority were a secured creditor of the
rating authority for the amount due under the precept, with
interest thereon at the rate of six per cent. per annum from
the date when the amount became payable under the
precept; and
(ii) the said amount and interest were due under a security
issued under the Local Loans Act 1875 charging them on the
rates leviable by, and on all other property of, the rating
authority; and
(iii) the conditions under which a receiver may in such a case be
appointed under section 12 of the said Act of 1875 were
fulfilled;
and the said section 12 shall apply accordingly.
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<1General Rate A ct 1967>1
(2) If the Minister so thinks fit an application under subsection (1)(a) of
this section may be made by him instead of by the precepting authority.
(3) The powers conferred by this section shall be in addition to and not
in derogation of any other powers for enforcing compliance with a precept
issued to a rating authority.
<1Section 15 extended by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.13(6)>1
PART III
LIABILITY, VALUATION, RELIEFS, ETC
<1Liability and assessment to rate>1
<2Liability to be rated in respect of occupation of property>2
<216.>2 Subject to the provisions of this Act, every occupier of property of
any of the following descriptions, namely--
<1(a)>1 lands;
<1(b)>1 houses;
<1(c)>1 coal mines;
<1(d)>1 mines of any other description, other than a mine of which the
royalty or dues are for the time being wholly reserved in kind;
<1(e)>1 any right of sporting (that is to say, any right of fowling, of
shooting, of taking or killing game or rabbits, or of fishing) when
severed from the occupation of the land on which the right is
exercisable,
shall be liable to be assessed to rates in respect of the hereditament or
hereditaments comprising that property according to the rateable value or
respective rateable values of that hereditament or those hereditaments
determined in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
<2Liability to be rated in respect of certain unoccupied property>2
<217.--(1) A rating authority may resolve that the provisions of Schedule>2
1 to this Act with respect to the rating of unoccupied property--
<1(a)>1 shall apply, or
<1(b)>1 if they for the time being apply. shall cease to apply,
to their area, and in that case those provisions shall come into operation,
or, as the case may be, cease to be in operation, in that area on such day as
may be specified in the resolution.
(2) The day to be specified in a resolution under subsection (1) of this
section shall be--
<1(a)>1 in the case of a resolution providing that the said provisions shall
apply to the area in question, the first day of a rate period for
that area beginning after the day on which the resolution is
passed, . . .<s8>s;
<1(b)>1 in the case of a resolution providing that the said provisions shall
cease to apply to the area in question, the last day of a rate
period for that area ending after the day on which the resolution
is passed, . . .<s8>s;
(3) As soon as may be after a resolution is passed by a rating authority
under this section, the authority shall cause a copy of the resolution to be
B58
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
published in the London Gazette and in one or more newspapers
circulating in the area of the authority.
(4) A document purporting to be a copy of the minutes of a resolution
passed by a rating authority under this section or under section 20 of the
Local Government Act 1966 and to be certified under the hand of the
clerk of the authority as a true copy of the minutes of the resolution shall
be evidence that the resolution was passed by the authority.
(5) [<s9>sIn the application if this section and the said Schedule 1] to the
City of London the expression "rate" shall mean the poor rate and
cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly.
8. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7). s.15(1), sch. 8.
9. Words substituted by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7). s.15(2).
<2Liabiiity to progressive surcharge in respect of unused office, etc., property>2
[<s10>s<217A>2.<s*>s--(1) If for a continuous period exceeding six months a
commercial building is not used for the purpose for which it was
constructed or has been adapted, its owner shall pay in respect of that
period (the -period of non-use') a surcharge additional to the rates (if any)
payable apart from this section.
(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply where--
(<1a>1) the owner has tried his best to let the building, or
(<1b>1) the condition of the building makes it unfit for use for the
purpose for which it was constructed or has been adapted, and it
cannot be rendered fit at a cost which is reasonable in relation to
the value of that use.
(3) Where the owner is in occupation of the building throughout the
period of non-use, the surcharge shall be levied in the form of rates by
doubling the normal rates for the first twelve months of the period of
non-use, trebling the normal rate for the second twelve months, quadru-
pling the normal rates for the third twelve months, and so on progressively
while the period of non-use lasts.
In this subsection "the normal rates', in relation to any period, means
the rates payable in respect of that period apart from this section (taking
rates as accruing uniformly from day to day); and where the period of
non-use extends through part only of any twelve-month period, the
surcharge shall be calculated by reference to the normal rates for that
part.
(4) Where the owner is not in occupation of the building throughout the
period of non-use--
(<1a>1) the amount of the surcharge shall be the same as it would have
been if the owner had been in occupation of the building
throughout the period of non-use, and
(<1b>1) the surcharge shall be levied in the form of rates of that amount
as if they were payable by the owner in respect of that occupa-
tion.
(5) In determining whether or not the owner has tried his best to let the
building, regard shall be had to the following, as well as other relevant
factors--
(<1a>1) the rent sought, compared with rents of similar properties in the
area,
B59
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(<1b>1) the other covenants and conditions required by the owner to be
contained in any proposed lease,
(<1c>1) whether or not the owner indicated to prospective lessees that he
was prepared to let the building in parts,
(<1d>1) the number and resources of the firms of estate agents retained
for the purpose of letting the building, and
(<1e>1) the nature and extent of advertising of the building by the owner
or those agents.
10. sections 17A, 17B added by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7). s.16.
<s*>s This section has been suspended, with effect from the 1st April, 1981. by the Rating
Surcharge (Suspension) order 1980 No. 2015; see Local Government. Planning and Land
Art 1980 s.41.
<2Supplemental provisions as to section 17A>2
<217B>2.<s*>s--(1) A rating authority may serve a notice on the owner of any
commercial building requiring him to make a written return containing
such particulars as may be reasonably required by the authority for the
purposes of section 17A of this Act; and subsections (3) to (6) of section
82 of this Act shall apply to a notice under this subsection as they apply to
a notice under section 82, as if--
(<1a>1) the reference in section 82(3) to the valuation officer were a
reference to the rating authority, and
(<1b>1) the penalties laid down by section 82(4) and (5) were--
(i) on summary conviction, a fine not exceeding #400; and
(ii) on conviction on indictment, imprisonment for a term not
exceeding two years, or a fine, or both.
(2) References in section 17A of this Act and this section to a
commercial building are references to a hereditament [(not being a
dwelling house, or a hereditament having a floor space not exceeding 240
square feet and used as a lock-up garage) whose net annual value falls to
be ascertained under section 19(2) of this Act;]<sa>s [whose net annual value
falls to be ascertained under section 19(3) of this Act and which consists of
one or more non-industrial buildings, with or without a garden, yard,
court, forecourt, outhouse or other appurtenance belonging thereto, but
without other land (and for this purpose "non-industrial building" and
"appurtenance" have the meanings assigned to them by section 19(6) of
this Act)]<sa>s; and if during a period of non-use a commercial building is
divided into two or more hereditaments, the amount of any surcharge
imposed under section 17A of this Act in respect of any of those
hereditaments shall be the same as if it had been a separate hereditament
from the beginning of the period of non-use.
(3) A surcharge imposed under section 17A of this Act in respect of a
hereditament shall until recovered be a charge on the land comprised in
the hereditament; and for the purposes of the application to such a charge
of section 15 (registration of local land charges) of the Land Charges Act
1925 this Act shall be deemed to be a similar statute to the Acts
mentioned in subsection (1) of that section.
(4) Where a hereditament which is not used for the purpose for which it
was constructed or has been adapted becomes so used on any day and
becomes not so used again on the expiration of a period of less than six
weeks beginning with that day, then for the purpose of ascertaining any
B60
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
period during which the hereditament has been continuously not so used,
it shall be deemed to have remained not so used on that day and during
that period.
(5) A hereditament shall be taken to be used on any day for the
purposes for which it was constructed or has been adapted if, but only if,
not less than four-fifths of it was so used on that day.
(6) Schedule 1 to this Act (except paragraphs 1, 2(c) and (d), 6, 12 and
14) shall apply for the purposes of section 17A of this Act as it applies for
the purposes of section 17 thereof, as if--
<1(a)>1 references to paragraph 1 of that Schedule were references to
section 17A of this Act,
<1(b)>1 references to a relevant hereditament or a relevant period of
vacancy were references to a commercial building and a period of
non-use respectively, and
<1(c)>1 references to three months were references to six months.
(7) In section 17A of this Act and this section "owner' means the
person entitled to possession, and where different person are entitled to
possession of a hereditament during different parts of a period of non-use,
a surcharge in respect of that period shall be apportioned between them
according to the length of each part and levied accordingly.
(8) In the application of section 17(A) of this Act to the City of London,
-rates' means the aggregate of the poor rate and the general rate.
(9) Section 17A of this Act shall not apply to any period before the
passing of the Local Government Act 1974.]
<sa>s The words in italics within the square brackets. are to be substituted for the words within
square brackets not in italics. This substitution is not to take place earlier than the first
revaluation after the one which took place in 1973 (Local Government. Planning and Land
Act 1980 sch. 33 para 10. for commencement see s.47).
<s*>s This section has been suspended, with effect from 1 April, 1981, by the Rating Surcharge
(Suspension) order 1980 No. 2015; see Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980
s.41.
<2General provisions as to liability and assessment to rate>2
<218.>2--(1) The following general provisions shall have effect with respect
to the assessment of persons to, and their liability in respect of, a rate in
respect of any hereditament for any rate period.
(2) A person who is in occupation of the hereditament for part only of
the rate period shall, subject to the provisions 0f this section, be liable to
be charged with such part only of the total amount of the rate as the
number of days during which he is in occupation bears to the total number
of days in that period.
(3) A person who is in occupation of the hereditament for any part of
the rate period may be assessed to the rate in accordance with the
provisions of subsection (2) of this section notwithstanding that he ceased
to be in occupation before the rate was made.
(4) A person who is in occuaption of the hereditament at any time after
the rate is made may be assessed to and shall in the first instance be liable
to pay--
<1(a)>1 if he was in occupation at the beginning of the rate period, the
whole of the amount charged in respect of that hereditament; or
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) if he came into occupation subsequently, a proportion of the
amount aforesaid calculated on the basis that he will remain in
occupation until the end of the rate period,
but shall, if he goes out of occupation before the end of that period, be
entitled to recover from the rating authority any sum paid by him in excess
of the amount properly chargeable against him in accordance with the
provisions of subsection (2) of this section, except in so far as he has
previously recovered that sum from an incoming occupier.
(5) In relation to any rate to which section 177 of the City of London
Sewers Act 1848 (which relates to the rating of empty houses in the City of
London) applies, the foregoing provisions of this section shall have effect
subject to the provisions of the said section 177, and any amount in
respect of any such rate which any person is required by the said section
177 to pay or allow in respect of any period during which a hereditament is
unoccupied shall be allowed to the rating authority in computing any sum
which that person is entitled to recover from the authority in respect of
that hereditament under subsection (4) of this section.
(6) Mere the name of any person liable to be rated as occupier of any
premises is not known to the rating authority, it shall be suff1c1ent to
assess him to the rate by the description of the --occupier" of the premises
(naming them) in respect of which the assessment is made, without further
name or description.
<1Valuation of hereditaments-general provisions>1
<2Ascertainment of rateable value-general rule>2
<219>2.<s*>s--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act and of any
scheme for the time being in force such as is mentioned in section 117(7)
of this Act, the rateable value of a hereditament shall be taken to be the
net annual value of that hereditament ascertained in accordance with
subsections (2) to (4) of this section.
(2) In the case of a hereditament consisting of one or more houses or
other non-industrial buildings, with or without any garden, yard, court,
forecourt, outhouse or other appurtenance belonging thereto, but without
other land, the net annual value of the hereditament shall be ascertained
by deducting from its gross value such amount, or an amount calculated in
such manner, as may for the time being be specified by the Minister by
order in relation to the class of such hereditaments to which the
hereditament in question belongs.
<2Note:>2 <1s.19(2) shall not in any case apply to a hereditament falling within>1
<1s.1(3), Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976; see s.1(4) of that Act.>1
[<s1>s(2A) Where the gross value of a hereditament which is a dwelling-
house falls to be ascertained for the purposes of a new valuation list
coming into force on or after 1st April, 1973, then, subject to subsections
(3) and (3A) of section 83 of this Act, any evidence taken into account or
adduced--
(<1a>1) as to the rents at which other dwelling-houses have been let; or
(<1b>1) as to the relationship between those rents and the gross values of
the hereditaments consisting of those other dwelling-houses as
B62
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
shown in the valuation lists ceasing to be in force on the date of
the coming into force of the new valuation list in question,
shall be regarded as relevant and admissible for the purpose of that
ascertainment, whether those other dwelling-houses are of the same or a
different description, if, at the beginning of the period of three years
ending with the date of the coming into force of the new valuation list in
question, the site of each respectively of those other dwelling-houses was
situated within the area of a local valuation panel constituted in accord-
ance with section 88(2) of this Act which was either the same such area as,
or such an area contiguous at some point with, that in which the site of the
dwelling-house in question was situated; and, without prejudice to any
right under section 69 of this Act to make a proposal for the alteration of
the valuation list so far as it relates to any particular hereditament, the
valuation officer shall not be held to have failed in the proper discharge of
his duties with respect to the preparation and maintenance of the
valuation list by reason of his having assessed a dwelling-house or
dwelling-houses by reference only to such evidence with respect to other
dwelling-houses.]
(3) The net annual value of any other hereditament shall be an amount
equal to the rent at which it is estimated the hereditament might
reasonably be expected to let from year to year if the tenant undertook to
pay all usual tenant's rates and taxes and to bear the cost of the repairs
and insurance and the other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the
hereditament in a state to command that rent.
(4) Where, in the case of any hereditament, either its net annual value
ascertained in accordance with subsection (2) or (3) of this section or, if
different, its rateable value includes a fraction of a pound, that value shall
be increased or reduced, as the case may be, to the nearest complete
pound, or, if the fraction is ten shillings, the fraction shall be disregarded.
(5) No order shall be made under subsection (2) of this section unless a
draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a
resolution of each House of Pariiament.
(6) In this section, the following expressions have the following
meanings respectively, that is to say--
"appurtenance", in relation to a dwelling, or to a school, college or
other educational establishment, includes all land occupied therewith
and used for the purposes thereof;
"gross value", in relation to a hereditament, means the rent at which
the hereditament might reasonably be expected to let from year to
year if the tenant undertook to pay all usual tenant's rates and taxes
and the landlord undertook to bear the cost of the repairs and
insurance and the other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the
hereditament in a state to command that rent;
"house" includes part of a house;
"non-industrial building" means a building, or part of a building, of any
description other than--
<1(a)>1 factories, mills and other premises of a similar character used
wholly or mainly for industrial purposes; or
<1(b)>1 premises forming part, and taken into account in the valuation
for rating purposes, of--
(i) a railway, dock, canal, gas, water or electricity undertaking;
or
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(ii) any public utility undertaking not falling within sub-
paragraph (i) of this paragraph.
<s1>s Section 19(2A) added by General Rate Act 1970 (c.19), s.1(1).
<1Section 19 extended by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.162(4)(a)>1
* NOTE: Section 19, General Rate Act 1967 has been substantially amended by section 29,
Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980; however the amendments do not
take effect until (at the earliest), the first revaluation following the one in 1973. In
consequence section 19 has been reproduced twice in this appendix, the second time
(in italics) being the amended version.
Valuation of hereditaments--general provisions
<1Ascertainment of rateable value--general rule.>1
<119.*--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act and of any>1
<1scheme for the time being in force such as is mentioned in section 117(7) of>1
<1this Act, the rateable value of a hereditament shall be taken to be the net>1
<1annual value of that hereditament ascertained in accordance with subsec->1
<1tions (2) to (4) of this section.>1
<1(2) In the case of a hereditament [which is a dwelling-house, a private>1
<1garage or a private storage premises]<sa>s the net annual value of the>1
<1hereditament shall be ascertained by deducting from its gross value such>1
<1amount, or an amount calculated in such manner, as may for the time being>1
<1be specified by the Minister by order in relation to the class of such>1
<1hereditaments to which the hereditament in question belongs.>1
<1Note: s.19(2) shall not in any case apply to a hereditament falling within>1
<1s. 1(3), Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976; see s.1 (4) of that Act.>1
<1[1(2A) Where the gross value of a hereditament which is a dwelling->1
<1house falls to be ascertained for the purposes of a new valuation list coming>1
<1into force on or after 1st April, 1973, then, subject to subsections (3) and>1
<1(3A) of section 83 of this Act, any evidence taken into account or>1
<1adduced-->1
<1(a) as to the rents at which other dwelling-houses have been let; or>1
<1(b) as to the relationship between those rents and the gross values of>1
<1the hereditaments consisting of those other dwelling-houses as>1
<1shown in the valuation lists ceasing to be inforce on the date of the>1
<1coming into force of the new valuation list in question,>1
<1shall be regarded as relevant and admissible for the purpose of that>1
<1ascertainment, whether those other dwelling-houses are of the same or a>1
<1different description, if, at the beginning of the period of three years ending>1
<1with the date of the coming into force of the new valuation list in question,>1
<1the site of each respectively of those other dwelling-houses was situated>1
<1within the area of a local valuation panel constituted in accordance with>1
<1section 88(2) of this Act which was either the same such area as, or such an>1
<1area contiguous at some point with, that in which the site of the dwelling->1
<1house in question was situated,- and, without prejudice to any right under>1
<1section 69 of this Act to make a proposalfor the alteration of the valuation>1
<1list so far as it relates to any particular hereditament, the valuation officer>1
<1shall not be held to have failed in the proper discharge of his duties with>1
<1respect to the preparation and maintenance of the valuation list>1 by <1reason of>1
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1his having assessed a dwelling-house or dwelling-houses by reference only>1
<1to such evidence with respect to other dwelling-houses.]>1
<1(3) The net annual value of any other hereditament shall be an amount>1
<1equal to the rent at which it is estimated the hereditament might reasonably>1
<1be expected to letfrom year to year if the tenant undertook to pay all usual>1
<1tenant's rates and taxes and to bear the cost of the repairs and insurance and>1
<1the other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the hereditament in a state>1
<1to command that rent.>1
<1(4) Where, in the case of any hereditament, either its net annual value>1
<1ascertained in accordance with subsection (2) or (3) of this section or, if>1
<1different, its rateable value includes a fraction of a pound, that value shall>1
<1be increased or reduced, as the case may be, to the nearest complete pound,>1
<1or, if the fraction is ten shillings, the fraction shall be disregarded.>1
<1(5) No order shall be made under subsection (2) of this section unless a>1
<1draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a>1
<1resolution of each House of Parliament.>1
<1(6) In this section, the following expressions have the following meanings>1
<1respectively, that is to say->1
"<1appurtenance", in relation to a dwelling, or to a school, college or other>1
<1educational establishment, includes all land occupied therewith and>1
<1used for the purposes thereof;>1
"<1gross value", in relation to a hereditament, means the rent at which the>1
<1hereditament might reasonably be expected to let from year to year if>1
<1the tenant undertook to pay all usual tenant's rates and taxes and the>1
<1landlord undertook to bear the cost of the repairs and insurance and>1
<1the other expenses, if any, necessary to maintain the hereditament in a>1
<1state to command that rent;>1
[.................................................................]<sb>s
"<1non-industrial building" means a building, or part of a building, of any>1
<1description other than->1
<1(a) factories, mills and other premises of a similar character used>1
<1wholly or mainly for industrial purposes,- or>1
<1(b) premises forming part, and taken into account in the valuation for>1
<1rating purposes, of->1
<1(i) a railway, dock, canal, gas, water or electricity undertaking,->1
<1or>1
<1(ii) any public utility undertaking not falling within sub->1
<1paragraph (i) of this paragraph.>1
<1["private garage" means a building having a Poor area not exceeding 25>1
<1square metres which is used wholly or mainly for the accommodation>1
<1of a motor vehicle (and for this purpose>1 --<1building" includes part of a>1
<1building);>1
"<1private storage premises" means a hereditament which is used wholly in>1
<1connection with a dwelling-house or dwelling-houses and wholly or>1
<1mainly for the storage of articles of domestic use (including bicycles>1
<1and similar vehicles) belonging to persons residing there.>1
<1(7) For the purposes of this section a hereditament that is not in use shall>1
<1nevertheless be treated as a dwelling-house, a private garage or private>1
<1storage premises if it appears that, when next in use, it will be a>1
<1hereditament of that description.]>1<sc>s
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Section 19 extented by Transport Act 1968 (c. 73), s.162(4)(a)>1
<s*>s<2NOTE>2: <1Section 19 of this Act has been substantially amended by section 29 of the Local>1
<1Government Planning and Land Act 1980: however the amendments do not come into>1
<1force until (at the earliest), the first revaluation following the one in 1973. In>1
<1consequence section 19 has been reproduced twice in this appendix, the second time (in>1
<1italics) being the amended version. (For commencement see section 47(4)(a).)>1
<s1>s<1S. 19(2A) added by General Rate Act 1970 (c.19), s.1(1)>1
<sa>s<1Words substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s. 29.>1
<sb>s<1Words deleted by the Local GOvernment, Planning and Land Act 1980 s. 29 and/or schedule 34>1
<1Pt. IX.>1
<sc>s<1Words added by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 d. 29.>1
<2[Time by reference to which valuations to be made>2
<219.A--(1) Any net annual value to be ascribed to a specified heredita->2
ment under section 19 of this Act in a new valuation list coming into force
on 1st April in any year shall be ascertained by reference to such earlier
time as the Secretary of State may by order specify, but on the
assumptions set out in subsection (2) below.
(2) The assumptions referred to in subsection (1) above are that at the
time specified in the order--
(a) the hereditament was subsisting in the same state as at the time
when the list comes into force;
(b) any relevant factors (as defined in section 20(2) of this Act) were
those subsisting at the time when the list comes into force; and
(c) the locality in which the hereditament is situated was in the same
state, so far as concerns the other premises situated in that
locality and the occupation and use of those premises, the
transport services and other facilities available in the locality,
and other matters affecting the amenities of the locality, as at the
time when the list comes into force.
(3) Where an order under subsection (1) above operates for any year,
any net annual value to be ascribed to an unspecified hereditament in the
new valuation list coming into force on 1st April in that year--
(a) shall be the same value as was ascribed to the hereditament in the
old list, that is, the valuation list in force immediately before the
coming into force of the new valuation list, or
(b) (if no such value was ascribed) shall be the value which would
properly be ascribed to the hereditament if the old list were still
in force and were altered in pursuance of a proposal made on the
date of the new valuation list coming into force.
(4) In this section --specified hereditament" means a hereditament of
such a class as may be specified in the order under subsection (1) above
and "unspecified hereditament" means a hereditament not of such a class.
(5) This section does not apply to a hereditament which is occupied by a
public utility undertaking and of which the value falls to be ascertained on
the profits basis.
(6) An order under this section shall have effect for the purposes of all
lists coming into force on the 1st April to which the order relates.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(7) An order made under this section shall be subject to annulment in
pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.]<sa>s
<sa>s. This section was added by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.30. The
earliest date on which it can come into force is the revaluation following the one in 1973.
<2[Adjusted rateable values>2
<219B>2.--(1) In a case where the Secretary of State so provides by order in
relation to a new valuation list to come into force on 1st April in any year,
the rateable value of a specified hereditament or of an unspecified
hereditament (depending on which the order provides) shall be arrived
at by taking, instead of the net annual value, that value as adjusted by a
method prescribed in the order.
(2) Any method so prescribed shall be such as in the Secretary of State's
opinion will preserve the ratio which he estimates will exist, immediately
before the coming into force of the new valuation list, between the
rateable values of specified hereditaments in England and Wales as a
whole and the rateable values of unspecified hereditaments in England
and Wales as a whole.
(3) Before prescribing a method, the Secretary of State shall consult--
(<1a>1) such associations of local authorities, as appear to him to be
concerned; and
(<1b>1) any local authority, and any other body of persons, with whom
consultation appears to him to be desirable.
(4) In this section "specified hereditament" and --unspecified heredita-
ment" have the same meanings as in section 19A of this Act.
(5) An order made under this section shall be subject to annulment in
pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.]<sa>s
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.30.
<2Valuation according to tone of list>2
<220>2.--(1) For the purposes of any alteration of a valuation list to be
made under Part V of this Act in respect of a hereditament in pursuance
of a proposal, the value or altered value to be ascribed to the heredita-
ment under section 19 of this Act shall not exceed the value which would
have been ascribed thereto in that list if the hereditament had been
subsisting throughout [the relevant year]<sa>s, on the assumptions that at the
time by reference to which that value would have been ascertained--
(<1a>1) the hereditament was in the same state as at the time of valuation
and any relevant factors (as defined by subsection (2) of this
section) were those subsisting at the last-mentioned time; and
(<1b>1) the locality in which the hereditament is situated was in the same
state, so far as concerns the other premises situated in that
locality and the occupation and use of those premises, the
transport services and other facilities available in the locality,
and other matters affecting the amenities of the locality, as at the
time of valuation.
(1A) Subject to subsection (1B) of this section, in subsection (1) of this
section -the relevant year' means the year before that in which the
valuation list came into force.
B67
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(1B) Where an order under section 19A(1) of this Act operates for any
year, then, in relation to a hereditament which is an unspecified heredita-
ment within the meaning of that section, in subsection (1) of this section
'the relevant year' means--
(<1a>1) the year before that in which there came into force the last
valuation list in which the net annual value ascribed to the
hereditament was ascertained in accordance with section 19 of
this Act, or
(<1b>1) (if no net annual value, ascertained in accordance with section 19
of this Act, has been ascribed to the hereditament) the year
before that in which there came into force the last valuation list
in which a net annual value, ascertained in accordance with
section 19 of this Act, would have been ascribed to the heredita-
ment if it had been subsisting on 1st April 1973 ]<sb>s
(2) In this section, the expression --relevant factors" means any of the
following, so far as material to the valuation of a hereditament, namely--
(<1a>1) the mode or category of occupation of the hereditament;
(<1b>1) the quantity of minerals or other substances in or extracted from
the hereditament; or
(<1c>1) in the case of a public house, the volume of trade or business
carried on at the hereditament;
and in paragraph (<1c>1) of this subsection the expression --public house"
means a hereditament which consists of or comprises premises licensed for
the sale of intoxicating liquor for consumption on the premises where the
sale of such liquor is, or is apart from any other trade or business ancillary
or incidental to it, the only trade or business carried on at the heredita-
ment.
(3) References in this section to the time of valuation are references to
the time by reference to which the valuation of a hereditament would have
fallen to be ascertained if this section had not been enacted.
(4) This section does not apply to a hereditament which is occupied by a
public utility undertaking and of which the value falls to be ascertained on
the profits basis.
(5) <1Repealed by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 sch. 34>1
<1Pt. IX>1.
<sa>s. Words substituted by Local Government, Hanning and Land Act 198o s 30.
<sb>s. Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 19s0 s.30.
<2Hereditaments containing plant and machinery>2
<221>2.--(1) For the purpose of the valuation of any hereditament under
section 19 of this Act otherwise than on the profits basis--
(<1a>1) subject to any order under subsection (5) of this section, all such
plant or machinery in or on the hereditament as belongs to any of
the classes set out in the statement for the time being having
effect under subsection (4) of this section shall be deemed to be a
part of the hereditament;
(<1b>1) except as provided in the foregoing paragraph, no account shall
be taken of the value of any plant or machinery in or on the
hereditament.
B68
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(2) The valuation officer shall, on being so required in writing by the
occupier of any hereditament, furnish to him particulars in writing
showing what machinery or plant, or whether any particular machinery or
plant, has been treated in pursuance of subsection (1) of this section as
forming part of the hereditament.
(3) from time to time, at such intervals as the Minister may direct, a
committee consisting of five persons appointed by the Minister shall
transmit to the Minister a statement setting out in detail all the machinery
and plant which at the date of the preparation of the statement appears to
the committee to fall within any of the classes specified in Schedule 3 to
this Act.
(4) The Minister shall cause any statement transmitted to him under
subsection (3) of this section to be published in such manner as he thinks
fit and, after considering the statement and any representations which
may be made to him with respect thereto, may if he thinks fit make an
order, to come into operation on such date as may be specified therein,
confirming that statement with or without modifications; and the state-
ment as confirmed by the order shall as from the said date have effect for
the purposes of this section in substitution for any statement previously so
having effect.
(5) The Minister may by order provide for excluding from the plant and
combinations of plant and machinery which, under the statement for the
time being having effect under subsection (4) of this section, are to be
treated as comprised in Class 4 in Schedule 3 to this Act any item or part
of an item [<s11>swhich falls within any of paragraphs (a) to (c) below, that is
to say,--
(<1a>1) any item or part of an item which is moved or rotated by motive
power as part of a process of manufacture;
(<1b>1) so much of any refractory or other lining forming part of any
plant or machinery as is customarily renewed by reason of
normal use at intervals of such frequency being less than a year as
may be specified in the order;
(<1c>1) any item which is of such a description and in respect of which
such conditions are fulfilled as may be specified in the order and
which is readily capable of being moved from one site and
re-erected in its original state on another without the substantial
demolition of the item or of any surrounding structure].
(6) Any order made under subsection (4) or (5) of this section shall be
subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of
Parliament.
(7) Nothing in subsection (1) to (4) of this section . . .<s12>s shall affect the
law or practice with respect to the valuation of hereditaments on the
profits basis, or be taken to extend the class of property which was under
the law and practice as in force immediately before the commencement of
this Act deemed to be provided by the occupier and to form part of his
capital.
<s11>s. Words substituted by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.18(1).
<s12>s. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 8.
<222>2. <1Repealed>1 by <1Local Government Act 1974 s.18(2) & sch. 8.>1
B69
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Adjustment of gross value by reference to provision of or payment for>2
<2services, etc.>2
<223>2.--(1) The provisions of this section shall have effect for ascertaining
for the purposes of section 19 of this Act the gross value of a hereditament
in cases where it falls to be ascertained by reference to the rent payable in
respect of that or some other hereditament (hereafter in this section
referred to as the --standard hereditament") and either or both of the
following conditions are fulfilled, that is to say--
(<1a>1) the rent of the standard hereditament is partly attributable to the
provision by the landlord of services in relation to that heredita-
ment (including the repair, maintenance or insurance of premises
not forming part of that hereditament); or
(<1b>1) the tenant, in addition to the rent, contributes towards the cost of
any such services.
(2) Where the rent of the standard hereditament is partly attributable to
the provision by the landlord of such services, the sum falling to be
deducted from that rent for the said purpose as being the amount
attributable to the provision of those services shall not include any amount
in respect of--
(<1a>1) any profit made, or which might be expected to be made, by the
landlord in providing those services;
(<1b>1) the cost of repairs to, and maintenance and insurance of,
premises not forming part of that hereditament.
(3) Where the tenant of the standard hereditament, in addition to the
rent--
(<1a>1) makes payments to the landlord in consideration of the landlord
undertaking to provide any such services in relation to that
hereditament; or
(<1b>1) otherwise contributes (directly or indirectly and whether in
pursuance of an undertaking to do so or not) to the cost of
repairing, maintaining or insuring other premises not forming
part of that hereditament but belonging to or occupied by the
landlord, being premises which the landlord has not undertaken
to repair, maintain or insure, as the case may be,
the rent shall for the purpose of ascertaining gross value be treated as
increased by the amount of the payments or other contributions made by
the tenant or, where those amounts vary from time to time, by a sum
which on a proper estimate equals the average annual amount so paid or
contributed.
(4) Nothing in subsection (3) of this section shall be taken to prejudice
any right to make a deduction from the rent of a hereditament, for the
purpose of ascertaining gross value, in respect of services provided by the
landlord or other matters.
(5) Any reference in the foregoing provisions of this section to
premises includes a reference to any plant or machinery which by virtue of
section 21 of this Act is treated as part of those premises for rating
purposes or would be so treated if those premises were a rateable
hereditament.
<1Section 23 extended by Income and Corporation Taxes Act, 1970 (c.10),>1
<1s.531.>1
B70
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Buildings occupied in parts>2
24. Where a building which was constructed or has been adapted--
<1(a)>1 for the purposes of a single dwelling; or
<1(b)>1 as to part thereof for such purposes and as to the remainder
thereof for any purpose other than that of a dwelling,
is occupied in parts, the valuation officer, in preparing a new valuation list
or in altering a current valuation list, may, if he thinks fit, having regard to
all the circumstances of the case, including the extent, if any, to which the
parts separately occupied have been severed by structural alterations,
treat the building or any portion thereof as a single hereditament, and a
building or portion of a building so treated as a single hereditament shall,
for the purposes of rating, be deemed to be a single hereditament in the
occupation of the person who receives the rents payable in respect of the
parts.
<2Hereditaments which are partly occupied>2
<225.>2--(1) If it appears to the rating authority that part of a hereditament
included in the valuation list is unoccupied but will remain so for a short
time only, the authority may request the valuation officer to apportion the
rateable value of the hereditament between the occupied and unoccupied
parts; and if the apportionment made by the valuation officer is agreed by
the authority and the occupier, then as from--
<1(a)>1 the date upon which the hereditament became partly occupied;
or
<1(b)>1 the commencement of the rate period in which the request was
made,
whichever is the later, until any of the unoccupied part is reoccupied or a
further apportionment of the value of the hereditament takes effect under
this subsection, the value apportioned to the occupied part shall be
treated for rating purposes as if it were the value ascribed to the
hereditament in the valuation list.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall not apply in relation to any heredita-
ment in the case of which, under section 55 or 56 of this Act, the owner is
rated or has undertaken to pay the rates instead of the occupier, but shall
apply in relation to a hereditament in the case of which, under the said
section 56, the owner has undertaken to collect on behalf of the rating
authority the rates due from the occupier.
<1Liability and valuation--special cases>1
<2Agricultural premises>2
<226.>2--(1) No agricultural land or agricultural buildings shall be liable to
be rated or be included in any valuation list or in any rate.
(2) The gross value for the purposes of section 19(2) of this Act of a
house occupied in connection with agricultural land and used as the
dwelling of a person who--
<1(a)>1 is primarily engaged in carrying on or directing agricultural
operations on that land; or
<1(b)>1 is employed in agricultural operations on that land in the service
of the occupier thereof and is entitled, whether as tenant or
otherwise, so to use the house only while so employed,
B71
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
shall, so long as the house is so occupied and used, be estimated by
reference to the rent at which the house might reasonably be expected to
let from year to year if it could not be occupied and used otherwise than as
aforesaid.
(3) In this section the expression --agricultural land"--
(<1a>1) means any land used as arable meadow or pasture ground only,
land used for a plantation or a wood or for the growth of saleable
underwood, land exceeding [0- 10 hectare]<s1>s used for the purposes
of poultry farming, cottage gardens exceeding [0-10 hectare]<s1>s
market gardens, nursery grounds, orchards or allotments, includ-
ing allotment gardens within the meaning of the Allotments Act
1922, but does not include land occupied together with a house as
a park, gardens (other than as aforesaid), pleasure grounds, or
land kept or preserved mainly or exclusively for purposes of
sport or recreation, or land used as a racecourse; and for the
purposes of this paragraph the expression "cottage garden"
means a garden attached to a house occupied as a dwelling by a
person of the labouring classes; and
(<1b>1) includes land occupied with, and used solely in connection with
the use of, such a building as is mentioned in subsection (4)(<1b>1) of
this section.
(4) In this section, the expression --agricultural buildings"--
(<1a>1) means buildings (other than dwellings) occupied together with
agricultural land or being or forming part of a market garden,
and in either case used solely in connection with agricultural
operations thereon; and
(<1b>1) includes a building which is used solely in connection with
agricultural operations carried on on agricultural land and which
is occupied either--
(i) by the occupiers of all that land; or
(ii) by individuals who are appointed by the said occupiers for
the time being to manage the use of the building and of
whom each is an occupier of some of the land or a member
of the board of directors or other governing body of such
an occupier who is a body corporate,
where the number of occupiers of all the said land does not exceed
twenty-four (two or more persons occupying jointly being counted as one,
but as a separate person from any of them who are occupying any of the
land severally).
<11>1 Amended by Rating Enactments (Agricultural Land and Agricultural Buiidings) (Amend-
ments) Regulations 1978 S.1. 1978 No. 318.
<1S.26(3)(4) amended by Rating Act 1971 (c39), ss. 1-4.>1
<2[Fish farms>2
<226A>2.--(1) Neither of the following--
(<1a>1) land;
(<1b>1) buildings (other than dwellings),
shall be liable to rates or to be included in any valuation list or in any rate
if used solely for or in connection with fish farming.
(2) The gross value for the purposes of section 19(2) of this Act of a
house occupied in connection with land or buildings used solely for or in
connection with fish farming and used as the dwelling of a person who-
B72
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Buildings occupied in parts>2
24. Where a building which was constructed or has been adapted--
<1(a)>1 for the purposes of a single dwelling; or
<1(b)>1 as to part thereof for such purposes and as to the remainder
thereof for any purpose other than that of a dwelling,
is occupied in parts, the valuation officer, in preparing a new valuation list
or in altering a current valuation list, may, if he thinks fit, having regard to
all the circumstances of the case, including the extent, if any, to which the
parts separately occupied have been severed by structural alterations,
treat the building or any portion thereof as a single hereditament, and a
building or portion of a building so treated as a single hereditament shall,
for the purposes of rating, be deemed to be a single hereditament in the
occupation of the person who receives the rents payable in respect of the
parts.
<2Hereditaments which are partly occupied>2
<225.>2--(1) If it appears to the rating authority that part of a 4ereditament
included in the valuation list is unoccupied but will remain so for a short
time only, the authority may request the valuation officer to apportion the
rateable value of the hereditament between the occupied and unoccupied
parts; and if the apportionment made by the valuation officer is agreed by
the authority and the occupier, then as from--
<1(a)>1 the date upon which the hereditament became partly occupied;
or
<1(b)>1 the commencement of the rate period in which the request was
made,
whichever is the later, until any of the unoccupied part is reoccupied or a
further apportionment of the value of the hereditament takes effect under
this subsection, the value apportioned to the occupied part shall be
treated for rating purposes as if it were the value ascribed to the
hereditament in the valuation list.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall not apply in relation to any heredita-
ment in the case of which, under section 55 or 56 of this Act, the owner is
rated or has undertaken to pay the rates instead of the occupier, but shall
apply in relation to a hereditament in the case of which, under the said
section 56, the owner has undertaken to collect on behalf of the rating
authority the rates due from the occupier.
<1Liability and valuation--special cases>1
<2Agricultural premises>2
<226.>2--(1) No agricultural land or agricultural buildings shall be liable to
be rated or be included in any valuation list or in any rate.
(2) The gross value for the purposes of section 19(2) of this Act of a
house occupied in connection with agricultural land and used as the
dwelling of a person who--
<1(a)>1 is primarily engaged in carrying on or directing agricultural
operations on that land; or
<1(b)>1 is employed in agricultural operations on that land in the service
of the occupier thereof and is entitled, whether as tenant or
otherwise, so to use the house only while so employed,
B71
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(<1a>1) is primarily engaged in carrying on or directing fish farming
operations on that land or in those buildings; or
(<1b>1) is employed in fish farming operations on that land or in those
buildings in the service of the occupier thereof and is entitled,
whether as tenant or otherwise, so to use the house only while so
employed,
shall, so long as the house is so occupied and used, be estimated by
reference to the rent at which the house might reasonably be expected to
let from year to year if it could not be occupied and used otherwise than as
mentioned in this subsection or in section 26(2) of this Act.
(3) In determining for the purposes of this section whether land or a
building used for or in connection with fish farming is solely so used no
account shall be taken of any time during which it is used in any other
way, if that time does not amount to a substantial part of the time during
which the land or building is used for or in connection with fish farming.
(4) In this section--
"building" includes a separate part of a building; and
"fish farming" means the breeding or rearing of fish or the cultivation
of shell fish (including crustaceans and molluscs of any description)
for the purpose of producing food for human consumption 0r for
transfer to other waters but does not include the breeding, rearing
or cultivation of any fish or shellfish--
(<1a>1) which are purely ornamental, or
(<1b>1) which are bred, reared 0r cultivated for exhibition.]<sa>s
<sa>s Section 26A was added by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act, 1980 s.31 and will
have effect for any rate period beginning on or after 1 April. 1981.
<2Land used as plantation, etc.>2
<227>2.--(1) Where any land, not being agricultural land, and not being
subject to any right of common, is used for a plantation or a wood or for
the growth of saleable underwood, the rateable value of the land shall be
estimated in accordance with subsections (2) to (4) of this section.
(2) If the land is used only for a plantation or a wood, the rateable
value shall be estimated as if the land, instead of being a plantation or a
wood, were let and occupied in its natural and unimproved state.
(3) If the land is used for the growth of saleable underwood, the
rateable value shall be estimated as if the land were let for that purpose.
(4) If the land is used both for a plantation or a wood and for the
growth of saleable underwood, the rateable value shall be estimated
either as if the land were used only for a plantation or a wood, or as if the
land were used only for the growth of the saleable underwood growing
thereon, as the valuation officer may determine.
<2Advertising stations>2
<228>2.--(1) Subject to subsection (6) of this section, where the right to use
any land (including any structure or sign erected or to be erected 0n the
land, and including also any wall or other part of a building) for the
purpose of exhibiting advertisements is let out or reserved to any person
other than the occupier of the land, or, where the land is not occupied for
any other purpose, to any person other than the owner of the land, then,
subject to subsection (2) of this section, that right shall be deemed for
B73
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
rating purposes to be a separate hereditament in the occupation of the
person for the time being entitled to the right, and shall be included in the
valuation list accordingly; and for the purposes of section 19(3) of this
Act--
<1(a)>1 in valuing that separate hereditament for rating purposes, the
rent at which it might be expected to be let shall be estimated on
the footing that the rent would include a proper amount in
respect of any structure or sign for the time being available for
use, for the purpose of exhibiting advertisments, by the occupier
of the separate hereditament, notwithstanding that the structure
or sign was provided by him or was provided after the said right
was let out or reserved;
<1(b)>1 in valuing the land for rating purposes, no account shall be taken
of any value or, as the case may be, increased value arising from
the use of the land for the purpose of exhibiting advertisements
in accordance with the said right.
(2) The separate hereditament aforesaid shall be treated as coming into
existence at the earliest time at which either--
<1(a)>1 any structure or sign is erected, after the right constituting the
hereditament has been let out or reserved, for enabling the right
to be exercised; or
<1(b)>1 any advertisement is exhibited in pursuance of the right,
and not before; and for the purposes of section 79(2) of this Act--
(i) the hereditament shall be treated as a newly erected or newly
constructed hereditament coming into occupation at the said
earliest time; and
(ii) the erection, dismantling or alteration, after that time, of any
structure or sign for enabling the right to be exercised shall, in
relation to the hereditament, be treated as the making of
structural alterations.
(3) Where any land is used temporarily or permanently for, or for the
erection of any structure used for, the exhibition of advertisements but is
not otherwise occupied, and subsection (1) of this section does not apply,
the person permitting that land to be so used or, if that person cannot be
ascertained, the owner of that land shall be deemed to be in beneficial
occupation of the land so used and be rateable in respect thereof
according to the value of that use of the land.
(4) Mere any hereditament rateable in respect of its occupation for
other purposes is used temporarily or permanently for, or for the erection
thereon or attachement thereto of any structure used for, the exhibition of
advertisements, and subsection (1) of this section does not apply, any
estimate of the gross or rateable value of that hereditament for the
purposes of section 19 of this Act shall be so made as to include the
increased value from that use of the land.
(5) In this section, the expression "structure" includes a hoarding,
frame, post or wall.
(6) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to any right to use for
the purpose of exhibiting advertisements any land forming part of railway
or canal premises within the meaning of section 32 of this Act.
B74
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Rights of sporting>2
<229>2.--(1) Where, in the case of a right of sporting exercisable on land
which is not agricultural land, the right is severed from the occupation of
the land and is not let, and the owner of the right receives rent for the
land, the right shall not be separately valued or rated but the rateable
value of the land shall be estimated as if the right were not served.
(2) Where any right of sporting, when severed from the occupation of
the land on which it is exercisable, is let, either the owner or the lessee of
the right, according as the rating authority determine, may be rated as the
occupier thereof.
(3) Subject to subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the owner of any
right of sporting which is severed from the occupation of the land on
which the right is exercisable may be rated as the occupier thereof.
(4) For the purposes of this section, the person who, if the right of
sporting is not let, is entitled to exercise the right, or who, if the right is
let, is entitled to receive the rent therefrom, shall be deemed to be the
owner of the right.
(5) In this section, the expression --right of sporting" has the meaning
assigned by section 16(e) of this Act.
<2County and voluntary school premises>2
<230>2.--(1) For the purpose of the application of section 19[. . .]<sa>s of this
Act to county and voluntary schools, the Minister and the Secretary of
State for Education and Science (hereafter in this section together
referred to as "the Ministers") may make regulations providing that the
[gross value]<sb>s <1[rateable value]>1<sb>s of such schools of any prescribed class shall
be ascertained in accordance with provisions of the regulations--
(<1a>1) requiring the Secretary of State t0 certify the amount estimated
by him, by reference to such factors as appear to him to be
relevant, to be the average cost of providing a place for one pupil
in a school of that class completed not less than one year before
the coming into force of the valuation lists to which the regula-
tions apply;
(<1b>1) providing for the determination for any school of that class of an
amount equal to the product of--
(i) a standard [gross value]<sb>s <1[rateable value]>1<sb>s for each such
place, being a prescribed percentage of the amount certi-
fied under paragraph (a) of this subsection; and
(ii) the number of places determined in accordance with the
regulations to be available for pupils in that school; and
(<1c>1) providing for taking as the [gross value]<sb>s <1[rateable value]>1<sb>s for any
such school the amount arrived at under paragraph (<1b>1) of this
subsection as adjusted in the prescribed manner by reference to
the age, lay-out and construction of the buildings, the facilities
and amenities provided at the school, and such other factors of
any description as may be prescribed.
(2) The Ministers may by regulations provide that land of any pre-
scribed description forming part of, or occupied with, a county or
voluntary school shall in such cases as may be prescribed be treated for
rating purposes as a separate hereditament and not as forming part of the
school or its appurtenances.
(3) Before making any regulations under this section the Ministers shall
B75
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
consult with such associations of local authorities as appear to them to be
concerned and with any local authority with whom consultation appears to
them to be desirable.
(4) In this section --county school" and "voluntary school" have the
same meanings respectively as in the Education Act 1944, and "pre-
scribed" means prescribed by regulations under this section.
<sa>s Repealed by Local Government. Planning and Land Act 1980 sch. 34 Pt. IX
<sb>s The words in italics in square brackets, are to be substituted for the words in square brackets
not in italics, but not until, at the earliest. the revaluation which follows the one in 1973.
(Local Government. Hanning and Land Act 1980 sch. 33 para. 10. for commencement see
s.47).
<2Statutory water undertakings>2
<231.>2--(1)<sa>s The rateable values of the hereditaments in any rating district
which are occupied for the purposes of a statutory water undertaking
otherwise than as dwellings (hereafter in this section and in Schedule 4 to
this Act referred to as --water hereditaments" of the undertaking) shall be
ascertained in accordance with the provisions of the said Schedule 4.
(2) In the year following that in which new valuation lists first come
into force after the commencement of this Act, the Minister shall, in
consultation with such associations of local authorities as appear to him to
be concerned, with any local authority with whom consultation appears to
him to be desirable, and with any association of statutory water undertak-
ers, cause investigations to be made into the effect of the operation of,
and of the enactments re-enacted by, this section and said Schedule 4; and
the Minister shall cause to be laid before Parliament a report on the
investigations made under this subsection and their result.
(3) In this section and the said Schedule 4, the expression "statutory
water undertakers"<sb>s has the same meaning as in the provisions of the
Water Act 1945<sc>s other than Part II thereof, and references to statutory
water undertakings shall be construed accordingly.
<1Power to amend s.31 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.19(4)>1
<sa>s Section 31(l) ceases to have effect from 1 April, 1975 so far as it requires the rateable values
of water hereditaments to be ascertained; Rating (Water hereditaments) order 1975 S.l. 1975
No. 540.
<sb>s Definition now contained in s.38(1) and 11(6) Water Act 1973.
<sc>s Amended by Water Act 1973.
<2Railway or canal premises>2
<232.>2--(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, the provisions of this
section shall have effect with respect t0 premises (hereafter in this section
and in Schedule 5 to this Act referred to as "railway or canal premises")
which are occupied wholly or partly for non-rateable purposes of any of
the following Boards (hereafter in this section and the said Schedule 5
referred to as a "transport Board"), namely, the British Railways Board,
the London Transport Board<sa>s and the British Waterways Board.
(2) There shall not be treated for the purposes of this section as railway
or canal premises any premises of any of the following descriptions,
namely--
(a) premises occupied as a dwelling, hotel or place of public
refreshment;
(b) subject and without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 8 of
B76
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Schedule 5 to this Act, office premises occupied by a transport
Board which are not situated on operational land of that Board;
(<1c>1) premises so let out as to be capable of separate assessment.
(3) No railway or canal premises which are or form part of premises
occupied wholly for non-rateable purposes shall be liable to be rated or be
included in any valuation list or in any rate.
(4) In the case of a hereditament consisting of railway or canal premises
occupied partly for non-rateable purposes and partly for other purposes of
any of the following descriptions, that is to say--
(<1a>1) purposes of any parts of the undertaking of a transport Board
which are--
(i) concerned with the carriage of goods or passengers by road
transport or sea transport or with harbours; or
(ii) subsidiary or incidental to any such part of an undertaking so
concerned;
(<1b>1) purposes of the supply of electricity to an Electricity Board
within the meaning of section 34 of this Act, including the
generation of electricity so supplied,
[<s13>s(<1c>1) purposes of the exercise by a Transport Board of any powers
conferred by section 48 or subsections (1) to (7) of section 50 of
the Transport Act 1968]
there shall be ascribed to the hereditament under section 19 of this Act
such net annual value as may be just having regard to the extent to which
it is occupied for those other purposes; and if under any scheme for the
time being in force such as is mentioned in section 117(7) of this Act any
deduction falls to be made from the net annual value of the hereditament
in arriving at its rateable value, that deduction shall be calculated with
regard only to those other purposes.
<sb>s(5) In each year, each of the transport Boards shall make for the
benefit of rating authorities in England and Wales, in leiu of the rates
which would, apart from the provisions of subsections (3) and (4) of this
section, be payable in respect of railway or canal premises, a payment of
an amount determined in accordance with the provisions of Part I of
Schedule 5 to this Act.
(6) In this section, the expression --non-rateable purposes" means,
subject to subsection (7) of this section, any of the following purposes of a
transport Board, that is to say--
(<1a>1) all purposes of the parts of the Board's undertaking which are
concerned with the carriage of goods or passengers by rail or
inland waterway or the provision of facilities for traffic by inland
waterway;
(<1b>1) all purposes of any parts of the Board's undertaking which, not
being such parts as are mentioned in subsection (4)(a) of this
section, are subsidiary or incidental to any such part of the
undertaking as is mentioned in paragraph (<1a>1) of this subsection.
(7) for the purposes of this section-
(<1a>1) services performed by a transport Board in connection with the
collection and delivery of parcels, goods or merchandise con-
veyed or to be conveyed by rail or inland waterway shall be
B77
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
deemed to be performed in carrying on a part of the Board's
undertaking concerned with the carriage of goods by rail or
inland waterway and not in carrying on a part of the Board's
undertaking concerned with road transport;
(<1b>1) where railway or canal premises are occupied mainly for non-
rateable purposes and partly for the purposes of the central
direction and control of the affairs of a transport Board, the
last-mentioned purposes shall be deemed to be non-rateable
purposes;
(<1c>1) where railway or canal premises are occupied by a transport
Board partly for non-rateable purposes and party for the purpose
of the use of those premises by a transport Board for exhibiting
advertisements thereon, the last-mentioned purpose shall be
deemed to be a non-rateable purpose.
(8) In this section, the following expressions have the following mean-
ings respectively, that is to say--
"harbour"means any harbour, whether natural or artificial, and any
port, haven, estuary, tidal or other river or inland waterway
naviagated by sea-going ships, and any dock, includ1ng any p1er,
jetty or other place at which ships can ship or unship goods 0r
passengers;
"inland waterway" includes any such waterway, whether natural or
artificial;
"office premises" means any hereditament used wholly or mainly as
an office or for office purposes;
"office purposes" includes the purposes of administration, clerical
work and handling money; and "clerical work" includes writing,
book-keeping, sorting papers, filing, typing, duplicating, punching
cards or tapes, machine calculating, drawing and the editorial
preparation of matter for publication;
"operational land", in relation to any body, means land which is used
for the purpose of the carrying on of the body's undertaking, not
being land which, in respect of its nature and situation, is compara-
ble rather with land in general than with land which is used for the
purpose of the carrying on of statut0ry undertakings within the
meaning of [<s14>sthe Town and County Planning Act 1971];
"road transport" includes transport by light railway or tramway, if
the light railway or tramway is laid wholly or mainly along a public
highway and is used wholly or mainly for the carriage of passen-
gers.
(9) There shall have effect for the purposes of this section and Part I of
Schedule 5 to this Act the supplementary provisions contained in Part II
of that Schedule.
13. Section 32(4)(<1c>1) added by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.162(5).
14. Words substituted by Town and Country Hanning Act 1971 (c.78). sch. 23 Pt. 11.
<1Section 32 amended by Transport (London) Act 1969 (c.35), sch. 3 para. 1(1)(2)>1.
<2Power to amend s.32 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.19(4).>2
<1Section 32(6)(7) excluded by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.162(3)>1.
<sa>s replaced by the London Transport Executive.
<sb>s nut see The Transport Boards (Distribution of Payments for Rating Authorities) order 1977
No. 481 which provides a new method of apportionment.
B78
<1General Rate A ct 1967>1
<2British Gas Corporation>2
[<s15>s<233>2.--(1) Subject to subsection (2) and without prejudice to subsec-
tions (3) and (5) of this section, no premises occupied by the British Gas
Corporation (hereafter referred to as --the Corporation") shall be liable to
be rated or to be included in any valuation list or in any rate.
15. Section 33 substituted by Gas Act 1972 (c.60), s.34(2). sch. 5 Pt. I para. 1.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall not apply--
(<1a>1) to premises used as dwelling; or
(<1b>1) to premises occupied by the Corporation wholly or mainly for the
purposes of an undertaking for the supply of water; or
(<1c>1) to premises occupied and used by the Corporation wholly or
mainly for the manufacture of plant or gas fittings; or
(<1d>1) to a shop, room or other place occupied and used by the
Corporation wholly or mainly for the sale, display or demonstra-
tion of apparatus or accessories for use by consumers of gas (any
use for the receipt of payments for gas consumed being
disregarded); or
(<1e>1) subject and without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 12
of Schedule 6 to this Act, to office premises occupied by the
Corporation and not situated on operational land of theirs.
(3) for the purposes of the making and levying of a rate for any rating
area for any rate period, if in the penultimate year the Corporation--
(<1a>1) supplied gas to consumers in that area; or
(<1b>1) manufactured gas in that area; or
(<1c>1) produced gas in that area by the application to gas purchased by
them of any process not consisting only of purification, or of
blending with other gases, or of both purification and such
blending,
the Corporation shall be treated as occupying in that area during that rate
period a hereditament of a rateable value calculated in accordance with
the provisions of [an order under section 19 of and paragraph 3 of
Schedule 3 to the Local Government Act 1974].<sa>s
(4) The hereditament which the Corporation are to be treated as
occupying in a rating area by virtue of subsection (3) of this section shall
be taken not to be situated in any part of that area in which there are
leviable, as an additional item of the rate, expenses which are not leviable
in the area taken as a whole.
(5) If the Secretary of State is of opinion that payments by way of rates
should be made by the corporation by virtue of this subsection by
reference to any premises occupied and used by them for the reception or
liquefaction of gas or the evaporation of gas in a liquid state, being in any
case gas purchased by the Corporation, he may, subject to paragraph 13
of Schedule 6 t0 this Act, make an order designating the premises for the
purposes of this subsection and providing for the determination, by such
method as may be specified by the order, of a value for the premises for
those purposes; and where such an order is in force, [the Corporation
shall]<sb1>s be treated for rating purposes as occupying within the rating area
in which the premises designated by the order are situated (and whether
or not the Corporation occupy or are treated as occupying any other
B79
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
hereditament in that area) a hereditament of a rateable value equal to the
value determined as aforesaid;<sb>s
<sb>s<1(b)>1 �...........................................................
<sb2>s .................................................................
(6) Subject to paragraph 13 of Schedule 6 to this Act, the Secretary of
State may by order provide that, in such of the provisions of this section,
the said Schedule 6, or any other enactment relating to rating as may be
specified in the order, any reference to the manufacture of gas shall
include a reference to such dealings with gas as may be specified by the
order.
(7) There shall have effect for the purposes of this section and can
order under section 19 of, and paragraph 3 of Schedule 3 to the Local
Government Act 1974] the supplementary provisions contained in Part II
of <sc>s[any such order] and for the purposes of this section and that "[any such
order]--
<1(a)>1 the expression --gas" includes gas in a liquid state, and, without
prejudice to the provisions of any order under subsection (6) of
this section, the following operations--
(i) the liquefaction of gas, and
(ii) the evaporation of gas in a liquid state,
shall not of themselves be taken to constitute the manufacture of
gas or the application of a process to gas;
(b) the expression "penultimate year", in relation to a rate period or
to a year, means the last but one year before that rate period or
year;
<1(c)>1 the expressions --office premises" and --operational land" have
the meanings respectively assigned by section 32(8) of this Act.]t5
<sa>s Substituted by Gas Hereditaments (Rateable Value) order 1976 S.1. 1976 No.490.
<sb>s Repealed by S.1. 1976 No.490.
" Substituted by Natural Gas Terminals (Rateable Values) order 1976 S.1. 1976 No.391.
" Repealed by S.1. 1976 No.490
<sc>s Amended by S.1. 1976 No.490.
<2Electricity Boards>2
<234.>2--(1) Subject to subsection (2) and without prejudice to subsection (3)
of this section, no premises which are, or form part of, premises occupied
by an Electricity Board shall be liable to be rated or be included in any
valuation list or in any rate.
(2) The foregoing subsection shall not apply--
<1(a)>1 to premises used as a dwelling; or
<1(b)>1 to a shop, room or other place occupied and used by an
Electricity Board wholly or mainly for the sale, display or
demonstration of apparatus or accessories for use by consumers
of electricity (any use for the receipt of payments for electricity
consumed being disregarded); or
<1(c)>1 subject and without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 15
of Schedule 7 to this Act, to office premises occupied by an
Electricity Board which are not situated on operational land of
that Board.
B80
(3) For the purposes of the making and levying of any rate-
(<1a>1) the Generating Board shall be treated as occupying in each rating
area, and
(<1b>1) each Area Board shall be treated as occupying in each rating area
which is wholly or partly within the area of that Board,
a hereditament 0f a rateable value calculated in accordance with the
provisions of Part I of Schedule 7 to this Act.
(4) The hereditament which an Electricity Board are to be be treated as
occupying in a rating area by virtue of subsection (3) of this section shall
be taken not to be situated in any part of that area in which there are
leviable, as an additional item of the rate, expenses which are not leviable
in the area taken as a whole.
(5) There shall have effect for the purposes of this section and Part I of
Schedule 7 to this Act the supplementary provisions contained in Part II
of that Schedule; and in this section and the said Schedule 7--
(<1a>1) the expression "Area Board" means a Board constituted under
the Electricity Act 1947;
(<1b>1) the expression "Electricity Board" means an Area Board or the
Generating Board and, in subsections (1) and (2) of this section,
includes the South of Scotland Electricity Board;
(<1c>1) the expression "the Generating Board" means the Central
Electricity Generating Board;
(<1d>1) the expressions "office premises" and "operational land" have
the meanings respectively assigned by section 32(8) of this Act.
Power to amend c.34 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.19(4).
<235.>2 <1Repealed by Local Government Act 1974 s.42 & sch. 8. but see s.19>1
<1of that Act and also General Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977 s.1 & 4>1.
<236.>2 <1Repealed by General Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977s. 1(4) and sch.>1
<1Premises used for public purposes>1
<2Hereditaments occupied by or on behalf of Crown>2
<237>2.--(1) Where any hereditament is occupied by or on behalf of the
Crown for public purposes--
(<1a>1) no gross value shall be determined or entered in the valuation list
in respect of the hereditament; and
(<1b>1) if any contribution is made by the Crown in aid of rates in respect
of the hereditament, there shall be entered in the valuation list as
representing its rateable value the value upon which that con-
tribution is computed; and, subject to subsection (2) of this
section, the value so entered, or the amount of the contribution,
as the case may be, shall be taken into account for the purpose of
ascertaining totals or the proceeds of any rate, but the entry shall
not affect any question as to contributions to be made by the
Crown in respect of rates.
(2) Where such a contribution as aforesaid is made for the year
B81
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
beginning with the date of the coming into force of a new valuation list for
the rating area in which the hereditament is situated (in this subsection
referred to as "the first year of the new list")-
(<1a>1) if the contribution is subsequently revised before the end of the
year next following the first year of the new list, the amount to be
taken into account for the purpose of ascertaining the proceeds
of any rate for the first year of the new list shall be the amount of
the contribution as revised, notwithstanding that the revision is
made after the end of the last-mentioned year;
(<1b>1) if, in the case of a contribution in respect of a hereditament
which was occupied by or on behalf of the Crown for public
purposes at the time when the new valuation list came into force,
the contribution as originally made, 0r as subsequently revised as
mentioned in paragraph (a) of this subsection, is computed on a
value which differs from the value shown in the list when it came
into force, then, subject to paragraphs (<1c>1) and (<1d>1) of this
subsection, the value on which the contribution is so computed
shall, for the purpose of ascertaining totals, be deemed to have
been shown in the list, as representing the rateable value of the
hereditament, as from the time when the list came into force,
instead of the value actually shown in the list at that time;
(<1c>1) if, in a case falling within paragraph (<1b>1) of this subsection, the
difference between the values mentioned in that paragraph is
wholly attributable to a structural alteration or other event which
has taken place since the time when the new list came into force,
that paragraph shall not apply;
(<1d>1) if, by reason of one or more structural alterations or other events
which have taken place since the new list came into force, the
contribution as originally made, or as subsequently revised, is
computed on two or more different values, then--
(i) any of those values which is referable to a period subse-
quent to such an alteration or event shall be disregarded
for the purpose of ascertaining totals for the first year of
the new list; and
(ii) the value referable to the period before the alteration or
event (or the earliest of them, if more than one) shall for
that purpose be deemed to have been shown in the new
list, as representing the rateable value of the heredita-
ment, as from the time when the list came into force,
instead of the value actually shown in the list at that time,
but nothing in paragraph (<1c>1) or (<1d>1) of this subsection shall affect the
ascertainment of totals for any year subsequent to the first year of the new
list.
<2Contributions in aid of rates in respect of court buildings, police stations,>2
<2etc.>2
<238>2.--(1) Any authority to whom this section applies may make con-
tributions in aid of rates in respect of any hereditament provided and
maintained by the authority for purposes connected with the administra-
tion of justice, police purposes or other Crown purposes, not being a
hereditament in respect of which rates are payable, and any expenses
B82
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
incurred under this section in relation to any hereditament shall be treated
as expenses incurred in maintaining the hereditament.
(2) Where a contribution is made under this section in respect of a
hereditament, the value upon which that contribution is computed shall
be entered in the valuation list as representing the rateable value of the
hereditament; and the value so entered, or the amount of the contribu-
tion, as the case may be, shall be taken into account for the purposes of
ascertaining totals or the proceeds of any rate for that rating area.
(3) The last foregoing subsection shall not be construed as requiring a
gross value to be determined or entered in the valuation list in the case of
a hereditament in respect of which a contribution is made under this
section.
(4) The authorities to whom this section applies are the Receiver for
the Metropolitan Police District, the councils of [<s16>snon-metropolitan
counties and metropolitan districts], the Greater London Council, the
councils of London boroughs, . . . <s17>s, the Common Council of the City of
London, police authorities and probation committees, and references in
this section to an authority to whom this section applies include references
to two or more such authorities acting jointly and to joint committees of
two or more such authorities.
16. Words subrtituted by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), s.172, sch. 13 para. 28(3).
17. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
<1Miscellaneous exemptions and reliefs>1
<2Relief for places of religious worship>2
<239>2---(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, and without prejudice
to any exemption from, or privilege in respect of, rates under any
enactment other than this section, no hereditament to which this section
applies shall, in the case of any rating area, be liable to be rated for any
rate period.
(2) This section applies to the following hereditaments, that is to say--
<1(a)>1 places of public religious worship which belong to the Church of
England or to the Church in Wales (within the meaning of the
Welsh Church Act 1914), or which are for the time being
certified as required by law as places of religious worship; and
<1(b)>1 any church hall, chapel hall or similar building used in connec-
tion with any such place of public religious worship, and so used
for the purposes of the organisation responsible for the conduct
of public religious worship in that place,
and also applies to any hereditament consisting of such a place of public
religious worship as is mentioned in paragraph (a) of this subsection
together with one or more church halls, chapel halls or other buildings
such as are mentioned in paragraph (b) thereof.
(3) Where a hereditament to which this section applies, or any part of
such a hereditament, is or has been let (whether by way of a tenancy or of
a licence) for use otherwise than as a place of public religious worship, or,
as the case may be, for use otherwise than as mentioned in subsection
(2)<1(b)>1 of this section--
<1(a)>1 the hereditament shall not be exempted by virtue of subsection
(1) of this section from being rated for any rate period if any
B83
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
payment in consideration of such a letting of the hereditament or
part thereof accrued due in the last year before the beginning of
that rate period; but
(<1b>1) no gross value for rating purposes shall be ascribed to the
hereditament unless the average annual amount of the payments
accruing due, as consideration for such lettings of the heredita-
ment or parts thereof, exceeds the average annual amount of the
expenses attributable to those lettings; and
(<1c>1) if such a gross value falls to be ascribed to the hereditament, by
reason that the average annual amount of those payments
exceeds the average annual amount of those expenses, the gross
value shall be assessed by references only to the amount of the
excess.
<2Relief for charitable and other organisations>2
<240>2.--(1) If notice in writing is given to the rating authority that--
(<1a>1) any hereditament occupied by, or by trustees for, a charity and
wholly or mainly used for charitable purposes (whether of that
charity or of that and other charities); or
(<1b>1) any other hereditament, being a hereditament held upon, trust
for use as an almshouse,
is one falling within this subsection, then, subject to the provisions of this
section, the amount of any rates chargeable in respect of the hereditament
for any period during which the hereditament is one falling within either
paragraph (<1a>1) or paragraph (<1b>1) of this subsection, being a period
beginning not earlier than the rate period in which the notice is given,
shall not exceed one-half of the amount which would be chargeable apart
from the provisions of this subsecti0n:
Provided that where a hereditament ceases to be one falling within the
said paragraphs (<1a>1) and (<1b>1), a previous notice given for the purposes of
this subsection shall not have effect as respects any subsequent period
during which the hereditament falls within either of those paragraphs.
(2) No relief under the foregoing subsection shall be given in the case of
a hereditament falling within paragraph (a) thereof for any period during
which the hereditament is occupied by an institution specified in Schedule
8 to this Act.
(3) The Minister may by order amend the provisions of Schedule 8 to
this Act by adding any institution which in his opinion ought to be
classified with the institutions mentioned in that Schedule or omitting any
institution or altering the description of any institution.
(4) An order under subsection (3) of this section may be made so as to
have effect from any date not earlier than the beginning of the rate period
in which it is made, and shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a
resolution of either House of Parliament.
(5) Without prejudice to the powers conferred by section 53 0f this Act,
a rating authority shall have power to reduce or remit the payment of rates
chargeable in respect of--
(<1a>1) any hereditament falling within subsection (<11)(a>1) or (<1b>1) of this
section;
(<1b>1) any other hereditament which is occupied for the purposes of one
or more institutions or other organisations which are not estab-
B84
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
lished or conducted for profit and whose main objects are
charitable or are otherwise philanthropic or religious or con-
cerned with education, social welfare, science, literature or the
fine arts;
(c) any other hereditament which is occupied for the purposes of a
club, society or other organisation not established or conducted
for profit and is wholly or mainly used for purposes of recreation,
for any such period as in mentioned in subsection (6) of this section:
Provided that any such reduction or remission shall cease to have effect
on a change in the occupation of the hereditament in respect of which it
was granted.
(6) Any reduction or remission of rates determined under subsection
(5) of this section may at the discretion of the rating authority be
granted--
<1(a)>1 for the year in which, or the year next following that in which,
the determination to grant it is made; or
<1(b)>1 for a specified term of years, not exceeding five, beginning not
earlier than the year in which the determination was made nor
more than twenty-four months after the date of the
determination; or
<1(c)>1 for an indefinite period beginning not earlier than the last-
mentioned year subject, however, to the exercise by the rating
authority of their powers under subsection (7) of this section.
(7) Where any such reduction or remission is granted for an indefinite
period the rating authority may, by not less than twelve months' notice in
writing given to the occupiers of the hereditament, terminate or modify
the reduction or remission as from the end of a year specified in the
notice.
(8) The foregoing provisions of this section shall not apply to any
hereditament to which section 39 of this Act applies or to any heredita-
ment occupied (otherwise than as trustee) by any authority having, within
the meaning of the Local Loans Act 1875, power to levy a rate.
(9) In this section "charity" means an institution or other organisation
established for charitable purposes only, and "organisation" includes any
persons administering a trust; and a hereditament, an interest in which
belongs to a charity or any ecclesiastical corporation and in which (in right
of that interest)--
<1(a)>1 the persons from time to time holding any full-time office as
clergyman or minister of any religious denomination, or
<1(b)>1 any particular person holding such an office,
have or has a residence from which to perform the duties of the office, or
in which (in right of the said interest) accommodation is being held
available to provide such a residence for such a person, shall be treated for
the purposes of this section as occupied by a charity and wholly or mainly
used for charitable purposes, whether or not it would be so treated apart
from this provision.
<sa>s[(9A) Without prejudice to the meaning of the expression "wholly or
mainly used for charitable purposes", a hereditament shall be treated as
so used, for the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, if--
B85
(<1a>1) it is used wholly or mainly for the sale of goods donated to a
charity; and
(<1b>1) the proceeds of sale (after any deduction of expenses) are
applied for the purposes of a charity.]
(10) The Minister may, on the application of any rating authority
appearing to him to be concerned, by order repeal or amend any local
enactment which confers an exemption from or abatement of, or a power
to reduce or remit a payment of, rates in respect of any particular
hereditament or of hereditaments of any class if it appears to him that a
right to relief arises in respect of that hereditament or hereditaments of
that class under subsection (1), or that a reduction or remission may be
granted in respect thereof under subsection (5), of this section, and may
by that order make such other amendments of any other local enactments
as appear to him to be necessary in consequence of the repeal or
amendment and such transitional provision as appears to him to be
necessary or expedient in connection with the matter; and in this
subsection, the expression --local enactment" means a provision of any
local and personal Act or private Act or of any order or other instrument
in the nature of any such Act.
<sa>s Added by Rating (Charity Shops) Act 1976.
<2Exemption for certain property of Trinity House>2
<241>2.--(1) The following property belonging to, or occupied by, the
Trinity House (but, notwithstanding anything in section 731 of the
Merchant Shipping Act 1894, no other property so belonging or occupied)
shall be exempt from rates, that is to say, lighthouses, buoys and beacons,
and any property within the same curtilage as, and occupied for the
purposes of, a lighthouse.
<2Exemption of sewers etc.>2
<242>2. No sewer, as defined by section 343 of the Public Health Act 1936,
and no manhole, ventilating shaft, pumping station, pump or other
accessory belonging to such a sewer, shall be liable to be rated or be
1ncluded in any valuation list or in any rate.
<2Exemption of property of drainage authorities>2
<243>2.--(1) The following premises, namely--
(<1a>1) any land which is occupied by a river authority or other drainage
authority and forms part of a main river for the purposes of Part
II of the Land Drainage Act 1930<sa>s or of a watercourse main-
tained by the authority; and
(<1b>1) any structure or appliance maintained by a drainage authority,
being a structure or appliance for controlling or regulating the
flow of water in, into or out of a watercourse which forms part of
a main river for the purposes of the said Part II or is maintained
by the authority,
shall not be liable to be rated or be included in any valuation list or in any
rate:
Provided that nothing in this subsection shall confer any exemption in
respect of any right of fishing or shooting which under section 29 of this
B86
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Act (apart from this subsection) constitutes a separate hereditament for
rating purposes.
(2) In this section, the expressions --drainage authority" and "water-
course" have the same meanings respectively as in the Land Drainage Act
1930<sa>s
<sa>s Land Drainage Act 1930 repealed and replaced by Land Drainage Act 1976.
<2Exemption of parks, etc.>2
<244.>2--(1) A park which has been provided by, or is under the manage-
ment of, a local authority and is for the time being available for free and
unrestricted use by members of the public shall, while so available, be
treated for rating purposes as if it had been dedicated in perpetuity for
such use.
(2) In this section--
<1(a)>1 references to a park include references to a recreation or
pleasure ground, a public walk, an open space within the
meaning of the Open Spaces Act 1906, and a playing field
provided under the Physical Training and Recreation Act 1937;
<1(b)>1 the expression --local authority" means the council of a county,
. . .<s18>s, London borough, county district . . .<s18>s, a parish council or
parish meeting, the Greater London Council, the Common
Council of the City of Lond0n or the Council of the Isles of
Scilly, or any two or more of them acting in combination.
<245.>2 <1Repealed by Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 s.9(3) & sch.>1 2.
18. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70). sch. 30.
<2Relief for air-raid protection works>2
<246.>2--(1) In ascertaining the value for rating purposes of any heredita-
ment, no regard shall be had--
<1(a)>1 to any room or other part of the hereditament which has been
added at any time after the hereditament was first assessed, or
was included in the hereditament before it was first assessed,
solely for the purpose of affording protection in the event of
hostile attack from the air, and which is not occupied or used for
any other purpose;
<1(b)>1 to any structural alterations or improvements to the heredita-
ment (not being the addition of any such room or other part as
aforesaid) made, at any time after the hereditament was first
assessed, solely for the purpose of affording such protection as
aforesaid;
<1(c)>1 to any increase in the rent of the hereditament which is attribut-
able to the provision for persons living or working in the
hereditament of protection, otherwise than by war-like means or
by any article of apparel, from hostile attack from the air;
and, in relation to a hereditament forming part of a building, paragraph
<1(b)>1 of this subsection shall have effect as if any structural alterations or
improvements made in the building or on land appurtenant to the building
for the purpose of providing such protection as is mentioned in paragraph
B87
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(<1c>1) of this subsection were structural alterations or improvements to the
hereditament.
(2) No person shall, in respect of any period, be liable to pay rates in
respect of a hereditament which is intended to be occupied or used solely
for the purpose of affording protection in the event of hostile attack from
the air and which is not occupied or used for any other purpose, or be
deemed to be in occupation thereof for rating purposes, and notwith-
standing anything in this Act no such hereditament shall be included in
any rate made in respect of any period.
<247>2...................................................................
<1Repealed General Rate Act 1967 s.117(2)>1.
<1Special reliefs in respect of dwellings>1
<2Reduction of rates on dwellings by reference to domestic element of rate>2
<2support grants>2
<sa>s<242>2. [(1) Every rating authority shall reduce the amount which, apart
from this subsection, would be the amount of the rate levied by the
authority for any year on any domestic or mixed hereditament in their
area by the following am0unt in the pound--
(<1a>1) in the case of a domestic hereditament, the standard amount;
(<1b>1) in the case of a mixed hereditament in respect of which the
proportton mentioned in subsection (5) of this section is greater
than one half, one half of the standard amount;
(<1c>1) in the case of a mixed hereditament in respect of which that
proportion is greater than one quarter but not greater than one
half, one quarter of the standard amount;
(<1d>1) in the case of any other mixed hereditament, one eighth of the
standard amount.
(1A) In subsection (1) of this section "the standard amount" means--
(<1a>1) the amount prescribed for the year for the rating authority's area
under paragraph 5 of Schedule 2 to the Local Government Act
1974; or
(<1b>1) the amount specified for that year for their area in a Rate
Support Grant Report under section 60 of the Local Govern-
ment, planning and Land Act 1980 ]<sb,b1>s
[(1B) The amounts in the pound to be determined under paragraphs
(<1b>1), (<1c>1) and (<1d>1) of subsection (1) of this section shall be calculated to the
nearest one tenth of a new penny (one half of one tenth being treated as
less than one half).]<sc>s
(2) Where the period for which a rate is made is less than a year, the
amount in the pound of the reduction to be made under subsection (1) of
this section shall be such as the rating authority may determine, but the
authority shall so exercise their power under this subsection as to secure
that the aggregate of the amounts determined in pursuance of this
subsection for any year in respect of [hereditaments within each of the
paragraphs of subsection (1) of this section is equal to the amount
provided for by that paragraph.]<sb>s
(3) Where a hereditament is a [domestic hereditament]<sb>s or a mixed
hereditament during part only of a rate period, the reduction to be made
B88
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
in pursuance of the foregoing provisions of this section shall be made for
that part of the period only.
(4) <1Repealed by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
<1Schedule 34 part IX>1.
[(4A) In this section "domestic hereditament" means a hereditament
which is--
(<1a>1) a dwelling-house; or
(<1b>1) a hereditament of an area not exceeding 25 square metres which
is used wholly or mainly for the accommodation of a motor
vehicle, other than a hereditament which--
(i) forms part of premises in which a business of providing
services for motor vehicles is carried on, or
(ii) is provided by the keeper of a hotel, inn, guest-house or
boarding-house and used wholly or mainly for the motor
vehicles of his guests, or
(iii) is used for the accommodation of a motor vehicle for the
time being chargeable with duty under Schedule 2, 3 or 4 to
the Vehicles (Excise) Act 1971 (hackney carriages, tractors
and goods vehicles) whether it is also used for any other
vehicle or not; or
(c) private storage premises within the meaning of section 19 of this
Act.]<sc>s
(5) In this section, the expression "mixed hereditament" means a
hereditament which is not a [domestic hereditament]<sb>s but in the case
of which it appears to the rating authority or is determined in pursuance of
subsection (6) of this section that the proportion of the rateable value of
the hereditament attributable to the part of the hereditament used for the
purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings is greater than [one
eighth]<sb>s (any part of the hereditament used for the letting of rooms singly
for residential purposes, whether by way of a tenancy or licence and either
with or without board or other services or facilities, or used as sites for
movable dwellings<sa>s within the meaning of section 269 of the Public Health
Act 1936 being treated as used for purposes other than those of a private
dwelling or private dwellings).
(6) The Minister may by regulations<sd>s provide for the determination as
respects any hereditament of any question as to the proportion[s]<se>s
mentioned in subsection (5) of this section in any case where the occupier
or person treated for the purposes of the regulations as the occupier of the
hereditament is dissatisfied by the [view taken by the rating authority,]<sb>s or
the occupier, the person aforesaid or the rating authority consider that by
reason of a change of circumstances a previous determination made in
respect of the hereditament by virtue of this subsection should cease to
have effect; and without prejudice to the generality of the power to make
regulations conferred by the foregoing provisions of this subsection, the
regulations may include provision--
(a) applying for the purposes of a determination any of the provi-
sions of Part V of this Act, with such modifications, if any, as
may be specified by the regulations;
(<1b>1) for a determination to have effect with respect to such period,
whether or not beginning before the time when an application for
B89
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
the determination was made, as may be provided by or under the
regulations.
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(4).
<sb>s Words substituted by Local Government. Planning and Land Act 1980 s.33.
<sb1>sThe Secretary of State may by Statutory Instrument order that this subsection shall cease to
have effect, see Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.53.
<sc>s <1Words added by Local Government, Planning and Land Art 1980 s.33.>1
<sd>s Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967, No. 637.
<sc>s Deleted by the local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.33.
<249.....................................................................>2
<1Repealed by Local Government Act 1974 s.42 & sch. 8>1.
<2Right to pay rates on dwelling by instalments<s*>s>2
<s50.--(1) Without prejudice to section 3(4) of this Act or any other>s
power of a rating authority to make provision for the payment of rates by
instalments, any person who (not being a tenant or licensee of the rating
authority who pays his rates as part of his rent) is the occupier of, [a
hereditament which]<sa>s is not the subject of arrangements made by virtue of
section 55 or 56 of this Act or any Local Act whereby the payment of rates
thereon is made by or through the owner, may by notice in writing to the
rating authority given in accordance with paragraph 1 of Schedule 10 to
this Act elect to pay any rates in respect of that hereditament by
instalments in accordance with the said Schedule 10; and, as from the date
which under the said paragraph 1 is the effective date of that notice until
in pursuance of section 51(2) of this Act or of paragraph 6 of the said
Schedule 10 that notice ceases to be in force, any rates in respect of the
rate period in which that date falls or any subsequent rate period which
are charged on that person in respect of that hereditament shall be
payable by instalments accordingly.
(2) <1Repealed by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980,>1
<1section 34 and schedule 34 part IX>1.
(3) Without prejudice to paragraph (<1b>1)(ii) of the proviso to section
54(1) of this Act, no allowance by way of discount shall be made by virtue
of any provision for like purposes to those of the said section 54(1)
contained in any local Act on any amount payable by way of an instalment
under this section.
(4) This section shall not extend to the Temples.
[(5) This section shall not extend to a hereditament (not being a
domestic hereditament) whose rateable value is less than a prescribed sum
or is more than another prescribed sum.<sb>s
(6) In subsection (5) of this section "domestic hereditament" means a
hereditament which either is a dwelling-house or (though not a dwelling-
house) is within the meaning of section 115(3) of this Act used mainly for
the purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings, and --prescribed"
means prescribed by order of the Secretary of State.
(7) The power to prescribe sums conferred by this section includes
power to prescribe larger sums in relation to hereditaments in Greater
London than in relation to hereditaments elsewhere.]<sc>s
<s*>s Now applies to other types of hereditament as well.
<sa>s Words substituted by Local Government. Planning and Land Act 1980 s.34.
<sb>s The Payment of Rates by 1nstalments (Prescribed Sums) order 1980 No. 2011 lays down a
rateable value of #100 as the lower prescribed sum and a rateable value of #2,00 as the higher
prescribed sum (except in greater London where the higher sum is #5.000) effective from the
1st April, 1981.
<sc>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.34.
B90
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Discount in respect of rates on dwelling-house>2
<251.>2--(1) The rating authority may, if they think fit, by resolution direct
that an allowance by way of discount of such amount . . .<s19>s as may be
specified in the resolution shall be granted to any person entitled to give a
notice under section 50(1) of this Act in respect of a hereditament which is
a dwelling-house, whether or not he has in fact given such a notice, who
pays the net amount due by way of rates on that hereditament either--
(<sa>s) otherwise than by instalments; or
(<sb>s) by instalments required in pursuance of section 3(4) of this Act,
before such date or respective dates as the rating authority may specify.
(2) If an allowance under this section is made in respect of a heredita-
ment in respect of which a notice under the said section 50(1) is for the
time being in force, that notice shall thereupon cease to be in force and
rates on that hereditament shall cease to be payable in accordance with
Schedule 10 to this Act, without prejudice, however, to the right to give a
fresh notice under the said section 50(1) in accordance with paragraph
1(a) of that Schedule.
(3) The rating authority may at any time revoke or vary a resolution
under this section.
(4) While any resolution under this section is in force, a statement of the
effect thereof shall be included in or sent with every demand note on
which rates are levied in respect of any hereditament which is a dwelling-
house.
(5) Subject to paragraph (a) of the proviso to section 54(1) of this Act
and to subsection (6) of this section, nothing in this section shall prejudice
the powers with respect to allowances by way of discount conferred by
section 54 of this Act or any provision for like purposes contained in any
local Act.
(6) A person who is for the time being entitled to an allowance under
this section in respect of any hereditament shall not be entitled to an
allowance in respect of that hereditament under any such provision of a
local Act as is mentioned in subsection (5) of this section.
(7) This section shall not apply to the Temples.
19. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), sch. para. 5, sch. 8.
52. ........................................................
<1Repealed by Local Government Act 1974 s.42 & sch. 7 para. 6 & sch 8.>1
<1General remissions, reductions and allowances>1
<2Reduction or remission of rate>2
<253.>2 A rating authority shall have power to reduce or remit the payment
of any rate on account of the poverty of any person liable to pay it.
<2Uniform discount in respect of rates on all hereditaments>2
<254>2. --(1) The rating authority may, if they think fit, by resolution direct
that an allowance by way of discount [<s20>s of such amount as may be
specified in the resolution] shall be made on the amount due in respect of
any rate from every person who pays the net amount due before such date
as the rating authority may specify:
B91
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Provided that--
(a) a person shall not be entitled to the allowance in respect of any
hereditament in respect of which he is for the time being entitled
to an allowance under section 51 of this Act; and
(<1b>1) the allowance shall not be made--
(i) where the person paying the rate is an owner who is
entitled to any of the allowances for which provision is
made by section 55 or 56 of this Act; or
(ii) on any amount payable by way of an instalment under
section 50 of this Act; and
(c) the allowance shall be made at the same rate to all persons
entitled to it.
(2) The rating authority may at any time revoke or vary a resolution
under this section.
(3) While any resolution under this section is in force, there shall be
included in every demand note on which the general rate is levied a
statement of the effect of the resolution.
(4) This section shall not apply to the City of London.
PART IV
BEARING OF RATES BY PERSONS OTHER THAN OCCUPIER
<2Rating of owners instead of occupiers>2
<255>2.--(1) Any rating authority may by resolution direct that, in the case
of all hereditaments in their area which belong to a class to be defined in
the resolution by reference to rateable value and also, if rent is paid and
the rating authority so decide, by reference to the interval at which rent
from time to time becomes payable or is collected, the owners thereof
shall be rated instead of the occupiers:
Provided that the class shall not be so defined as to include any
hereditaments the rateable value of which exceeds fifty-six pounds<sa>s or
such other limit as may for the time being be fixed by an order under
subsection (5) of this section.
(2) Where a rating authority give any such direction as aforesaid, the
owners of any hereditaments in that authority's rating area to which the
direction applies shall, in the case of any rate made while the resolution is
in force, be rated accordingly, and the rating authority shall make to any
owner who being so rated pays the amount due from him in respect of the
rate before the expiration of half the period in respect of which the rate
was made (or, if the rate is payable by instalments, half the period in
which the instalment is payable), or before such later date or dates as may
be specified in the resolution, an allowance equal to [such proportion of
the amount payable as the rating authority may by resolution determine.]<sb>s
[(2A) The proportion determined must be the same for all heredita-
ments which are in the area of the authority and to which a direction
under this section applies.
(2B) A proportion determined shall have effect for the rate period after
that in which the determination is made and (subject to subsection (2C) of
this section) for each subsequent one.
(2C) A proportion may be varied by a further determination and
subsection (2B) of this section shall then apply.
B92
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(2D) Until an initial determination made by an authority under
subsection (2) of this section has effect, the allowance shall be one equal
to ten per cent. of the amount payable.]c
(3) A resolution of the rating authority rescinding a previous resolution
under subsection (1) of this section shall take effect only on the expiration
of a rate period.
(4) Any owner who under subsection (2) of this section pays any rate
which, as between the owner and the occupier, the occupier is liable to
pay shall be entitled to be reimbursed by the occupier the amount so paid.
(5) The Minister may by order substitute a different limit for that
specified in the proviso to subsection (1) of this section; but any such
order shall not affect any person's liability for rates for any period before
the coming into force of the first new valuation list to come into force after
the date of the order.
(6) Any order under subsection (5) of this section shall be subject to
annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(7) In the application of this section to the Temples, for any reference to
a resolution of the rating authority there shall be substituted a reference to
an order of the rating authority.
<sa>s Amended with the substitution of #200 for #56 by S.I. 1972/1983.
<sb>s Substituted by Local Govemment, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.36
<sc>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Art 1980, s.36.
1.-Words substituted by Local Govemment Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 7 para. 7.
<2Payment or collection of rates by owners by agreement>2
<256.>2--(1) The owner of any hereditament the rent of which becomes
payable or is collected at intervals shorter than quarterly may by
agreement in writing with the rating authority undertake either--
(<1a>1) that he will pay the rates chargeable in respect of the heredita-
ment whether it is occupied or not; or
(<1b>1) that he will so long as the hereditament is occupied pay the rates
chargeable in respect of it; or
(<1c>1) that he will on behalf of the authority collect the rates due from
the occupier of the hereditament;
and the authority may agree, where the owner so undertakes and pays
over to the authority on or before the date or dates specified in the
agreement the amounts payable by him thereunder, to make him an
allowance [equal to such proportion of the rates chargeable or due as the
rating authority may by resolution determine.]<sa>s
[(1A) The proportion determined must be the same for all owners who
make an agreement with the rating authority under each paragraph of
subsection (1) of this section, but different proportions may be deter-
mined for the purposes of different paragraphs.
(1B) A proportion determined for any paragraph shall have effect for
the rate period after that in which the determination is made and (subject
to subsection (1C) of this section) for each subsequent one.
(1C) A proportion may be varied by a further determination for any
paragraph, and subsection (1B) of this section shall then apply.
(1D) Until an initial determination is made for subsection (1)(a) of this
section, the allowance in the case of an undertaking under paragraph (a)
shall be one not exceeding ten per cent.
B93
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(1E) Until an initial determination is made for subsection (1)(<1b>1) of this
section, the allowance in the case of an undertaking under paragraph (<1b>1)
shall be one not exceeding seven and a half per cent.
(1F) Until an initial determination is made for subsection (1)(c) of this
section, the allowance in the case of an undertaking under paragraph (c)
shall be one not exceeding five per cent.]<sb>s
(2) An allowance made under subsection (1) of this section in respect of
any hereditament to an owner who is rated under section 55 of this Act
shall be in substitution for any allowance to which he might otherwise have
been entitled in respect of that hereditament under the said section 55.
(3) An agreement entered into under this section shall continue in force
until determined by notice given either by the rating authority to the
owner or by the owner to the rating authority, and in the event of a change
in the ownership of any hereditament while the agreement is in force shall
continue to be binding upon the new owner as if it had been made by him.
(4) A notice for the purposes of subsection (3) of this section shall take
effect only on the expiration of a rate period and shall be given before the
commencement of that period.
(5) In the case of an undertaking by an owner under subsection (1)(c) of
this section, the amount due from the owner shall be taken to be an
amount which bears to the total amount of the rates due the same
proportion as the aggregate amount actually collected by him in respect of
rent and rates bears to the aggregate amount due in respect thereof.
(6) In the case of an undertaking by an owner under subsection (1)(c) of
this section, unless the undertaking expressly so provides--
(a) the expression --rates due" in the provisions of this section
relating to such an undertaking shall not include rates accruing
due before the date on which the undertaking comes into
<s*>s operation; and
(<1b>1) account shall not be taken for the purposes of subsection (5) of
this section of rent which accrues due before that date.
(7) Section 177 of the City of London Sewers Act 1848 shall not apply to
any hereditament in the City of London so long as an undertaking in
respect of that hereditament is in force under subsection (1)(a) of this
sectton.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Hanning and Land Act 1980 s.36.
<sb>s Added by Local Government Planning and Land Act 1980 s.36.
<2Provisions supplementary to sections 55 and 56>2
<257.>2--(1) Where in the case of any hereditament the owner is rated in
respect thereof in pursuance of section 55 of this Act, or has undertaken in
pursuance of section 56 of this Act to pay or collect the rates charged in
respect thereof, the amount due from him in respect of those rates shall be
recoverable by the rating authority from him, or, where the rates are
collected by an agent of his, either from him or from that agent, in like
manner and subject to the like conditions as rates payable by the occupier
of a hereditament (not being an occupier by whom a notice under section
50(1) of this Act has been given and is for the time being in force) are
recoverable from the occupier.
(2) Every owner who is rated under the said section 55 instead of the
occupier, or who enters into an agreement with the rating authority under
B94
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
the said section 56, in respect of any hereditaments shall, without
prejudice to the rights of the occupier of any of those hereditaments, be
treated in relation to any right of appeal against a rate under section 7 of
this Act as standing in the same position as the occupier.
(3) Every owner who is rated under the said section 55 instead of the
occupier or who enters into an agreement with a rating authority under
the said section 56 shall from time to time on demand deliver to the rating
authority--
(<1a>1) a list of occupiers of the hereditaments in respect of which he is
so rated or has so agreed; and
(<1b>1) such particulars with respect to the periods for which any of those
hereditaments have been unoccupied and with respect to the
amount which he has failed to c0llect from the occupiers as the
authority may require for the purpose of enabling them to
determine what amount is properiy due from the owner under
the said section 55 or 56;
and if any such owner refuses or neglects to comply with the provisions of
this subsection, or knowingly delivers to any authority particulars which
are untrue in any material respect, he shall in respect of each offence be
liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding [#25]t and, in the
case of refusal or neglect to deliver particulars, to a further penalty not
exceeding one pound for each day during which the offence continues
after conviction therefor.
(4) Subject to subsection (5) of this section, the foregoing provisions of
this Part of this Act shall have effect in substitution for any provisions
contained in any local Act with respect to the rating of owners instead of
occupiers.
(5) Where in the case of any rating area a resolution of the rating
authority made under Schedule 2 to the Rating and Valuation Act 1928
was in force immediately before the date of commencement of this Act
whereby any provisions contained in any local Act with respect to the
rating of owners instead of occupiers applied to any rates made by the
authority, then, until that resolution is rescinded--
(<1a>1) those provisions shall continue so to apply and, if and so far as
they may have been repealed by, or by any order made under,
the Rating and Valuation Act 1925, shall have effect as if
re-enacted in this Act; and
(<1b>1) all resolutions, agreements and notices in force under those
provisions immediately before the said date shall continue to
have effect until they are rescinded or modified.
1. Substituted by Criminal Law Act 1977
<2Deduction of rates from rent by lessees for short terms>2
<258.>2 Where a hereditament is let to the occupier for a term not exceeding
three months--
(a) the occupier shall be entitled to deduct any amount paid by him
in respect of rates upon that hereditament from the rent due or
accruing due to the owner, and every such payment shall be a
valid discharge 0f the rent to the extent of the rates so paid;
(b) the occupier shall not be compelled to pay to the rating authority
B95
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
at ony one time or within any four weeks a greater amount by
way of rates than would be due for one quarter of the year.
<2Deduction from rent of rates omitted to be paid by owner>2
<259>2. Where an owner who has undertaken, whether by agreement with
the occupier or with the rating authority, to pay rates, or has otherwise
become liable to pay rates, omits or neglects to pay any rate, the occupier
may pay that rate and deduct the amount of the payment from the rent
due or accruing due to the owner, and the receipt for the rate shall be a
valid discharge of the rent to the extent of the rate so paid.
<2Owner's liability for rates where occupier entitled to diplomatic immunity>2
<2[Recovery of rates from owners>2
<260.>2--(1) Where a hereditament is occupied on terms which provide that
the owner shall pay the rates chargeable in respect of the hereditament, an
amount equal to so much of any payment made by the occupier in respect
of rent as represents the proportion of rates included in that payment may
be recovered by the rating authority from the owner, or, where the rent is
collected by an agent of his, either, from him or from that agent, in the
same manner and subject to the same conditions as a sum due from an
occupier in respect of rates.
(2) This section shall not apply in relation to rates recoverable from an
owner by virtue of section 55 or 56 of this Act.]a
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1950, s.37.
<2Recovery of rates from tenants and lodgers>2
<261.>2--(1) Where the rates due from the person rated for any heredita-
ment are in arrear,<sa>s it shall be lawful for the rating authority to serve upon
any person paying rent in respect of that hereditament, or any part
thereof, to the person from whom the arrears are due a notice stating the
amount of those arrears of rates and requiring all future payments of rent
(whether already accrued due or not) by the person paying the rent to be
made direct to the rating authority until those arrears shall have been duly
paid; and that notice shall, subject to subsection (2) of this section,
operate to transfer to the rating authority the right to recover, receive and
give a discharge for that rent.
(2) The right of the rating authority to recover, receive and give a
discharge for any rent by virtue of subsection (1) of this section shall be
postponed to any right in respect of that rent which may at any time be
vested in a superior landlord by virtue of a notice under section 6 of the
Law of Distress Amendment Act 1908.
(3) In this section, the expression "rent" includes a payment made by a
lodger.
<sa>s See section 27, Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1973 for meaning of "in
arrear".
<2Recovery of rates unpaid by owner>2
<262.>2 Notwithstanding that the owner of a hereditament has become
liable for payment of the rates assessed thereon, the goods and chattels of
the occupier shall be liable to be distrained and sold under Part VI of this
Act for payment of such rates as may accrue during his occupation of the
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
hereditament at any time while those rates remain unpaid by the owner,
except that--
(a) no such distress shall be levied unless the rate has been deman-
ded in writing by the rating authority from the occupier and the
occupier has failed to pay it within fourteen days of the service of
that demand;
(b) no greater sum shall be raised by the distress than shall at the
time of making the distress be actually due from the occupier for
rent of the premises on which the distress is made;
(c) the occupier shall be entitled to deduct the amount of rates for
which the distress is made, and the expenses of the distress, from
the rent due 0r accruing due to the owner, and every such
payment shall be a valid discharge of the rent to the extent of the
rates and expenses paid.
<2Deduction from rent, etc. of rates by certain tenants of mines>2
<263.>2 Any lessee, licensee, or grantee of a mine rateable by virtue of
section 16(d) of this Act whose lease, licence or grant was granted or
made before 6th April, 1875 may, unless before that date he had
specifically contracted to pay any rates in respect of the mine in the event
of the abolition 0f his exemption from being so rated, deduct from any
rent, royalty, or dues payable by him during the continuance of his lease,
licence or grant, or before the arrival of the period at which the amount of
the rent, royalty or dues is liable to revision or readjustment, whichever is
the less of the following, that is to say--
(a) one half of any rates paid by him in respect of the mine; or
(b) one half of what those rates would have been if calculated upon
the rent, royalty or dues so payable by him.
<2Deduction from rent of rate in respect of land used as plantation, etc.>2
<264.>2 Where the rateable value of any land is increased by reason of its
being estimated in accordance with section 27(2) or (4) of this Act, the
occupier of that land under any lease or agreement made before 6th April,
1875 may, during the continuance of the lease or agreement, deduct from
his rent any amount paid by him by way of rates in respect of that
increase; and the valuation officer, on the application of the occupier,
shall certify in the valuation list or otherwise the fact and amount of that
increase.
<2Deduction from rent in respect of rate for rights of sporting>2
<265.>2 In a case to which section 29(1) of this Act applies, if the rateable
value of any land is increased by reason of its being estimated in
accordance with the said section 29(1), but not otherwise, the occupier of
the land may, unless he has specifically contracted to pay the rates in the
event of such an increase, deduct from his rent such portion of any rate as
is paid by him in respect of the increase; and the valuation officer, on the
application of the occupier, shall certify in the valuation list or otherwise
the fact and amount of the increase.
<2General provision as to deduction of rates from rent, etc.>2
<266.>2 Where any person is authorised by section 63, 64 or 65 of this Act to
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
deduct any rate or sum in respect of a rate from any rent, royalty, or dues
payable by him, then--
(a) any payment so authorised to be deducted shall be a good
discharge for such amount of rent, royalty or dues as is equal to
the amount of the payment, and shall be allowed accordingly;
(b) any payment so authorised to be deducted may be recovered as
an ordinary debt from the person to whom rent, royalty, or dues
may be payable;
(c) the person receiving the rent, royalty or dues shall have the same
right of appeal and objection with reference to the rate and to the
valuation of the hereditament in respect of which the rate is
payable as he would have if he were the occupier of that
hereditament.
PART V
VALUATION LISTS
<1Maintenance of, and preparation of new, valuation lists>1
<2The valuation list>2
<267.>2--(1) For the purposes of rates, there shall be maintained for each
rating area a valuation list prepared, and from time to time caused to be
altered, in accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act by the
valuation officer.
(2) Subject to the provisions of this Act, there shall be inserted in the
valuation list such particulars as may be prescribed--
(a) with respect to every hereditament in the rating area and the
value thereof; and
(b) with respect to totals of values--
(i) in respect of the whole rating area; and
[<s21>s(ii) in respect of any rating district].
(3) In any case where a payment in respect of a deficiency in the
assessments for a rate falls to be made by any person under section 133 of
the Lands Clauses Consolidation Act 1845 or section 27 of the Compul-
sory Purchase Act 1965, there shall be included among the particulars
inserted in the valuation list the assessment on which that payment is
based, and any such payment shall be taken into account for the purpose
of ascertaining the proceeds of any rate.
(4) Where a rating area comprises more than one rating district, the
particulars aforesaid with respect to each respectively of those districts
shall be set out in a separate division of the valuation list.
(5) Subject to any alteration duly made under this Act, every valuation
list (including every list in force immediately before the commencement of
this Act) shall remain in force until it is superseded by a new valuation list.
(6) Subject to subsection (7) of this section the valuation list in
accordance with which, under section 2(4)(<1b>1) of this Act, any rate falls or
fell to be made, as in force (or about to come into force) at the date of the
making of the rate, shall be conclusive evidence for the purposes of the
levying of that rate of the values of the several hereditaments included in
the list.
(7) As respects any period during which, under this Act, an alteration of
the valuation list referred to in subsection (6) of this section is for the time
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
being to be treated as having had effect, the reference in the said
subsection (6) to that list shall be construed as a reference to that list as so
altered.
21. Section 67(2)(<1b>1)(ii) substituted for s.67(2)(<1b>1)(ii) (iii) by Local Government Act 1972
(c.70), s.172, sch. 13 para. 28(4).
<2New valuation lists>2
<268.>2--(1) [In the case of each rating area, new valuation lists shall be
prepared and made by the valuation officer so as to come into force on 1st
April in such year as the Secretary of State may by order from time to time
specify.
(1A) An order under this section shall have no effect until approved by
resolution of each House of Parliament.]<sa>s
(2) The valuation officer by whom a new valuation list is prepared shall,
not later than the end of the month of December preceding the date on
which the list is to come into force (or if in any particular case the
Minister, either before or after the end of that month, allows an extended
period, then not later than the end of that period) sign the list and
transmit it, together with a copy thereof, to the rating authority, wh0 shall
deposit the list at the offices of the authority.
(3) Where, after the valuation officer has transmitted the list to the
rating authority, but before the date on which the list is to come into
force, it appears to him that, by reason of a material change of
circumstances which has occurred since the time of valuation, the list
needs to be altered in any respect, he shall cause the list to be altered
accordingly before that date.
(4) In subsection (3) of this section, the expression --material change of
circumstances" means a change of circumstances which consists of--
(<1a>1) the coming into occupation of a newly erected or newly con-
structed hereditament or of a hereditament which has been out
of occupation on account of structural alterations; or
(<1b>1) a change in the value of a hereditament caused by the making of
structural alterations or by the total or partial destruction of any
building or other erection by fire or any other physical cause; or
(<1c>1) the happening of any event whereby a hereditament or part of a
hereditament becomes, or ceases to be, not liable to be rated; or
(<1d>1) a change in the extent to which any railway or canal premises
within the meaning of section 32 of this Act are occupied for
non-rateable purposes within the meaning of that section; or
(e) property previously rated as a single hereditament becoming
liable to be rated in parts; or
(<1f>1) property previously rated in parts becoming liable to be rated as
a single hered1tament; or
(<1g>1) a hereditament becoming or ceasing to be--
(i) a dwelling-house; or
(ii) a private garage or private storage premises within the
mean1ng of [section 19 of]b this Act; or
(h) a hereditament being, in accordance with Schedule 13 to this
Act, used to a greater or lesser extent for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings,
and the expression "the time of valuation", in relation to a change of
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
circumstances, means the time by reference to which the valuation officer
prepared so much of the list as is affected by that change of circumstances.
(5) The omission from a new valuation list of any matter required by
law to be included therein shall not of itself render the list invalid.
(6) In respect of any new valuation list, it shall be the duty of the rating
authority immediately upon receipt thereof to take such steps as the
authority may consider most suitable for giving notice of the list, and of
the rights of persons to inspect the list and to make proposals for altering
it.
<1Power to amend s.68(1) given by General Rate Act 1975 (c.5), s. 1 (2)>1.
<sa>s Subsection (1) substituted by and subsection (1A) added by the Local Government, Planning
and Land Act 1980 s.28.
<sb>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 sch. 33 para. 10 (for
commencement see s.47).
<1Alterations of current valuation list>1<sa,b>s
<2Proposals for alteration of current valuation list>2
<269.>2--(1) Subject to subsection (6) of this section, any person (including
a rating authority) who is aggrieved--
(a) by the inclusion of any hereditament in the valuation list; or
(b) by any value ascribed in the list to a hereditament or by any other
statement made or omitted to be made in the list with respect to a
hereditament; or
(c) in the case of a building or portion of a building occupied in
parts, by the valuation in the list of that building or portion of a
building as a single hereditament,
may at any time make a proposal for the alteration of the list so far as it
relates to that hereditament.
(2) Subject to subsection (6) of this section, the valuation officer may at
any time make a proposal for any alteration 0f a valuation list and in
particular, in addition to the proposals authorised or required by, or by
virtue of, the following provisions of this Act, namely, paragraph 6(1) of
Schedule 1, paragraph 4(1) of Schedule 4, paragraph 8(4) of Schedule 5,
paragraph 13 of Schedule 6 and paragraph 15 of Schedule 7, shall from
time to time make such proposals as may be requisite--
(<1a>1) for deleting from the list any premises exempted from rating by
virtue of section 33(1)(<1b>1) of this Act;
(<1b>1) for excluding from the list any premises which form part of a
hereditament shown in the list and which, by virtue of section
33(1)(<1a>1) or (<1b>1) of this Act, are not liable to be rated, and for
including in the list, as one or more separate hereditaments, so
much of any such hereditament as remains liable to be rated;
(<1c>1) for altering the list in consequence of any event whereby
premises cease to be within the exemption from rating conferred
by section 32(3), 33(1) or 34(1) of this Act.
(3) Without prejudice to any right exercisable by rating authorities by
virtue of subsection (1) of this section, where--
(<1a>1) it appears to a rating authority that a hereditament in their rating
area which is not included in the list ought to be included therein;
and
B100
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(<1b>1) the valuation officer gives notice in writing to the rating authority
that he does not intend to make a proposal for inserting that
hereditament in the list,
the rating authority, at any time within twenty-eight days after the date on
which that notice was given, may make a proposal for the alteration of the
list by the insertion of that hereditament therein.
<sb>s(4) Where a proposal in relation to a hereditament has been made
under the foregoing provisions of this section, a further proposal for the
alteration of the list in relation to that hereditament may be so made
which is contingent on an alteration being made in consequence of the
earlier proposal.
<sb>s(5) Every proposal under this section must--
(<1a>1) be made in writing; and
(<1b>1) specify the grounds on which the proposed alteration is
supported; and
(<1c>1) comply with any requirements of any regulations made by the
Minister with respect to the form of such proposals and otherwise
with respect to the making thereof,
and every such proposal made otherwise than by the valuation officer
must be served on the valuation officer.
(6) No proposal shall be made under this section--
(<1a>1) for the alteration of a valuation list so far as it relates to a
hereditament included in the list by virtue of paragraph 10(<1b>1) of
Schedule 6 or paragraph 14(<1b>1) of Schedule 7 to this Act; or
(<1b>1) save as provided by paragraph 4(1) or 5(2), or by an order under
paragraph 10, of Schedule 4 to this Act, for the alteration of the
rateable value of a water hereditament within the meaning of
section 31 of this Act;
and the provisions of this section shall have effect subject to the provisions
of any order under [section 19 Local Government Act 1974].<sc>s
<1Section 69 excluded by Post Office Act 1969 (c.48), s.52(4); modified by Local>1
<1Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.21.>1
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(5).
<sb>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(7).
<sc>s Amended by Generul Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977 s.1(4).
<2Provision for objections to proposals>2
<sb>s<270>2.--(1) The valuation officer shall, within twenty-eight days after the
date on which a proposal under section 69 of this Act is served on him, or
within seven days after the date on which such a proposal is made by him,
as the case may be, transmit a copy thereof, together with a statement in
writing of the right of objection conferred by subsection (2) of this section,
to each of the following persons, not being the maker of the proposal, that
is to say--
(<1a>1) the occupier of the hereditament to which the proposal relates;
and
(<1b>1) the rating authority for the area in which the hereditament in
question is situated.
B101
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(2) Any of the following persons, that is to say, the owner or occupier
of the whole [or any part]a of a hereditament to which the proposal relates
or the rating authority for the area in which that hereditament is situated,
may, within twenty-eight days from the date on which notice is served
under subsection (1) of this section on the occupier or, in the case of the
rating authority (where they are not the occupier), on the rating authority,
serve on the valuation officer notice in writing of objection to the
proposal; and, where the proposal was made otherwise than by the
valuation officer, the valuation officer shall, within twenty-eight days of
the date on which a notice of objection is served on him, transmit a copy
thereof to the maker of the proposal.
<sa>s Words omirted insofar as s.1(5) Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 is concerned.
<sb>s <1see Rating (Caravan sites) Act 1967 s.1(7)>1.
<2Unopposed proposals>2
<sa>s<271>2 --(1) Where in the case of any proposal under section 69 of this
Act--
(a) no notice of objection is served within the time limited by section
70(2) of this act, or every such notice is unconditionally
withdrawn; and
(b) either--
(i) the proposal was made by the valuation officer; or
(ii) the valuation officer is satisfied that the proposal is
well-founded; or
(iii) at the end of the period of four months beginning with the
date on which the proposal was served on the valuation
officer, that officer has not given a notice under section
74(1) of this Act,
the valuation officer shall cause the valuation list to be altered so as to give
effect to the proposal.
(2) Where the proposal was served on the valuation officer before the
first anniversary of the coming into force of the valuation list to which the
proposal relates, subsection (1)(<1b>1)(iii) of this section shall have effect as if
for the words "four months" there were substituted the words "six
months".
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(7).
<2Agreed alterations after proposals>2
<sa>s<272>2--(1) Where, in the case of any proposal under section 69 of this
Act, the requirements of section 71 of this Act are not satisfied, but--
(a) all the persons referred to in subsection (2) of this section agree
on an alteration of the valuation list (whether the alteration is
that specified in the proposal or another alteration); and
(b) the agreement is reached without, or before the determination
of, any appeal to a local valuation court, or reference to
arbitration, with respect to an objection to the proposal,
the valuation officer shall cause that alteration to be made in the valuation
list.
B102
(2) The persons referred to in subsection (1)(a) of this section are--
(a) the valuation officer;
(b) the person who made the proposal, where the proposal was not
made by the valuation officer;
(c) any person who has served and who has not unconditionally
withdrawn a notice of objection to the proposal;
(d) the occupier of the hereditament to which the proposal relates, if
he is not included by virtue of paragraph (<1b>1) or (c) of this
subsection;
(e) the rating authority (if not included by virtue of paragraph (<1b>1),
(c) or (d) of this subsection), unless they have notified the
valuation officer that they do not desire to be included by virtue
of this paragraph either generally or as respects a class of
hereditament which includes the hereditament to which the
proposal relates.
<1Section 72(1) modified by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.21(2).>1
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(7)
<2Opposed proposals>2
<sa>s<273>2--(1) If in the case of any proposal under section 69 of this Act
notice of objection thereto has been served and not unconditionally
withdrawn, and the proposal is not withdrawn, the valuation officer may
at any time within the period of four months beginning with--
(a) in the case of a proposal made by the valuation officer, the date
on which the proposal was made; or
(b) in the case of any other proposal, the date on which the proposal
was served on the valuation officer,
and shall not later than the end of that period, transmit a copy of the
proposal, and of every notice of objection thereto which has not been
unconditionally withdrawn, to the clerk to the local valuation panel
constituted under section 88 of this Act from the members of which a local
valuation court for the hearing of an appeal against that objection would
fall to be constituted.
(2) Where under the foregoing subsection the valuation officer trans-
mits a copy of a proposal to the clerk to a local valuation panel--
(a) the valuation officer shall forthwith notify the fact that he has
done so to the person who made the proposal, to any person who
served a notice of objection of which a copy is transmitted with
the copy of the proposal, and to the rating authority; and
(b) the said transmission shall have effect as an appeal to a local
valuation court, by the person who made the proposal, against
every objection (whether of the valuation officer or of any other
person) signified by a notice of which a copy is transmitted with
the copy of the proposal.
(3) Where the date referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (1)
of this section falls before the first anniversary of the coming into force of
the valuation list to which the proposal relates, that subsection shall have
effect as if for the words --four months" there were substituted the words
--six months".
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(7).
B103
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Proposals ohjected to by vaiuation officer>2
<sa>s<274>2--(1) In the case of a proposal made under section 69 of this Act
otherwise than by the valuation officer, the valuation officer may, at any
time within the period of three months beginning with the date on which
the proposal was served on the valuation officer, give notice in writing to
the person who made the proposal that he objects to the proposal, and
that the said person, if he does not withdraw the proposal within fourteen
days, will be treated as intending to appeal to a valuation court against the
valuation officer's objection to the proposal.
(2) Not less than fourteen nor more than twenty-eight days after the
valuation officer has given a notice under subsection (1) of this section, he
shall, unless the proposal has then been withdrawn, transmit to the clerk
to the local valuation panel constituted under section 88 of this Act from
the members of which the local valuation court would fall to be consti-
tuted a copy of the proposal together with a copy of the notice under the
said subsection (1) and of any notice of objection to the proposal which
has been served under section 70(2) of this Act and has not been
unconditionally withdrawn.
(3) Where, in accordance with subsection (2) of this section, the
valuation officer transmits a copy of a proposal to the clerk to a local
valuation panel, section 73(2) 0f this Act shall apply for the purposes of
this section as if any reference in the said section 73(2) to section 73(1) of
this Act included a reference to subsection (2) of this section.
(4) Where the proposal was served on the valuation officer before
the first anniversary of the coming into force of the valuation list to
which the proposal relates, subsection (1) of this section shall have effect
as if for the words "three months" there were substituted the words --five
months".
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(7).
<2Two or more proposais in respect of same hereditament>2
<275.>2 Where a proposal is made for the alteration of a valuation list so far
as it relates to a particular hereditament, and before that proposal is
settled a further proposal is made, otherwise than by the occupier, for the
alteration of the list in relation to that hereditament, then if no notice of
objection to the further proposal is served under section 70(2) of this Act
within the time limited for the purpose--
(a) the occupier shall for the purpose of sections 71 to 74 of this Act
be deemed to have served such a notice on the last day for doing
so; and
(b) the valuation officer in transmitting a copy of the further
proposal to the clerk of a local valuation panel under section
73(1) or 74(2) of this Act shall, instead of transmitting a copy of
the notice of objection thereto, transmit a notification that the
occupier is deemed to have served such a notice; and where such
a notification has been transmitted, section 73(2) of this Act shall
apply as if a copy of the notice of objection had been so
transmitted with a copy of the further proposal.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Appeals to local valuation courts against objections to proposals>2
<276.>2--(1) Where a copy of a proposal is transmitted to the clerk to a
local valuation panel and by virtue of section 73(2), 74(3) or 75 of this Act
that transmission has effect as an appeal to a local valuation court against
an objection to the proposal, it shall be the duty of the chairman or a
deputy chairman of that panel to arrange for the convening of such a
court.
(2) The procedure of a local valuation court shall, subject to any
regulations made in that behalf by the Minister, and subject to subsection
(3) of this section, be such as the court may determine; and the court--
(a) shall sit in public, unless the court otherwise order on the
application of any party to the appeal and upon being satisfied
that the interests of one or more parties to the appeal would be
prejudicially affected; and
(b) may take evidence on oath and shall have power for that purpose
to administer oaths.
(3) Where, by virtue of section 75 of this Act, the transmission of a
copy of a proposal relating to any hereditament has effect as an appeal to
a local valuation court, the court may hear and determine the appeal
together with any appeal against objections to earlier proposals relating to
that hereditament, but except as aforesaid the court shall not hear the
first-mentioned appeal until all earlier proposals relating to the heredita-
ment are settled.
(4) On the hearing of an appeal to a local valuation court--
(a) the appellant; and
(b) the valuati0n officer, when he is not the appellant; and
(c) the owner or occupier of the hereditament to which the appeal
relates, when he is not the appellant; and
(d) the rating authority for the rating area in which the hereditament
in question is situated, when that authority are not the appellant;
and
(e) the objector, where he is not one of the persons aforesaid,
shall be entitled to appear and be heard as parties to the appeal and
examine any witness before the court and to call witnesses.
(5) Subject to the provisions of this Act, after hearing the persons
mentioned in subsection (4) of this section, or such of them as desire to be
heard, the local valuation court shall give such directions with respect to
the manner in which the hereditament in question is to be treated in
the valuation list as appear to them to be necessary to give effect
to the contention of the appellant if and so far as that contention appears
to the court to be well founded; and the valuation officer shall cause the
valuation list to be altered accordingly.
<1Section 76 modified by Local Governmeet Act 1974 (c.7), s.21(3)>1.
<1Section 76(2) applied with modifications by Agriculture (Miscellaneous Provi->1
<1sions) Act 1968 (c.34), s.33(2). See also Land Drainage Act 1976.>1
<2Appeal from decision of local valuation court to Lands Tribunal>2
<277.>2 Any person who in pursuance of section 76 of this Act appears
before a local valuation court on the hearing of an appeal and is aggrieved
by the decision of the court thereon may, within such period as may be
B105
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
prescribed by rules made by the Lord Chancellor under section 3 of the
Lands Tribunal Act 1949, appeal to the Lands Tribunal, and that
Tribunal, after hearing such of the persons as appeared as aforesaid as
desire to be heard, may give any directions which the local valuation court
might have given; and the valuation officer shall cause the valuation list to
be altered accordingly.
<1Section 77 modified by Agriculture (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1968 (c.34),>1
<1 s.33(5) and Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.21(4). See also Land>1
<1 Drainage Act 1976>1.
<2Arbitration with respect to proposals>2
<278.>2--(1) Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this
Part of this Act, the persons who would be entitled to appear and be heard
before a local valuation court may by agreement in writing agree to refer
to arbitration any matter which would but for the agreement fall to be
heard or determined by such a court, and the matter shall be referred to
arbitration accordingly.
(2) The Arbitration Act 1950 shall apply to any such arbitration.
(3) The award in any such arbitration may include any directions which
might under this Part of this Act have been given by the local valuation
court; and the valuation officer shall cause the valuation list to be altered
accordingly.
<1Section 78 modified by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7), s.21(3)>1.
<2Effect of alterations to valuation list made in pursuance of proposals>2
<sa>s<279>2--(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section and to the following
provisions of this Act, namely, paragraph 6(4) of Schedule 1, paragraph
5(4) of Schedule 4, paragraph 8(4) of Schedule 5, paragraphs 10(b) and 13
of Schedule 6 and paragraphs 14(b) and 15 of Schedule 7, where an
alteration is made in a valuation list by virtue of sections 71 to 78 of this
Act, then, in relation to any rate current at the date when the proposal in
pursuance of which the amendment so made was served on the valuation
officer, or, where the proposal was made by the valuation Officer, current
at the date when notice of the proposal was served on the occupier of the
hereditament in question, that alteration shall be deemed to have had
effect as from the commencement of the period in respect of which the
rate was made, and shall, subject to the provisions of this section, have
effect for the purposes of any subsequent rate.
(2) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (1) of this section, where
an alteration in the valuation list--
(a) consists of the inclusion in the valuation list of a newly erected or
newly constructed hereditament or an altered hereditament
which has been out of occupation on account of structural
alterations; or
(b) is made by reason of any of the events specified in section
68(4)(b) to (h) of this Act,
the alteration shall have effect only as from the date when the new or
altered hereditament comes into occupation or as from the happening of
the event by reason of which the alteration is made as the case may be.
(3) Where, in the case of an alteration made in a valuation list by virtue
of the said sections 71 to 78, the alteration affects the amount of any rate
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
levied in respect of any hereditament in accordance with the list, then,
subject to subsection (4) of this section, the difference--
(a) if too much has been pa1d, shall be repaid or allowed; or
(b) if too litle has been paid, shall be paid and may be recovered as if
it were arrears of the rate.
(4) No liability shall be imposed or right conferred on any person by
virtue of subsection (3) of this section to pay or receive the difference
referred to in that subsection if that person had ceased to occupy or own
the hereditament in question before--
(a) the date when the proposal in pursuance of which the alteration
in the valuation list was made was served on the valuation
officer; or
(b) if the proposal was made by the valuation otficer, the date when
notice thereof was served on the occupier of the hereditament.
<1Section 79(2) amended by Local Governmnent Act 1974 (c.7). s.21(5).>1
<sa>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(9).
<2Alteration of valuation list without proposal>2
<280>2.--(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, the valuation officer
may at any time cause to be made in a valuation list any alteration which is
necessary to correct any clerical or arithmetical error therein and the list
shall have effect, and be deemed always to have had effect, accordingly.
(2) If the alteration referred to in the foregoing subsection is made in
respect of any matter other than totals, the valuation officer shall, before
causing the alteration to be made, send notice thereof to the occupier of
the hereditament affected and to the rating authority of the rating area,
and shall allow fourteen days to elapse during which any person con-
cerned may make representations with respect to the proposed alteration.
(3) The valuation officer may at any time, if so requested by the rating
authority, cause a valuation list to be altered by the deletion therefrom of
any hereditament which the valuation officer is satisfied has ceased to
exist; and section 79(1) of this Act shall apply in relation to the alteration
of a valuation list under this subsection as it applies in relation to its
alteration under sections 71 to 78 of this Act with the substitution for the
reference in the said section 79(1) to any rate current at the date specified
therein of a reference to any rate current at the date of the request.
(4) In addition to any alterations in the valuation list required by
paragraph 9(4) or 11(9) to (11) of Schedule 4, paragraph 10(b) of
Schedule 6 or paragraph 14(b) of Schedule 7 to this Act or by any order
under [section 19 of the Local Government Act 1974]<sa>s or under paragraph
10 of the said Schedule 4 to be made without a proposal, the valuation
officer shall without any proposal--b
(a) from time t0 time cause such alterations to be made in the list as
may be requisite for deleting from the list any premises which by
virtue of section 33(1)(a) of this Act are not liable to be rated;
(b) cause the list to be altered by the deletion therefrom of any
property which he is satisfied has, by virtue of section 38(2) of
the Local Government Act 1966, ceased to be rateable.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Goverument, Hanning and Land Act .980 sch. 33 para. 11. (for
commencement see s.47).
<sb>s See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.1(6).
B107
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Supplementary provisions as to proceedings>2
<281.>2--(1) Any person may include in the same proposal, objection or
other proceeding under this Part of this Act all or any hereditaments
comprised in the same valuation list as respects which he has a right to
make or bring any such proposal, objection or other proceeding, notwith-
standing that they are separately assessed in that list, if, but only if, those
hereditaments are owner or occupied by the same person or are compris-
ed in the same building.
(2) Every owner who is rated under section 55 of this Act instead of the
occupier, or who enters into an agreement with the rating authority under
section 56 of this Act, in respect of any hereditaments shall, without
prejudice to the rights of the occupier of any of those hereditaments, be
treated for the purposes of the provisions of this Part of this Act relating
to proposals, objections and appeals as standing in the same position as
the occupier.
(3) Where any premises are unoccupied, any reference in this Part of
this Act to the occupier shall be construed as a reference to the owner of
the premises:
Provided that, where the owner is unknown and by virtue of subsection
(2) of section 109 of this Act a notice addressed to the occupier has been
served in accordance with that section, that notice shall be deemed to
have been duly served on the owner.
(4) Any officer of a rating authority acting under any special or general
resolution of the authority may authorise the institution, carrying on or
defence of any proceedings, or the taking of any step, in relation to a
valuation list which the authority are authorised or required to institute,
carry on, defend or take.
<2Power for valuation officer to call for returns>2
<282.>2--(1) In every case where a new valuation list is to be made for any
rating area, the valuation officer may serve a notice on the occupier,
owner or lessee of any hereditament or premises in the area, or on any
one or more of them, requiring him or them to make a return containing
such particulars as may be reasonably required for the purpose of enabling
him accurately to compile the list.
(2) The valuation officer may at any time in connection with a proposal
which has been made for the alteration of the valuation list for the time
being in force for a rating area, or with a view to the making of such a
proposal, serve a notice on the occupier, owner or lessee of any
hereditament or premises in the area, or on any one or more of them,
requiring him or them to make a return containing such particulars as may
be reasonably required for the purpose of enabling him to decide whether
or not to make or, as the case may be, to object to the proposal.
(3) Every person upon whom a notice to make a return is served in
pursuance of the provisions of this section shall within twenty-one days
after the date 0f the service of the notice make a return in such form as is
required in the notice and deliver it in manner so required to the valuation
officer.
(4) If any person on whom notice has been served under the provisions
of this section fails without reasonable excuse to comply with the notice,
he shall for each offence be liable on summary conviction to a fine not
exceeding [#50]<s1>s
B108
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(5) Where a person is convicted under subsection (4) of this section in
respect of a failure to comply with a notice and the failure continues after
the conviction, then, unless he has a reasonable excuse for the con-
tinuance of the failure, he shall be guilty of a further offence under the
said subsection (4) and may, on summary conviction, be punished
accordingly.
(6) If any person, in a return made under this section, makes any
statement which he knows to be false in a material particular or recklessly
makes any statement which is false in a material particular, he shall be
liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
three months, or to a fine not exceeding [#200]<s1>s, or to both.
<1Section 82(2) to (6) is to be applied for the purposes of art, 15 of the Mixed>1
<1 Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967 No. 637.>1
1. Substitued by Criminal Law Act 1977.
<2Use of returns as evidence>2
<283.>2--(1) The provisions of this section shall apply to the use as
evidence of--
(a) any return made under section 82 of this Act, section 58 of the
Local Government Act 1948, section 40 or 41 of the Rating and
Valuation Act 1925, or section 55, 56 or 57 of the Valuation
(Metropolis) Act 1869;
(b) any return made in compliance with a request of the valuation
officer, being a request made before 31st July 1953 for informa-
tion which would have been reasonably required by the valuation
officer for the purpose of preparing a valuation list if the
Valuation for Rating Act 1953 had been in operation when the
request was made.
(2) Subject to the following provisions of this section, any return to
which this section applies shall in any valuation proceedings be admissible
as evidence of the facts stated in the return; and any document purporting
to be a return to which this section applies shall, in any valuation
proceedings, be presumed, unless the contrary is shown--
(a) to be such a return;
(b) to have been made by the person by whom it purports to have
been made; and
(c) if it purports to have been made by that person as occupier,
oWner or lessee of a hereditament, or in any other capacity
specified in the document, to have been made by him as such
occupier, owner or lessee, or in that other capcity, as the case
may be.
(3) Returns to which this section applies shall not be used by or on
behalf of the valuation officer as evidence in any valuation proceedings
unless--
(a) not less than fourteen days' notice, specifying the returns to be so
used and the hereditaments to which they relate, has previously
been given to the person who made the proposal to which the
proceedings relate (where the proposal was not made by the
valuation officer) and to every person who has served, and has
B109
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
not unconditionally withdrawn, a notice of objection to the
proposal; and
(b) the valuation officer has permitted any such person, who has
given not less than twenty-four hours' notice of his desire to do
so, to inspect at any reasonable time, and to take extracts from,
any of the returns specified in the notice under paragraph (a) of
this subsection.
[<s22>s(3A) Subsection (3) of this section shall apply to any gross values
taken into account by the valuation officer by virtue of section 19(2A)(b)
of this Act as it applies to returns to which this section applies, and--
(a) the reference in paragraph (b) of the said subsection (3) to the
returns there mentioned shall be construed--
(i) in the application of that paragraph to a return relating to
a hereditament in a rating area other than that for which
the valuation officer was appointed, as a reference to a
copy of that return certified by a valuation officer to be a
true copy;
(ii) in the application of that paragraph to any of the gross
values taken into account as aforesaid, as a reference to
such a copy of the relevant part of the relevant valuation
list as is referred to in section 84 of this Act;
(<1b>1) subsection (2) of this section shall apply to such a copy of a return
as is referred to in paragraph (a)(i) of this subsection as it would
apply to the return itself.]
(4) Subsections (2) and (3) of this section shall not apply to any
proceedings relating to the ascertainment of the net annual value of a
hereditament on the profits basis:
Provided that this subsection shall not be construed as preventing the use
of any return in any such proceedings in circumstances where the return
could be so used apart from this section.
(5) Any person to whom notice relating to any hereditaments has been
given under subsection (3)(a) of this section for the purposes of any
valuation proceedings may give notice to the valuation officer specifying
one or more other hereditaments as being hereditaments which are
comparable in character or are otherwise relevant to the said person's
case, and requiring the valuation officer--
(a) to permit him at any reasonable time specified in the notice
under this subsection to inspect, and (if he so desires) to take
extracts from, all returns (if any) to which this section applies
which relate to those other hereditaments and are in the poses-
sion of the valuation officer; and
(b) to produce to him at the hearing such of those returns as before
the hearing he has informed the valuation officer that he
requires:
Provided that the number of hereditaments specified in a notice under
this subsection shall not exceed the number of hereditaments specified in
accordance with paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of this section in the
notice given by the valuation officer under that paragraph.
(6) Where a notice has been given to the valuation officer under
subsection (5) of this section, and the valuation officer refuses or fails to
B110
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
comply with the notice, the person who gave the notice may apply to the
court or tribunal before which the valuation proceedings in question are to
be brought; and if on any such application the court or tribunal is satisfied
that it is reasonable to do so, the court or tribunal may by order direct the
valuation officer to comply with the notice, either with respect to all the
hereditaments specified therein or with respect to such one or more of
those hereditaments as the court or tribunal may determine.
(7) Subsection (6) of this section shall apply, with the necessary
modifications, to proceedings on an arbitration as it applies to proceed-
ings before a court.
(8) An appeal shall lie from the decision of a local valuation court on an
application under subsection (6) of this section as if it were a decision in
the valuation proceedings to which the application relates.
(9) In this section "valuation proceedings" means any of the following,
that is to say, any proceedings on or in conseuqence of an appeal to a local
valuation court, and any proceedings on or in consequence of a reference
to arbitration under section 78 of this Act.
22. Section 83(3A) added by General Rate Act 1970 (c.19), s.1(2).
<2Evidence of valuation lists>2
<284>2. The contents of a valuation list . . .<s23>s, or an extract from any such
list, may be proved by the production of a copy of the list or of the
relevant part thereof purporting to be certified by the clerk of the rating
authority to be a true copy.
<s23>s. Words repealed by General Rate Act 1970 (c.19), s.1(3).
<2Duty of local authorities with respect to alteration of valuation list>2
<285.>2--(1) If in the course of the exercise of their functions any
information comes to the notice of any local authority which leads them to
suppose that a valuation list requires alteration as respects a hereditament
it shall be the duty of that authority to inform the valuation officer.
(2) In this section, the expression "local authority" means the council of
a county, . . .<s24>s, London borough or county district, the Greater London
Council, or the Common Council of the City of London, and includes any
joint committee of any two or more local authorities and any joint
authority on which any local authority are represented.
24. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
<2Powers of entry of valuation officer>2
<286.>2--(1) The valuation officer and any person authorised by him in
writing in that behalf shall have power, at all reasonable times and after
giving not less than twenty-four hours' notice in writing and, in the case of
a person authorised as aforesaid, on production if so required of his
authority, to enter on, survey and value any hereditament in the area for
which the valuation officer acts.
(2) If any person wilfully delays or obstructs any person in the exercise
of any of his powers under this section, he shall be liable on summary
conviction to a fine not exceeding five pounds.
<1Section 86 is to apply for the purposes of the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)>1
<1Regulations 1967 No. 637.>1
B111
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Duty of rating authority to give effect to directions as to aiteration of list>2
<287.>2--(1) The rating authority shall give effect to any directions Which
may from time to time be given to them by the valuation officer in
pursuance of any provision of this Act authorising or requiring the
valuation officer to cause or direct alterations to be made in a valuation
list.
<1Local valuation courts and panels>1
<2Constitution of local valuation courts and panels>2
<288.>2--(1) Local valuation courts constituted as hereinafter provided
shall be convened as often as may be necessary for the purpose of hearing
and determining appeals under the foregoing provisions of this Part of this
Act against objections to proposals for the alteration of valuation lists.
(2) The local valuation court which hears and determines an appeal with
respect to any hereditament shall consist of members of a local valuation
panel constituted under a scheme for the time being in force for the
purposes of this section, being, subject to subsections (3) and (4) of this
section, the panel for the area within which that hereditament is situated.
(3) Regulations made by the Minister may provide, in relation to
hereditaments the value of which is or may be ascertained on the profits
basis, that jurisdiction as respects all or any of the hereditaments occupied
for the purposes of a particular undertaking shall be exercised by a local
valuation court consisting of members of such one of the local valuation
panels within whose areas any of those hereditaments are situated as may
be specified by or under the regulations.
(4) The Minister may by regulations make provision whereby heredita-
ments which are within the same curtilage, or are contiguous and in the
same occupation, but (in either case) not within the area of a single local
valuation panel, shall be treated for the purposes of appeals to local
valuation courts as both or all being within the area of such one of the
local valuation panels in question as may be determined by or under the
regulations; and any such regulations may revoke so much of any scheme
for the purposes of this section as makes provision for treating as in the
same area hereditaments which are within the same curtilage or con-
tiguous and in the same occupation.
(5) Subject to subsection (6) of this section, a local valuation court shall
consist of--
(a) either the chairman of the local valuation panel or the deputy
chairman (or, if more than one, one of the deputy chairmen) of
the panel; and
(b) two other members of the panel selected in accordance with the
scheme under which the panel is constituted.
(6) If all persons appearing before a local valuation court on the hearing
of an appeal consent thereto, the court may consist of any two of the
persons mentioned in subsecti0n (5) of this section; but if the members of
a court so constituted are unable to agree on a decision, the appeal shall
be reheard by another valuation court.
<1Section 88 extended by Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70), s.172, sch. 13 para.>1
<129.>1
<1Section 88(5) (6) applied by Agriculture (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1968>1
<1(c.34), s.33(1).>1
<1See Local Valuation Panels (jurisdiction) Regulations 1967 No. 636.>1
B112
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Schemes for purposes of section 88>2
<289.>2--(1) Subject to section 90 of this Act, each scheme for the purposes
of section 88 of this Act shall provide, as respects any local valuation panel
to which the scheme relates--
(a) for fixing the number of members of the panel and for determin-
ing their respective tenures of office and the persons by whom
they are to be appointed respectively; and
(b) for the appointment of one of those members as chairman of the
panel and of such number of the members as the scheme may
provide as deputy chairmen thereof;
(c) subject to the provisions of the said section 88, for the manner in
which members of local valuation courts are to be selected from
members of the panel.
(2) Subject to section 91 of this Act, any scheme in force for any area on
the date of commencement of this Act under section 45 of the Local
Government Act 1948 or under paragraph 19 of Schedule 15 to the
London Government Act 1963 shall be in force for that area on and after
that date for the purposes of the said section 88.
<1Section 89 extended by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), s.172, sch. 13 para.>1
<129.>1
<2Disqualification for membership of panels>2
<290>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a person shall be
disqualified from being appointed or being a member of any local
valuation panel if he is a person who--
(a) has been adjudged bankrupt; or
(b) has made a composition or arrangement with his creditors; or
(c) has, within the five years immediately preceding his appointment
or since his appointment, been convicted in the United King-
dom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man of any offence and
ordered to be imprisoned for a period of three months or more
without the option of a fine.
(2) A disqualification attaching to a person by reason of subsection
(1)(a) of this section shalI cease--
(a) if the bankruptcy is annulled on the ground that he ought not to
have been adjudged bankrupt or that his debts have been paid in
full, on the date of the annulment; or
(b) if he is discharged with a certificate that the bankruptcy was
caused by misfortune without any misconduct on his part, on the
date of his discharge; or
(c) in any other case, on the expiration of five years from the date of
his discharge.
(3) A disqualification attaching to a person by reason of subsection
(1)(b) of this section shall cease--
(a) if he pays his debts in full, on the date on which the payment is
completed; or
(b) in any other case, on the expiration of five years from the date on
which the terms of the deed of composition or arrangement are
fulfilled.
B113
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(4) for the purposes of subsection (1)(c) of this section, the ordinary
date on which the period allowed for making appeal from a conviction
expires, or, if such an appeal is made, the date on which it is finally
disposed of or abandoned or fails by reason of the non-prosecution
thereof, shall be deemed to be the date of the conviction.
<2New schemes for purposes of section 88>2
<291>2.--(1) Any scheme for the time being in force for the purposes of
section 88 of this Act may be revoked or varied--
(a) by a new scheme made and submitted to and approved by the
Minister in accordance with subsections (2) to (5) of this section;
or
(b) by a new scheme made by the Minister on a representation made
by any local valuation panel or valuation officer and after
consultation with any of the following councils concerned, name-
ly, the council of any county . . .<s25>s and the Greater London
Council.
(2) A new scheme under subsection (1)(a) of this section for any area
may be made by that one of the councils aforesaid within whose area the
area to which the new scheme relates is situated; and any two or more of
the councils aforesaid may, and if so directed by the Minister shall, make
under the said subsection (1)(a) a joint new scheme providing for a local
valuation panel or local valuation panels for the whole of their respective
areas, or for areas which together comprise the whole of their respective
areas.
(3) The council or councils by whom a new scheme is made under
subsection (1)(a) of this section shall submit it to the Minister and, as soon
as they have so submitted it, shall publish in one or more newspapers
circulating in their area or areas a notice stating that it has been so
submitted and that a copy is open to inspection at a specified place.
(4) . . .<s25>s, the council or councils submitting a scheme under subsection
(3) of this section shall, at the same time as they submit it, send a copy of it
to each of the rating authorities within the area of that council or any of
those councils.
(5) No scheme submitted to the Minister under subsection (3) of this
section shall be of any effect unless and until it is approved by the
Minister; and the Minister, after considering any objections to the scheme
which may be submitted to him by persons appearing to him to be
interested, may approve the scheme with or without modifications.
(6) Before a new scheme is made by the Minister under subsection
(1)(b) of this section, he shall publish in one or more newspapers
circulating in the area to which the scheme relates a notice stating his
proposal to make the scheme, and that a copy of a draft of the scheme is
open to inspection at a specified place, and specifying a date by which any
person may send to him any representations respecting the draft.
<1Section 91 extended by Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70), s.172, sch. 30 para.>1
<129.>1
25. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
<2Staff, expenses etc., of local valuation panels and courts>2
<292>2.--(1) To assist the panel, the chairman thereof and the local
valuation courts constituted from members thereof in the performance of
B114
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
their functions under this Part of this Act, every local valuation panel shall
[subject to subsection (1A) of this section]a appoint a person to be their
clerk and may appoint such other officers and servants as they may with
the approval of the Minister determine, and may pay to them such
salaries, allowances and other remuneration as they may with the
approval of the Minister and the Treasury determine, . . .<s1>s; but the
functions of the officers and servants appointed under this subsection shall
not extend to the valuation of hereditaments, and the power to appoint
officers and servants conferred by this subsection shall be exercised
accordingly.
[(1A) Two or more local valuation panels shall appoint one persoon to
be the clerk of the panels if the Secretary of State directs the panels (after
consulting them) to make such an appointment.
(1B) Where the panels mentioned in subsection (1A) of this section do
not agree on the person to be appointed, they shall refer the matter to the
Secretary of State and shall then appoint such person as he directs.]<sa>s
(2) The expenses of every such panel, including the expenses of the
local valuation courts from time to time constituted from the members
thereof, shall be defrayed by the Minister out of moneys provided by
Parliament.
(3) Minutes of the proceedings of a local valuation panel and of a local
valuation court constituted from members thereof shall be kept, and shall
either be kept in books provided for that purpose or be preserved in book
form by means provided for that purpose; and a minute of any such
proceedings signed--
(a) in the case of a meeting of the panel, at the same or the next
subsequent meeting of the panel, by the person acting as
chairman at the meeting at which the minute is signed; and
(b) in the case of a meeting of a local valuation court, at or not later
than two days after the date of the meeting to which the minute
relates, by the person acting as chairman at that meeting,
shall be received in evidence without further proof.
<1Section 92 extended by Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 (c.56), ss.5(1), 7(2), sch. 2>1
<1 para. 62, sch. 3 paras. 1, 2.>1
<1Section 92(1) amended by Agriculture (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1968>1
<1 (c.34), s.36(1), see ago Land Drainage Act 1976 s.79.>1
1. Words repealed by Superannuation Act 1972 (c.11), s.29(4), sch. 8.
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.43.
<1Supplementary provisions>1
<2Memhership of local authority, etc. not to he disqualification in certain>2
<2cases>2
<293.>2--(1) A person shall not be disqualified to act as a member, or as the
clerk or an officer, of a local valuation panel or local valuation court by
reason only that he is--
(a) a member of an authority deriving revenue directly or indirectly
from rates which may be affected by the exercise of his functions;
or
(b) the owner or occupier of any property within any rating area the
rates within which are affected by the exercise of his functions,
B115
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
and a person shall not be disqualified from acting as aforesaid in relation
to any property by reason only that an authority of which he is a member
either own or occupy the whole or any part of that property.
(2) A person shall not be disqualified to act as a valuation officer or
deputy valuation officer by reason only that he is the owner 0r occupier of
any property within any rating area the rates within which are affected by
the exercise of his functions.
(3) Nothing in this section shall authorise any person to whom this
section applies to act in relation to any property which, or any part of
which, he himself owns or occupies.
<2Use of public rooms>2
<294>2.--(1) The valuation officer may request the permission of any
authority (being a county council, the Greater London Council or a rating
authority) the whole or any part of whose area is within the area for which
the officer acts for the use by him and his staff on such days or for such
pen-ods as may be specified in the request of such premises belonging to
the authority as may be so specified, and the authority shall n0t
unreasonably withhold their permission.
(2) The chairman of any local valuation panel may request the
permission of any such authority as aforesaid the whole or any part of
whose area is within the area for which the panel acts for the use for
meetings of the panel or any local valuation court constituted from the
members of the panel, or for the use of the chairman, clerk or officers of
the panel, on such days as may be specified in the request of any premises
belonging to the authority, and the authority shall not unreasonably
withhold their permission.
(3) Any person having the control of any room maintained out of any
rate may put that room at the disposal of the valuation officer or any local
valuation panel or local valuation court for the purpose of the exercise by
them or their officers, or, in the case of a panel, by the chairman thereof,
of any functions directly or indirectly affecting the valuation list by
reference to which that rate is levied.
(4) Where a request is made under subsection (1) or (2) of this section,
any dispute as to whether the permission of the authority in question has
been unreasonably withheld shall be determined by the Minister.
<2Remuneration and expenses of valuation officers>2
<295>2. The remuneration of, and any expenses incurred by, valuation
officers in carrying out their functions under this part of this Act,
including the remuneration and expenses of persons, whether in the
service of the Crown or not, employed to assist valuation officers in the
exercise of those functions, shall be paid out of moneys provided by
Parliament.
PART VI
DISTRESS FOR RATES
<2Enforcement of payment of rates>2
<296.>2--(1) Subject to section 62 of this Act and to subsection (2) of this
section, if any person fails to pay any sum legally assessed on and due
from him in respect of a rate for seven days after it has been legally
B116
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
demanded of him, the payment of that sum may, subject to and in
accordance with the provisions of this Part of this Act, be enforced by
distress and sale of his goods and chattels under warrant issued by a
magistrates' court; and, if there is insufficient distress, he may be liable to
imprisonment under the provisions of this part of this Act in that behalf.
(2) Where the rates charged on any person in respect of any heredita-
ment are under section 3(4) or section 50(1) of this Act payable by
instalments, [in any year, those rates shall not be recoverable before the
end of the year except]<sa>s to the extent of each respectively of those
instalments as and when it falls due; and for the purposes of subsection (1)
of this section no sum by way of rates in respect of any year or part of a
year shall be treated as having been legally demanded from any person in
respect of any hereditament in respect of which he is entitled to give but
has not given a notice under the said section 50(1) until the expiration of
the period for the giving of such a notice by that person in that year.
(3) The reference in subsection (1) of this section to a sum legally
assessed on and due from a person in respect of a rate shall include a
reference to a sum a person is liable to pay in respect of any rate to which
section 177 of the City of London Sewers Act 1848 applies, and references
in other provisions of this Part of this Act to a sum to which a person has
been rated or to the rating or assessment of a person shall be construed
accordingly.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.34.
<2Application for warrant of distress>2
<297.>2--(1) The proceedings for the issue of a warrant of distress under
this Part of this Act may be instituted by making complaint before a
justice of the peace and applying for a summons requiring the person
named in the complaint to appear before a magistrates' court to show why
he has not paid the rate specified in the complaint.
(2) The forms of complaint and summons in Schedule 12 to this Act, or
forms to the like effect, may be used in proceedings under this Part of this
Act.
(3) If the person summoned fails to appear in obedience to the
summons and it is proved to the magistrates' court on oath, or in such
other manner as may be prescribed by rules under [section 144 of the
Magistrates' Courts Act 1980]<sa>s, that the summons was duly served a
reasonable time before the time appointed by the summons for his
appearance, the magistrates' court may, if it thinks fit, proceed in his
absence as if he had appeared in person in obedience to the summons.
<sa>s Substituted by the Magistrates, Courts Act 1980
<2Statement of case on application for warrant>2
<298.>2 The justices may state a case under [the Magistrates' Courts Act
1980]<sa>s when called upon to issue a warrant of distress under this Part of
this Act.
<sa>s Substituted by the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980.
<2Execution of warrant of distress>2
<299>2.--(1) A warrant of distress under this Part of this Act may be
directed to the rating authority, to the constables of the police area in
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
which the warrant is issued and to such other persons, if any, as the
magistrates' court issuing the warrant may think fit, and the warrant shall
authorise the persons to whom it is directed to levy the amount which the
person against whom the warrant is issued is liable to pay by distress and
sale of his goods and chattels.
(2) The foregoing provisions of this Part of this Act shall not affect the
operation of any enactrnent which protect goods and chattels of any class
from distress or which restricts in any other manner the right to obtain a
warrant of distress or its execution.
(3) A warrant of distress under this Part of this Act may be executed
anywhere in England or Wales by any person to whom it is directed or by
any constable acting within his police area.
(4) The forms of warrant of distress in Schedule 12 to this Act, or forms
to the like effect, may be used in proceedings under this Part of this Act
and, to save expense, one warrant of distress may be issued against any
number of persons in default, as in the second of the said forms.
(5) Any person aggrieved by a distress under this Part of this Act for a
rate may appeal to the next court of quarter sessions . . .<s26>s and the appeal
shall be heard and finally determined by that court.
(6) A distress under this Part of this Act shall not be deemed to be
unlawful on account of any defect or want of form in the rate or
assessment or in the warrant of distress and no person making the distress
shall be deemed a trespasser on that account.
(7) No person making a distress under this Part of this Act shall be
deemed to be a trespasser from the beginning on account of any
subsequent irregularity in the execution of the warrant of distress, but a
person who has sustained special damage by reason of the irregularity may
recover full satisfaction for the special damage (and no more) by
proceedings in trespass or otherwise.
<1Section 99(5) arnended with the substitution of a reference to the Crown Court for>1
<1the reference to a court of quarter sessions by Courts Act 1971 (c.23),>1
<1s.56(2), sch. 9 Pt. 1.>1
26. Words repealed by Courts Act 1971 (c.23), sch. 11 Pt. IV.
<2Costs of obtaining warrant of distress>2
<2100.>2--(1) The magistrates' court issuing a warrant of distress under this
Part of this Act may, if it thinks fit, include in the warrant an order that
such sum as it may deem reasonable for the costs incurred in obtaining the
warrant shall be levied under the warrant.
(2) This section shall have effect subject to the restriction on the
allowance of costs imposed by the Poor Rates Recovery Act 1862 (which,
in a case where several rates of the same or different kinds are due from
the same person, authorises their inclusion in one warrant of distress or
other document and directs that no costs be allowed if several such
documents are used where one would be enough).
<2Charges- for levying distress>2
<2101.>2--(1) The Minister may make an order regulating the charges in
respect of, and incidental to, the levying of distress for rates; and a
warrant of distress under this Part of this Act may provide that the charges
attending the distress, to the amount authorised by the order, shall be
levied under the warrant.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing subsection, an
order under this section may include provision as to charges [in cases
where the levy is not made and]<sa>s in cases where, in pursuance of an
agreement in that behalf, the goods distrained are not removed from the
premises where the distress is levied, whether any person is left in physical
possession of the goods or not.
(3) An order under this section may contain such incidental and
supplementary provisions (including provisions as to the settlement of
disputes with respect to any charges to which the order relates) as may
appear to the Minister to be necessary or expendient for the purposes of
the order.
<sa>s Inserted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.38.
<2Imprisonment in default of sufficiency of distress>2
<2102.>2--(1) If the person charged with the execution of a warrant of
distress for levying a sum to which some other person has been rated
makes a return to the magistrates' court that he could find no goods or
chattels (or no sufficient goods or chattels) on which to levy the sums
directed to be levied under the warrant on that other person's goods and
chattels, a magistrates' court may, if it thinks fit, and subject to the
provisions of section 103 of this Act,
a[(a)] issue a warrant of commitment against that other person] or
(b) fix a term of imprisonment and postpone the issue of the
warrant until such time and on such conditions (if any) as the
court thinks just].<sa>s
(2) A warrant of commitment under this section may be directed to the
rating authority, to the constables of the police area in which the warrant
is issued and to such 0ther persons, if any, as the magistrates' court issuing
the warrant may think fit; and the warrant may be executed anywhere in
England or Wales by any person to whom it is directed or by any
constable acting within his police area.
(3) The warrant of commitment shall be made not only for non-
payment of the sum alleged to be due for rates but also for--
(a) such costs incurred in obtaining the warrant of distress as may
have been included in the warrant of distress;
(b) the charges attending the distress; and
(c) the costs of commitment;
and the said costs and charges shall be stated in the warrant of commit-
ment.
(4) The form of warrant of commitment in Schedule 12 to this Act, or a
form to the like effect, may be used in proceedings under this Part of this
Act.
(5) The order in the warrant of commitment shall be that the said
person be imprisoned for a time therein specified but not exceeding three
months, unless the sums mentioned in the warrant shall be sooner paid;
but
[(a) where the warrant is issued after a postponement under subsec-
tion (1)(b) of this section and, since the term of imprisonment
was fixed, the total of the sums referred to in subsection (3) of
this section other than the costs of commitment has been
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
reduced by part payment, the period of imprisonment imposed
shall be the term fixed under subsection (1)(b) of this section
reduced by such number of days as bears to the total number of
days in that term less one day the same proportion as the part
paid bears to that total; and
(b)]a if payment is made in accordance with rules under section 15 of
the Justices of the Peace Act 1949 of part of the said sums
mentioned in the warrant, the period of imprisonment shall be
reduced by such number of days as bears to the total number of
days in the period specified in the warrant less one day the same
proportion as the amount so paid bears to so much of the said
sums as was due at the time when the period of imprisonment
was imposed; and in calculating [a reduction required under
paragraph (a) or (b) of]<sb>s this subsection any fraction of a day
shall be left out of account.
(6) A single warrant of commitment shall not be issued under this
section against more than one person.
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.39.
<sb>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.39.
<2Inquiry as to means before issue of warrant of commitment>2
<2103.>2--(1) Section 102 of this Act shall have effect subject to and in
accordance with the following provisions:--
(a) on the application for the issue of a warrant for the commitment
of any person, the magistrates' court shall make inquiry in his
presence as to whether his failure to pay the sum to which he was
rated and in respect of which the warrant of distress was issued
was due either to his wilful refusal or to his culpable neglect;
(b) if the magistrates' court is of opinion that the failure of the said
person to pay the said sum was not due either to his wilful refusal
or to his culpable neglect, it shall not issue the warrant [or fix a
term of imprisonment].<sa>s
(2) Where on the application no warrant of commitment is issued, [or
term of imprisonment fixed]<sa>s the magistrates' court may remit the
payment of any sum to which the application relates, or of any part of that
sum.
(3) Where on the application no warrant 0f commitment is issued, [or
term 0f imprisonment fixed]<sa>s the application may be renewed, except so
far as regards any sum remitted under subsection (2) of this section, on the
ground that the circumstances of the person to whom the application
relates have changed.
(4) A statement in writing to the effect that wages of any amount have
been paid to a person during any period, purporting to be signed by or on
behalf of his employer, shall be evidence of the facts therein stated in any
proceedings taken before a magistrates' court under this Part of this Act
against that person.
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 19s0 s.39.
<2Attendance of defaulter for purpose of inquiry>2
<2104.>2--(1) For the purpose of enabling inquiry to be made in his
presence as to the conduct and means of a person in relation to whom a
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
return of insufficiency of distress has been made as mentioned in section
102(1) of this Act, a justice of the peace having jurisdiction in the petty
sessions area in which the return is made may at any time issue a summons
to that person to appear before a magistrates' court having jurisdiction
under this Part of this Act and, if he does not appear in obedience to the
summons, may issue a warrant for his arrest or, without issuing a
summons, issue in the first instance a warrant for his arrest.
(2) Where a warrant is issued under this section, then, unless the sum in
respect of which the warrant is issued is sooner paid to the police officer
holding the warrant, the warrant may be executed in the like manner, and
the like proceedings may be taken for the execution thereof, in any part of
the United Kingdom, as if it had been a warrant of arrest issued under
section 15 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1952.
<2Abatement of proceedings on payment of rate and costs>2
<2105.>2--(1) If after proceedings have been taken under this Part of this
Act against a person to compel payment of any sum for rates, but not after
he has been imprisoned in default of a sufficiency of distress, that person
pays or tenders to the rating authority, or to some other person authorised
to receive the rates, the sum sought to be recovered together with the
amount of all costs and charges up to that time incurred in the proceed-
ings, the rating authority or other person shall accept the amount so paid
or tendered and no further proceedings shall be taken for the recovery
thereof.
(2) If after the issue of a warrant of distress under this Part of this Act
for a rate the person against whom it is issued tenders the amount of the
rate before any levy is made, he shall nonetheless be liable to pay the cost
of the warrant and of any person for his attendance to make the levy.
<2Jurisdiction of justices>2
<2106.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of section 104(1) of this Act, justices
of the peace may act under the provisions of this part of this Act as
respects a rate if they are justices appointed for an area which comprises
the rating area or, in Greater London, a part of the rating area.
(2) Subject to any enactment in any other Act authorising a stipendiary
magistrate or other person to act by himself, a magistrates' court shall not
hear a summons for the issue of a warrant of distress under this Part of this
Act, or entertain an application for a warrant of commitment under this
part of this Act, or hold an inquiry as to means on such an application,
except when composed of at least two justices.
<2Application of other Acts>2
<2107.>2--(1) for the purposes of [section 145(3) of the Magistrates' Courts
Act 1980]<sa1>s (under which enactments passed before 16th December, 1949
may be amended by rules governing the procedure of magistrates' courts),
this Part of this Act shall be deemed to have been passed before that date.
(2) Nothing in the Distress (Costs) Act 1817, as extended by the
Distress (Costs) Act 1827 (which make provision as to the costs and
expenses chargeable in respect of the levying of certain distresses) shall
apply to distress for rates.
<sa1>s Substituted by the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2[Security for unpaid rates>2
<2107A.>2 Where any sum is due by way of rates in respect of a domestic
hereditament from a person who has an interest in the hereditament, he
and the rating authority may agree--
(a) that his interest shall be charged to secure payment of that sum
together with interest on it from the date of the agreement at a
rate specified in the agreement, and
(b) that the authority shall not exercise any powers conferred by this
Act to recover that sum by distress or otherwise;
and on the making of such agreement those powers shall cease to be
exercisable in respect of that sum.]<sa>s
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.40.
PART VII
MISCELLANEOUS AND GENERAL
<2Inspection of documents>2
<2108.>2--(1) Any ratepayer (whether a ratepayer in the rating area to
which the documents relate or in some other area) and any valuation
officer (for whatever area) may at all reasonable times, on payment in the
case of a document which is more than ten years old of the prescribed fee,
and in any other case without payment, inspect and take copies of and
extracts from--
(a) any valuation list, whether prepared under Part V of this Act,
under Part III of the Local Government Act 1948, or under the
Rating and Valuation Act 1925;
(b) any draft list prepared under the said Act of 1925;
(c) any notice of objection, proposal or notice of appeal with respect
to any such valuation list;
(d) minutes of the proceedings of any local valuation court consti-
tuted under the said Part V or Part III;
(e) any record of totals prepared under the said Act of 1925;
<1if)>1 any valuation made by a valuer appointed by an assessment
committee constituted under the said Act of 1925;
(g) minutes of the proceedings under the said Act of 1925 of any
such assessment committee;
(h) minutes of the proceedings under this Act or the said Act of 1925
of any rating authority.
(2) If any person having the custody of any document to which
subsection (1) of this section applies--
(a) obstructs any person in making any inspection or taking a copy
thereof or extract therefrom which he is entitled to make under
this section; or
(b) demands, when not authorised under this Act, a fee for allowing
him so to do,
he shall on summary conviction be liable for each offence to a fine not
exceeding [#25].<sz>s
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(3) for the purposes of this section the expression "ratepayer" includes
an occupier who pays a rent inclusive of rates, and also includes any
person authorised by a ratepayer to act on his behalf under this section.
<sz>s Substituted by Criminal Law Act 1977.
<2Service of notices, etc.>2
<2109.>2--(1) Any notice, demand note, application, summons, order or
other document of any description required or authorised to be sent,
given, made or served under or for the purposes of this Act may be sent,
given, made or served either--
(a) by delivering it to the person to or on whom it is to be sent,
given, made or served; or
(b) by leaving it at the usual or last known place of abode of that
person, or in the case of a company at its registered office; or
(c) by forwarding it by post addressed to that person at his usual or
last known place of abode, or in the case of a company at its
registered office; or
(d) by delivering it to some person on the premises to which it relates
or (except in the case of a summons) if there is no person on the
premises to whom it can be so delivered, then by fixing it on
some conspicuous part of the premises; or
(e) without prejudice to the foregoing provisions of this subsection,
where the hereditament to which the document relates is a place
of business of the person to or on whom it is to be sent, given,
made or served, by leaving it at, or forwarding it by post
addressed to that person at, the said place of business.
(2) Any such document as aforesaid by this Act required or authorised
to be served on the owner or occupier of any premises may be addressed
by the description of "owner" or "occupier" of the premises (naming
them) without further name or description.
(3) Any such document as aforesaid--
(a) if required or authorised for the purposes of this Act to be sent,
given, made or transmitted to or served on any public or local
authority shall be deemed to be duly sent, given, made, transmit-
ted or served if in writing and delivered at or sent by post to the
office of the authority addressed to that authority or to their
clerk;
(b) if required or authorised to be sent, given, made, transmitted or
served under this Act by any authority or body shall be sufficient-
ly authenticated if signed by the clerk of the authority or body.
(4) Any notice required by this Act to be served on the valuation officer
need not name the valuation officer but may describe him as the valuation
officer for the rating area in question, without further description, and
may be served by post.
(5) The foregoing provisions of this section shall be without prejudice to
paragraph 8(6) of Schedule 1 to this Act and to the application to the
service of documents under Part VI of this Act of any rules made under
section 15 of the Justices of the Peace Act 1949.
(6) In this section, the expression "local authority" means any body
having power to levy a rate or to issue a precept to a rating authority.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<2Inquiries>2
<2110.>2 The Minister may direct any inquiries to be held by his inspectors
which he might have directed to be so held under section 61(1) of the
Rating and Valuation Act 1925 if this Act had not been passed.
<2Interest in municipal property not to disqualify>2
<2111.>2 The interest of any council in any property of which they or the
corporation for which they act are owners or occupiers shall not disqualify
the council or any member thereof for acting under this Act in relation to
that property.
<2Treatment of certain payments>2
<2112.>2 Any sums received under section 32(5) of this Act--
(a) where received by the council of a borough . . .<s27>s, shall be
receipts for the benefit of the whole of the borough . . .<s27>s-
(b) where received by the council of a . . .<s28>s district, shall be receipts
in respect of general expenses;
and any other sums received under this Act by any authority, not being
receipts from a rate, shall be applied in the reduction of the expenses of
the authority under this Act.
27. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), s 172, sch. 13 para. 28(5), sch. 30.
28. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), s. 172, sch. 13 para. 28(5), sch. 30.
<2Power to make rules>2
<2113.>2--(1) The Minister, after consultation with any local authority or
association of local authorities with whom consultation appears to him to
be desirable, may by rules--
(a) prescribe anything which by this Act is to be prescribed and the
form of [<s29>sor the matters to be specified in] any rate, demand
note, valuation list, statement, return or other document what-
soever which is required or authorised to be used under or for the
purposes of this Act;
(b) make any provision required by section 14(1) of this Act to be
made by rules;
(c) make provision as to the manner in which the product of a rate of
one [<s30>snew penny] in the pound for any area is to be estimated or
determined for such purposes of this Act and of any other Act,
whether passed before or after this Act, as may be specified by
the rules.
(2) Rules made by virtue of subsection (1)(c) of this section may--
(a) make different provision for different purposes;
(b) repeal any provisions of, or of an instrument made under, this
Act or any Act passed before 13th December, 1966 which the
Minister considers will become unnecessary in consequence of
the rules;
(c) amend any provisions of, or of an instrument made under, this
Act or any Act passed before 13th December, 1966 in such
manner as the Minister considers appropriate in consequence of
the rules;
(d) provide that the provisions of any instrument having effect by
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
virtue of an enactment repealed or amended by the rules shall
continue in force as if they were contained in the rules.
(3) Any rules made under this section shall be subject to annulment in
pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
<1Section 113 amended by Transport Act 1968 (c. 73), s.13(5).>1
<1 Section 113(1)(a) amended by Water Act 1973 (c.37), s.32A(3).>1
29. Words inserted by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 7 para. 8.
30. Words substituted by Decimal Currenry Act 1969 (c.19), sch. 2 para. 28(1)(4).
<2Rules, regulations and orders--general provisions>2
<2114.>2--(1) Any power to make rules, regulations or orders under this
Act shall be exercisable by statutory instrument.
(2) Any regulations made under this Act shall be subject to annulment
in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(3) Any order made under any provision of this Act other than section
52(1) may be varied or revoked by a subsequent order under that
provision.
<1Section 114 extended by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.22(3).>1
<21nterpretation>2
<2115.>2--(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires, the
following expressions have the following meanings respectively, that is to
say--
"agricultural land" has the meaning assigned by section 26(3) of this
Act [<s31>sand section 1 of the Rating Act 1971];
"charges", in Part VI of this Act, includes fees and expenses;
"clerk", in relation to any authority or body, includes any officer of the
authority or body authorised by them to act on their behalf either
generally or in relati0n to any particular matter;
"the Commissioners" means the Commissioners of Inland Revenue;
"dwelling-house" means a hereditament which, in accordance with
Schedule 13 to this Act, is used wholly for the purposes of a private
dwelling or private dwellings;
"excepted rate" means any of the following, that is to say--
(a) any rate which is assessed under any commission of sewers, or in
respect of any drainage, wall, embankment, or other work for
the benefit of the land;
(b) any rate of the description commonly known as a church rate, a
tithe rate, or a rector's rate, or any other rate of a similar
character;
(c) any rate which is leviable by the conservators of a common;
(d) any rate payable by consumers for a supply of water;
(e) any rate of the description commonly known as a garden rate or
square rate, if levied by any persons other than a rat1ng
authority;
"hereditament" means property which is or may become liable to a
rate, being a unit of such property which is, or would fall to be, shown
as a separate item in the valuation list;
"local Act" includes a provisional order confirmed by Act of
Parliament;
B125
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
"the Minister" means, subject to subsection (2) of this section, the
Minister of Housing and Local Government;
"owner"--
(a) except in, or in connection with, section 49, 50, 55 or 56 of this
Act and except in section 60 of or Schedule 1 to this Act, means
any person for the time being receiving or entitled to receive the
rack-rent of the lands or premises in connection with which the
word is used, whether on his own account or as agent or trustee
for any other person, or who would so receive or be entitled to
receive that rent if the lands or premises were let on a rack-rent;
(b) in, or in connection with, the said section 49, 50, 55 [56 or 60]<sz>s,
means the person who is, or if the hereditament in connection
with which the word is used were occupied would be, entitled to
receive the rent payable in respect thereof or, where that
hereditament is occupied free of rent, the person by whose
permission it is so occupied;
"prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under section 113 of this
Act;
"profits basis", in relation to the valuation of a hereditament, means
the ascertainment of the value of that hereditament by reference to
the accounts, receipts or profits of an undertaking carried on therein;
"rate", subject to section 2(5) of this Act, and except in sections 1 and 2
of this Act and in the expression "excepted rate", means the general
rate and, in the application of Part VI of this Act to the City 0f
London, includes the St. Botoloph tithe rate, that is to say, any rate
made and levied by the Common Council or the Corporation of the
City under the powers transferred to them by the City of London
(Tithes and Rates) Act 1910; and cognate expressions shall be
construed accordingly, so, however, that this definition shall not
affect the construction of the expression "usual tenant's rates" in this
Act, and that expression shall be construed as if this Act had not been
passed;
"rate period" means a year or part of a year, being a year or part for
which a rate is made;
"ratepayer" means a person who is liable to any rate in respect of
property entered in any valuation list;
"rating area" and --rating authority" shall be construed in accordance
with section 1(1) of this Act;
(<s32>s"rating district" means--
(a) as respects Greater London, a rating area or, subject to para-
graph 8(1)(b) of Schedule 4 to this Act, any part of a rating area
which is subject to separate or differential rating (otherwise than
in respect of a garden or square or by reason of any provision of
the City of London (Tithes and Rates) Act 1910 or the City of
London (Tithes) Act 1947);
(b) except as respects Greater London--
(i) any part of a rating area which is subject to separate or
differential rating;
(ii) in a parish or community part of which is so subject, the part
which is not so subject;
(iii) a parish no part of which is so subject;
B126
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(iv) a community which is not co-extensive with the area of a
district and no part of which is so subject;
(v) any part of a rating area in England not falling within
sub-paragraph (i), (ii) or (iii) above;
(vi) any rating area no part of which falls within any of the
foregoing sub-paragraphs].
................................................................<s33>s
"the Temples" means the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple;
"valuation list", in relation to any rating area, means the valuation list
maintained for that area under Part V of this Act;
--valuation officer", in relation to a valuation list, a rating area or any
premises, means any officer of the Commissioners who is for the time
being appointed by the Commissioners to be the valuation officer or
one of the valuation officers, or to be the deputy valuation officer or
one of the deputy valuation officers, in relation to that list, the
valuation list for that rating area or the valuation list for the rating
area in which those premises are situated, as the case may be;
"year" means a period of twelve months beginning with 1st April.
(2) In the application to Wales and Monmouthshire of the following
provisions (and, notwithstanding anything in article 2(1) of the Secretary
of State for Wales and Minister of Land and Natural Resources Order
1965, in those provisions only) of this Act, namely, sections 13, 15, 40(10),
68(2), 88(4), 91, 92, 94(4), 110 and 117(9), and paragraph 10(1) of
Schedule 4, any reference therein to the Minister shall be construed as a
reference to the Secretary of State; and in the application of the said
section 88(4) or the said paragraph 10(1) in relation to a hereditament
falling partly but not wholly in Wales and Monmouthshire, any reference
therein to the Minister shall be construed as references to the Minister of
Housing and Local Government and the Secretary of State acting jointly.
(3) for the purposes of [<s34>ssection 50] of this Act, a hereditament which
is not a dwelling-house shall be deemed to be used mainly for the purposes
of a private dwelling or private dwellings--
(a) if it appears to the rating authority that, having regard to all the
circumstances at the [<s34>sdate of the giving of a notice under
subsection (1) of that section] the proportion of the rateable
value of the hereditament as shown in the valuation list in force
at that date which is attributable to the part of the hereditament
used for the purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings is
greater than the proportion thereof which is attributable to the
part used for other purposes; or
(b)................................................................<sa>s
[<s35>s(c) if at the date of the giving of a notice under the said subsection
(1) a rebate is for the time being payable in respect of the
hereditament or any part thereof under the statutory rate rebate
scheme, within the meaning of Part II of the Local Government
Act 1974 or, as the case may be, a local rate rebate scheme,
within the meaning of that Part].
(4) for the purposes of this Act and of any other Act, whether passed
before or after this Act, a proposal to alter a valuation list shall be taken
B127
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
to be settled when an alteration is made in the list so as to give effect to the
proposal, or to an agreement made in consequence of the proposal, or
when proceedings on an appeal against, or a reference to arbitration
relating to, and objection to the proposal (including any proceedings
consequent on such an appeal or reference to arbitration) are finally
determined, or when the proposal is withdrawn, whichever first occurs.
(5) Any reference in this Act to the alteration of a valuation list includes
a reference to the insertion in the list, or the deletion from the list, of a
hereditament.
(6) Except in so far as the context otherwise requires, a reference in this
Act to an enactment or instrument shall be construed as a reference to
that enactment or instrument as amended or extended by or under any
other enactment or instrument, including any enactment contained in this
Act.
<1Section 115(2) arnended by S.I. 1970/1681>1
<1function of Minister of Housing and Local Government now exercisable by>1
<1Secretary of State: S. 1. 1970/1681>1
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.37, (for commencement see
s.47).
<sa>s Repealed by Local Government Act 1974, sch. 8.
31. Words added by Rating Act 1971 (c.39), s.1(4).
32. Definition substituted by Local Govemment Act 1972 (c.70), s.172, sch. 13 para. 28(6).
33. Definitions of "rubate application" and "rebate period" repealed by Local Government
Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 8.
34. Words substituted by Local Govemment Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 7 para. 9.
35. S. 115(3)(c) substituted by Local Govemment Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 7 para. 9.
<2Construction of references etc.>2
<2116.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, all enactments relating
to the poor rate which were in force immediately before the commence-
ment of this Act, including enactments relating to appeals against a poor
rate, shall, so far as not repealed by this Act or by the Local Government
Act 1966, apply in relation to the general rate.
(2) References in any Act or other document to any rate which is a rate
in lieu of which a general rate under this Act is levied or in lieu of which an
amount is leviable together with, and as an additional item of, the general
rate shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be construed as refer-
ences respectively to the general rate and the additional item thereof.
(3) References in any Act or other document to gross value or gross
estimated rental or to net annual value or rateable value as determined by
valuation lists made under the Union Assessment Acts 1862 to 1880 or as
shown in, or ascertained in accordance with, the Acts relating to the basis
or standard of county rates shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be
construed as references to gross value or net annual value, as the case may
be, as ascertained under section 19 of this Act.
(4) References in any Act or other document to assessable value shall,
except where the term is used in relation to income tax, be construed as
references t0 rateable value as ascertained under this Act.
(5) References in any Act or other document to the valuation list or
supplemental list under the said Acts of 1862 to 1880 shall, unless the
context otherwise requires, be construed as references to the valuation list
under this Act.
B128
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(6) So much of any Act or other document as refers, or as immediately
before the commencement of this Act fell to be construed as referring,
expressly or by implication--
(a) to, or to the Act containing, any enactment repealed and
re-enacted by this Act; or
(b) to, or to the instrument containing, any instrument or provision
of an instrument specified in Part II of Schedule 14 to this Act,
shall, if and so far as the context permits, be construed as referring to, or
as the case may require to the corresponding provision of, this Act.
(7) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (6) of this
section--
(a) any enactment which refers to the procedure for enforcing
payment of poor rate, or to any part of that procedure, shall be
construed as referring to the procedure prescribed by Part VI of
this Act, or to the corresponding part of that procedure; and
(b) the reference in rule 45 of the Magistrates' Courts Rules 1952 to
section 67(2) of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1952 shall include a
reference to section 102(5) of this Act.
(8)...................................................................
<1Repealed by Local Government Act 1972, sch. 30.>1
(9)<sa>s ...........................................................
(10) In Schedule 1 to the Local Government Act 1966--
(a) in paragraph 6 of Part II, for the reference to rules under section
25 of that Act there shall be substituted a reference to rules made
by virtue of section 113(1)(c) of this Act;
(b) in paragraph 1 of Part III, for the reference to section 6 of that
Act there shall be substituted a reference to section 48 of this
Act.
<1Section 116(1) amended by Courts Act 1971 (c.23), s.56(2), sch. 9 Pt. 1.>1
<sa>s <1Texturally amends Rating and Valuation Act 1925 (c.90), s.2(7) and Licening Act 1964>1
<1(c. 26), sch. 2 para. S(a).>1
<2Repeals and savings>2
<2117.>2--(1) The enactments specified in Part I of Schedule 14 to this Act
are hereby repealed to the extent respectively specified in the third
column of that Schedule; and the instruments or parts of instruments
specified in Part II of that Schedule are hereby revoked.
(2) The following enactments, namely, the Rating (Interim Relief) Act
1964 and section 47 of this Act, are hereby repealed as from 1st April
1968 except as respects any period before that date; but nothing in this
Act shall affect the operation of the said Act of 1964 as respects any such
period.
(3) Any instrument in force at the commencement of this Act and
made or having effect as if made under any enactment repealed by and
re-enacted in this Act, and anything whatsoever done under or by virtue
of any such enactment, shall be deemed to have been made or done under
or by virtue of the corresponding provision of this Act; and anything
begun under any such enactment may be continued under this Act as if
begun under this Act.
B129
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(4) Any question with respect to the matters dealt with by this Act
arising in respect of, or of a liability incurred during, any period before the
commencement of this Act shall be determined as if this Act had not been
passed.
(5) Subject as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, nothing therein
contained shall affect--
(a) the principles on which hereditaments are to be valued or any
privilege or any provision for the making of a valuation on any
exceptional principle; or
(b) any exemption from or privilege in respect of rating conferred by
any local Act or order; or
(c) any provision in any local Act under which the owner of a
hereditament is liable to pay or bear a portion of any rate in relief
of the occupier without being entitled to any commission,
reduction, or allowance in respect of that liability; or
(d) any statutory provision authorising appointment of a person to
raise a rate on default being made by a local authority in
performing any duty or making any payment.
(6) Subsection (5) of this section shall not apply to any exemption or
privilege conferred by a local Act or order passed or made before 22nd
December 1925 unless that exemption or privilege either--
(a) is continued in operation by a scheme such as is mentioned in
subsection (7) of this section which is for the time being in force;
or
(b) was enjoyed in practice immediately before the commencement
of this Act;
and, without prejudice to subsection (12) of this section, paragraphs (b) to
(d) of the said subsection (5) shall not apply to the inner London
boroughs, the City of London or the Temples.
(7) Notwithstanding anything in this Act or in the provisions with
respect to county roads of the Highways Act 1959, but subject to
subsections (8) and (9) of this section, any scheme such as is mentioned in
section 64(2) of the Rating and Valuation Act 1925 or section 301 of the
said Act of 1959 for the purpose of securing the continued operation of
any exemption from or privilege in respect of rating, being a scheme in
force immediately before the commencement of this Act, shall continue in
force and have effect as if included in this Act.
(8) In the case of any hereditament the rating authority (or, where the
exemption continued is an exemption from a highways rate, the council of
the county in which the hereditament is situated) and all persons
interested in the hereditament may agree that any privilege or exemption
in respect of that hereditament continued by any such scheme as is
mentioned in subsection (7) of this section shall be surrendered and
extinguished in consideration of such payments as may be agreed between
them.
(9) The Minister may, on an application in that behalf made by any
person affected by a scheme such as is mentioned in subsection (7) of this
section and after publishing notice of the proposed order in such manner
as he thinks proper, by order vary or amend the scheme as he thinks
proper; but if any person, being a person who will in the opinion of the
B130
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Minister be affected by the proposed order, gives notice in writing to the
Minister that he objects to the proposed order--
(a) the Minister shall, before making the order, direct a local inquiry
to be held for the purpose of determining whether the order
ought or ought not to be made; and
(b) if the Minister after receiving the report of the inquiry is of
opinion that the order ought to be made either as originally
proposed by him or with any variations or modifications, he may
make the order accordingly, but, unless the objection is with-
drawn, the order shall be a provisional order only and shall not
be of any validity unless and until it has been confirmed by Act of
Parliament.
(10) Any of the following instruments in force immediately before the
commencement of this Act, that is to say--
(a) any order made under section 66 of the Rating and Valuation
Act 1925 adapting the provisions of any local Act;
(b) any order made under section 70(3) of the Local Government
Act 1948 for the continuance in force of any provision of any
local Act;
(c) any regulations made under section 71 (a) to (c) of the said Act
of 1948,
shall continue in force in the like manner, subject to the like power of
revocation or variation, as if the said section 66, 70(3) or 71(a) to (c), as
the case may be, had been re-enacted in this Act.
(11) Notwithstanding the repeal by this Act of section 5(4) of the
Rating and Valuation Act 1961, section 41(2) of the Pipe-lines Act 1962
and section 3(7) of the Gas Act 1965, the Schedule to the Plant and
Machinery (Rating) Order 1960 shall continue to have effect as amended
by virtue of the said sections 5(4), 41(2) and 3(7).
(12) Nothing in this Act shall affect the operation of any provision of a
local Act or order so far as that provision was in force immediately before
the commencement of this Act.
(13) The provisions of this section and of sections 107 and 116 of this
Act shall be without prejudice to the general application to this Act of
section 38 of the Interpretation Act 1889 (which relates to the effect of
repeals).
<1Section 117(7) extended by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.162 (4) (a).>1
<2Application to Isles of Scilly>2
<2118.>2--(1) Subject to any order under subsection (2) of this section,
references in this Act to a rating area or rating authority shall, in relation
to the Isles of Scilly, be construed as references respectively to those Isles
and to the Council of those Isles.
(2) The Minister may by order direct that the provisions of this Act
shall apply to the Isles of Scilly subject to such exceptions, adaptations
and modifications, if any, as may be specified in the order.
<1Section 118 extended by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7), s.22(3).>1
B131
<2Short title, extent and commencement>2
<2119.>2--(1) This Act may be cited as the General Rate Act 1967.
(2) This Act except section 104(2) and the repeal of section 9(2) of the
Distress for Rates Act 1960 shall not extend to Northern Ireland.
(3) This Act, except as aforesaid and except for paragraph 6 of
Schedule 5, shall not extend to Scotland.
(4) This Act shall come into force on such day as the Minister of
Housing and Local Government may by order appoint, not being earlier
than whichever of the following dates is the latest, that is to say--
(a) 1st April 1967;
(b) the day appointed under section 38(1) of the Local Government
Act 1966;
(c) the date of commencement of the first order to be made under
section 118(2) of this Act.
<1Section 119(4) excluded by General Rate Act 1970 (c.19), s.2(4).>1
<2SCHEDULES>2
SCHEDULE 1
RATING OF UNOCCUPIED PROPERTY
<1Liability to be rated in respect of certain unoccupied property>1
<2 1>2.--(1) Where, in the case of any rating area in which, by virtue of a
resolution under section 17 of this Act, this Schedule is in operation, any
relevant hereditament in that area [<s1>sor, if only a class or classes of relevant
hereditament is or are for the time being specified by a resolution of the
rating authority for the purposes of this paragraph, any relevant heredita-
ment in that area which falls within that class or any of those classes] is
unoccupied for a continuous period exceeding [the standard period]<sa>s, the
owner shall, subject to the provisions of this Schedule, be rated in respect
of that hereditament for any relevant period of vacancy; and the
provisions of this Act shall apply accordingly as if the hereditament were
occupied during that relevant period of vacancy by the owner.
[(1A) In this Schedule -the standard period' means three months or
such other period as the Secretary of State may by order specify.
(1B) An order under sub-paragraph (1A) of this paragraph may specify
different periods in relation to different classes of hereditament].<sb>s
(2) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the amount of any rates
payable by an owner in respect of a hereditament by virtue of this
paragraph shall be [<s2>sthe specified proportion] of the amount which would
be payable if he were in occupation of the hereditament; [. ]<sc>s
B132
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
[(2A) The owner of a relevant hereditament shall not be exempt from
being rated under this Schedule in respect of that hereditament on the
ground that the provisions of section 32, 33 or 34 of this Act would exempt
the hereditament from being liable to be rated or to be included in any
valuation list or in any rate, unless it appears that the relevant provisions
will so exempt it when it is next occupied.
(2B) No reduction shall be made under section 48 of this Act in respect
of any rates payable by an owner by virtue of this paragraph.
(2C) In this paragraph 'the specified proportion', in relation to a
hereditament, means such proportion (not more than the current ceiling)
as may be specified for the purposes of this paragraph by a resolution of
the rating authority for the rating area in which the hereditament is
situated; and different proportions may be so specified in relation to
different classes of hereditament and in relation to hereditaments in
different parts of the rating area.
(2D) Subject to sub-paragraph (2E) of this paragraph, in sub-
paragraph (2C) of this paragraph 'the current ceiling' means the whole of
the amount of rates which, disregarding section 48 of this Act, would be
payable by the owner if he were in occupation of the hereditament<sd>s and,
in a case to which sub-paragraph (2A) or sub-paragraph (2B) of this
paragraph applies, if the hereditament were being used as mentioned in
that sub-paragraph.
(2E) Subject to sub-paragraph (2F) of this paragraph, the Secretary of
State may from time to time by order vary the proportion of the amount
mentioned in sub-paragraph (2D) of this paragraph which is to be the
current ceiling for the purposes of this paragraph.<sb1>s
(2F) No order under sub-paragraph (2E) of this paragraph may so vary
that proportion as to make the current ceiling exceed the whole of the
amount mentioned in sub-paragraph (2D) of this paragraph.
(2G) Different proportions may be specified under sub-paragraph (2E)
of this paragraph in relation to different classes of hereditament and in
relation to hereditaments in different rating areas.]<sa>s
(3) Where a relevant hereditament which is unoccupied becomes
occupied on any day and becomes unoccupied again on the expiration of a
period of less than six weeks beginning with that day, then, for the
purpose of ascertaining [whether the hereditament has been continuously
unoccupied for the standard period]<sa>s and any relevant period of vacancy
in respect of the hereditament, it shall be deemed to have remained
unoccupied on that day and during that period.
(4) In relation to a relevant hereditament which is a newly-erected
dwelling-house within the meaning of this Schedule, the foregoing
provisions of this paragraph and the definition of "relevant period of
vacancy" in paragraph 15 of this Schedule shall have effect as if for any
reference to [the standard period]<sa>s there were substituted a reference to
[the new house period].<sa>s
[(5) In sub-paragraph (4) of this paragraph "the new house period"
means six months or such other period as the Secretary of State may by
order specify.
(6) A statutory instrument containing an order under this paragraph
shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House
of Parliament. ]<sb>s
B133
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
1 Words inserted by Local Government Art 1974 (c.7). s.15(3).
2 Words substituted by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7). s.15(4)
3 Paragraph 1(2A) added by Local Government Art 1974 (c.7). s.15(4)
Does not apply to the rating surcharge, read section 17A General Rate Act 1967 in place of
paragraph 1.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.42.
<sb>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.42.
<sb1>s See the Unoccupied Property Rate (Variation of Current Ceiling) order 1980 No. 2012.
<sc>s Repealed by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, sch. 34 Pt. IX.
<sd>s This ceiling still applies in the case of a house. But for any other type of hereditament the
ceiling is (from 1st April 1981) one half of the rates which would be payable by the owner if he
was in occupation. Unoccupied Property Rate (Variation of Current Ceiling) order 1980 No.
2012.
2. No rates shall be payable under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in
respect of a hereditament for, or for any part of the [standard period]<sa>s
beginning with the day following the end of, any period during which--
(a) the owner is prohibited by law from occupying the hereditament
or allowing it to be occupied;
(b) the hereditament is kept vacant by reason of action taken by or
on behalf of the Crown or any local or public authority with a
view to prohibiting the occupation of the hereditament or to
acquiring it;
(c) the hereditament [<s1>sis the subject of [<s2>sa building preservation
notice as defined by section 58 of the Town and Country
Planning Act 1971 or is included in a list compiled or approved
under section 54 of that Act]] or is notified to the rating authority
by the Minister as a building of architectural or historic interest;
(d) the hereditament is the subject of a preservation order or an
interim preservation notice under the Ancient Monuments Acts
1913 to 1953, or is included in a list published by the Minister of
Public Building and Works under those Acts;<sb>s
(e) an agreement is in force with respect to the hereditament under
section 56(1)(a) of this Act; or
(f) the hereditament is held for the purpose of being available for
occupation by a minister of religion as a residence from which to
perform the duties of his office.
<1Functions of Minister of Public Building and Works now exercisable by Secretary>1
<1 of State: S.I. 1970/1681.>1
Does not apply to the rating surcharge.
1 Words substituted by Town and Country Planning Act 1968 (c.72), s.106. sch. 9 para. 68.
2 Words substituted by Town and Country Hanning Act 1971 (c 78). sch. 23 Pt.II.
<sa>s substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.42.
<sb>s See Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 sch. 4, para. 10(b) will amend
sub-para. (d), from a date to be ordered.
<23.>2 The Minister may by regulations provide that rates shall not be
payable under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in respect of hereditaments of
such descriptions as may be prescribed by the regulations or in such
circumstances as may be so prescribed and the regulations may make
different provision for hereditaments of different descriptions and for
different circumstances.
B134
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
[<233A.>2 without prejudice to section 53 of this Act, a rating authority
shall have power to reduce or remit the payment of any rates payable in
respect of a hereditament by virtue of paragraph 1 of this Schedule if they
consider that the payment would cause hardship to the person liable for
those rates.]
3 Paragraph 3A added by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.15(5).
<24>2. Section 40 of this Act shall apply in relation to any relevant
hereditament to which that section applied when it was last occupied as if
it were used for the purpose for which it was then used.
[<24A>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, section 40 of this
Act shall also apply in relation to any relevant hereditament to which it
did not apply when it was last occupied if--
(a) it is owned by, or by trustees for, a charity; and
(b) such notice as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (2) below is given
by the charity or, as the case may be, the trustees.
(2) The notice is a notice in writing to the rating authority that it is
intended that the hereditament shall be wholly or mainly used for the
purposes of the charity or for the purposes of the charity and of other
charities.
(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (4) below, section 40 of this Act shall
cease to apply to a hereditament by virtue of this paragraph on the expiry
of a period of two years--
(a) from the date on which the hereditament was acquired by the
charity or by trustees for it; or
(b) from the passing of the Local Government, Planning and Land
Act 1980,
whichever is the later.
(4) Section 40 of this Act shall cease to apply to a hereditament by
virtue of this paragraph--
(a) if the hereditament ceases to be owned by the charity or by
trustees for it; or
(b) if it continues to be owned by the charity or by trustees for it, but
it ceases to be the intention of the charity or, as the case may be,
the trustees that it shall be used as mentioned in sub-paragraph
(2) above.]<sa>s
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.42.
<1Determination of rateable values>1
<25>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the rateable value of
a hereditament for the purposes of paragraph 1 thereof shall be the
rateable value ascribed to it in the valuation list in force for the area in
which the hereditament is situated or, if the hereditament is not included
in that list, the first rateable value subsequently ascribed to the heredita-
ment in a valuation list in force for that area.
(2) If the relevant period of vacancy in respect of a hereditament begins
before and ends at or after the time when a new valuation list comes into
force for the area of the rating authority and the hereditament is not
included in the previous valuation list, then--
B135
(a) the valuation officer shall, at the request of the rating authority
or the owner of the hereditament, certify to that authority the
rateable value which in his opinion would (in accordance with
section 20 of this Act) have been ascribed to the hereditament if
it had been included in the previous list by alteration of that list;
(b) the provisions of Part V of this Act shall apply in relation to any
such certificate as if it were a proposal by the valuation officer for
the alteration of a valuation list; and
(c) for the purposes of the liability of the owner to be rated in
respect of so much of the relevant period of vacancy as fell before
the coming into force of the new valuation list, the rateable value
of the hereditament shall be taken to be the value as settled in
pursuance of the certificate and any proceedings consequent
thereon.
(3) Where two or more persons are or have been severally entitled to
possession of different parts of any property which is included in a
valuation list as a hereditament or to which a certificate under sub-
paragraph (2) of this paragraph relates and any of those parts--
(a) consists of property suitable for inclusion in a valuation list as a
separate hereditament; and
(b) would be a relevant hereditament if it were included in a
valuation list as a separate hereditament,
the part may be treated as a relevant hereditament for the purposes of this
Schedule and the valuation officer may give such directions as he thinks fit
for apportioning between those parts the rateable value ascribed to the
property by the list or certificate aforesaid.
<26>2. (1) A rating authority may request the valuation officer to make a
proposal for including in the valuation list in force for their area any
unoccupied building in their area (together with any garden, yard, court or
other land intended for use for the purposes of the building) which in their
opinion is, or when completed will be, a newly erected dwelling-house;
and if the valuation officer thinks fit to comply with the request he may
make a proposal for including the building (together with any such
garden, yard, court or other land as aforesaid) as a dwelling-house in that
list and for ascribing to it in the list such values as he considers are
appropriate or will be appropriate when the building is completed.
(2) Where such a request is made by a rating authority and
the valuation officer serves notice in writing by post or otherwise
on the authority stating that he does not propose to comply with the
request, the rating authority may, if they think fit, within the period of
twenty-eight days beginning with the date of service of the notice, make
a proposal for including the the building and any other land to which the
request relates as a dwelling-house in the list aforesaid and for ascribing
to it in the list such values as the authority consider are appropriate or
will be appropriate when the building is completed.
(3) Where a new valuation list is prepared for any area, the valuation
officer shall include in the list as transmitted to the rating authority--
(a) any dwelling-house included in the current list for that area in
pursuance of a proposal under sub-paragraph (1) or (2) of this
paragraph; and
B136
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) any building (with or without other land) in respect of which a
proposal for its inclusion in the current list as a dwelling-house
has been made by him under the said sub-paragraph (1) and has
not been settled,
and if any such proposal is made by him after the new list has been so
transmitted, shall cause that list to be altered so as to include the building
(with or without other land) as a dwelling-house in the new list.
(4) Mere a newly erected dwelling-house is first occupied after its
completion and a rateable value has, in pursuance of the foregoing
provisions of this paragraph, previously been ascribed to it in the
valuation list currently in force for the area in which it is situated, any
different rateable value subsequently ascribed to it in that list and which,
apart from this sub-paragraph, would have effect from the date when the
dwelling-house is first occupied as aforesaid shall be deemed to have
effect from the date on which the current list came into force or the date
from which the previous rateable value had effect, whichever is the later.
Does not apply to the rating surcharge.
<1Completion of newly erected or altered buildings>1
<27.>2 for the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Schedule, a newly erected
building which is not occupied on the date determined under the
subsequent provisions of this Schedule as the date on which the erection
of the building is completed shall be deemed to become unoccupied on
that date.
<28.>2--(1) Where a rating authority are of opinion--
(a) that the erection of a building within their area has been
completed; or
(b) that the work remaining to be done on a building within their
area is such that the erection of the building can reasonably be
expected to be completed within three months,
and that the building is, or when completed will be, comprised in a
relevant hereditament, the authority may serve on the owner of the
building a notice (hereafter in this paragraph referred to as "a
completion notice") stating that the erection of the building is to be
treated for the purposes of this Schedule as completed on the date of
service of the notice or on such later date as may be specified by the
notice.
(2) If a person on whom a completion notice is served agrees in writing
with the authority by whom the n0tice was served that the erection of the
building to which the notice relates shall be treated for the purposes of this
Schedule as completed on a day specified by the agreement, it shall be
treated for those purposes as completed on that day and the notice shall
be deemed to be withdrawn.
(3) Where a rating authority has served a completion notice on any
person, the authority may withdraw the notice by a subsequent notice
served on that person; and a notice under this sub-paragraph may be
served--
(a) at any time before an appeal in pursuance of sub-paragraph (4)
of this paragraph is brought against the completion notice; and
B137
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) with the agreement of the person aforesaid, at any time there-
after and before the appeal is determined.
(4) A person on whom a completion notice is served may, during the
period of twenty-one days beginning with the date of service of the notice,
appeal to the county court against the notice on the ground that the
erection of the building to which the notice relates has not been or, as the
case may be, cannot reasonably be expected to be completed by the date
specified by the notice.
(5) If a completion notice served in respect of a building is not
withdrawn and no appeal in pursuance of sub-paragraph (4) of this
paragraph is brought against the notice or such an appeal is abandoned or
dismissed, the erection of the building shall be treated for the purposes of
this Schedule as completed on the date specified by the notice; and if the
notice is not withdrawn and such an appeal is brought and is not
abandoned or dismissed, the erection of the building shall be treated for
those purposes as completed on such date as the court shall determine.
(6) A notice under this paragraph may, without prejudice to any other
mode of service, be served on any person--
(a) by sending it in a prepaid registered letter, or by the recorded
delivery service, addressed to that person at his usual or last
known place of abode, or, in a case where an address for service
has been given by that person, at that address; or
(b) in the case of an incorporated company or body, by delivering it
to the secretary or clerk of the company or body at their
registered or principal office, or sending it in a prepaid registered
letter, or by the recorded delivery service, addressed to the
secretary or clerk of the company or body at that office; or
(c) where the name or address of that person cannnnot be ascer-
tained after reasonable inquiry, by addressing it to him by the
description of --owner" of the building (describing it) to which
the notice relates and by affixing it to some conspicuous part of
the building.
<29>2. In the case of a building to which work remains to be done of a kind
which is customarily done to a building of the type in question after the
erection of the building has been substantially completed, it shall be
assumed for the purposes of paragraph 8 of this Schedule that the erection
of the building has been or can reasonably be expected to be completed at
the expiration of such period beginning with the date of its completion
apart from the work as is reasonably required for carrying out the
work.
<210.>2 Where by reason of the structural alteration of any building a
relevant hereditament becomes or becomes part of a different heredita-
ment or different hereditaments, the relevant hereditament shall be
deemed for the purposes of this Schedule to have ceased to exist on the
date (as determined in pursuance of the foregoing provisions of this
Schedule) of the completion of the structural alteration and, in particular,
to have been omitted on that date from any valuation list in which it is
then included; but nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as
affecting any liability for rates under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in
respect of the hereditament for any period before that date.
B138
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Supplemental>1
<211.>2--(1) Where a person for the time being liable to be rated under
paragraph 1 of this Schedule--
(a) in respect of a relevant hereditament which is not included in a
valuation list; or
(b) in respect of a dwelling-house included in such a list in pursuance
of paragraph 6 of this Schedule but not occupied since it was so
included,
serves on the valuation officer a notice referring to the hereditament or
dwelling-house and stating his name and address and that he is so liable,
then, in relation to any proposal for including the hereditament in a
valuation list or, as the case may be, any proposal served in respect of the
dwelling-house before the end of the rate period during which it is first
occupied after it was so included in the list, the person aforesaid shall be
treated for the purposes of the provisions of Part V of this Act relating to
proposals, objections and appeals as standing in the same position as the
occupier of the hereditament or dwelling-house.
(2) A notice served under sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph in
respect of a hereditament such as is mentioned in paragraph (a) of that
sub-paragraph which subsequently becomes a dwelling-house such as is
mentioned in paragraph (b) thereof shall be treated as served in respect of
the dwelling-house as well as in respect of the hereditament.
(3) Where, in pursuance of such a proposal in respect of a dwelling-
house as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph, an
alteration is made in a valuation list which affects the amount of any rate
levied under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in respect of the dwelling-
house, the difference--
(a) if too much has been paid, shall be repaid or allowed; or
(b) if too little has been paid, shall be paid and may be recovered as
if it were arrears of the rate.
(4) References in sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph to a person liable
as there mentioned include references to a person who would be so liable
if a relevant period of vacancy had begun in relation to the hereditament
or dwelling-house in question.
<212.>2 No rate shall be payable under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in
respect of a hereditament for any period during which it is deemed by
virtue of sub-paragraph (3) of that paragraph to have been unoccupied;
and any rate paid under that paragraph in respect of such a period shall be
recoverable by the person by whom it was paid.
Does not apply to rating surcharge.
<213.>2 Any amount due in respect of rates payable by virtue of paragraph
1 of this Schedule shall, without prejudice to the operation of any other
enactment under which it is recoverable, be recoverable as a simple
contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.
<214.>2 In calculating any period for the purposes of this Schedule, any
pen-od when this Schedule is not in force in the rating area in question
shall be disregarded; but the fact that this Schedule has ceased to be in
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
force in any area shall not affect its operation as respects any period when
it was in force in the area.
1. Added by Local Government Act 1974 (c.1). s.15(6).
Does not apply to rating surcharge.
[<s1>s(2) In calculating any period for the purposes of this schedule in
relation to a hereditament which is of a class specified by the rating
authority for the purposes of paragraph 1 above, any eariier period during
which classes of relevant hereditament were, but no class comprising that
hereditament was, so specified shall be disregarded.]
Does not apply to the rating surcharge.
<215.>2 In this Schedule, the following expressions have the following
meanings respectively, that is to say--
"building" includes part of a building;
"local authority" means the council of a county, . . .<s2>s or county
district, the Greater London Council, the council of a London
borough, the Common Council of the City of London or the
Council of the Isles of Scilly;
"owner", in relation to a relevant hereditament or to a building,
Means the person entitled to possession of the hereditament or
building;
"relevant hereditament" means any hereditament consisting of, or of
part of, a house, shop, office, factory, mill or other building
whatsoever, together with any garden, yard, court or other land
ordinarily used orintended for use forthe purposes ofthe building
or part;
["relevant period of vacancy", in relation t0 a relevant here-
ditament, means any period during which the hereditament
has been continuously unoccupied, beginning with the unoccu-
pied rating day and ending with the day preceding that on
which the hereditament becomes or next becomes occupied or
ceases to exist; and]<sa>s
["Unoccupied rating day", in relation to a relative hereditament,
means--
(a) if the hereditament is a newly erected dwelling-house, the day
following the end of the new house period (as defined in
sub-paragraph (5) of paragraph 1 of this Schedule); and
(b) in any other case, the day following the end of the standard
period (as defined in sub-paragraph (1A) of that paragraph).]<sb>s
and references to a newly erected building or dwelling-house include
references to a building or dwelling-house produced by the structural
alteration of a building included in a relevant hereditament which by
virtue of paragraph 10 of this Schedule has ceased or will cease to exist on
the completion of the structural alteration and, in relation to a building or
dwelling-house so produced, references to erection of a building shall be
construed as references to the structural alterati0n producing it.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.42.
<sb>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.42.
2. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70). sch 30.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
SCHEDULE 2
<21>2.--<1Repealed by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
<1schedule 34 part IX.>1
SCHEDULE 3
CLASSES OF MACHINERY AND PLANT DEEMED TO BE PART OF HEREDITAMENT
CLASS 1
<21.>2 Machinery and plant (together with the shafting, pipes, cables, wires
and other appliances and structures accessory thereto) which is used or
intended to be used mainly or exclusively in connection with any of the
following purposes, that is to say--
(a) the generation, storage, primary transformation or main trans-
mission of power in or on the hereditament; or
(b) the heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting, draining, or supplying
of water to the land or buildings of which the hereditament
consists, or the protecting of the hereditament from fire:
Provided that, in the case of machinery or plant which is in or on the
hereditament for the purpose of manufacturing operations or trade
processes, the fact that it is used in connection with those operations or
processes for the purpose of heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting,
draining, supplying water, or protecting from fire shall not cause it to be
treated as falling within the classes of machinery or plant specified in this
Schedule.
CLASS 2
<22>2. Lifts and elevators mainly or usually used for passengers.
CLASS 3
<23>2. Railway and tramway lines and tracks.
CLASS 4
<24>2. Such part of any plant or any combination of plant and machinery,
including gas holders, blast furnaces, coke ovens, tar distilling plant,
cupolas, and water towers with tanks, as is, or is in the nature of, a
building or structure.
CLASS 5
<25>2.--(1) A pipe-line, that is to say, a pipe or system of pipes for the
conveyance of anything, not being--
(a) a drain or sewer;
(b) a pipe or system of pipes vested in [<s36>sthe British Gas Corpora-
tion], in a board established by the Electricity Act 1947, or in the
Central Electricity Generating Board;
B141
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(c) a pipe or system of pipes forming part of the equipment of, and
wholly situate within, a factory or petroleum storage depot or
premises comprised in a mine, quarry or mineral field,
and exclusive of so much of a pipe or system of pipes forming part of
the equipment of, and situate partly within and partly outside, a factory
or petroleum storage depot or premises comprised in a mine, quarry or
mineral field as is situate within, as the case may be, the factory or
petroleum storage depot or those premises.
(2) In this paragraph--
(a) "factory" has the same meaning as in the Factories Act 1961;
(b) "mine" and "quarry" have the same meanings respectively as in
the Mines and Quarries Act 1954;
(c) "mineral field" means an area comprising an excavation being a
well or borehole or a well and borehole combined, or a system of
such excavations, used for the purposes of pumping or raising
brine or oil, and so much of the surface (including buildings,
structures and works thereon) surrounding or adjacent to the
excavation or system as is occupied, together with the excavation
or system, for the purpose of the working of the excavation or
system;
(d) "petroleum storage depot" means premises used primarily for
the storage of petroleum or petroleum products (including
chemicals derived from petroleum) or of materials used in the
manufacture of petroleum products (including chemicals derived
from petroleum).
36. Words substituted by Gas Act 1972 (c.60), sch. 6 para. 17.
SCHEDULE 4
VALUATION OF WATER HEREDITAMENTS OF STATUTORY WATER UNDERTAKING
<1Power to arnend sch. 4 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s. 19(4)>1
<1Ascertainment of cumulo-value for undertaking>1
<21>2.--(1) There shall be ascertained in accordance with the provisions of
this paragraph for the undertaking as a whole an amount hereafter in this
Schedule referred to as the "cumulo-value".
(2) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the cumulo-value for the
purposes of valuation lists in force or to come into force at any time
(hereinafter in this Schedule referred to as the "relevant lists") shall be
determined in accordance with the following provisions of this paragraph
by reference to the amount (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as the
"previous cumulo-value") of the cumulo-value determined for the pur-
poses of the valuation lists (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as the
"previous lists") last coming into force before the relevant lists.
(3) If the yearly average supply of the undertakers in the basic period
for the relevant lists exceeds their yearly average supply in the basic
period for the previous lists, there shall be added to the amount of
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
the previous cumulo-value an amount which bears to the aggregate
of the previous cumulo-values for all undertakings in England and Wales
the proportion which the difference between the said yearly average
supplies bears to the yearly average supply of all undertakers in England
and Wales in the basic period for the previous lists.
(4) If the yearly average supply of the undertakers in the basic period
for the relevant lists fall short of their yearly average supply in the basic
period for the previous lists, the amount of the previous cumulo-value
shall be reduced in the proportion which the one bears to the other.
(5) The amount of the previous cumulo-value, after any adjustment in
accordance with sub-paragraph (3) or (4) of this paragraph, shall be
apportioned among rating areas in which water hereditaments of the
undertaking are situated.
(6) The amount apportioned under sub-paragraph (5) of this paragraph
in Greater London and to the Isles of Scilly, and
the aggregate of the amounts apportioned to the rating areas in each
county, shall be adjusted by multiplying it by the proportional change in
the level of net annual values appearing, on the average, from a
comparison of the values expected to be shown in the relevant lists for the
. . .<s37>s, rating area, Isles or county, as transmitted to rating authorities in
pursuance of section 68(2) of this Act, with those shown in the previous
lists for the . . .<s38>s, rating area, Isles or county at the beginning of April
last before the coming into force of the relevant lists.
(7) The sum of the amounts and the aggregates referred to in
sub-paragraph (6) of this paragraph, adjusted in accordance with that
paragraph, shall be the cumulo-value for the undertaking for the purposes
of the relevant lists.
(8) In relation to the valuation lists in force at the commencement of
this Act, the cumulo-value and the previous cumulo-value for any
undertaking shall be those determined for the purposes of those lists in
accordance with Part II of the Rating and Valuation Act 1961.
37. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
38. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
<1Rateable value of water hereditaments>1
2. The amount of the cumulo-value as determined under paragraph
1(7) of this Schedule shall be apportioned among rating districts in which
water hereditaments of the undertaking are situated; and for the purposes
of the relevant lists the amount apportioned to any rating district shall be
the rateable value of such hereditaments in that district, and rateable
values (but no net annual values) shall be shown accordingly in lists
transmitted to rating authorities in pursuance of section 68(2) of this Act.
<1Adjustment of cumulo-value during currency of valuation lists>1
<23>2.--(1) If in any of the successive periods of five calendar years ending
respectively with the December last before the coming into force of the
relevant lists and the subsequent Decembers falling earlier than two years
before the date on which those lists cease to be in force--
(a) the yearly average supply of any statutory water undertakers
exceeds or falls short of their yearly average supply in the basic
pen-od for those lists; and
B143
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) the excess or deficiency is greater than ten per cent. of the
last-mentioned average supply,
the cumulo-value for the undertaking as determined for the purposes of
those lists shall be adjusted in accordance with the following provisions of
this paragraph, and the rateable values of the water hereditaments of the
undertaking shall be varied in accordance with paragraph 4 of this
Schedule for any rate period beginning fifteen months or more after the
end of the said period of five years and ending not later than the date on
which the lists cease to be in force or on which a subsequent variation in
accordance with the said paragraph 4 takes effect (hereafter in this
paragraph and in the said paragraph 4 referred to as a "relevant rate
period").
(2) If there is such an excess as aforesaid, the said cumulo-value shall be
increased by an amount which bears to the aggregate of the cumulo-values
for all undertakings in England and Wales, as determined for the purposes
of the relevant lists, the proportion which the excess bears to the yearly
average supply of all undertakers therein in the basic period for those lists.
(3) If there is such a deficiency as aforesaid, the said cumulo-value shall
be reduced in the proportion wh1ch the one average supply mentioned in
sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph bears to the other.
(4) Where the cumulo-value f0r an undertaking is adjusted under this
paragraph, the Commissioners shall, [<s39>snot later than two months after
the beginning of the first relevant rate period], furnish to the undertakers
and to any rating authority concerned the particulars required for
determining the amount of the adjustment.
(5) Where the cumulo-value for any undertaking falls to be adjusted
under this paragraph as respects any of the successive periods mentioned
in sub-paragraph (1) thereof, then (whether or not the consequential
variation of the rateable values of the water hereditaments of the
undertaking has taken effect) in the application, in the case of that
undertaking, of the foregoing provisions of this paragraph to any subse-
quent such period--
(a) for the reference in paragraph (a) of the said sub-paragraph (1)
to the basic period for the relevant lists there shall be substituted
a reference to the preceding or last preceding period of five
calendar years as respects which the conditions specified in
paragraphs (a) and (b) of the said sub-paragraph (1), or those
conditions as modified by this sub-paragraph, are satisfied;
(b) for the references in the foregoing provisions of this paragraph to
the cumulo-value for the undertaking as determined for the
purposes of the relevant lists there shall be substituted references
to the cumulo-value for the undertaking as adjusted or last
adjusted under this paragraph.
(6) In the application of the foregoing provisions of this paragraph to
the valuation lists in force at the commencement of this Act, references to
a period of five calendar years do not include references to any period
beginning before the basic period for those lists, but do include references
to a period of three or four calendar years beginning with that basic
period.
39. Words substituted by 5.1. 1975/540.
B144
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Alterations of valuation lists consequential on adjustment of cumulo-value>1
<24>2.--(1) Where the cumulo-value for an undertaking has been adjusted
under paragraph 3 of this Schedule, that cumulo-value as so adjusted shall
be apportioned among rating districts in which water hereditaments of the
undertaking are situated, and the valuation officer shall make proposals
for such alterations of valuation lists as are requisite for increasing or
decreasing, as the case may require, the rateable values of the water
hereditaments of the undertaking to accord with the apportionment.
(2) Any such proposals shall be made [<s39>sduring the first four months of
the first relevant rate period] . . .<s40>s.
(3) Where the valuation officer transmits copies of any proposals under
this paragraph, he shall transmit with them particulars of the manner in
which the adjusted cumulo-value has been apportioned among rating
districts so as to produce the alterations in valuation lists which are the
subject of the proposals; and effect shall not be given to objections to the
proposals on any grounds other than the grounds that the apportionment
was not properly made.
39. Words substituted by S.I. 1975/540.
40. Words repealed by S.I. 1975/540.
<1Other alterations of valuation lists with respect to water hereditaments>1
<2 5>2.--(1) Where, after the valuation officer has transmitted a valuation
list to the rating authority, but before the date on which the list is to come
into force, it appears to him that in the case of a statutory water
undertaking of which water hereditaments are included in the list the
cumulo-value for the undertaking ought to be redetermined to conform
with paragraph 1 of this Schedule and that on that account the list needs to
be altered in any respect, he shall cause the list to be altered accordingly
before that date.
(2) A proposal for the alteration of a valuation list so far as it relates to a
water hereditament of a statutory water undertaking may be made on the
grounds that the apportionment required by paragraph 2 or 4(1) of this
Schedule was not properly made, or that the cumulo-value for the
undertaking ought to be re-apportioned among rating districts in which
water hereditaments of the undertaking are situated.
(3) Where, in the case of any rating area, a proposal is made falling
within sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, or an objection is made falling
within paragraph 4(3) of this Schedule, the valuation officer shall cause
copies of the proposal or objection to be served on the rating authority for
every other rating area in which there are water hereditaments of the
undertaking in question which appear relevant to the proposal or objec-
tion.
(4) Where it appears to the valuation officer that the valuation list may
be affected by any such proposal or objection as aforesaid relating to
another valuation list, and he makes a proposal for any consequential
alteration of the first-mentioned list which appears to him to be required if
effect is given, in whole or in part, to the original proposal or objection,
then, if the valuation officer states in his proposal that it is one to which
this sub-paragraph applies, any alteration of the list which is made in
consequence of his proposal shall have effect as from such date as may be
B145
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
specified in the proposal notwithstanding that the date is earlier than that
provided by section 79 of this Act.
(5) In proceedings on any such proposal or objection as aforesaid a local
valuation court or the Lands Tribunal shall afford to the rating authority
for every such other area as aforesaid an opportunity of appearing and
being heard before the court or Tribunal, and may then direct such
consequential alterations as may be required in the valuation list for any
such area; and the valuation officer shall cause the valuation list to be
altered accordingly.
(6) The reference in sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph to water
hereditaments appearing relevant to a proposal or objection is a reference
to water hereditaments of which the rateable value appears to the
valuation officer (in relation to the valuation list in which that value is
shown), or as the case may be to the court or Tribunal, liable to be
affected by any re-apportionment in consequence of the proposal or
objection.
<1Apportionment etc., of cumulo-value>1
<26>2.--(1) Any provision of this Schedule relating to the apportionment of
the cumulo-value of an undertaking among rating areas or rating districts
or with respect to any amount so apportioned shall have effect subject to
the necessary modifications where, by reason of the fact that the
undertaking does not extend beyond the boundaries of a single rating area
or a single rating district, provision for apportionment is inappropriate;
and in relation to an undertaking which does not extend beyond the
boundaries of a single rating district--
(a) effect shall not be given to objections to any proposal under
paragraph 4 of this Schedule with respect to the water heredita-
ments of that undertaking;
(b) paragraph 5(3) to (6) of this Schedule shall not apply.
(2) Anything required under this Schedule to be done in determining or
adjusting the cumulo-value for an undertaking, and any apportionment of
a cumulo-value, shall be done or made by the Commissioners.
[<s41>s(3) Any apportionment of the cumulo-value for an undertaking to a
rating area in which water hereditaments of the undertaking are situated
shall be determined in accordance with the following formula, namely--
r
CX--
R
C being the cumulo-value of the undertaking;
r being the rateable values of water hereditaments of the undertak-
ing in all the rating districts in the rating area as shown in the
valuation lists at 31st March, 1975; and
R being the aggregate of the rateable values of water hereditaments
of the undertaking in all the rating districts in all the rating areas in
which water hereditaments of the undertakings are situated as
shown in the valuation lists at 31st March, 1975.
(3A) Any apportionment of the cumulo-value for an undertaking to a
rating district in which water hereditaments of the undertaking are
B146
situated shall be determined in accordance with the following formula,
namely--
r
CX--
R
C being the cumulo-value of the undertaking apportioned to the
rating area in which the rating district is situated in accordance
with sub-paragraph (3) above;
r being the rateable values of water hereditaments of the undertak-
ing in the rating district as shown in the valuation list at 31st
March, 1975; and
R being the rateable values of water hereditaments of the undertak-
ing in all the rating districts in the rating area as shown in the
valuation list at 31st March, 1975.
(3B) For the purpose of sub-paragraphs (3) and (3A) above any
alteration made in the valuation lists after 31st March, 1975 but having
effect on or before that date, other than an alteration required by article 5
of the Rating (Water hereditaments) Order 1975, shall be disregarded].
(4) Before the end of December last before the coming into force of any
new valuation lists, the Commissioners shall as respects each statutory
water undertaking furnish to the undertakers and to the rating authorities
concerned the particulars required by the Commissioners for determining
the cumulo-value for the undertaking for the purposes of those lists and
also particulars of the manner in which the cumulo-value is to be
apportioned among rating districts.
41. Paragraph 6(3)(3A)(3B) substituted for para. 6(3) by S.I. 1975/540.
<1Ascertainment of average water supplies>1
<27>2.--(1) The yearly average supply of any or all undertakers in any
period shall be ascertained for the purposes of this Schedule as follows.
(2) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, it shall be taken to be
the aggregate of the amounts certified under sub-paragraph (3) of this
paragraph by the undertakers or all the undertakers for the calendar years
comprised in the period, divided by the number of those calendar years.
(3) Not later than six months after the end of any calendar year relevant
to the ascertainment of yearly average supplies for the purposes of this
Schedule, statutory water undertakers shall estimate and certify to the
Commissioners, to the nearest hundred thousand gallons, the amount of
water supplied by the undertakers in that calendar year, the amount so
supplied in bulk, and the amount supplied in bulk during that year to the
undertakers, and shall also certify whether the undertakers were sup-
plying water during the whole of that year (disregarding any temporary
suspension of supply).
(4) The duty to certify imposed on undertakers by this paragraph shall
be enforceable by mandamus at the instance of the Commissioners.
(5) Where any undertakers supply non-potable water otherwise than in
bulk, they shall, in certifying under sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph
the amount of water supplied by them, show separately (to the nearest
hundred thousand gallons) the amount of non-potable water supplied by
them otherwise than in bulk, and the amount of water certified as supplied
B147
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
by them shall be treated as reduced by one-half of the said amount of
non-potable water.
(6) If a certificate under sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph shows
that all or any of the water supplied was supplied in bulk, or that
the undertakers giving the certificate took a supply in bulk, or both, the
amount certified as supplied shall be treated as reduced by one-half of the
amount certified as supplied, or taken by way of supply, in bulk.
(7) If the undertakers, or any of the undertakers, have certified that
they were not supplying water throughout the whole of any of the
calendar years in the period, the aggregate of the amounts certified by
them for all such years in the period shall be taken for the purposes of
sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph to be the aggregate of the amounts
certified for the remaining such years, divided by the number of those
years and multiplied by the number of calendar years in the whole period.
(8) For the purposes of this Schedule--
(a) any estimate of the amount of water supplied shall be made by
reference to the amount put out by the undertakers (and not to
the amount received by the person to whom the water was
supplied);
(b) subject to paragraph (c) of this sub-paragraph, references to the
supply of water in bulk are references to a supply taken by any
persons for augmenting or constituting the supply to be given by
them;
(c) water shall not be treated as supplied to any undertakers by a
river authority by reason only that the undertakers abstract, or
are authorised to abstract, water in pursuance of a licence under
the Water Resources Act 1963 granted by the river authority.
<1Interpretation>1
<28>2.--(1) For the purposes 0f this Schedule--
(a) subject to sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, references to the
basic period for any valuation lists are references to the period of
five calendar years ending fifteen months before the coming into
force of the lists;
(b) the expression "rating district", in relation to Greater L0ndon,
does not include a part of a rating area which is subject to
separate or differential rating.
(2) In the case of the valuation lists in force at the date of commence-
ment of this Act, sub-paragraph (1)(a) of this paragraph shall have effect
as if for the reference to five calendar years there were substituted a
reference to two calendar years.
<1Modifications in cases of new undertakings, amalgamations etc.>1
<29>2.--(1) The provisions of this paragraph shall have effect as respects
cases where a statutory water undertaking is changed (by acquisition,
merger or division) into part or the whole of one or more other such
undertakings (hereafter in this paragraph referred to as --new undertak-
ings").
(2) Where new valuation lists come into force at the same time as the
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
change, then in determining the cumulo-value for the purposes of those
lists--
(a) paragraph 1(3) to (6) of this Schedule shall be applied separately
to the previous cumulo-values for each of the undertakings
comprised in a new undertaking;
(b) where a new undertaking consists of or comprises a part of an
undertaking, the said paragraph 1(3) to (6) shall first be applied
to the whole of that undertaking and the resulting cumulo-value
shall be divided between the parts of the undertaking;
(c) in any case, the cumulo-value for a new undertaking shall be the
aggregate of the sums determined for the undertakings or parts
of undertakings comprised in the new undertaking after the
application of the said paragraph 1(3) to (6) and any division in
accordance with paragraph (b) of this sub-paragraph.
(3) Where the change takes place during the currency of any valuation
lists, the following provisions shall have effect for the period between the
change and the coming into force of the first new valuation lists to come
into force after the change:--
(a) for the year in which the change takes place the rateable values
of hereditaments which on the change become water heredita-
ments of a new undertaking shall be the same as they were before
the change, the rateable value of any water hereditament of a
new undertaking which is part of a hereditament which before
the change was a water hereditament of another undertaking
being ascertained by the Commissioners by apportionment;
(b) for any subsequent year the rateable values of water heredita-
ments of a new undertaking shall be such as the Commissioners
may determine to be appropriate having regard to the cumulo-
values for the undertakings wholly or partly comprised in the
new undertaking;
(c) without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a) of this
sub-paragraph, no alteration shall be made under paragraph 4 of
this Schedule as respects water hereditaments of a new undertak-
ing so as to affect the rateable values of such hereditaments for
the year in which the change took place;
(d) in the application of paragraph 3 of this Schedule (for any
subsequent year) as respects any period of years ending after the
change--
(i) the undertakers carrying on a new undertaking shall be
treated as having had in periods beginning before the change
a yearly average supply ascertained by reference to the
yearly average supplies of the undertakers carrying on the
undertakings wholly or partly comprised in the new
undertaking; and
(ii) the cumulo-value of a new undertaking shall be taken to be
an amount ascertained by the Commissioners as that which
appears to them appropriate having regard to the said
cumulo-values;
and in determining the cumulo-value for a new undertaking for the
purposes of the first new valuation lists coming into force after the time of
the change, the Commissioners shall ascertain the amount which appears
B149
to them appropriate to be treated as the cumulo-value for the new
undertaking for the purposes of the previous lists and as the yearly
average supply of the new undertaking for any relevant period and shall
proceed accordingly.
(4) for the purpose of giving effect--
(a) to any determination under sub-paragraph (3)(b) of this
paragraph; or
(b) to any determination of the cumulo-value for a new undertaking
for the purposes of the first new valuation lists coming into force
after the time of the change where the lists have already been
transmitted to rating authorities,
such alterations shall be made in valuation lists (without any proposal) as
the valuation officer may direct, and if the lists have come into force they
shall be deemed always to have had effect subject to those alterations.
(5) If at the time of the change any undertaking wholly or partly
comprised in a new undertaking has not given any certificate required by
paragraph 7(3) of this Schedule, it shall be the duty of the new
undertaking to give the certificate, and paragraph 7(4) of this Schedule
shall apply accordingly.
(6) for the purposes of the foregoing provisions of this paragraph, the
Commissioners shall make such aggregations or apportionments, or both,
of cumulo-values and of amounts of water certified as supplied as the case
may require, but before making any aggregation or apportionment of
amounts of water certified as supplied the Commissioners shall hold such
consultations as appear to them appropriate.
<210>2.--(1) Where an undertaking for the supply of water, not being a
statutory water undertaking--
(a) is acquired by statutory water undertakers, with or without a
statutory water undertaking being acquired by them at the same
time, or is merged with one or more undertakings for the supply
of water of which at least one is a statutory water undertaking; or
(b) becomes a statutory water undertaking;
the Minister may by order direct that paragraph 9 of this Schedule if not
otherwise applicable shall apply, but subject to such modifications as may
be specified in the order, and if otherwise applicable shall apply subject to
such modifications as may be so specified, or the Minister may by order
direct that hereditaments occupied for the purposes of the acquiring
undertakers, the undertaking created by the merger or the new statutory
undertaking, as the case may be, shall be valued for rating purposes in
such other manner as may be specified by the order.
(2) An order under this paragraph providing for valuation in any such
other manner as aforesaid may apply, restrict or modify the provisions of
Part V of this Act relating to proposals for alterations of valuation lists
and to appeals in connection with such lists and to the withholding of rates
where proposals are pending.
(3) An order under this paragraph may be made with respect to
undertakings generally or any specified description of undertakings, or
with respect to a particular undertaking, and may make different provi-
sion for hereditaments of different descriptions.
(4) Any order under this paragraph shall be subject to annulment in
pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
B150
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<211>2.--(1) Where--
(a) the first calendar year during the whole of which the undertakers
carrying on a statutory water undertaking supply water
(hereinafter referred to as "the initial year") is or was later than
the year 1959; and
(b) the undertaking is not and has not been such a new undertaking
as is referred to in paragraph 9(1) of this Schedule or an
undertaking as respects which an order may be or might have
been made under paragraph 10 thereof,
the undertakers shall certify to the Commissioners that the undertaking is
one to which this paragraph applies and the following provisions of this
paragraph shall have effect.
(2) for the purposes of valuation lists coming into force in a calendar
year earlier than the tenth after the initial year--
(a) the rateable values of water hereditaments of the undertaking
shall not be ascertained in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 of
this Schedule but by apportioning the cumulo-value for the
undertaking for the year, as hereinafter determined, among
rating districts in which water hereditaments of the undertaking
are situated; and
(b) no variation of those rateable values shall be made under
paragraph 4 of this Schedule;
and in the application of the said paragraphs to any other undertaking in
any such case the first-mentioned undertaking shall be disregarded for all
purposes.
(3) The cumulo-value for the undertaking for any year during the
currency of valuation lists coming into force as aforesaid shall be the
amount obtained by multiplying the aggregate of the cumulo-values for all
statutory water undertakings in England and Wales for which such values
fall to be determined under paragraph 1 of this Schedule, being the values
determined for the purposes of the valuation lists current during that year,
by the amount of water hereinafter mentioned, and dividing the product
by the yeariy average supply of all such undertakings in the basic period
for those lists.
(4) for any such year not later than the ninth of the years in which the
undertakers fall to be rated the said amount of water is the amount of
water supplied by the undertakers in the period specified in relation to the
year in question in the following table, reduced, where that period
exceeds twelve months, in the proportion which twelve months bears to
that period or increased, where the undertaking was operating during a
part only of that period, in the proportion which the whole period bears to
that part.
TABLE
<1Year Period of supply>1
First. The first year.
Second to fifth. The twelve months ending with De-
cember in the year for which the
period is being determined.
B151
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Year Period of supply>1
Sixth to ninth. The period beginning with the end of
December last before the begin-
ning of the fifth year and ending
with December in the year for
which the period is being deter-
mined.
(5) for the tenth, eleventh and any subsequent such year the said
amount is one-fifth of the amount of water supplied by the undertakers
over the period of five calendar years ending next before the beginning of
the year in question.
(6) If during the whole or any part of any period mentioned in
sub-paragraph (4) or (5) of this paragraph the undertakers were giving or
receiving a supply of water in bulk, or both, the amount of water supplied
over the period shall be treated as reduced by one-half of the amount of
the supply or supplies in bulk.
(7) If during the whole or any part of any such period as aforesaid the
undertakers were giving a supply of non-potable water otherwise than in
bulk, the amount of water supplied over the period shall be treated as
reduced by one-half of the amount of non-potable water so supplied by
them.
(8) It shall be the duty of the undertakers, enforceable by mandamus at
the instance of the Commissioners--
(a) for the twelve months or each twelve months of any of the
periods mentioned in sub-paragraph (4) or (5) of this paragraph
to furnish to the Commissioners, not later than the end of June
last before the beginning of that twelve months (or, where the
undertaking had not then begun to operate, as soon as may be
after it so began), a provisional estimate, to the nearest hundred
thousand gallons, of the amount of water expected to be supplied
by the undertakers during those twelve months and of the
amount of any supply in bulk expected to be given or taken by
them during those twelve months;
(b) not later than six months after the end of any such twelve months
as aforesaid, to estimate and certify to the Commissioners, to the
nearest hundred thousand gallons, any such amount as aforesaid;
(c) to show separately (to the nearest hundred thousand gallons), in
any such provisional estimate or certificate as aforesaid, any
amount of non-potable water supplied by the undertakers other-
wise than in bulk;
and the provisional estimate furnished under paragraph (a) of this
sub-paragraph for the twelve months or the first twelve months therein
referred to shall include a statement of the date on which the undertaking
began to operate or, if it has not begun to operate when the estimate is
furnished, of the date on which it is expected to begin to operate, and in
the latter case the estimate under paragraph (b) of this sub-paragraph
shall include a statement of the date on which the undertaking began to
operate.
B152
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(9) Cumulo-values under this paragraph shall in the first place be
determined in accordance with the said provisional estimates, in so far as
estimates under sub-paragraph (8)(b) of this paragraph are not available;
and the valuation officer, in any year in which he does not transmit new
valuation lists, shall notify to rating authorities before the end of
December the amounts of the rateable values apportioned to rating
districts under this paragraph for the following year, and on or as soon as
may be after the beginning of the said following year shall give directions
for the alteration of the valuation lists accordingly without any proposal.
(10) The functions conferred on a valuation officer by sub-paragraph
(9) of this paragraph shall not be excerisable in respect of an undertaking
where the following year mentioned in that sub-paragraph is the first year
in which the undertaking operates or where it is the second such year and,
by reason of the lateness of the time by which the undertakers furnish
provisional estimates, it is not practicable for the valuation officer to
ascertain what alterations of valuation lists are required for water
hereditaments of the undertaking for that year; but in the case of any such
year (including any such year which is the first for which new valuation
lists are in force) the valuation officer shall as soon as may be give
directions for such entries or alterations to be made in valuation lists,
without any proposal, as the case may require, and the entries or
alterations shall have effect as from the beginning of the year in question.
(11) Cumulo-values under this paragraph shall be finally determined in
accordance with the amounts certified under sub-paragraph (8)(b) of this
paragraph, and any entry in a valuation list made on the basis of
provisional estimates shall be corrected, on a direction given by the
valuation officer and without any proposal, so as to conform with the
cumulo-values as finally determined; and any such correction shall have
effect as from the beginning of the year to which it relates.
(12) In the application of this Schedule to the valuation of heredita-
ments in accordance with this paragraph--
(a) paragraphs 3(4) and 4(3) shall not apply;
(b) for the reference in paragraph 5(1) to paragraph 1 there shall be
substituted a reference to this paragraph;
(c) for the reference in paragraph 5(2) to paragraph 2, there shall be
substituted a reference to sub-paragraph (2)(a) of this paragraph;
(d) the following provision shall have effect in substitution for
paragraph 6(4), that is to say, that not later than five months
before the beginning of any year for which this paragraph applies
the Commissioners shall furnish to the undertakers and to the
rating authorities concerned the particulars required by the
Commissioners for determining the cumulo-value for the under-
taking for the year and also particulars of the manner in which
the cumulo-value is to be apportioned among rating districts.
(13) In determining the cumulo-value for the undertaking for the
purposes of the first new valuation lists to come into force in a calendar
year later than the ninth after the initial year, paragraph 1 of this Schedule
shall apply with the substitution for references to the previous cumulo-
value of references to the latest cumulo-value as finally determined under
the foregoing provisions of this paragraph and as if sub-paragraphs (3) and
(4) of the said paragraph 1 were omitted.
B153
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
SCHEDULE 5
RAILWAT OR CANAL PREMISES
<1Power to amend sch. 5 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.19(4).>1
PART I
<1Amount of payments in lieu of rates>1
<21.>2 The amount of the payment in any year by any transport Board under
section 32(5) of this Act shall be determined in accordance with the
provisions of thts Part of this Schedule by reference to the following
amount (hereafter in this Part of this Schedule referred to as the
"standard amount"), that is to say--
#
(a) in the case of the British Railways Board...... [18,963,000]<sa>s
(b) in the case of the London Transport Board...... [3,191,000]<sa>s
(c) in the case of the British Waterways Board........ [229,500]<sa>s
<sa>s Figurus substituted by Transport Boards (Adjustment of Payments) order 1977 No. 555.
<22>2.--(1) For each year there shall be determined the number (reduced
or increased to the nearest whole number by ignoring any fraction which is
less than one-half and treating any other fraction as equivalent to one)
representing the aggregate gross charge to rates for England and Wales
for the immediately preceding year, as ascertained or estimated, and in
either case certified, by the Minister, multiplied by 240 and divided by the
rateable value for England and Wales for that immediately preceding year
as ascertained and certified by the Minister.
(2) The reference in sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph to the
aggregate gross charge to rates for England and Wales for the immediate-
ly preceding year shall be construed as a reference to the total of the
amounts required to be paid by virtue of all the rates made by all the
rating authorities in England and Wales for that year or any part thereof,
calculated as if, in the case of each hereditament, the amount payable
were that ascertained by applying the poundage of the rate to the rateable
value of the hereditament, without any allowance or deduction, and (if
that year is the year 1967-68 or a later year) as if the aggregate amount of
the domestic element of rate support grants for that year were an amount
required t0 be paid by virtue of rates made for that year by rating
authorities in England and Wales; and for the purposes of the said
sub-paragraph (1)--
(a) the rateable value for England and Wales for any year shall be
taken to be the aggregate of the rateable values for that year of
the areas of all rating authorities in England and Wales; and
(b) the rateable value of the area of a rating authority for any year
shall be taken to be the aggregate, as certified by the valuation
officer, of the rateable values shown on the first day of that year
in the valuation list in force on that day for that area, subject,
however, to any alteration in the list made in consequence of any
provision of this Act whereby the alteration is to be treated as
having been made at the beginning of the year.
B154
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<23>2.--(1) The amount to be paid in any year by each respectively of the
transport Boards shall be the relevant standard amount adjusted--
(a) by applying to that standard amount the fraction of which the
numerator is the number determined under paragraph 2(1) of
this Schedule and the denominator is 214; and
(b) by making such further adjustments for changes in the circum-
stances of the Board in question as may be prescribed by order
made, subject to paragraph 6(2) of this Schedule, by the Minis-
ter.
(2) Any order made under sub-paragraph (1)(b) of this paragraph may
provide for effecting a comparison between the circumstances of the
transport Board in question and the circumstances at some time before 1st
January, 1963 of the British Transport Commission as a whole, or of the
part of the Commission's undertaking corresponding to that of the Board,
or partly the one and partly the other.
PART II
<1Supplementary provisions>1
<sa>s<24>2.--(1) The sums falling to be paid for any year by virtue of section 32(5)
of this Act shall be paid to the Minister and, subject to sub-paragraphs (2)
and (3) of this paragraph, shall be distributed by him at such times as he
may determine among the rating authorities in England and Wales in
proportion to the rateable values of their respective areas for that year
determined in accordance with paragraph 2(2)(b) of this Schedule and be
taken into account for any purposes of this or any other Act as if they were
paid on account of rates, and in computing the product of [<s42a>s new penny]
rate; and where, under any statutory provision other than this Act, any
amount falls to be calculated by reference to the rateable value for any
area, the Minister may by regulations provide that, for the purposes of
that statutory provision, the rateable value of the area of any rating
authority who received any payment from the sums paid under the said
section 32(5) shall be deemed to be increased by an amount calculated, by
reference to the payments so made to that authority, in such manner as
may be prescribed by the regulations.
(2) The Minister may, after consultation with such of the Transport
Boards and such associations of local authorities as appear to him to be
concerned and with any local authority with whom consultation appears to
him to be desirable, by order provide that the sums paid to him under
sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph shall, instead of being distributed as
provided by that sub-paragraph, be distributed as provided by the order;
and any such order--
(a) may contain such incidental, supplemental and consequential
provisions, including provisions altering any enactment or instru-
ment, as the Minister considers expedient for the purposes of the
order; and
(b) shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of
either House of Parliament.
(3) Any sums payable by the Minister under any provision of the Local
Government Act 1948 by way of compensation to any officer or servant of
B155
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
the Railway Assessment Authority or the Anglo-Scottish Railways
Assessment Authority shall be defrayed out of such payments falling to be
made by virtue of the said section 32(5) as the Minister may direct.
(4) In relation to the City of London, the provisions of sub-paragraph
(1) of this paragraph with respect to the taking into account 0f sums
distributed under that sub-paragraph shall have effect subject to such
modifications as the Minister may by order direct.
a nut see The Transport Boards (Distribution of Payments for Rating Authorities) order
1977. S.I. 1977 No. 481 which provides for a new method of apportionment.
<25>2. Without prejudice to the powers to make orders conferred by
paragraphs 3(1)(b) and 4(2), but subject to paragraph 6, of this Schedule,
the Minister may, after such consultation as is mentioned in the said
paragraph 4(2), by order do all or any of the following things, that is to
say--
(a) direct that the provisions of section 32 of this Act with respect to
railway or canal premises shall apply also to other premises
occupied wholly or mainly for purposes of any of the transport
Boards, or shall not apply to premises to which they would apply
but for the provisions of the order;
(b) make such amendments in the provisions of the said section 32 or
Part V of this Act as may be consequential on the giving of any
such direction as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) of this
paragraph; and
(c) make such amendments, whether consequential or not, in any of
the figures set out in this Schedule as may be specified in the
order.
42. Words substituted by Decimal Currency Act 1969 (c.19). sch. 2 para. 28(1)(5).
<26>2.--(1) No order shall be made under paragraph 3(1)(b) or 5 of this
Schedule unless a draft thereof has been laid before Parliament and
approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.
(2) An order made under the said paragraph 3(1)(b) with respect to the
British Railways Board shall be made by the Minister and the Secretary of
State for Scotland acting jointly and shall be made as one statutory
instrument with, and make for England and Wales provision identical
with that made for Scotland by, and 0rder with respect to Scotland under
section 66(4)(b) of the Transport Act 1962.
(3) An order under paragraph 5 of this Schedule may be made as one
statutory instrument with an order with respect to Scotland under section
109 of the Local Government Act 1948 and, in that case, shall be made by
the Minister and the Secretary of State for Scotland acting jointly.
<27.>2 Without prejudice to the power to make regulations conferred on
him by paragraph 4(1) of this Schedule, the Minister may make regula-
tions for carrying section 32 of this Act and this Schedule into effect, and
in particular--
(a) for determining the manner in which, subject to the express
provisions of the said section 32 or this Schedule, any calculation
or estimate is to be made for any of the purposes of that section
or this Schedule;
B156
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) for determining the times at which payments by virtue of section
32(5) of this Act are to be made;
(c) for providing that the calculations or estimates by reference to
which any such payments are made may be treated as either
conclusive or provisional, or conclusive for some purposes and
provisional for other purposes, and, so far as they are to be
treated as provisional, for the making of further calculations or
estimates based on information not previously available and for
adjusting in the light thereof any payments already made;
(d) for modifytng the operation of the said section 32 or this
Schedule in relation to any authority if and in so far as any such
modification is required in relation to that authority in consequ-
ence of any alterations or combinations of authorities or altera-
tions of boundaries.
<28>2.--(1) In determining the rateable value of any office premises such as
are mentioned in section 32(2)(b) of this Act, any part of the premises
which is not used as an office or for office purposes, or for purposes
ancillary to the use of the premises as an office or for office purposes, shall
be disregarded.
(2) The Minister may by regulations make such provision as he
considers appropriate for securing, in the case of--
(a) premises liable to be rated both by virtue of the said section
32(2)(b) and by virtue of some other enactment; and
(b) premises of which a part is liable to be rated by virtue of the said
section 32(2)(b) and another part is liable to be rated by virtue of
some other enactment,
that the premises are included in the valuation list as a single hereditament
with a single rateable value; and the regulations may make different
provision for different circumstances and may contain such supplemental,
consequential and incidental provisions, including provisions modifying
any enactment, as the Minister considers expedient for the purposes of the
regulations.
(3) Any question as to whether, for the purposes of the said section
32(2)(b), any premises are situated on operational land of the body in
question shall be determined by the Minister of Transport.
(4) The valuation officer shall from time to time make such proposals as
appear to him to be requisite for altering valuation lists so as to give effect
to the said section 32(2)(b), and sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph, and
may, if he thinks fit, before making such a proposal in respect of any
premises--
(a) raise a question as to whether the premises are situated on
operational land of the body in question; and
(b) make an application to the Minister of Transport for the deter-
mination of that question;
and if he makes such an application he shall, before the expiration of the
period of seven days beginning with the date of the application, serve
notice of it on the occupier of the premises and the rating authority for the
area in which the premises are situated; and where it is determined in
consequence of the application that the premises to which the application
relates are not situated on operational land of the body in question--
B157
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(i) the valuation officer may make a proposal in respect of the
premises by reference to the same considerations as would have
been applicable if the proposal had been made on the date of the
application; and
(ii) any alteration in a valuation list made in pursuance of a proposal
certified by the valuation officer to have been made by him in
consequence of the determination shall have effect as if any
notice of the proposal served on the occupier of the premises had
been so served at the time as the notice of the application was
served on him under the foregoing provision of this sub-
paragraph.
<1Functions of Minister of Transport now exercisable by Secretary of State: S.L>1
<11970/1681.>1
(<s43>sSCHEDULE 6]
THE BRITISH GAs CORPORATION
<1Power to amend sch. 6 given by Local Governrnent Act 1974 (c.7), s.19(4).>1
<1See Gas Hereditaments (Rateable Values) Order 1976 for amendments to both>1
<1section 33 and this schedule and for method of calculation and apportionment of>1
<1total rateable values.>1
43. Schedule 6 Substituted by Gas Act 1972 (c.60), s.34(2), sch. 5 Pt. 1 para. 2
PART I
<1Calculation of rateable value of notional hereditament>1
<21-6>2...................................................................
<1Repealed by para. 8, Gas Hereditaments (Rateable Values) Order 1976 No. 490.>1
PART II
<1Supplementary provisions>1
<27.>2 As respects each rating area in which the Corporation will fall to be
treated as occupying during any rate period a hereditament of a rateable
value calculated in accordance with <sa>s[an order under section 19 of, and
paragraph 3 of Schedule 3 to, the Local Government Act 1974] it shall be
the duty of the Corporation, before the end of the month of October<sb>s
preceding the beginning of that period, to transmit to the rating authority
and to the valuation officer a statement setting out particulars of <sa>s[all the
matters referred to in such an order and relevant to] the purpose of
computing the rateable value of that hereditament.
<sa>s Amended by the Gas Hereditaments (Rateable Value) order 1976 No. 490.
<sb>s For transitional modification for year 1976-77. See para. 7, Gas Hereditaments (Rateable
Values) order 1976 No. 490.
<28.>2 On receipt of a statement under paragraph 7 of this Schedule, the
valuation officer shall calculate the rateable value of the hered1tament
which the Corporation are to be treated as occupying during the rate
period in question, and shall notify the amount of that rateable value to
the rating authority before the end of the month of December<sb>s preceding
the beginning of that rate period.
<sb>s For transitional modification for year 1976-77. See para. 7, Gas Hereditaments (Rateable
Values) order 1976 No. 490.
B158
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
9. The duty imposed on the Corporation by paragraph 7 of this
Schedule shall be enforceable by mandamus at the instance of the rating
authority or of the valuation officer; and the duty imposed on the
valuation officer by paragraph 8 of this Schedule shall be enforceable by
mandamus at the instance of the rating authority.
<210.>2 Where the valuation officer notifies the amount of a rateable value
to the rating authority in accordance with paragraph 8 of this Schedule--
(a) the rating authority, in making and levying any rate for a rate
pen-od to which the notification relates, shall include the Cor-
poration as the occupier of a hereditament of that rateable value;
and
(b) the valuation officer, at or as soon as may be after the beginning
of the year consisting of or comprising any such rate period, shall
cause such alterations (if any) to be made in the valuation list as
may be requisite for showing the Corporation in the list as the
occupier of a hereditament of that rateable value, and if any such
alteration is made after the beginning of the year, it shall be
treated as having been made at the beginning of the year:
Provided that, if the year referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of this
paragraph is a year beginning with the date on which a new valuation list
comes into force, that sub-paragraph shall not apply, but the valuation
officer shall include the Corporation in the list as the occupier of a
hereditament of the said rateable value.
<211>2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
<1Repealed by Gas Hereditaments (Rateable Values) Order 1976 No. 490.>1
<212.>2 For the purposes of section 33(2)(e) of this Act, paragraph 8 of
Schedule 5 to this Act shall have effect as if f0r any reference therein to
section 32(2)(b) of this Act there were substituted a reference to the said
section 33(2)(e), and as if it provided for the determination of any such
question as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (3) or (4) thereof by the
Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.
<1Functions of Secretary of State for Trade and Industry now exercisable by>1
<1Secretary of State for Energy: S.L 1974/692.>1
<213.>2 Before making any order under section 33(5) or (6) of this Act, or
under [................]<sa>s the Secretary of State shall consult with the Cor-
poration, with such associations of local authorities as appear to him to be
concerned, and with any local authority with whom consultation appears
to him to be desirable; and any such order--
(a) may contain such incidental, supplemental and consequential
provisions, including any provisions altering any enactment or
instrument, as the Secretary of State considers expedient for the
purposes of the order; and
(b) shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of
either House of Parliament.
<sa>s Repealed by para. 8, Gas Hereditament (Rateable Values) order 1976 No. 490.
B159
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
SCHEDULE 7
ELECTRICITY BOARDS
<1Power to amend sch. 7 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.19(4).>1
PART I
CALCULATION OF RATEABLE VALUE ON WHICH RATES ARE TO BE ASSESSED
<1Rateable value of notional hereditament>1
<21.>2 The rateable value for any year of the hereditament which, by virtue
of section 34(3) of this Act, an Electricity Board are to be treated as
occupying in any rating area shall be the value of the distribution activities
of the Board for that area and year increased, in the case of a Board
carrying on generating activities in the area, by the value for that area and
year of the generating activities of the Board.
<1Valuation of activities>1
<22>2.--(1) The value of an Electricity Board's distribution or generating
activities for a rating area shall be an apportioned part of the aggregate
value of the Board's distribution or, as the case may be, generating
activities, and, subject to sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, the
apportionment shall be made--
(a) in the case of distribution activities, by reference to the aggregate
net annual value of the rating area, or so much thereof as is
comprised in the area of the Board, and of the area of the Board;
(b) in the case of generating activities, by reference to the generating
capacity of the Board in the rating area and the aggregate
generating capacity of the Board.
(2) Subject to paragraph 16 of this Schedule, the Minister may by order
provide that the apportionment required by sub-paragraph (1) of this
paragraph, shall in the case of all Electricity Boards or any Electricity
Board specified by the order, instead of being made as provided by
paragraphs (a) and (b) of that sub-paragraph, be made as provided by the
order.
<1Determination of aggregate value of activities>1
<23>2.--(1) In the case of the Generating Board, the aggregate value of the
generating and distribution activities of the Board for any year [shall be
taken to be 75% and 25% respectively of the Board's basic value for that
year].<sa>s
Provided that, subject to paragraph 16 of this Schedule, the Minister
may by order provide that the foregoing provisions of this sub-paragraph
shall have effect as if for the reference to one half there were substituted
references to such other fractions as may be specified by the order in
relation to the Board's generating activities and distribution activities
respectively.
(2) In the case of an Area Board--
(a) the aggregate value of the generating activities of the Area Board
shall be taken to be an amount which bears to the aggregate
B160
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
value of the generating activities of the Generating Board the
same proportion as the aggregate generating capacity of the Area
Board bears to the aggregate generating capacity of the Generat-
ing Board;
<1(b)>1 the aggregate value of the distribution activities of the Area
Board shall be taken to be the Board's <2basic>2 value for the year
reduced, in the case of a Board carrying on generating activities,
by the aggregate value of the generating activities.
<sa>s substituted by the Electricity Boards (Rateable Values) order 1976 No. 489.
<1Determination of Board's basic value>1
4. The basic value of an Electricity Board for any year shall be their
share of the basic electricity rateable value determined in accordance with
paragraph 5 of this Schedule adjusted as mentioned in paragraph 6 of this
Schedule by reference to the excess or deficiency of the Board's output, as
calculated and certified by the Board, in the twelve months ending with
31st December falling next but one before the beginning of the year for
which the basic value is being ascertained, as compared with the Board's
standard output.
5.--(1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, the basic
electricity rateable value shall be taken to be <sa>s[#175,000,000]; and the
share thereof of each respectively of the Electricity Boards set out in the
following table shall be the percentage of that sum so set out in relation to
that Board.
<1Electricity Board Percentage>1
Generating Board ............................... 50.000
London Area .................................... 7.055
South Eastern Area ............................. 3.454
Southern Area .................................. 4.256
South Western Area ............................. 2.073
Eastern Area ................................... 4.949
East Midlands Area ............................. 4.204
Midlands Area .................................. 4.990
South Wales Area ............................... 2.359
Merseyside and North Wales Area ................ 3.047
Yorkshire Area ................................. 4.972
North Eastern Area ............................. 3.107
North Western Area ............................. 5.534
(2) If it appears to the Minister that by reason of any substantial change
of circumstance it is expedient so to do, he may by order made after
consultations with the Electricity Council and with such associations of
local authorities as appear to him to be concerned, and with any local
authority with whom consultation appears to him to be desirable, vary the
sum which under sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph is to be taken to be
the basic electricity rateable value; but an order under this sub-paragraph
shall not have effect until approved by a resolution of each House of
Parliament.
<sa>s Substituted by the Electricity Boards (Rateable Values) order 1976 No. 489.
B161
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<26.>2 The adjustment mentioned in paragraph 4 of this Schedule shall be
effected by multiplying the Board's share of the basic electricity rateable
value by the fraction of which the numerator is the Board's standard
output increased by [45%]<sb>s of the excess mentioned in the said paragraph
4 or, as the case may be, decreased by [45%]<sb>s of the deficiency so
mentioned, and the denominator is the Board's standard output.
<sb>s Figures substituted by Electricity Boards (Rateable Values) order 1976 No. 489.
<1Meaning of "output" and "standard output">1
<27.>2 for the purposes of the foregoing provisions of this Schedule, the
standard output of the Generating Board is the output of the [Generat1ng
Board]<sc>s in the twelve months ending with 31st December [1974]<sc>s as
calculated and certified by the Generating Board, and the standard output
of any Area Board is the output of that Board in that twelve months, as
calculated and certified by that Board; and the expression --output"--
(a) in relation to [. . . . . . . . . .]<sd>s the Generating Board, means the
total number of units of electricity supplied by the [. . . . . . . . . . ]<sd>s
Board to Area Boards or direct to consumers in England and
Wales;
(<1b>1) in relation to an Area Board, means the total number of units of
electricity purchased or generated by the Board for supply direct
to consumers, together with the estimated number of units of
electricity supplied by the South of Scotland Electricity Board
direct to consumers in the area of the Area Board, as certified by
the South of Scotland Electricity Board.
<sc>s substituted by the Electricity Boards (Rateable Value) order 1976 No. 489.
<sd>s Repealed by the Electricity Boards (Rateable Values) order 1976 No. 489.
<1Provisions as to generating activities and capactty>1
<28>2.--(1) For the purposes of this Schedule an Electricity Board shall be
treated, as respects any year, as carrying on generating activities, or
carrying on such activities in a particular area, if (but only if) on 31st
March falling next but one before the beginning of that year there was a
generating station in commission for operation by the Board or, as the
case may be, there was a generating station in commission as aforesaid in
that area.
(2) for the purposes of this Schedule the generating capacity or
aggregate generating capacity of an Electricity Board for any year shall be
taken to be the installed capacity or aggregate installed capacity, that is to
say the maximum amount of electricity, as certified by the Board, capable
of being generated in the station or stations in question at 31st March
falling next but one before the beginning of that year; and the said
maximum amount shall be certified on the footing that all generators
which were installed at any 31st March were capable of being fully used at
that time.
(3) For the purposes of this Schedule a generating station situated partly
in one rating area and partly in one or more other rating areas shall be
treated as situated in each of the areas and its generating capacity on any
date shall be treated as apportioned between the areas in such manner as
may be agreed between the rating authorities of the areas and the
Electricity Board.
B162
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(4) If the apportionment required by sub-paragraph (3) of this para-
graph has not been agreed before the end of the month of September
following the date as at which it is to be made, it shall be made by the
Minister and notified by him to the rating authorities and the Board as
soon as may be after the end of that month.
(5) For the purposes of this Schedule any group of premises lying within
one curtilage and occupied for the purposes of the generation of electricity
shall be treated as one generating station; and a group of premises shall
not be treated as not lying within one curtilage by reason only that it is
traversed by a public highway or inland waterway.
<1Provisions as to aggregate net annual value>1
<29.>2--(1) for the purposes of this Schedule the aggregate net annual
value of a rat1ng area for any year shall be taken to be the aggregate, as
estimated and certified by the Commissioners, of the net annual value of
every hereditament the rateable value of which appears in the valuation
list for the area on 1st April in the preceding year other than any
hereditament so appearing in pursuance of, or of the enactment re-
enacted by, section 33(3) and 34(3) of this Act, and of the values
appearing to the Commissioners to represent the net annual values of
hereditaments occupied by or on behalf of the Crown.
(2) for the purposes of this Schedule the aggregate net annual value for
any year of the area of an Electricity Board, or of any part of a rating area
of which part only is comprised within the area of an Electricity Board,
shall be ascertained by such aggregation or apportionment as may be
required; and any apportionment under this sub-paragraph shall be made,
and the result thereof certified, by the Commissioners.
(3) References in this Schedule to the area of an Electricity Board shall
be construed, in relation to the Generating Board, as references to the
whole of England and Wales.
PART II
SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS
<210.>2 It shall be the duty of each Electricity Board, before 16th October
preceding the beginning of any rate period in respect of which that Board
will fall to be treated as occupying, in a rating area, a hereditament of a
rateable value calculated in accordance with Part I of this Schedule, to
transmit to the Commissioners a statement setting out particulars of all
matters estimated, calculated and certified (otherwise than by the Minis-
ter or the Commissioners) for the purpose of computing the rateable value
of that hereditament.
<211.>2 Before 15th November preceding the beginning of the rate period
the Commissioners shall transmit particulars to each Electricity Board of
the aggregate net annual value of the area of the Board and of each rating
area or part of a rating area within the area of the Board.
<212.>2 Before the said 15th November the Commissioners shall notify to
each rating authority the particulars necessary to enable the authority to
calculate the rateable value of the hereditament which any Electricity
Board are to be treated as occupying in the area of the authority.
B163
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<213.>2 The Commissioners shall calculate the rateable value of the here-
ditament which any Electricity Board are to be treated as occupying
during the rate period in question, and shall notify the amount of that
rateable value to the rating authority before the end of the month of
December preceding the beginning of the rate period.
<214.>2 Where the Commissioners notify the amount of a rateable value to
the rating authority in respect of an Electricity Board in accordance with
paragraph 13 of this Schedule--
(a) the rating authority, in making and levying any rate for a rate
period to which the notification relates, shall include the Board
as the occupier of a hereditament of that rateable value; and
(b) the valuation officer, at or as soon as may be after the beginning
of the year consisting of or comprising any such rate period, shall
cause such alterations (if any) to be made in the valuation list as
may be requisite for showing the Board in the list as the occupier
of a hereditament of that rateable value; and if any such
alteration is made after the beginning of the year, it shall be
treated as having been made at the beginning of the year:
Provided that if the year referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of this
paragraph is a year beginning with the date on which a new valuation list
comes into force, that sub-paragraph shall not apply, but the valuation
officer shall include the Board in the list as the occupier of a hereditament
of the said rateable value.
<215.>2 For the purposes of section 34(2)(c) of this Act, paragraph 8 of
Schedule 5 to this Act shall have effect as if in that paragraph--
<1(a)>1 for any reference to section 32(2)(b) of this Act there were
substituted a reference to the said section 34(2)(c); and
<1(b)>1 for any reference to the Minister of Transport there were
substituted a reference to the Minister of Power.
<1Functions of Minister of Power now exercisable by Secretary of State for Energy:>1
<1S.I. 1970/1681 and 1974/692.>1
<216.>2 Before making any order under paragraph 2(2) or the proviso to
paragraph 3(1) of this Schedule, the Minister shall consult with the
Electricity Council, with such associations of local authorities as appear to
him to be concerned, and with any local authority with whom consultation
appears to him to be desirable; and any such order--
<1(a)>1 may contain such incidental, supplemental and consequential
provisions, including provisions altering any enactment or instru-
ment, as the Minister considers expedient for the purposes of the
order; and
<1(b)>1 shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of
either House of Parliament.
SCHEDULE 8
CHARITIES EXCLUDED FROM MANDATORY RELIEF
<21.>2 The universities of Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Durham, East
Anglia, Essex, Exeter, Hull, Keele, Kent at Canterbury, Lancaster,
Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne,
B164
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Nottingham, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield, Southampton, Sussex, Wales,
Warwick and York, but exclusive in the case of the University of London
of the institution of that university known as Goldsmiths' College [<s44>sthe
Loughborough University of Technology] [<s45>sthe University of Aston in
Birmingham] [<s46>sthe City University] [<s47>sBrunel University] [<s48>sthe Universi-
ty of Surrey] [<s49>sthe University of Bradford] [<s50>sthe Bath University of
Technology] [<s51>sthe University of Salford] [<s52>sthe Open University].
44. Words added by S.I. 1967/406.
45. Words added by S.I. 1967/407.
46. Words added by S.I. 1967/408.
47. Words added by S.I. 1967/409.
48. Words added by S.I. 1967/410.
49. Words added by S.I. 1967/411.
50. Words added by S.I. 1967/412.
51. Words added by S.I. 1967/1336.
52. Words added by S.I. 1970/490.
<22>2. The colleges, institutions and schools of the universities of Durham,
London and Wales, with the exception of--
(<1a>1) the following colleges of the University of Durham, that is to say,
the College of the Venerable Bede, St. Chad's College and St.
John's College; and
(<1b>1) the following colleges and institute of the University of London,
that is to say, New College, Richmond College, the theological
department of King's College London as defined in the King's
College (Transfer) Act 1908, and the Lister Institute of Preven-
tive Medicine.
<23.>2 The Federated Institutes of the British Postgraduate Medical fed-
eration, with the exception of the Institute of Cancer Research.
[<s53>s<24.>2 The University of Manchester Institute of Science and Tech-
nology].
<25.>2 . . . .<s54>s[<s55>sthe London Graduate School of Business Studies].
<26.>2 The colleges and halls in the universities of Oxford and Cambridge,
[with the exception of the permanent private halls of the University of
Oxford, that is to say, Campion Hall, St. Benet's Hall, Mansfield College,
Regent's Park College and Grey Friars]<sa>s.
<sa>s Rating (Charitable 1nstrtutions) order 1978 No. 218.
53. Paragraph 4 substituted by S.I. 1967/413.
54. Words repealed by S.I. 1967/406-413, 1336, 1970/490.
55. Words added by S.I. 1970/490.
SCHEDULE 9
<1Repealed by Local Government Act 1974 s.42 & sch. 8.>1
SCHEDULE 10
PAYMENT OF RATES ON DWELLING BY INSTALMENTS<s*>s
<21>2.--[(1) A notice by any person under section 50(1) of this Act may be
given at any time not earlier than 1st February preceding the beginning of
a year and not later than the latest of--
B165
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(a) 30th April in that year;
(b) the twenty-eighth day after the first occasion on which a demand
note for rates in respect of that year (or part of it) is served on
him in respect of the hereditament in question;
(c) in a year in which he first becomes qualified to serve such a
notice in respect of the hereditament in question, the twenty-
eighth day after he first became so qualified.
(2) Subject to sub-paragraph (3) below, the effective date of a notice
given under section 50(1) of this Act by any person shall be the date on
which it is given or, if later, the date of the first occasion on which a
demand note for rates in respect of the year (or part of the year) in which
the notice is given is served on him.
(3) Where the effective date of notice would, under the provisions of
sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, fall within the last three months of a
rate period, it shall instead be the first day of the following rate period.]<sa>s
<s*>s By the amendments contained in the Local Govemment, Hanning and Land Act 1980, this
schedule now applies to some other class of hereditament.
<sa>s substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.34.
<22.>2 <1Repealed by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 section>1
<134 and/or schedule 34 part IX.>1
<23.>2 Where a notice under the said section 50(1) in respect of any
hereditament is duly given to the rating authority by a Person qualified to
give it, the authority shall--
(a) in respect of the year in which the effective date of that notice
falls (or so much of that year as falls after that date); and
(b) in respect of each subsequent year until that notice ceases to be
in force
send to that person a statement in writing specifying the number of
the instalments by which the rates are to be paid in the year in question,
the respective dates on which those instalments are to become due,
and the respective amounts of those instalments:
Provided that, where the notice under the said section 50(1) is given
after the service of a demand note for rates for the rate period in which the
effective date of that notice falls, the requirements of sub-paragraph (a) of
this paragraph shall be deemed to be satisfied if that demand note
included the statement required in consequence of the notice.
<24.>2 The number of the instalments specified in any statement under
paragraph 3 of this schedule---
(a) if the effective date of the notice under the said section 50(1) is
after 30th April, shall in the year in which that effective date falls
be not less than the number of complete months between that
date and the end of that year (including, if that date is the first
day of a month, that month) reduced, if that number of months is
three, by one or, if that number of months is four or more, by
two;
<1(b)>1 in any other case shall be not less than ten;
and the date specified in any such statement for the first instalment
thereunder shall not be earlier than ten days after the date when the
B166
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
statement is sent, and the interval between any two of the instalment dates
shall not be less than one month.
<25.>2 The amounts specified in any statement under the said paragraph 3
for the instalments payable in the year or part of a year to which the
statement relates--
<1(a)>1 if that statement relates to a whole year and that year includes
two or more rate periods, shall be fixed on the basis that the
amount in the pound of all rates levied in that year will be that of
the rates levied in the first of those rate periods; or
<1(b)>1 if that statement relates to part of a year and that part of a year
includes the whole or part of two or more rate periods, shall be
fixed on the basis that the amount in the pound of the rates levied
in any rate period or periods beginning after the date of the
sending of the statement will be the amount in the pound, or the
average of the amounts in the pound, of the rates levied in any
rate period or periods in that year beginning before that date;
and
(c) in every case, shall [. . . . .]<sb>s be equal, except that the rating
authority may round off the amount of any of those instalments
other than either the first or the last to the nearest shilling<sc>s and
adjust the amount of the first or, as the case may be, last of those
instalments accordingly [and may take account of any rebate
granted in respect of the rates];<sd>s
but the rating authority may by a further statement in writing make such
adjustments in those amounts as may from time to time be necessary in
consequence of any change in the amount the occupier is liable to pay by
way of rates in respect of that year or part of a year.
<sb>sWords omitted by Local Government, Hanning and Land Act 1980, s.34 and sch. 34.
<sc>s Five new pence--see Decimal Currency Act 1969, s.10(1).
<sd>s Words added by Local Government, Hanning and Land Act 1980, s.34.
<26.>2 A notice under the said section 50(1) shall cease to be in force--
(a) if the person by whom it was given withdraws it by a further
notice in writing to the rating authority; or
(b) if--
(i) any instalment is not paid on or before the date when it is
due; or
(ii) the rating authority are satisfied that the person aforesaid is
no longer qualified to give a notice under the said section
50(1) in respect of the hereditament in question,
and the rating authority give notice in writing to that person that,
by reason of the default or, as the case may be his ceasing to be
so qualified, the notice under the said section 50(1) is being
treated as cancelled;
and upon the giving of any notice under this paragraph any amount due by
way of rates in respect of the hereditament shall be recoverable as if no
notice had been given under the said section 50(1), without prejudice,
however, to the right to give a fresh notice under the said section 50(1)
[..............].<se>s
<se>s Words omitted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, sch. 34 Pt. IX.
B167
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
SCHEDULE 11
<1Repealed by Local Government Act 1974 s.42 & sch. 7 & 8.>1
SCHEDULE 12
FORMS OF DOCUMENTS
<1Power to modify sch. 12 given by Water Act 1973 (c.37), s.32A(3).>1
A.
<1Complaint for non-payment of rate>1
In the [county of , Petty Sessional Division of
].
The complaint of <1[insert name of rating authority or person acting for them]>1
who state that A.B., being a person duly rated and assessed by [them] in a
rate made on in the sum of # has not paid the said
sum or any part of it.
Taken before me this day of , 19 .
<1J. P.>1
Justice of the Peace for the
[county] first above mentioned.
<1Note.>1 --1. <1Complaints for non-payment of rates by two or more persons>1
<1nay be combined in a single document.>1
2. <1This and the following Forms may be adapted to meet a case where a>1
<1person is in default as to part only of the sum to which he was rated.>1
B.
<1Summons for non-payment of rate>1
In the [county of , Petty Sessional Division of
].
To A.B., of
Complaint has this day been made to me, the undersigned Justice of the
Peace by of in the said [county] of that you,
being a person duly rated and assessed in a rate made on in the
sum of # have not paid that sum or any part of it:
You are therefore hereby summoned to appear on day the
day of , 19 , at the hour of in the
noon, before the Magistrates' Court sitting at , to show
cause why you have not paid the said sum.
If you do not appear you will be proceeded against as if you had appeared
and be dealt with according to law.
Dated the day of , 19 .
<1J.P.>1
Justice of the Peace for the
[county] first above mentioned.
B168
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
NOTE
The under-mentioned costs have already been incurred:--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
| s.d.
|
|
Clerk to the Court ......................................... |
Rating authority, for obtaining this summons ............... |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
If the amount of these costs, together with the rate claimed, be paid to
<1[insert name of rating authority]>1 before the day on which this summons is
returnable, all turther proceedings will be stopped.
C.(1)
<1Form of Distress Warrant>1
In the [county of , Petty Sessional Division of
].
To <1[insert name of rating authority]>1 and to each and all of the constables of
On , 19 , complaint was made by
that A.B., being a person duly rated and assessed
in a rate made on , 19 , in the sum of # , had
not paid that sum or any part thereof:
And on , 19 , at the
complainants [and the said A.B.] have appeared before the Magistrates'
Court sitting at
[but the said A.B. has not so appeared and it has been satisfactorily
proved that he was duly served with a summons so to appear]:
And it being now duly proved to the Court on oath [in the presence of the
said A.B.] that the said A.B. was assessed at the sum of # in a
rate dated and duly made and published and that the
said sum has been duly demanded from the said A.B. but that he has not
paid it:
And the said A.B. not showing any sufficient cause for not paying the said
sum:
You are hereby commanded forthwith to make distress of the goods and
chattels of the said A.B. and if within [five] days after the making of the
distress the sums set out below (together with the lawful charges for taking
and keeping the said distress) are not paid, to sell the said goods and
chattels distrained by you and out of the proceeds of the sale to retain the
said sums set out below, together with the lawful charges for taking,
keeping and selling the said distress, and paying over any balance on
demand to the said A.B.; and if no such distress can be found you are to
certify that fact to the Court.
Dated the day of , 19 .
<1J.P.>1
Justice of the Peace for the
[county] first above mentioned.
B169
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Particulars>1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
# s.d.
1. Sum due for rate ............................................. |
2. for costs of obtaining warrant of distress ................... |
Total ................... |-------
|
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.(2)
<1Form of Distress Warrant against several Ratepayers>1
In the [county of , Petty Sessional Division of
].
To <1[insert name of rating authority>1] and to each and all of the constables of
On , 19 , complaint was made
by
that the persons whose names are given in the particulars at the foot of
this warrant, being persons duly rated and assessed in the respective
amounts set out in those particulars by rates made on the dates there set
out had not paid those sums or any part thereof:
And on ,19 at
the complainants and <1[Names of parties who have appeared]>1 have
appeared before the Magistrates' Court sitting at [but
the [other] persons whose names are given in the particulars at the foot of
this warrant have not so appeared and it has been satisfactorily proved to
the Court that the said persons not so appearing have been duly served
with a summons in that behalf]:
And it being now duly proved to the Court on oath in the presence of the
parties so appearing that the said persons named in the said particulars
were assessed at the respective amounts there set out by the rates made as
there specified and duly published and that those sums have been duly
demanded from the said persons respectively but that they have not paid
them or any part thereof:
And the said persons not showing any sufficient cause for not paying the
said sums:
You are hereby commanded forthwith to make distress of the goods and
chattels of the said persons and if within [five] days after the making of the
distress the respective sums set out in the said particulars (including in
each case the sums for costs there specified and the lawful charges for
taking and keeping the said distress) are not paid, to sell the goods and
chattels of the parties in default distrained by you and out of the proceeds
of sale to retain the respective sums so specified, together with the lawful
charges for taking, keeping and selling the distress, and in each case
paying over any balance on demand to the person whose goods and
B170
chattels have been so sold; and if no such distress can be found in the case
of any of the said persons you are to certify that fact to the Court.
Dated the day of , 19
<1J. P>1.
Justice of the Peace for the
[county] first above mentioned.
<1Particulars>1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | | Arrears | |
Name of | Residence | Rate | under | Costs | Total
Ratepayer | | | rate | |
dated | | dated | dated | |
| | | | |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | # s.d. | # s.d. | # s.d. | # s.d.
| | | | |
| | | | |
------------------------------------------------------------------------
D
<1Form of Warrant of Commitment in default of Distress>1
In the [county of , Petty Sessional Division of
].
To each and all the constables of
and to the Governor of Her Majesty's prison at
On , 19 , complaint was made by
that A.B., being a person duly rated and
assessed in a rate made on 19 , in the sum of
# , had not paid that sum or any part thereof:
And on ,19 , at the
complainants [and the said A.B.] appeared before the Magistrates' Court
sitting at
[but the said A.B. did not appear before the Court and it was satisfactorily
proved that he was duly served with a summons so to appear]:
B171
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
And it was duly proved to the Court on oath [in the presence of the said
A.B.] that the said A.B. was assessed at the sum of # by
a rate dated and duly made and published, and that the
said sum had been duly demanded from the said A.B., but that he had not
paid it.
And the said A.B. not showing any sufficient cause for not paying the said
sum, the Court issued a warrant to commanding them
to levy the said sum, together with the sum for the costs of obtaining that
warrant set out below, by distress and sale of the goods and chattels of the
said A.B.:
And it appearing that no sufficient distress on which to levy the said sums
could be found:
And inquiry having been made by the competent Court in the presence of
the said A.B. as to whether his failure to pay the said sums was due either
to his wilful refusal or to his culpable neglect, and that Court not being of
opinion that the failure of the said A.B. was not so due:
It is ordered that the said A.B. be committed to prison for
unless the said sums together with the further costs and charges set out
below are sooner paid:<s*>s
You, the said constables, are hereby required to take the said A.B.,
and convey him to the Governor of Her Majesty's Prison at
; and you, the said Governor, to receive the said
A.B. into custody and imprison him for <1[stateperiod]>1 or until he be sooner
discharged in due course of law.
Datedthe day of , 19 .
<1J.P.>1
Justice of the Peace for the
[county] first above mentioned.
<1Particulars>1
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Sum due forrate ............................................. | # s. d.
2. For costs of obtaining warrant of distress ................. |
3. Sum payable for the fees, charges and expenses |
attending the distress ......................................... |
4. Costs of commitment ........................................ |
Total ........................ |--------
|
|--------
|
-----------------------------------------------------------------|--------
<s*>sNOTE: The period of detention will be reduced as provided by section
102(5) of the General Rate Act 1967 if part payment is made of the sum
due.
B172
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
SCHEDULE 13
USE OF PREMISES AS PRIVATE DWELLING
1. The provisions of this Schedule shall have effect for the purpose of
determining whether any hereditament or premises is or are used wholly
for the purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings.
<22>2.--(1) If in the case of a hereditament which is used for the letting of
rooms singly for residential purposes there is used for such lettings the
whole, or substantially the whole, of the available accommodation (that is
to say the whole, or substantially the whole, of so much of the accom-
modation in the hereditament as is suitable for being used for such
lettings), then unless the whole, or substantially the whole, of that
available accommodation consists of dwellings--
(<1a>1) which have at any time been approved under section 1 of the
Housing (Financial Provisions) Act 1958 or the corresponding
provision of any enactment repealed by that Act or under Part I
of the Housing Act 1961; or
(<1b>1) which have been provided or improved in accordance with
proposals approved under section 9 of the said Act of 1958 or the
corresponding provision of any enactment repealed by that Act;
or
(<1c>1) in respect of which grants have at any time been paid to a housing
association or development corporation under section 12 or 30 of
the said Act of 1958 or the corresponding provision of any
enactment repealed by that Act,
that hereditament shall be deemed not to be used for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings; but save as aforesaid a hereditament
shall not be deemed to be used otherwise than wholly for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings by reason that one or more rooms
therein are let for residential purposes.
(2) In the foregoing sub-paragraph, references to the letting of rooms
are references to the letting thereof by way either of a tenancy or of a
licence, and either with or without board or other services or facilities.
<1Paragraph 2 amended by Housing Subsidies Act 1967 (c.29), sch. 3 para. 12 and>1
<1Housing Act 1969 (c.33), sch, 8 para. 30.>1
3. A hereditament shall be deemed not to be used for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings if it consists wholly or mainly of land
used as sites for moveable dwellings within the meaning of section 269 of
the Publ1c Health Act 1936.
4. A hereditament or premises shall not be deemed to be used
otherwise than wholly for the purposes of a private dwelling or private
dwellings by reason of either or both of the following circumstances, that
is to say--
(<1a>1) that there is included in the hereditament 0r premises a garage,
outhouse, garden, yard, court, forecourt or other appurtenance
which is not used, or not used wholly, for the purposes of a
private dwelling;
(<1b>1) that part of the hereditament or premises, not being such an
appurtenance as aforesaid, is used partly for the purposes of a
B173
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
private dwelling or private dwellings and partly for other pur-
poses, unless that part was constructed, or has been adapted, for
those other purposes,
or by reason that a person who resides in the hereditament or premises, or
in part thereof, is required or permitted to reside there in consequence of
his employment or of holding an office.
5. Where part only of a hereditament is used for purposes other than
those of a private dwelling or private dwellings and, if that part were a
separate hereditament in the same occupation as the remainder of the
hereditament and used solely for those other purposes, that separate
hereditament would not be liable to be rated, the first-mentioned
hereditament shall be deemed to be used wholly for the purposes of a
private dwelling or private dwellings.
SCHEDULE 14
REPEALS
PART I
ENACTMENTS REPEALED
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
43 Eliz. 1. c. 2 The Poor Relief Act The whole Act.
1601.
17 Geo. 2. c. 38. The Poor Relief Act The whole Act.
1743.
41 Geo. 3. c. 23. The Poor Rate Act The whole Act.
1801.
5 & 6 Will. 4. c. The Highway Act 1835. Sections 27 and 33.
50. In section 105, the words "by
any rate made under or in
pursuance of this Act, or",
the words --to the surveyor
or surveyors, or", the
words "rate shall have
been made or", and the
words "the making of any
rate or".
Section 106.
In section 107, the words
"rate, nor any".
33 & 34 Vict. c. The Poor Rate Assess- The whole Act.
41. ment and Collection
Act 1869.
37 & 38 Vict. c. The Rating Act 1874. The whole Act.
54.
52 & 53 Vict. c. The Advertising Sta- The whole Act.
27. tions (Rating) Act
1889.
B174
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
15 & 16 Geo. 5. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act except sec-
c. 90. tion Act 1925. tions 2(7),9(1), 10,48,49,
52, 54 and 62(3) and Sche-
dules 6 and 7.
Section 2(7) from --The
assessment" onwards.
18 g 19 Geo. 5. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act.
c. 8. tion Act 1928.
18 & 19 Geo. 5. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act.
c. 44. tion
(Apportionment)
Act 1928.
19 & 20 Geo. 5. The Local Government Sections 67, 71, 72 and 84.
c. 17. Act 1929.
23 & 24 Geo. 5. The Local Government Sections 186, 189, 192(1) and
c. 51. Act 1933. 193(7).
1 & 2 Geo. 6. c. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act.
65. tion (Air-raid Works)
Act 1938.
2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. The Civil Defence Act Section 69.
31. 1939.
11 & 12 Geo. 6. The Local Government Sections 33, 34, 39 to 48,
c. 26. Act 1948. 49(1), 50 to 53, 55(1), 56,
57(1), 58, 59(2), 60, 61, 63,
64, 66, 67, 69 to 71, 85(1),
86, 87(1), 88(2), 91, 94(2)
to (4), 100(1) and (2), 102,
109, 110, 120(3) and
121(4).
In section 121(5) the words
"and the provisions of sec-
tion nine of the Rating and
Valuation Act 1925".
In section 121(7) the words
"notwithstanding subsec-
tion (2) of section nine of
the Rating and Valuation
Act 1925".
In section 141(1) the words
"or Part V".
Section 143(1)(a).
Section 144(4) from "Pro-
vided that" onwards.
Section 144(9).
In Schedule 1, paragraphs 1
and 3.
12, 13 and 14 The Lands Tribunal In section 1(3)(e) the words
Geo. 6. c. 42. Act 1949. "forty-nine".
1 & 2 Eliz. 2. c. The Valuation for The whole Act.
42. Rating Act 1953.
B175
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act except sec-
9. tion (Miscellaneous tions 11 and 17.
Privisions) Act 1955.
5 & 6 Eliz. 2. c. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act.
17. tion Act 1957.
5 & 6 Eliz. 2. c. The Electricity Act Part II of Schedule 4 so far
48. 1957. as it amends the Local
Government Act 1948.
6 & 7 Eliz. 2. c. The Local Government Sections 9 to 15 and Schedule
55. Act 1958. 2. In Schedule 8, para-
graphs 22 to 26, paragraph
33, and in paragraph 35
the words "23 to" and the
words from "except" on-
wards.
7 & 8 Eliz. 2. c. The Highways Act Section 301.
25. 1959.
7 & 8 Eliz. 2. c. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act.
36. tion Act 1959.
8 & 9 Eliz. 2. c. The Distress for Rates The whole Act.
12. Act 1960.
8 & 9 Eliz. 2. c. The City of London Section 35.
xxxvi. (Various Powers) Act Section 36(2) so far as it re-
1960. lates to the Poor Relief
Act 1743 or the Poor Rate
. Assessment and Collection
Act 1869.
9 & 10 Eliz. 2. c. The Rating and Valua- The whole Act except sec-
45. tion Act 1961. tions 12(6) and 29(3) and
(4).
10 & 11 Eliz. 2. The Transport Act Section 66.
c. 46. 1962.
10 & 11 Eliz. 2. The Pipe-lines Act Section 41.
c. 58. 1962.
1963 c. 33. The London Govern- Section 63(1).
ment Act 1963. Section 63(2) from "being"
onwards.
Schedule 15 except para-
graphs 5(1), 6, 10, 18 and
21.
1963 c. 38. The Water Resources Section 122.
Act 1963.
1964 c. 42. The Administration of Paragraph 26 of Schedule 3.
Justice Act 1964.
1965 c. 36. The Gas Act 1965. Section 3.
1965 c. 56. The Compulsory Pur- Section 27(5).
chase Act 1965.
B176
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
1966 c.9. The Rating Act 1966. Section 1.
Sections 3 to 8.
Section 10(2)(a).
Section 11(1) except for the
definitions of "gross rate
income", "the Minister",
"rate", "rating authority"
and "year".
Section 11(2).
1966 c. 42. The Local Government Sections 6, 16 to 26 and 38.
Act 1966. In section 40(3), the figures
"24".
Section 43(2)(c).
Schedules 2 and 4.
In Schedule 5, paragraph 3.
In Schedule 6, Part III.
PART II
REVOCATIONS OF, OR IN, STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
1. The Gas Boards (Rateable Values) Order 1962
(S.I. 1962 No. 1687).
2. The Electricity Boards (Rateable Values) Order 1962
(S.I. 1962 No. 1688).
3. The Rating of Owners Order 1962
(S.I. 1962 No. 2016).
4. The Rating (Charitable Institutions) Order 1963
(S.I. 1963 No. 1361).
5. Article 4 of the Transport Boards (Adjustment of Payments) Order
1964
(S.I. 1964 No. 254).
6. The Rating (Charitable Institutions) Order 1965
(S.I. 1965 No. 1726).
7. The Rating (Charitable Institutions) Order 1966
(S.I. 1966 No. 198).
<1The following provisions have been omitted from the text for the reasons>1
<1stated below:-->1
s. 22 .................... repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7), s.
18(2), Sch. 8
s. 35 .................... repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7),
Sch. 8
s. 47 .................... repealed with saving by General Rate Act 1967 (c.
9), s. 117(2)
s. 49(8) ................. repealed by Theft Act 1968 (c. 60), Sch. 3 Pt. I
(10) ................ repealed by S.I. 1968/491
s. 52 .................... repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7),
Sch. 7 para. 6, Sch. 8
B177
<1Transport Act 1968>1
s. 115(3)(b) ............ repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7),
Sch. 7 para. 9, Sch. 8
s. 116(8) ............... repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70),
Sch. 30
(9) ............... textually amends Rating and Valuation Act 1925
(c. 90), s. 2(7) and Licensing Act 1964 (c. 26),
Sch. 2 para. 5(a)
Sch. 11 ................. repealed by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7),
Sch. 7 para. 10, Sch. 8
Sch. 14
Pt. I (in part) ....... specifies enactments repealed by s. 117(1)
Pt. 11 ................ specifies instruments or part of instruments re-
pealed by s. 117(1)
<2Transport Act 1968>2
<2Manufacture, repair and supply>2
<248.>2--(1) This section applies to the following authorities, namely, the
Boards and the new authorities, but in its application to the Scottish
Group and reference to the Minister shall be construed as a reference to
the Secretary of State.
(2) Each of the authorities to whom this section applies shall have
power--
<1(a)>1 to manufacture for sale to outside persons (that is to say, to
persons other than an authority to whom this section appltes or a
subsidiary of such an authority), the authority consider can
advantageously be so manufactured or, as the case may be,
repaired by the authority by reason of the fact that the authority
or a subsidiary of theirs have materials or facilities for, or skill in,
the manufacture or repair of that thing in connection with some
existing activity of that authority or subsidiary;
<1(b)>1 to sell to outside persons, and for that purpose to purchase,
anything which is of a kind which the authority or a subsidiary of
theirs purchase in the course of some existing activity of that
authority or subsidiary;
<1(c)>1 at any place where the authority, in the exercise of their powers
under section 14(1)(d) of the Act of 1962, provide a car park, to
repair motor vehicles for outside persons, and to sell to outside
persons petrol, oil and spare parts and accessories for motor
vehicles, and for that purpose to purchase any of those things,
whether or not those persons are using the car park;
and the Waterways Board shall have power to sell goods of any
description to outside persons, whether or not persons using their
waterways, at any place where persons using those waterways may require
facilities for the purchase of those goods, and for that purpose to purchase
any such goods; and in paragraph <1(a)>1 or <1(b)>1 of this subsection the
expression "existing activity" means, in relation to any activity at any time
B178
<1Transport Act 1968>1
undertaken by virtue of that paragraph, any other activity already carried
on at that time, including any such activity carried on by virtue of any
provision of this section other than paragraph (c) of this subsection and
other than the provisions of this subsection relating only to the Waterways
Board.
(3) An authority to whom this section applies shall not engage in any
activity authorised by subsection (2) of this section, and shall exercise
their control over any subsidiary of theirs so as to ensure that the
subsidiary does not engage in any such activity, unless the authority are
satisfied that they or the subsidiary can do so without detriment to the
duties imposed on the authority by the Act of 1962 or this Act.
(4) Each of the authorities to whom this section applies shall from time
to time submit to the Minister for his approval proposals as to the manner
in which any activities authorised by subsection (2) of this section or any
activities of manufacture authorised by section 13 of the Act of 1962 are to
be carried on by them or any subsidiary of theirs, and shall carry on, or, as
the case may be, exercise their control over that subsidiary so as to ensure
that the subsidiary carries on, those activities in accordance with the
Minister's approval, and the Minister may--
<1(a)>1 in approving any proposals, approve them subject to such
modifications or subject to compliance with such conditions as he
thinks fit; and
<1(b)>1 at any time, after consultation with the authority, direct the
authority to discontinue or, as the case may be, to exercise their
control over any of their subsidiaries so as to require the
subsidiary to discontinue, any of the activities which the author-
ity or subsidiary are carrying on in accordance with the Minister's
approval.
(5) The Minister shall publish, in such manner as he thinks fit, any
proposals approved by him under subsection (4) of this section, and shall
send copies of those proposals to the Confederation of British Industry
and the Trades Union Congress.
(6) Each authority to whom this section applies shall include in the
report in respect of any year required to be submitted by them under
section 27(8) of the Act of 1962 such particulars as the Minister may, after
consultation with the authority and with the approval of the Treasury,
direct with respect to all or any of the activities authorised by subsection
(2) of this section or the activities of manufacture authorised by section 13
of the Act of 1962 which have been carried on in that year by the authority
or any of their subsidiaries.
(7) The foregoing provisions of this section shall have effect notwith-
standing subsection (1) of section 13 of the Act of 1962 (so far as it
confines any authority's powers of manufacture, purchase and repair to
those conferred by that section), and in that section--
subsection (2) (which relates to the powers of the Waterways Board
to manufacture for sale and to repair plant and equipment of a kind
ordinarily made for use in connection with the operation of an
inland waterway);
subsection (4) (which is superseded by the provisions of subsection
(4) of this section) except as respects proposals approved there-
under before the appointed day for the purposes of this section;
B179
<1Transport Act 1968>1
subsection (5) (which restricts the power of the Boards to manufac-
ture road vehicles, bodies or chassis for road vehicles or major
components of road vehicles);
subsection (6) (which restricts the power of the Boards to purchase or
trade in road vehicles or in spare parts, accessories, petrol or oil for
such vehicles and from engaging in the maintenance or repair of
such vehicles, spare parts or accessories); and
subsection (7) (which restricts the power of the Boards to engage in
shipbuilding),
shall cease to have effect.
(8) Section 29(7) of the Act of 1962 (which relates to manufacture or
production by subsidiaries of the Holding Company) shall have effect as if
each of the new authorities were one of the Boards.
(9) In this section references to manufacture include references to con-
struction and production, references to repair include references to main-
tenance, and references to selling or purchasing include references to
supplying, or, as the case may be, obtaining, by exchange, hire or
hire-purchase.
<1Referred to in the General Rate Act 1967 s.32(4)(c).>1
<2Miscellaneous provisions as to powers>2
<250.>2--(1) In addition to their power under the provisions of sections
3(3)(e), 9(2)(c) or 10(3)(f) of the Act of 1962 to store certain goods and to
use certain premises to provide facilities for the storage of other goods,
the Railways Board, Docks Board and Waterways Board shall each have
power, with the consent of the Minister, to provide such facilities at any
other premises; and the said section 3(3)(e) shall apply to goods which
have been or are to be carried by a subsidiary of the Railways Board as it
applies to goods which have been or are to be carried by that Board.
(2) The Railways board shall have power to provide and manage hotels
in any part of Great Britain and, with the consent of the Minister,
elsewhere; and the following provisions of the Act of 1962, that is to say--
section 6 (which permits the Board to provide hotels only in places
where those using the railway services provided by the Board may
require them and to exercise their power of managing hotels only
with the consent of the Minister); and
section 25(3) (which prevents the Board from having any subsidiary,
other than the Hotel Company, which owns or manages a hotel),
shall cease to have effect.
(3) The Waterways Board, the Bus Company and the Scottish Group
shall each have power to provide and manage hotels in places where those
using the inland waterways owned or managed by the Waterways Board
or, as the case may be, the transport services provided by the Bus
Company or Scottish Group may require them, for use both by those and
other persons.
(4) In subsections (2) and (3) of this section the references to hotels
include references to any other form of residential accommodation or
facilities, including caravan and camping sites, for travellers or persons on
holiday; and the said subsection (3) shall be without prejudice to the
powers of the Waterways Board, the Bus Company or the Scottish Group
B180
<1Transport Act 1968>1
under section 14(1)(d) of the Act of 1962 to provide amenities and
facilities for persons for whom they do not provide residential accom-
modation or facilities.
(5) In addition to the powers of the Waterways Board to provide the
transport services by road authorised by section 10(3)(c) of the Act of
1962 (carriage of goods which have been or are to be carried by the Board
by inland waterway and carriage of goods where the use of an inland
waterway owned or managed by the Board has been temporarily inter-
rupted), that Board shall have power, with the consent of the Minister, to
provide other transport services by road for the carriage of goods and to
carry goods by those services.
(6) Without prejudice to the powers of the Waterways Board apart
from this subsection, that Board shall have power to provide services and
facilities for the use for amenity or recreational purposes (including
fishing) of the inland waterways and reservoirs owned or managed by
them.
(7) Each of the Boards and new authorities shall have power to provide
for any person technical advice or assistance, including research services,
as respects any matter in which the Board or new authority have skill or
experience.
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.32(4)(c).>1
<2Rating>2
<2162.>2--(1) Where any premises are occupied wholly or partly--
(a) for purposes of a subsidiary of the Railways Board, the London
Board or the Waterways Board which, if the undertaking of that
subsidiary formed part of the undertaking of that Board, would
be non-rateable purposes within the meaning of subsection (6) of
section 32 of the General Rate Act 1967;
<1(b)>1 [. . . . . . .]<sa>s
then, for the purposes of the rating of those premises so far as they are
occupied for such purposes as are mentioned in paragraph (a)
[. . . . . . .].<sa>s shall be deemed to form part of the undertaking of that
Board and the premises so far as so occupied shall be deemed to be
occupied for non-rateable purposes of that Board.
(2)[. . . . . . .].<sa>s
(3) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (6) or (7) of the said section
32, purposes of the exercise by any of the Boards aforesaid [. . . . . . .]<sa>s of
any powers conferred by section 48 or subsections (1) to (7) of section 50
of this Act or purposes of the exercise by a subsidiary of any of those
Boards [. . . . . . .]<sa>s of corresponding powers shall not be treated as
non-rateable purposes within the meaning of the said section 32(6).
(4) Where any premises are occupied partly for such purposes as are
mentioned in subsection (1)(a) [. . . . . . .]<sa>s of this section and partly for
other purposes [. . . . . . .]<sa>s of such a subsidiary as is so mentioned,
then--
(a) where those premises are a hereditament in England or Wales--
(i) there shall be ascribed to the hereditament under section 19
of the said Act of 1967 such net annual value as may be just
B181
having regard to the extent to which it is occupied for those
other purposes; and
(ii) if under any scheme for the time being in force such as is
mentioned in section 117(7) of that Act any deduction falls
to be made from the net annual value of the hereditament in
arriving at its rateable value, that deduction shall be calcu-
lated with regard only to those other purposes;
(<1b>1) <1Excluded, as relating to Scotland.>1
(5) <1Amends the General Rate Act 1967 s. 32(4) printed in this appendix>1
<1as amended.>1
(6) and (7) <1Excluded as relating to Scotland.>1
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.19.>1
<sa>s See Transport Act 1980 and Statutory 1nstrument 1980/1380.
<2Caravan Sites Act 1968>2
<1Affecting Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 above.>1
<2Twin-unit caravans>2
<213>2.--(1) A structure designed or adapted for human habitation
which--
(a) is composed of not more than two sections separately con-
structed and designed to be assembled on a site by means of
bolts, clamps or other devices; and
(<1b>1) is, when assembled, physically capable of being moved by road
from one place to another (whether by being towed, or by being
transported on a motor vehicle or trailer),
shall not be treated as not being (or as not having been) a caravan
within the meaning of Part I of the Caravan Sites and Control of
Development Act 1960 by reason only that it cannot lawfully be so moved
on a highway when assembled.
(2) for the purposes of Part I of the Caravan Sites and Control of
Development Act 1960, the expression --caravan" shall not include a
structure designed or adapted for human habitation which falls within
paragraphs (<1a>1) and (<1b>1) of the foregoing subsection if its dimensions when
assembled exceed any of the following limits, namely--
(<1a>1) length (exclusive of any drawbar): 60 feet (18-288 metres);
(<1b>1) width: 20 feet (6-096 metres);
(<1c>1) overall height of living accommodation (measured intemally
from the floor at the lowest level to the ceiling at the highest
level): 10 feet (3-048 metres).
(3) The Minister may by order made by statutory instrument after
consultation with such persons or bodies as appear to him to be concerned
substitute for any figure mentioned in subsection (2) of this section such
other figure as may be specified in the order.
B182
<1General Rate Act 1970>1
(4) Any statutory instrument made by virtue of subsection (3) of this
section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either
House of Parliament.
<21nterpretation>2
<216.>2 In this Act the following expressions have the following meanings
that is to say--
"caravan" has the same meaning as in Part I of the Caravan Sites and
Control of Development Act 1960, as amended by this Act;
<1See Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 s.6 which refers to the Caravan Sites>1
<1and Control of Development Act 1960 which is affected by the Caravan Sites>1
<1Act 1968.>1
<2General Rate Act 1970>2
<1The General Rate Act 1967 is reproduced in this appendix as amended>1 by
<1this Act.>1
An Act to make provision as to the assessment of dwelling-houses for the
purposes of valuation lists under the General Rate Act 1967 by
reference to evidence as to the rents at which other dwelling-houses
have been let or as to the relationship between those rents and the gross
values of those other dwelling-houses in the current valuation lists.
[15th May 1970]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
<2Ascertainment of gross value of dwelling-house>2
<21>2.-(1) In section 19 of the General Rate Act 1967 (which relates to the
general rule for the ascertainment of rateable value) after subsection (2)
there shall be inserted the following subsection:--
--(2A) Where the gross value of a hereditament which is a dwelling-
house falls to be ascertained for the purposes of a new valuation list
coming into force on or after 1st April 1973, then, subject to subsections
(3) and (3A) of section 83 of this Act, any evidence taken into account or
adduced--
(<1a>1) as to the rents at which other dwelling-houses have been let; or
(<1b>1) as to the relationship between those rents and the gross values of
the hereditaments consisting of those other dwelling-houses as
shown in the valuation lists ceasing to be in force on the date of
the coming into force of the new valuation list in question,
shall be regarded as relevant and admissible for the purpose of that
ascertainment, whether those other dwelling-houses, are of the same or a
different description, if, at the beginning of the period of three years
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<1General Rate Act 1970>1
ending with the date of the coming into force of the new valuation list in
question, the site of each respectively of those other dwelling-houses was
situated within the area of a local valuation panel constituted in accord-
ance with section 88(2) of this Act which was either the same such area as,
or such an area contiguous at some point with, that in which the site of the
dwelling-house in question was situated; and, without prejudice to any
right under section 69 of this Act to make a proposal for the alteration of
the valuation list so far as it relates to any particular hereditament, the
valuation officer shall not be held to have failed in the proper discharge of
his duties with respect to the preparation and maintenance of the
valuation list by reason of his having assessed a dwelling-house or
dwelling-houses by reference only to such evidence with respect to other
dwelling-houses."
(2) In section 83 of the said Act of 1967, after subsection (3) (which
restricts the use of certain returns as evidence by or on behalf of the
valuation officer) there shall be inserted the following subsection:--
--(3A) Subsection (3) of this section shall apply to any gross values
taken into account by the valuation officer by virtue of section
19(2A)(b) of this Act as it applies to returns to which this section
applies, and--
(a) the reference in paragraph (b) of the said subsection (3) to the
returns there mentioned shall be construed--
(i) in the application of that paragraph to a return relating to a
hereditament in a rating area other than that for which the
valuation officer was appointed, as a reference to a copy of
that return certified by a valuation officer to be a true copy;
(ii) in the application of that paragraph to any of the gross values
taken into account as aforesaid, as a reference to such a copy
of the relevant part of the relevant valuation list as is
referred to in section 84 of this Act;
<1(b)>1 subsection (2) of this section shall apply to such a copy of a return
as is referred to in paragraph (a)(i) of this subsection as it would
apply to the return itself."
(3) In section 84 of the said Act of 1967 (which relates to the proof of
the contents of a valuation list as for the time being in force) the words --as
for the time being in force" are hereby repealed.
<2Citation, extent and conanencement>2
<22.>2--(1) This Act may be cited as the General Rate Act 1970.
(2) The General Rate Act 1967 and this Act may be cited together as
the General Rate Acts 1967 and 1970.
(3) This Act does not extend to Scotland or to Northern Ireland.
(4) Notwithstanding anything in section 119(4) of the General Rate Act
1967, this Act shall come into operation on the expiration of the period of
one month beginning with the day on which it is passed.
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<1Rating Act 1971>1
<2Rating Act 1971>2
<1Arrangement of Sections>1
PART I
AGRICULTURAL DERATING IN ENGLANO ANO WALES
<1Section>1
1. Extension of definition of "agricultural buildings" and --agricultu-
ral land" for purposes of derating in England and Wales.
2. Livestock buildings.
3. Buildings occupied in connection with bee-keeping.
4. Buildings occupied by bodies corporate and certain associations.
PART II
AGRICULTURAL DERATING IN SCOTLAND
5. Livestock buildings.
6. Buildings occupied in connection with bee-keeping.
7. Buildings occupied by bodies corporate and certain associations.
8. Apportionment of certain buildings for valuation purposes.
9. Amendment of other enactments.
10. Interpretation.
PART III
GENERAL
11. Short title and extent.
An Act to extend the provisions relating to the exemption from rating of
land and buildings used in connection with agriculture. [27th May,
1971]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
PART I
AGRICULTURAL DERATING IN ENGLAND AND WALES
<2Extension of definition of "agricultural buiidings" and "agricultural>2
<2land" for purposes of derating in England and Wales>2
<21.>2--(1) In section 26 of the General Rate Act 1967 (in this Part of this
Act referred to as --the principal section")--
<1(a)>1 the expression --agricultural buildings" shall include any building
which is an agricultural building by virtue of section 2, 3 or 4 of
this Act; and
<1(b)>1 the expression --agricultural land" shall include land occupied
with, and used solely in connection with the use of, one or more
such buildings.
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<1Rating Act 1971>1
(2) In this Part of this Act and in the principal section "building"
includes a separate part of a building; and in determining for the purposes
of this Part and that section whether a building used in any way is solely so
used no account shall be taken of any time during which it is used in any
other way, if that time does not amount to a substantial part of the time
during which the building is used.
(3) In this Part 0f this Act "livestock" includes any mammal or bird
kept for the production of food or wool or for the purpose of its use in the
farming of land.
(4) In section 115(1) of the General Rate Act 1967, at the end of the
definition of "agricultural land" there shall be added the words --and
section 1 of the Rating Act 1971".
(5) This section shall have effect for any rate period (within the meaning
of the General Rate Act 1967) beginning after the end of March 1971.
<2Livestock buildings>2
<22>2.--(1) Subject to subsections (2) to (4) of this section, each of the
following is an agricultural building by virtue of this section--
(<1a>1) any building used for the keeping or breeding of livestock; and
(<1b>1) any building (other than a dwelling) which is occupied together
with one or more buildings falling within paragraph (a) above
and is used in connection with the operations carried on in that
building or those buildings.
(2) A building used as mentioned in subsection (1)(a) of this section is
not an agricultural building by virtue of this section unless either--
(<1a>1) it is solely so used; or
(<1b>1) it is occupied together with agricultural land (as defined in the
principal section) and used also in connection with agricultural
operations on that land, and that other use together with the use
mentioned in subsection (1)(a) of this section is its sole use.
(3) A building occupied and used as mentioned in subsection (1)(<1b>1) of
this section is not an agricultural building by virtue of this section unless
either--
(<1a>1) it is soley so used; or
(<1b>1) it is occupied also together with agricultural land (as defined in
the principal section) and used also in connection with agricultu-
ral operations on that land, and that other use together with the
use mentioned in subsection (1)(<1b>1) of this section is its sole use.
(4) A building is not an agricultural building by virtue of this section
unless it is surrounded by or contiguous to an area of agricultural land (as
defined in the principal section) which amounts to not less than [two
hectares]<sa>s; but in determining for the purposes of this subsection--
(<1a>1) whether a building is contiguous to or surrounded by an area of
agricultural land; or
(<1b>1) whether an area contiguous to or surrounding a building is an
area of agricultural land and what is the size of such an area;
there shall be disregarded any road, railway or watercourse, any agricultu-
ral building (as defined in the principal section or this Part of this Act)
B186
<1Rating Act 1971>1
and, if occupied together with the first-mentioned building, also any other
building and any land which is not agricultural land.
(5) In this section "railway" includes the former site of a railway from
which railway lines have been removed.
<sa>s <1substituted by the Rating Enactments (Agricultural Land and Agricultural Buildings) (Amend->1
<1 ment) Regulations 1978 s.L 1978 No. 318.>1
<2Buildings occupied in connection with bee-keeping>2
<23.>2 A building, other than a dwelling, is an agricultural building by virtue
of this section if--
(<1a>1) it is occupied by a person keeping bees and is used solely in
connection with the keeping of those bees; and
(<1b>1) the same condition is satisfied as has to be satisfied under
subsection (4) of section 2 of this Act for a building to be an
agricultural building by virtue of that section.
<2Buildings occupied by hodies corporate and certain associations>2
<24>2.--(1) Subject to subsection (3) of this section, a building, other than a
dwelling, is an agricultural building by virtue of this section if--
(<1a>1) it is used in connection with agricultural operations carried on on
agricultural land (as defined in the principal section); and
(<1b>1) it is occupied by a body corporate any of whose members are, or
are together with the body, the occupiers of the land.
(2) Subject to subsection (3) of this section, a building, other than a
dwelling, is also an agricultural building by virtue of this section if--
(<1a>1) it is used in connection with the operations carried on in one or
more buildings which, being used for the keeping or breeding of
livestock, are agricultural buildings by virtue of section 2 of this
Act; and
(<1b>1) it is occupied either--
(i) by a body corporate any of whose members are, or are
together with the body, the occupiers of that building or
those buildings, or
(ii) by persons who would satisfy the requirements of subsection
(4)(<1b>1)(i) or (ii) 0f the principal section if the other building
were agricultural land as defined in that section.
(3) A building used as mentioned in either of the preceding subsec-
tions is not an agrtcultural building by virtue of this section unless that use,
or that use together with the use mentioned in the other of those
subsections, is its sole use.
PART II
AGRICULTURAL DERATING IN SCOTLAND
<1Sections 5 to 10 inclusive apply to Scotland and are not reproduced in this>1
<1appendix.>1
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<1Tribunal and Inquiries Act 1971>1
PART III
GENERAL
<2Short title, and extent>2
<211>2.--(1) This Act may be cited as the Rating Act 1971.
(2) This Act does not extend to Northern Ireland.
<2Tribunal and Inquiries Act 1971>2
<2Reasons to be given for decisions of tribunals and Ministers>2
<212>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, where--
(<1a>1) any such tribunal as is specified in Schedule 1<s1>s to this Act gives
any decision; or
(<1b>1) any Minister notifies any decision taken by him after the holding
by him or on his behalf of a statutory inquiry, or taken by him in
a case in which a person concerned could (whether by objecting
or otherwise) have required the holding as aforesaid of a
statutory inquiry,
it shall be the duty of the tribunal or Minister to furnish a statement,
either written or oral, of the reasons for the decision if requested, on or
before the giving or notification of the decision, to state the reasons.
(2) The said statement may be refused, or the specification of the
reasons restricted, on grounds of national security, and the tribunal or
Minister may refuse to furnish the statement to a person not primarily
concerned with the decision if of opinion that to furnish it would be
contrary to the interests of any person primarily concerned.
(3) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to any decision taken by
a Minister after the holding by him or on his behalf of any inquiry or
hearing which is a statutory inquiry by virtue only of an order made under
section 19(2) of this Act unless the order contains a direction that this
section is to apply in relation to any inquiry or hearing to which the order
applies.
(4) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to decisions in respect
of which any statutory provision has effect, apart from this section, as to
the giving of reasons, or to decisions of a Minister in connection with the
preparation, making, approval, confirmation, 0r concurrence in regula-
tions, rules, or byelaws, or orders or schemes of a legislative and not
executive character.
(5) Any statement of the reasons for such a decision as is mentioned in
paragraph (<1a>1) or (<1b>1) of subsection (1) of this section, whether given in
pursuance of that subsection or of any other statutory provision, shall be
taken to form part of the decision and accordingly to be incorporated in
the record.
(6) If, after consultation with the Council, it appears to the Lord
Chancellor and the Secretary of State that it is expedient that decisions of
any particular tribunal or any description of such decisions, or any
description of decisions of a Minister, should be excluded from the
operation of subsection (1) of this section on the ground that the
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<1Town & Country Planning Act 1971>1
subject-matter of such decisions, or the circumstances in which they are
made, make the giving of reasons unnecessary or impracticable, the Lord
Chancellor and the Secretary of State may by order direct that subsection
(1) of this section shall not apply to such decisions.
1. Both Local Valuation Courts and the Lands Tribunal aru specified in Schedule 1.
<2Town & Country Planning Act 1971>2
<2Meaning of "operational land">2
<2222.>2 In this Act "operational land" means, in relation to statutory
undertakers"
<1(a)>1 land which is used for the purpose of carrying on their
undertaking; and
<1(b)>1 land in which an interest is held for that purpose,
not being land which, in respect of its nature and situation, is comparable
rather with land in general than with land which is used, or in which
interests are held, for the purpose of the carrying on of statutory
undertakings.
.......................................................................
<2290.>2 ................................................................
"statutory undertakers" means persons authorised by any enactment, to
carry on any railway, light railway, tramway, road transport, water
transport, canal, inland navigation, dock, harbour, pier or lighthouse
undertaking, or any undertaking for the supply of electricity, gas,
hydraulic power or water, and "statutory undertaking" shall be
construed accordingly;
...............................................................
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.32(8).>1
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<1Local Government Act 1972>1
<2Local Government Act 1972>2
<1The General Rate Act 1967 is reproduced in this appendix as amended by>1
<1the above Act.>1
<2Accretions from the sea, etc.>2
<272>2.--(1) Subject to subsection (3) below, every accretion from the sea,
whether natural or artificial, and any part of the sea-shore to the low
water-mark, which does not immediately before the passing of this Act
form part of a parish shall be annexed to and incorporated with--
(<1a>1) in England, the parish or parishes which the accretion or part of
the sea-shore adjoins, and
(<1b>1) in Wales, the community or communities which the accretion or
part of the sea-shore adjoins,
in proportion to the extent of the common boundary.
(2) Every accretion from the sea or part of the sea-shore which is
annexed to and incorporated with a parish or community under this
section shall be annexed to and incorporated with the district and county
in which that parish or community is situated.
(3) In England, in so far as the whole or part of any such accretion from
the sea or part of the sea-shore as is mentioned in subsection (1) above
does not adjoin a parish, it shall be annexed to and incorporated with the
district which it adjoins or, if it adjoins more than one district, with those
districts in proportion to the extent of the common boundary; and every
such accretion or part of the sea-shore which is annexed to and incorpo-
rated with a district under this section shall be annexed to and incorpo-
rated with the county in which that district is situated.
<2Arrangements for discharge of functions by local authorities>2
<2101>2.-(1) Subject to any express provision contained in this Act or any
Act passed after this Act, a local authority may arrange for the discharge
of any of their functions--
(<1a>1) by a committee, a sub-committee or an officer of the authority;
or
(<1b>1) by any other local authority.
(6) A local authority's functions with respect to levying, or issuing a
precept for, a rate or borrowing money shall be discharged only by the
authority.
(13) In this Part of this Act --local authority" includes the Common
Council, the Sub-Treasurer of the Inner Temple, the Under Treasurer of
the Middle Temple, a joint board on which a local authority within the
meaning of this Act or any of the foregoing authorities are represented
and, without prejudice to the foregoing, any port health authority.
<2Precepts and rates>2
<2149>2.--(1) A county council and the Greater London Council may issue
B190
<1Local Government Act 1972>1
precepts to the appropriate rating authorities for the levying of rates to
meet all liabilities falling to be discharged by the council for which
provision is not otherwise made and may at any time issue a sup-
plementary precept if they think it necessary to do so having regard to the
requirements of the council.
(2) A precept issued by a county council or the Greater London Council
shall be so issued as to secure that the rate is levied--
(<1a>1) in the case of a rate to meet liabilities in respect of general
expenses of the council, on the whole of the county or Greater
London, as the case may be; and
(<1b>1) in the case of a rate to meet liabilities in respect of special
expenses of the council, on the area chargeable therewith.
(3) Amounts leviable by a district or London borough council by means
of a rate shall be chargeable--
(<1a>1) in the case of amounts leviable to meet liabilities in respect of
general expenses, on the whole of the district or borough; and
(<1b>1) in the case of amounts leviable to meet liabilities in respect of
special expenses, on the part of the district or borough charge-
able therewith.
(4) A precept issued by a county council or the Greater London Council
shall include as separate items contributions in respect of general and
special expenses respectively.
<2Expenses of parish and community councils>2
<2150>2.--(1) The sums required to meet the expenses of a parish or
community council or a parish or community meeting shall--
(a) in the case of a parish or community not grouped under a
common parish or community council, be chargeable on the
parish or community;
(<1b>1) in the case of a common parish or community council for parishes
or communities so grouped, be chargeable on the parishes or
communities within the group;
(<1c>1) in the case of a parish meeting of a parish, or a community
meeting of a community, so grouped, be chargeable only on that
parish or community.
(2) In a parish having a separate parish council or in a community
having a council, whether separate or common, the expenses of the parish
meeting or any community meeting shall be paid by the parish or
community council.
(3) In a community not having a community council, whether separate
or common, the expenses of any community meeting shall be paid by the
council of the district in which the community is situated.
(4) for the purpose of obtaining sums necessary to meet the expenses of
a parish or community council or a parish or community meeting, the
parish or community council, or the chairman of the parish meeting of a
parish not having a separate parish council, shall issue precepts to the
council of the district in which the parish or community is situated.
(5) Every cheque or other order for the payment of money by a parish
or community council shall be signed by two members of the council.
B191
<1Local Government Act 1972>1
(6) Every parish or community council and the chairman of the parish
meeting for a parish not having a separate parish council shall keep such
accounts as may be prescribed of the receipts and payments of the council
or parish meeting, as the case may be.
(7) References in this section to the expenses of a parish or community
meeting include references to the expenses of any Poll consequent on a
parish or community meeting.
<2Financial administration>2
<2151.>2 Without prejudice to section 111 above, every local authority shall
make arrangements for the proper administration of their financial affairs
and shall secure that one of their officers has responsibility for the
administration of those affairs.
<2General provisions as to interpretation>2
<2270>2.--(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires, the
following expressions have the following meanings respectively, that is to
say--
"the City" means the City of London;
"county", without more, means, in relation to England, a metropolitan
county or a non-metropolitan county;
"district", without more, means, in relation to England, a metropolitan
district or a non-metropolitan district;
"existing", in relation to a local government or other area or a local
authority or other body, except in sections 1 and 20 above, means
that area or body as it existed immediately before the passing of this
Act;
"financial year" means the period of twelve months ending with 31st
March in any year;
"grouped", in relation to a parish or community, means grouped by or
by virtue of any provision of this Act or any previous corresponding
enactment under a common parish or community council, and
"grouping order" shall be construed accordingly;
"land" includes any interest in land and any easement or right in, to or
over land;
"local authority" means a county council, the Greater London Council,
a district council, a London borough council or a parish or commun-
ity council;
"local government area" means--
(<1a>1) in relation to England, a county, Greater London, a district, a
London borough or a parish;
(<1b>1) in relation to Wales, a county, district or community;
in accordance with the provisions of the Representation of the People
Acts;
B192
<1Local Government Act 1972>1
new , in relation to any area or authority, means an area or authority
established by or under this Act;
"principal area" means a county, Greater London, a district or a
London borough;
"principal council" means a council elected for a principal area;
"public body" includes--
(<1a>1) a local authority and a joint board on which, and a joint
committee on which, a local authority or parish meeting are
represented;
(<1b>1) any trustees, commissioners or other persons who, for public
purposes and not for their own profit, act under any enactment
or instrument for the improvement of any place, for the supply of
water to any place, or for providing or maintaining a cemetery or
market in any place; and
(<1c>1) any other authority having powers of levying or issuing a precept
for any rate for public purposes;
and "district" means, in relation to a public body other than a local
authority, the area for which the public body acts.
<2Schedule 13>2
<229>2.--(1) Sections 88, 89 and 91 of the said Act of 1967 shall have effect
subject to the following provisions of this paragraph.
(2) It shall be the duty of every new county council to make and submit
to the Secretary of State not later than a date prescribed for the purposes<s1>s
of this sub-paragraph a scheme for the constitution of a local valuation
panel for the county or two or more local valuation panels for areas which
together comprise the whole of the county.
(3) A county council may discharge the said duty by making and
submitting to the Secretary of State a joint scheme with one or more other
county councils for the constitution of a local valuation panel or local
valuation panels for the whole of their respective counties, or for areas
which together comprise the whole of their respective counties.
(4) A scheme under this paragraph shall be treated for all purposes as
having been made under section 91(a) of the said Act of 1967 and
submitted to the Secretary of state under section 91(3) of that Act.
(5) Any such scheme approved by the Secretary of State under section
91(5) of that Act shall not come into operation until a date prescribed for
the purposes of this sub-paragraph.<s2>s
(6) Any scheme in force for the purposes of section 88 of that Act
immediately before 1st April 1974 for an existing county or county
borough shall, notwithstanding the abolition or alteration of the county or
borough but subject to section 91(1) of that Act, continue in force until a
date prescribed for the purposes of this sub-paragraph and shall then
expire.<s3>s
(7) Any vacancy occurring before the date prescribed for the purposes
of this sub-paragraph in the membership of a local valuation panel
constituted under a scheme continued in force by sub-paragraph (6) above
shall--
B193
<1Gas Act 1972 s.34 and sch. 5>1
<1(a)>1 if the area for which the panel is constituted is co-extensive with
or wholly comprised in the area of a new county, be filled by a
person appointed by the council of that county;
<1(b)>1 otherwise, be filled by a person appointed jointly by the councils
for those counties which include any part of the area for which
the panel is constituted.
1. The prescribed date is the 30 September, 1975, Local Valuation Panels Regulations 1975
No. 905.
2. The prescribed date is the 1 April, 1976, Local Valuation Panels Regulations 1975 No. 905.
3. The prescribed date is the 31 March, 1976, Local Valuation Panels Regulations 1975 No.
905.
<2Gas Act 1972 s.34 and sch. 5>2
<1The General Rate Act 1967s.33 and sch. 6 is reproduced in this appendix as>1
<1amended by the above Act.>1
<1Water Act 1973>1
<2Water Act 1973>2
<1Takes the place of the Water Act 1945.>1
<211>2.--(6) Subject to subsections (7) and (9) below, any functions
exercisable by statutory water undertakers as such under any enactment
or instrument shall be exercisable also by water authorities and shall not
be exercisable by local authorities, and accordingly (but subject as
aforesaid) references in any enactment or instrument to statutory water
undertakers as such shall be construed as references to water authorities,
statutory water companies, joint water boards and joint water commit-
tees, and to no other body.
<238>2.--(I) .......................................................
"statutory water undertakers" has the meaning assigned to it by section
11(6) above;
<1Referred to in General Rate Act 1967 s.31.>1
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<1Local Government Act 1974>1
<2Local Government Act 1974>2
<2The statutory rate rebate scheme>2
<211.>2--(1) The Secretary of State shall by regulations make, with the
consent of the Treasury, a scheme (in this Part of this Act referred to as
"the statutory rate rebate scheme") for the grant by rating authorities to
residential occupiers of rebates from rates calculated in accordance with
the provisions of the scheme by reference to their needs and their
resources.
(2) The statutory rate rebate scheme shall have effect in respect of
rebate periods beginning on or after 1st April, 1974, and accordingly no
person shall be entitled in respect of any such rebate period to a rate
rebate under section 49 of the principal Act.
(3) Without prejudice to the generality of the power conferred by
subsection (1) above, the statutory rate rebate scheme may contain
provisions corresponding, so far as the Secretary of State considers
appropr1ate, to provisions of Part I of Schedule 3 or Part I of Schedule 4 to
the Housing Finance Act 1972 (model schemes of rent rebates and rent
allowances).
(4) In this Part of this Act "rebate period" means such periods as may
be determined in accordance with the statutory rate rebate scheme, and that
scheme may make provision for the determination of different periods in
relation to different residential occupiers or different classes of residential
occupiers.
<2Local rate rehate schemes>2
<212.>2--(1) Subject to the following provisi0ns of this section, a rating
authority may by resolution make for their area a scheme (in this Part of
this Act referred to as a "local rate rebate scheme") for the grant by the
authority to residential occupiers of rebates from rates calculated in
accordance with the provisions of the scheme by reference to their needs
and resources.
(2) A local rate rebate scheme may take the form of a scheme distinct
from the statutory rate rebate scheme or may operate by way of variation
of that scheme, and accordingly any reference in this Part of this Act to a
local rate rebate scheme includes a reference to the statutory rate rebate
scheme as so varied.
(3) A local rate rebate scheme shall be so framed as to secure that, in
the estimate of the rating authority,--
<1(a)>1 for any rebate period no person will be entitled under the scheme
to a rate rebate less than that to which he would be entitled under
the statutory rate rebate scheme; and
<1(b)>1 the total of the rebates which will be allowable under the local
rate rebate scheme in any year will not exceed the permitted total
of rebates for that year.
(4) In relation to a local rate rebate scheme for any area, the permitted
total of rebates for any year is 110 per cent. of the total of the rate rebates
which (if the local rate rebate scheme had not been in force) would have
been allowable in that year to residential occupiers in that area under the
statutory rate rebate scheme.
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<1Local Government Act 1974>1
(5) A local rate rebate scheme may be revoked or varied by a further
resolution of the rating authority and, except in so far as the Secretary of
State otherwise directs,--
(<1a>1) any such scheme and any variation thereof shall take effect with
respect to any rebate period beginning on or after such date as
may be specified in the rating authority's resolution, and
(<1b>1) a resolution revoking a local rate rebate scheme shall take effect
at the expiry of any rebate period which is current, or which
expires, on such date as may be specified in the resolution,
and, as soon as practicable after a rating authority has passed a resolution
making, varying or revoking a local rate rebate scheme, the authority shall
send a copy of the resolution to the Secretary of State.
(6) As soon as practicable after the end of any year in which a local rate
rebate scheme has been in operation, and in any case not later than 31st
july next following, the rating authority concerned shall, send to the
Secretary of State a certificate specifying--
(<1a>1) the t0tal amount of the rate rebates allowed in that year under
the local rate rebate scheme, and
(<1b>1) the permitted total of rebates for that year and, if the local rate
rebate scheme was not in operation during the whole of that
year, the fraction of that permitted total which corresponds to
the fraction of the year during which the local scheme was in
operation.
(7) Where it appears from a certificate under subsection (6) above that
the amount specified as mentioned in paragraph (<1a>1) of that subsection
exceeds the permitted total or, as the case may be, the appropriate
fraction of the permitted total referred to in paragraph (<1b>1) of that
subsection, it shall be the duty of the rating authority to send to the
Secretary of State, together with that certificate, a statement of--
(<1a>1) their proposals for varying or revoking the local rate rebate
scheme so as to secure that the total of the rate rebates allowed in
the year following that to which the certificate relates will not
exceed the permitted total of rebates for that year; or
(<1b>1) their reasons for believing that no change is necessary in the local
rate rebate scheme in order to secure that result.
(8) If the Secretary of State is of the opinion that any proposals made
by a rating authority under subsection (7)(<1a>1) above will not secure the
result referred to in that subsection, or that some variation of a local rate
rebate scheme will be required to secure that result, notwithstanding the
contrary view expressed by a rating authority in a statement under
subsection (7)(<1b>1) above, or if it comes to the knowledge of the Secretary
of State that the condition in subsection (3)(a) above is not fulfilled with
respect to the entitlement of any person to a rate rebate under a local rate
rebate scheme, the Secretary of State may by order provide--
(<1a>1) that from such date as may be specified in the order the local rate
rebate scheme shall have effect subject to such variations as may
be so specified and that, within such minimum period as may be
B197
<1Local Government Act 1974>1
specified, no other variations may be made in the scheme by the
rating authority; or
(<1b>1) that the local rate rebate scheme shall be revoked with effect
from such date as may be specified in the order and that no new
local rate rebate scheme shall be brought into operation for the
rating area concerned within such period as may be so specified.
<2Residential occupiers>2
<213>2.--(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) below, the following
persons are residential occupiers for the purposes of this Part of this Act,
namely,--
[(<1a>1) a person who resides or is usually resident in premises used for
the purposes of a private dwelling and having at the relevant date
a rateable value not exceeding the specified limit, and who is the
occupier of the hereditament which consists of or includes the
premises;
(<1b>1) a person who resides or is usually resident in such premises as are
mentioned in paragraph (a) above and is not the occupier of the
hereditament which consists of or includes the premises but--
(i) pays the rates chargeable in respect of the hereditament f0r
the rebate period concerned, and
(ii) is the spouse or former spouse of a person who is the
occupier of the hereditament but does not reside and is not
usually resident there;
(<1c>1) a person who resides or is usually resident in such premises as are
mentioned in paragraph (<1a>1) above, and who--
(i) is not the occupier of the hereditament which consists of or
includes the premises, but
(ii) makes payments by way of rent in respect of the premises to
the occupier of the hereditament or to any other person who
is himself a residential occupier.]<sa>s
[(2) Where two or more persons are joint occupiers of a hereditament
or joint tenants of any premises, then for the purposes of rate rebates
under the statutory rate rebate scheme or a local rate rebate scheme, but
subject to any different provision made by the scheme, the rating
authority may treat one of those persons as if he were the sole occupier of
the hereditament or, as the case may be, the sole tenant of the premises].<sa>s
(3) for the purposes of [subsection (1)]a above, the rateable value on
any day of part of a hereditament shall be taken to be such value as is
found by a proper apportionment of the rateable value of the whole
hereditament on that day; and any question arising under this subsection
as to the proper apportionment of any rateable value shall be determined
by the county court, whose decision shall be final.
(4) In subsection (1) above,--
(<1a>1) "the relevant date", in relation to a person making an applica-
tion for a rate rebate under the statutory rate rebate scheme or a
local rate rebate scheme, means the beginning of the year in any
part of which a rebate granted to him in pursuance of the
application will be effective, and
B198
<1Local Government Act 1974>1
(<1b>1) "the specified limit", in relation to a hereditament, means such
limit of rateable value as the Secretary of State may by order
specify<sb>s for the purposes of this section in relation to heredita-
ments in the rating area in which that hereditament is situated.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Govemment, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.45.
<sb>s The Rate Rebates (Limits of Rateable Value) order 1974 No. 412, specifies a rateab1e value
of #750 or #1500 in Greater London.
<2Supplementary provisions as to e1igibility for rate rebates>2
<214>2.--(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, no residential occupier liable
for rates in respect of a hereditament in any area shall be eligible to apply
for a rate rebate under the statutory rate rebate scheme in respect of those
rates for any rebate period during which a local rate rebate scheme is in
operation in that area.
(2) 1f any such residential occupier as is referred to in subsection (1)
above shows to the satisfaction of the rating authority that the local rate
rebate scheme does not in his case fulfil the condition in section 12(3)(a)
above, he shall be eligible to apply for a rate rebate under the statutory
rate rebate scheme and, if he makes such an application for any rebate
period, he shall cease to be eligible to make an application for that period
under the local rate rebate scheme.
(3) If, in a case where a residential occupier is liable for rates in respect
of a hereditament for a rate period beginning on or after 1st April
1974,--
(<1a>1) the residential occupier is entitled to a rebate from those rates
under the statutory rate rebate scheme or a local rate rebate
scheme, and
(<1b>1) the rating authority affords him relief in respect of those rates
under section 53 of the Principal Act (reduction or remission of
payment of rates on account of poverty),
the rating authority shall grant him a rebate as mentioned in paragraph (a)
above only if, and to the extent that, the amount of the rebate exceeds the
aggregate amount afforded him as mentioned in paragraph (<1b>1) above.
(4) <1Repealed by Supplementary Benefits Act 1976 s.35(3) sch. 8.>1
<215.>2 <1Amends the General Rate Act 1967 s.17(2) and (5) and sch. 1 which>1
<1is printed as amended in this appendix.>1
<216.>2 <1Adds two new sections io the General Rate Act 1967--s.17A and>1
<117B. The 1967 Act is reproduced as amended in this appendix.>1
<21ncreases in statutory deduction from gross vaiue: alteration of valuation>2
<2lists>2
<217.>2 If, on or before 31st December 1973, a draft of an order is laid
before Parliament under subsection (5) of section 19 of the principal Act
increasing the amount which, in accordance with subsection (2) of that
section, is to be deducted from the gross value of a hereditament of a class
specified in the order for the purpose of ascertaining the net annual value
of that hereditament and an order is made in terms of the draft so laid,--
(<1a>1) the valuation officer shall, by directions to the rating authority,
cause to be made in a valuation list any alterations necessary to
give effect to the increased deductions, and the rating authority
shall give effect to any such directions accordingly; and
B199
<1Local Government Act 1974>1
(b) any alteration made in a valuation list by virtue of paragraph (a)
above shall have effect as from 1st April, 1974, but without
prejudice to any subsequent alteration of the valuation list made
by virtue of any provision of the principal Act.
<218.>2 Amends s.21(5) of the General Rate Act 1967 and revokes s.22.
<2Rating of certain public utilities and other hodies>2
<219.>2--(1) The Secretary of State may by order make provision [for
fixing or]<s1>s for determining, by such method as may be specified in the
order, the rateable value of, or of any class or description of, the
hereditaments specified in Schedule 3 to this Act.
(2) An order under this section applying to any hereditament, or any
class or description of hereditament, may provide for determining rate-
able value by the application of different methods of valuation to different
parts of the hereditament.
(3) Before making an order under this section the Secretary of State
shall consult with such associations of local authorities or of persons
carrying on undertakings as appear to him to be conerned and with any
local authority or person carrying on an undertaking with whom consulta-
tion appears to him to be desirable.
(4) An order under this section may repeal or amend any provision
of--
(a) sections 31 to 34 of and Schedules 4 to 7 to the principal Act,
(b) section 52 of the Post Office Act 1969, and
(c) any other provision of the principal Act so far as that provision
relates to the valuation of hereditaments to which the order
relates,
(d) any provision of any Act so far as it amends an enactment within
paragraph (a), (b) or (c) above. <s1>s
and any such order may as regards any such hereditaments apply, restrict
or modify the provisions 0f the principal Act relating to proposals for
alterations of valuation lists and to appeals in connection with such lists
and to the withholding of rates where proposals are pending, and shall
have effect notwithstanding anything in any of those provisions.
(5) No order under this section shall have effect unless approved by a
resolution of each House of Parliament.
1. Added by General Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977 s.4.
<220.>2 <1Repealed by the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 s.9 and sch. 2.>1
<2Valuation lists not to be altered on account of minor structural alterations>2
<2to dwellings>2
<221.>2--(1) ln the case of a hereditament which is a dwelling-house or a
mixed hereditament within the meaning of section 48 of the principal Act,
no proposal may be made under section 69 of that Act for an increase in
the gross value ascribed to the hereditament in the valuation list by reason
of the making of structural alterations on or after 1st April, 1974--
(a) if and so far as the alterations are necessary for the purpose of
B200
<1Local Government Act 1974>1
installing a system for providing heating in two or more rooms in
the hereditament, or
(<1b>1) if the proposal would be for an increase not exceeding such an
amount as the Secretary of State may by order specify,
and, accordingly, references in the following provisions of this section to
structural alterations do not include alterations falling within paragraph
(<1a>1) above.
(2) If, by reason of the making of structural alterations on or after 1st
April, 1974, a proposal is made for an increase in the gross value of any
such hereditament as is referred to in subsection (1) above, but--
(<1a>1) an agreement is reached under section 72(1) of the principal Act
on the alteration of the valuation list which, apart from this
section, would be appropriate to take account of the alterations,
and
(<1b>1) the alteration so agreed would represent an increase in the gross
value of such an amount that, by virtue of subsection (1)(b)
above, no proposal for an increase of that amount could have
been made,
then, notwithstanding the said section 72(1), no alteration shall be made
to the gross value ascribed to the hereditament in the valuation list.
(3) If, by reason of the making of structural alterations on or after 1st
April, 1974, a proposal is made for an increase in the gross value of any
such hereditament as is referred to in subsection (1) above but, on an
appeal under section 76 or an arbitration under section 78 of the principal
Act relating to the proposal, the court or arbitrator is of the opinion that
the increase in the gross value to take account of the alterations would be
of such an amount that, by virtue of subsection (1)(<1b>1) above, no proposal
for an increase of that amount could have been made, the court or
arbitrator shall direct that no alteration be made to the gross value
ascribed to the hereditament in the valuation list.
(4) If, by reason of the making of structural alterations on or after 1st
April, 1974, the gross value of any such hereditament as is referred to in
subsection (1) above is increased but, on an appeal under section 77 of the
principal Act, the Lands Tribunal is of the opinion that the increase in the
gross value should be reduced to such an amount that, by virtue of
subsection (1)(<1b>1) above, no proposal for an increase of that amount could
have been made, the Tribunal shall give such directions as appear to it to
be appropriate to secure that the valuation list is altered so as to restore to
the hereditament the gross value ascribed to it in that list before the
increase.
(5) In any case where,--
(<1a>1) by virtue of subsection (1)(<1b>1) above, no proposal for an increase
in the gross value ascribed to a hereditament in a valuation l1st ts
made to take account of the making of structural alterations, but
(<1b>1) as a result of subsequent structural alterations, a proposal,
permitted by subsection (1) above, is made under section 69 of
the principal Act for such an increase,
then, for the purposes of section 79(2) of the principal Act (date on which
alterations in the valuation list are to have effect), the event by reason of
B201
<1Local Government Act 1974>1
<sw>shich the alteration is made shall be taken to be the making of the last of
the structural alterations of which account was taken in the making of the
proposal referred to in paragraph <1(b)>1 above.
(6) An order under subsection (1)<1(b)>1 above shall be of no effect unless
it is approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.
<2Interpretation of Part II>2
<222.>2--(I) In this Part of this Act--
"the principal Act" means the General Rate Act 1967;
"local rate rebate scheme" has the meaning assigned to it by section
12 above; and
"the statutory rate rebate scheme" has the meaning assigned to it by
section 11 above.
(2) Except in so far as otherwise provided in this Part of this Act,
expressions used in this Part have the same meanings as in the principal
Act.
(3) Sections 114 (rules, regulations and orders) and 118 (application to
Isles of Scilly) of the principal Act shall apply as if this Part of this Act
were contained in the principal Act.
SCHEDULE 3
HEREDITAMENTS TO WHICH SECTION 19(1) APPLIES
<21.>2 Any water hereditament, within the meaning of section 31 of the
principal Act.
<22.>2 Any hereditament consisting of railway or canal premises, within the
meaning of section 32 of the principal Act, which are occupied wholly or
partly for non-rateable purposes of any transport Board, within the
meaning of that section.
<23.>2 Any hereditament which the British Gas Corporation are to be
treated as occupying in a rating area by virtue of section 33(3) of the
principal Act.
<24.>2 Any hereditament which an Electricity Board, within the meaning of
section 34 of the principal Act, are to be treated as occupying in a rating
area by virtue of subsection (3) of that section.
<25.>2 Any hereditament occupied by the Post Office by any such property
as follows, namely--
(a) posts, wires, underground cables and ducts, telephone kiosks
and other equipment not within a building, being property used
for the purposes of telecommunication services; and
(b) the railway constructed, and the works executed, by the Post-
master General in exercise of the powers conferred by the Post
Office (London) Railway Act 1913, and the railway constructed,
and the works associated therewith executed, by him in exercise
of the powers conferred by the Post Office (Site and Railway)
Act 1954.
<26.>2 Any hereditament occupied by the National Coal Board.
<27.>2--(1) Any other hereditament which consists of or includes a mine or
quarry or the whole or part of which is occupied together with a mine or
quarry in connection with its working, or the treatment, preparation,
B202
<1General Rate Act 1975>1
storage or removal of its minerals or products of its minerals or the
removal of its refuse.
(2) Any references in sub-paragraph (1) above to a mine or quarry
includes a reference to a well or bore-hole or a well and bore-hole
combined.
(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (2) above, expressions used in sub-
paragraph (1) above and in the Mines and Quarries Act 1954 have the
same meanings in sub-paragraph (1) above as in that Act.
<28>2. Any hereditament occupied by the persons carrying on, under
authority conferred by or under any enactment, a dock or harbour
undertaking.
<29>2. Any hereditament occupied by the persons carrying on an under-
taking for the diffusion by wire of sound or television programmes.
<2General Rate Act 1975>2
<1This Act and various Statutory Instruments postponed the revaluation>1
<1which was to have taken place in 1978. The Act has now been repealed by>1
<1the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 sch. 34.>1
B203
<1Rating (Charity Shops) Act 1976>1
<2Rating (Charity Shops) Act 1976>2
<1Amends section 40 of the General Rate Act 1967 by the insertion of s.9A.>1
<1The 1976 Act is reproduced as amended in this appendix.>1
B204
<1Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976>1
<2Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976>2
<1Arrangement of Sections>1
<1Provisions for England and Wales>1
<1Section>1
1. Rating of caravan sites in England and Wales.
2. Information for caravanners about rating of caravan sites men-
tioned in s.1.
<1Provisions for Scotland>1
3. Valuation and rating of caravan sites in Scotland.
4. Information for caravanners about rating of caravan sites men-
tioned in s.3.
5. Transitional provision for Scotland.
<1General>1
6. Interpretation.
7. Short title and extent.
------------------
An Act to allow for the valuation and rating as a single unit in certain
cases of caravan sites or portions of caravan sites inclusive of parts
separately occupied by caravanners and of their caravans; and for
purposes connected therewith. [13th April, 1976]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
<1Provisions for England and Wales>1
<2Rating of caravan sites in England and Wales>2
<21.>2--(1) Where in a caravan site in England or Wales having an area of
not less than 400 square yards pitches for leisure caravans are separately
occupied by persons other than the site operator so that a pitch so
occupied is a separate hereditament for purposes of rating within the
meaning of the General Rate Act 1967, the valuation officer, if he thinks
fit, may in the valuation list treat all or any of those pitches as forming a
single hereditament together with so much, if any, of the site as is in the
occupation of the site operator.
(2) For purposes of this section a caravan pitch (and any area compris-
ing it) shall be taken as including the caravan for the time being on the
pitch if, but only if, apart from this section, the caravan would be included
as part of a rateable hereditament.
(3) Where any area of a caravan site is under subsection (1) above
B205
<1Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976>1
treated as a single hereditament, it shall, for the purposes of rating (within
the meaning of the General Rate Act 1967), be deemed to be a single
hereditament in the occupation of the site operator.
(4) In relation to that hereditament section 19(2) of the General Rate
Act 1967 (which makes special provision as to ascertaining rateable value
in the case of hereditaments consisting of one or more houses or other
non-industrial buildings) shall not in any case apply; but [. . . . .]<sa>s for
purposes of section 48 of that Act (under which the rates on dwelling
houses and mixed hereditaments are to be reduced by reference to the
domestic element of the rate support grant) any caravan pitches which are
separately occupied by persons other than the site operator but are
included in the hereditament by virtue of this section shall be treated as
used for purposes of private dwellings notwithstanding the exclusion by
section 48(5) of sites for movable dwellings.
Where by virtue of this subsection a hereditament is for purposes of
section 48 of the General Rate Act 1967 a mixed hereditament as at the
1st April in any year, it shall be treated as being a mixed hereditament
throughout the rating year beginning with that date, notwithstanding that
it appears to the rating authority or is determined to have ceased to be
one.
(5) for purposes of any proposal for the alteration of the valuation list
made by the valuation officer by virtue of subsection (1) above the
hereditament shall be treated as in the occupation of the site operator,
and in section 70(2) of the General Rate Act 1967 (which confers on
owners and occupiers the right to object to a proposal) the reference to
any part of the hereditament shall be omitted.
(6) Where a valuation list is altered by virtue of subsection (1) above so
as to include an area of a caravan site as a single hereditament, any item
comprised in that hereditament and separately entered in the list may be
deleted from the list without any proposal being made to delete it; and a
deletion so made shall have effect as from the same date as the alteration
of the list to include the single hereditament.
(7) Where any area of a caravan site is under subsection (1) above
treated as a single hereditament, or where the valuation officer has made
a proposal for the alteration of the valuation list in order that it shall be so
treated, a proposal for there t0 be omitted from the hereditament and
entered separately in the valuation list a caravan pitch occupied by a
person other than the site operator may be made by that person if the
pitch would fall to be separately entered in the list but for this section; and
in the General Rate Act 1967 section 69(4) and (5) and sections 70 to 74
shall apply in relation to a proposal under this sub-section as they apply in
relation to a proposal under section 69.
(8) <1Repealed by Land Drainage Act 1976 s.117, sch. 8.>1
(9) This section shall have effect for any rate period (within the
meaning of the General Rate Act 1967) beginning after the end of March
1976; and any proposal of the valuation officer made during the year
beginning with the 1st April 1976, if it could have been made on that date
had this section been then in force, may be made so as to have effect as of
that date, and section 79 of the General Rate Act 1967 (which relates to
the effect of alterations in the valuation list) shall apply accordingly.
<sa>s Repealed by Local Govemment, Planning and Land Act 1980 sch. 34 Pt. IX.
B206
<1Rating (Caravan Sites) A ct 1976>1
<2Information for caravanners about rating of caravan sites mentioned in s.1>2
<22>2.--(1) Where the valuation officer makes a proposal for the alteration
of the valuation list in order that an area of a caravan site shall be treated
as a single hereditament under section 1(1) above, and there is not already
an area of that site so treated, he shall within one month after the date on
which the proposal is made give written notice to the site operator stating
how many caravans occupied by persons other than the site operator are
included in the hereditament proposed to be entered in the valuation list
and how much of the rateable value proposed for the hereditament he
attributes to those caravans, together with their pitches.
(2) After receiving a notice under subsection (1) above the site
operator shall display a notice on the site from the beginning of April to
the end of October in every year so long as the proposal is current or the
site or part of it is treated as a single hereditament under section 1(1)
above (but starting with the April following the receipt of the notice under
subsection (1), if it is received in October), and shall state in the notice so
displayed--
(<1a>1) the part of the site included in the hereditament by the proposal
or in the valuation list (or that the whole site is so included);
(<1b>1) the facts stated in the notice under subsection (1); and
(<1c>1) the rate in the pound at which the general rate for the rating area
is charged under the General Rate Act 1967 in respect of the
period during which the notice is for the time being displayed.
(3) If at any time it appears to the valuation officer that the facts stated
in a notice under subsection (1) above or under this subsectton are no
longer accurate, he shall give to the site operator a further written notice
bringing the facts so stated up to date; and the notice or last notice
received by the site operator under this subsection shall after his receipt of
it (or, if it is received in October, then from the beginning of the following
April) take the place of the notice under subsection (1) for purposes of
subsection (2)(<1b>1) above.
(4) The notice required by subsection (2) above shall be displayed at
some conspicuous place where it is likely to attract the attention of
persons occupying pitches for leisure caravans which are included in the
hereditament by the proposal or in the valuation list.
(5) If so requested by a person occupying any such pitch as aforesaid,
the site operator shall give him in writing the information required by
subsection (2) above to be given by a notice under that subsection as the
subsection would apply at the time of the request if a notice were required
to be displayed at all times after receipt of a notice under subsection (1)
and to take account of any notice received under subsection (3).
(6) If a site operator fails without reasonable excuse to display and
keep displayed a notice as required by subsections (2) and (4) above, or to
give information to a person as required by subsection (5) within one
month after a written request from that person, he shall be liable on
summary conviction to a fine not exceeding #50.
<23-5>2. <1Relates to Scotland.>1
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<1Land Drainage Act 1976>1
<1General>1
<2Interpretation>2
<26.>2 For purposes of this Act--
<1(a)>1 "caravan" has the same meaning as it has for purposes of Part I
of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act I960;
<1(b)>1 "caravan site" means any land in respect of which a site licence is
required under Part I of that Act, or would be so required if
paragraph 4 and paragraph 11 of Schedule 1 to the Act (exemp-
tion of certain land occupied and supervised by organisations
concerned with recreational activities and of land occupied by
local authorities) were omitted;
<1(c)>1 a caravan pitch is a "pitch for a leisure caravan" if in accordance
with any licence or planning permission regulating the use of the
caravan site a caravan stationed on the pitch is not allowed to be
used for human habitation throughout the year;
<1(d)>1 "site operator" means the person who is for purposes of Part I of
that Act the occupier of the caravan site.
<2Short title and extent>2
<27.>2--(1) This Act may be cited as the Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976.
(2) This Act does not extend to Northern Ireland.
<2Land Drainage Act 1976>2
<1Repealed and replaced the Land Drainage Act 1930 which is referred to in>1
<1the General Rate Act 1967 s.43.>1
<28.>2--(3) In this Act --main river" means a watercourse shown as such on
a main river map and includes any structure or appliance for controlling or
regulating the flow of water into, in or out of the channel, being a
structure or appliance situated in the channel or in any part of the banks of
the channel (other than a structure or appliance vested in or controlled by
an internal drainage board).
<2Main river maps>2
<29.>2--(1) In this Act "main river map" means a map of a water authority
area relating to the water authority's land drainage functions--
<1(a)>1 which shows by a distinctive colour the extent to which any
watercourse in that area is to be treated as the main river, or part
of the main river, for the purposes of this Act, and
<1(b)>1 which indicates (by a distinctive colour or otherwise) which (if
any) of those watercourses are watercourses designated in a
scheme made under section 50 below.
(2) The main river maps at the commencement of this Act shall consist
of any maps sent to water authorities under paragraph 9 of Schedule 2 to
B208
<1Land Drainage Act 1976>1
the Water Act 1973 and, so far as not replaced by any such maps, the
following maps, that is to say--
(<1a>1) in the case of areas which immediately before 1st April, 1974
consisted of the Thames Catchment Area and the Lee Catch-
ment Area, maps prepared under section 5 of the Land Drainage
Act 1930 and current immediately before that date,
(<1b>1) in the case of other areas, main river maps kept by river
authorities immediately before that date under section 11 of the
Water Resources Act 1963.
(3) The Minister may at any time send a water authority one or more
new maps to be substituted for the whole or part
..........................................................................
<217>2.--(7) In this Act --drainage authority" means a water authority or
internal drainage board, and in relation to an internal drainage board any
reference to the area of a drainage authority is a reference to the district of
the board.
<2I16>2.--(1)..........................................................
"banks" means banks, walls or embankments adjoining or confining, or
constructed for the purposes of or in connection with, any channel or
sea front, and includes all land between the bank and low-
watermark;
...........................................................................
"drainage" includes defence against water (including sea water), irriga-
tion other than spray irrigation, and warping;
"drainage authority" has the meaning provided by section 17(7) above;
"drainage body" means a drainage authority or any other body having
power to make or maintain works for the drainage of land;
"harbour" and "harbour authority" have the same respective meanings
as in the Merchant Shipping Act 1894;
"land" includes water and any interests in land or water and any
easement or right in, to, or over land or water;
"land drainage" means the drainage of land and the provision of flood
warning systems, and "land drainage functions" shall be constmed
accordingly;
"local authority" means any of the following, namely, the council of a
county, district or London borough, the Common Council of the City
of London, and the Greater London Council;
..........................................................................
"main river" has the meaning provided by section 8(3) above;
"the Minister" means the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and food;
"the Ministers" means the Minister and the Secretary of State acting
jointly;
..........................................................................
"watercourse" includes all rivers and streams and all ditches, drains,
cuts, culverts, dikes, sluices, sewers (other than public sewers within
the meaning of the Public Health Act 1936) and passages, through
which water flows.
..........................................................................
B209
<1General Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977>1
<2General Rate (Public Utilities) Act 1977>2
An Act to make retrospective provision as respects orders made or having
effect under section 35 of the General Rate Act 1967, and as respects
the rateable value of gas hereditaments for the year 1976-77, to grant
an indemnity for acts done in conformity with provision so made, and
to make consequential and minor amendments of the law relating to the
rating of public utilities and other bodies. [30th March, 1977]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
<2Validation of certain orders>2
<21.>2--(1) The repeal by section 42 of, and Schedule 8 to, the Local
Government Act 1974 of section 35 of the General Rate Act 1967
(mining, quarry and dock undertakings) shall not affect, and shall be
deemed never to have affected, any order made or having effect as if
made under the said section 35 before the date on which that repeal took
effect.
(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, any order made or having effect as
if made under the said section 35 shall as from the said date be deemed to
have been made under section 19 of the Local Government Act 1974, and
accordingly any such order may be amended or revoked by an order under
that section.
(3) The Docks and Harbours (Valuation) Order 1971 (which was made
under section 35 of the General Rate Act 1967, and which in respect of the
year beginning on 1st April, 1976 and subsequent years is superseded by
the Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values) Order 1976) shall be revoked
as from 1st April, 1976.
(4) Section 36 of the General Rate Act 1967 (tin, lead and copper
mines) shall cease to have effect, and in section 69(6) of the General Rate
Act 1967 for the reference to section 35 of that Act there shall be
substituted a reference to section 19 of the Local Government Act 1974.
<2Gas Hereditaments>2
<22.>2--(1) Article 4 of the Gas Hereditaments (Rateable Values) Order
1976 shall be amended as provided by this section, and shall be deemed
always to have had effect as so amended.
(2) In Article 4 (total rateable value of all gas hereditaments) for
paragraph (i) there shall be substituted the following paragraph--
"(i) for the year 1976-77 be #60 million; and".
(3) In the formula in paragraph (ii), in the definition of #X, for the
word "calculated" there shall be substituted the words --fixed or calcu-
lated".
<2Indemnity for rating authorities and officials>2
<23.>2 Rating authorities, valuation officers and all other persons having
any duty as respects valuation for rating or the levying of rates are hereby
B210
<1National Health Service Act 1977>1
freed, discharged and indemnified from and against any consequences
incurred by them by reason of any default where, if the preceding
provisions of this Act had been in force at all relevant times, there would
have been no default.
<2Amendment of section 19 of the Local Government Act 1974>2
<24>2.--(1) Section 19 of the Local Government Act 1974 (which super-
sedes section 35 of the General Rate Act 1967) shall be amended as
provided by this section.
(2) In subsection (1) for the words "for determining" there shall be
substituted the words "for fixing, or for determining".
(3) In subsection (4) after paragraph (c) there shall be inserted the
following words "and
(<1d>1) any provision of any Act so far as it amends an enactment within
paragraph (<1a>1), (<1b>1) or (<1c>1) above".
<2Citation and extent>2
<25>2.--(1) This Act may be cited as the General Rate (Public Utilities)
Act 1977, and, together with the General Rate Acts 1967 and 1970, and
the General Rate Act 1975, may be cited as the General Rate Acts 1967 to
1977.
(2) The Acts specified in the Schedule to this Act shall be repealed to
the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.
(3) This Act shall not extend to Scotland or Northern Ireland.
SCHEDULE
REPEALS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter | Short title | Extent of repeal
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1967 c.9. | General Rate Act 1967. | Section 36.
1972 c. 60. | Gas Act 1972. | In Schedule 5, paragraph 4(3).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
<2National Health Service Act 1977>2
<2128>2.--(1)...........................................................
"illness" includes mental disorder within the meaning of the Mental
Health Act 1959 and any injury or disability requiring medical 0r
dental treatment or nursing;
<1Referred to in the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978 s.2(3).>1
B211
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
<2Interpretation Act 1978>2
<1Arrangement of Sections>1
<1General provisions as to enactment and operation>1
<1Section>1
1. Words of enactment.
2. Amendment or repeal in same Session.
3. Judicial notice.
4. Time of commencement.
<1Interpretation and construction>1
5. Definitions.
6. Gender and number.
7. References to service by post.
8. References to distance.
9. References to time of day.
10. References to the Sovereign.
11. Construction of subordinate legislation.
<1Statutory powers and duties>1
12. Continuity of powers and duties.
13. Anticipatory exercise of powers.
14. Implied power to amend.
<1Repealing enactments>1
15. Repeal of repeals.
16. General savings.
17. Repeal and re-enactment.
<1Miscellaneous>1
18. Duplicated offences.
19. Citation of other Acts.
20. References to other enactments.
<1Supplementary>1
<1Section>1
21. Interpretation etc.
22. Application to Acts and Measures.
23. Application to other instruments.
24. Application to Northern Ireland.
B212
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
25. Repeals and savings.
26. Commencement.
27. Short title.
SCHEDULES:
Schedule 1--Words and expressions defined.
Schedule 2--Application of Act to existing enactments.
Part I--Acts.
Part II--Subordinate legislation.
Schedule 3--Enactments repealed.
An Act to consolidate the Interpretation Act 1889 and certain other
enactments relating to the construction and operation of Acts of Parlia-
ment and other instruments, with amendments to give effect to recom-
mendations of the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission.
[20th July, 1978]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and c0nsent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
<1General provisions as to enactment and operation>1
<2Words of enactment>2
<21.>2 Every section of an Act takes effect as a substantive enactment
without introductory words.
<2Amendment or repeal in same Session>2
2. Any Act may be amended or repealed in the session of Parliament in
which it is passed.
<2Judicial notice>2
<23.>2 Every Act is a public Act to be judicially noticed as such, unless the
contrary is expressly provided by the Act.
<2Time of commencement>2
<24>2. An Act or provision of an Act comes into force--
(a) where provision is made for it to come into force on a particular
day, at the beginning of that day;
(b) where no provision is made for its coming into force, at the
beginning of the day on which the Act receives the Royal Assent.
<1Interpretation and construction>1
<2Definitions>2
<25>2. In any Act, unless the contrary intention appears, words and
expressions listed in Schedule 1 to this Act are to be construed according
to that Schedule.
B213
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
<2Gender and number>2
<26.>2 In any Act, unless the contrary intention appears,--
(a) words importing the masculine gender include the feminine;
(b) words importing the feminine gender include the masculine;
(c) words in the singular include the plural and words in the plural
include the singular.
<2References to service by post>2
<27.>2 Where an Act authorises or requires any document to be served by
post (whether the expression --serve" or the expression --give" or --send"
or any other expression is used) then, unless the contrary intention
appears, the service is deemed to be effected by properly addressing,
pre-paying and posting a letter containing the document and, unless the
contrary is proved, to have been effected at the time at which the letter
would be delivered in the ordinary course of post.
<2References to distance>2
<28.>2 In the measurement of any distance for the purposes of an Act, that
distance shall, unless the contrary intention appears, be measured in a
straight line on a horizontal plane.
<2References to time of day>2
<29>2. Subject to section 3 of the Summer Time Act 1972 (construction of
references to points of time during the period of summer time), whenever
an expression of time occurs in an Act, the time referred to shall, unless it
is otherwise specifically stated, be held to be Greenwich mean time.
<2References to the Sovereign>2
<210.>2 In any Act a reference to the Sovereign reigning at the time of the
passing of the Act is to be construed, unless the contrary intention
appears, as a reference to the Sovereign for the time being.
<2Construction of subordinate legislation>2
<211.>2 Where an Act confers power to make subordinate legislation,
expressions used in that legislation have, unless the contrary intention
appears, the meaning which they bear in the Act.
<1Statutory powers and duties>1
<2Continuity of powers and duties>2
<212>2.--(1) Where an Act confers a power or imposes a duty it is implied,
unless the contrary intention appears, that the power may be exercised, or
the duty is to be performed, from time to time as occasion requires.
(2) Where an Act confers a power or imposes a duty on the holder of
an office as such, it is implied, unless the contrary intention appears, that
the power may be exercised, or the duty is to be performed, by the holder
for the time being of the office.
<2Anticipatory exercise of powers>2
<213.>2 Where an Act which (or any provision of which) does not come into
B214
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
force immediately on its passing confers power to make subordinate
legislation, or to make appointments, give notices, prescribe forms or do
any other thing for the purposes of the Act, then, unless the contrary
intention appears, the power may be exercised, and any instrument made
thereunder may be made so as to come into force, at any time after the
passing of the Act so far as may be necessary or expedient for the
purpose--
(a) of bringing the Act or any provision of the Act into force; or
(b) of giving full effect to the Act or any such provision at or after the
time when it comes into force.
<2Duplied power to amend>2
<214.>2 Where an Act confers power to make--
(a) rules, regulations or bylaws; or
(b) Orders in Council, orders or other subordinate legislation to be
made by statutory instrument,
it implies, unless the contrary intention appears, a power, exercisable in
the same manner and subject to the same conditions or limitations, to
revoke, amend or re-enact any instrument made under the power.
<1Repealing enactments>1
<2Repeal of repeal>2
<215.>2 Where an Act repeals a repealing enactment, the repeal does not
revive any enactment previously repealed unless words are added
reviving it.
<2General savings>2
<216>2.--(1) Without prejudice to section 15, where an Act repeals an
enactment, the repeal does not, unless the contrary intention appears,--
(a) revive anything not in force or existing at the time at which the
repeal takes effect;
(b) affect the previous operation of the enactment repealed or
anything duly done or suffered under that enactment;
(c) affect any right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired,
accrued or incurred under that enactment;
(d) affect any penalty, forfeiture or punishment incurred in respect
of any offence committed against that enactment;
(e) affect any investigation, legaI proceeding or remedy in respect of
any such right, privilege, obligation, liability, penalty, forfeiture
or punishment;
and any such investigation, legal proceeding or remedy may be instituted,
continued or enforced, and any such penalty, forfeiture or punishment
may be imposed, as if the repealing Act had not been passed.
(2) This section applies to the expiry of a temporary enactment as if it
were repealed by an Act.
B215
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
<2Repeal and re-enactment>2
<217>2.--(1) Where an Act repeals a previous enactment and substitutes
provisions for the enactment repealed, the repealed enactment remains in
force until the substituted provisions come into force.
(2) Where an Act repeals and re-enacts, with or without modification,
a previous enactment then, unless the contrary intention appears,--
(a) any reference in any other enactment to the enactment so
repealed shall be construed as a reference to the provision
re-enacted;
(b) in so far as any subordinate legislation made or other thing done
under the enactment so repealed, or having effect as if so made
or done, could have been made or done under the provision
re-enacted, it shall have effect as if made or done under that
provision.
<1Miscellaneous>1
<2Duplicated offences>2
<218.>2 Where an act or omission constitutes an offence under two or more
Acts, or both under an Act and at common law, the offender shall, unless
the contrary intention appears, be liable to be prosecuted and punished
under either or any of those Acts or at common law, but shall not be liable
to be punished more than once for the same offence.
<2Citation of other Acts>2
<219>2.--(1) Where an Act cites another Act by year, statute, session or
chapter, or a section or other portion of another Act by number or letter,
the reference shall, unless the contrary intention appears, be read as
referring--
(a) in the case of Acts included in any revised edition of the statutes
printed by authority, to that edition;
(b) in the case of Acts not so included but included in the edition
prepared under the direction of the Record Commission, to that
edition;
(c) in any other case, to the Acts printed by the Queen's Printer, or
under the superintendence or authority of Her Majesty's Station-
ery Office.
(2) An Act may continue to be cited by the short title authorised by any
enactment notwithstanding the repeal of that enactment.
<2References to other enactments>2
<220>2.--(1) Where an Act describes or cites a portion of an enactment by
referring to words, sections or other parts from or to which (or from and
to which) the portion extends, the portion described or cited includes the
words, sections or other parts referred to unless the contrary intention
appears.
(2) Where an Act refers to an enactment, the reference, unless the
contrary intention appears, is a reference to that enactment as amended,
and includes a reference thereto as extended or applied, by or under any
other enactment, including any other provision of that Act.
B216
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
<1Supplementary>1
<2Interpretation etc.>2
<221>2.--(1) In this Act "Act" includes a local and personal or private Act;
and "subordinate legislation" means Orders in Council, orders, rules,
regulations, schemes, warrants, byelaws and other instruments made or to
be made under any Act.
(2) This Act binds the Crown.
<2Application to Acts and Measures>2
<222>2.--(1) This Act applies to itself, to any Act passed after the
commencement of this Act and, to the extent specified in Part I of
Schedule 2, to Acts passed before the commencement of this Act.
(2) In any of the foregoing provisions of this Act a reference to an Act
is a reference to an Act to which that provision applies; but this does not
affect the generality of references to enactments or of the references in
section 19(1) to other Acts.
(3) This Act applies to Measures of the General Synod of the Church of
England (and, so far as it relates to Acts passed before the commence-
ment of this Act, to Measures of the Church Assembly passed after 28th
May, 1925) as it applies to Acts.
<2Application to other instruments>2
<223>2.--(1) The provisions of this Act, except sections 1 to 3 and 4(b),
apply, so far as applicable and unless the contrary intention appears, to
subordinate legislation made after the commencement of this Act and, to
the extent specified in Part II of Schedule 2, to subordinate legislation
made before the commencement of this Act, as they apply to Acts.
(2) In the application of this Act to Acts passed or subordinate
legislation made after the commencement of this Act, all references to an
enactment include an enactment comprised in subordinate legislation
whenever made, and references to the passing or repeal of an enactment
are to be construed accordingly.
(3) Sections 9 and 19(1) also apply to deeds and other instruments and
documents as they apply to Acts and subordinate legislation; and in the
application of section 17(2)(a) to Acts passed or subordinate legislation
made after the commencement of this Act, the reference to any other
enactment includes any deed or other instrument or document.
(4) Subsections (1) and (2) of this section do not apply to Orders in
Council made under section 5 of the Statutory Instruments Act 1946,
section 1(3) of the Northern Ireland (Temporary Provisions) Act 1972 or
Schedule 1 to the Northern Ireland Act 1974.
<224>2. <1Relates to Northern Ireland.>1
<2Repeals and savings>2
<225>2.--(1) The enactments described in Schedule 3 are repealed to the
extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.
(2) Without prejudice to section 17(2)(a), a reference to the Interpreta-
tion Act 1889, to any provision of that Act or to any other enactment
repealed by this Act, whether occurring in another Act, in subordinate
legisation, in Northern Ireland legislation or in any deed or other
B217
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
instrument or document, shall be construed as referring to this Act, or to
the corresponding provision of this Act, as it applies to Acts passed at the
time of the reference.
(3) The provisions of this Act relating to Acts passed after any
particular time do not affect the construction of Acts passed before that
time, though continued or amended by Acts passed thereafter.
<2Commencement>2
<226.>2 This Act shall come into force on 1st January, 1979.
<2Short title>2
<227.>2 This Act may be cited as the Interpretation Act 1978.
SCHEDULES
SCHEDULE 1
WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS DEFINED
<1Note:>1 The years or dates which follow certain entries in this Schedule
are relevant for the purposes of paragraph 4 of Schedule 2 (application to
existing enactments).
<1Definitions>1
"Associated state" means a territory maintaining a status of association
with the United Kingdom in accordance with the West Indies Act 1967.
[16th February, 1967]
"Bank of England" means, as the context requires, the Governor and
Company of the Bank of England or the bank of the Governor and
Company of the Bank of England.
"Bank of Ireland" means, as the context requires, the Governor and
Company of the Bank of Ireland or the bank of the Govenor and
Company of the Bank of Ireland.
"British Islands" means the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and
the Isle of Man. [1889]
"British possession" means any part of Her Majesty's dominions
outside the United Kingdom; and where parts of such dominions are
under both a central and a local legislature, all parts under the central
legislature are deemed, for the purposes of this definition, to be one
British possession. [1889]
"British subject" and --Commonweath citizen" have the same mean-
ing, that is--
(a) a person who under the British Nationality Act 1948 is a citizen
of the United Kingdom and Colonies or who under any enact-
ment for the time being in force in a country mentioned in
section 1(3) of that Act is a citizen of that country; and
(b) any other person who has the status of a British subject under
that Act or any subsequent enactment.
B218
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
"Building regulations", in relation to England and Wales, means
regulations made under section 61(1) of the Public Health Act 1936.
"Central funds", in an enactment providing in relation to England and
Wales for the payment of costs out of central funds, means money
provided by Parliament.
"Charity Commissioners" means the Charity Commissioners for Eng-
land and Wales referred to in section 1 of the Charities Act 1960.
"Church Commissioners" means the Commissioners constituted by the
Church Commissioners Measure 1947.
"Colonial legislature", and "legislature" in relation to a British posses-
sion, mean the authority, other than the Parliament of the United
Kingdom or Her Majesty in Council, competent to make laws for the
possession. [1889]
"Colony" means any part of Her Majesty's dominions outside the
British Islands except--
(a) countries having fully responsible status within the
Commonwealth;
(b) territories for whose external relations a country other than the
United Kingdom is responsible;
(c) associated states;
and where parts of such dominions are under both a central and a local
legislature, all parts under the central legislature are deemed for the
purposes of this definition to be one colony. [1889]
"Commencement", in relation to an Act or enactment, means the time
when the Act or enactment comes into force.
"Committed for trial" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, committed in custody or on
bail by a magistrates' court pursuant to section 7 of the Magis-
trates' Courts Act 1952, or by any judge or other authority
having power to do so, with a view to trial before a judge and
jury; [1889]
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, committed in custody or on bail
by a magistrates' court pursuant to section 45 of the Magistrates'
Courts Act (Northern Ireland) 1964, or by a court, judge,
resident magistrate, justice of the peace or other authority
having power to do so, with a view to trial on indictment. [1st
January, 1979]
"The Communities", "the Treaties" or "the Community Treaties" and
other expressions defined by section 1 of and Schedule 1 to the European
Communities Act 1972 have the meanings prescribed by that Act.
"Comptroller and Auditor General" means the Comptroller-General
of the receipt and issue of Her Majesty's Exchequer and Auditor-General
of Public Accounts appointed in pursuance of the Exchequer and Audit
Departments Act 1866.
"Consular officer" has the meaning assigned by Article 1 of the Vienna
Convention set out in Schedule 1 to the Consular Relations Act 1968.
"The Corporation Tax Acts" means--
(a) Parts X and XI of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1970;
B219
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
(b) all other provisions of that or any other Act relating to corpora-
tion tax or to any other matter dealt with in Part X or Part XI of
that Act;
(c) all the provisions of Part IV of the Finance Act 1965 and 0f any
other enactment which, at the passing of the said Act of 1970,
formed part of or was to be construed with the Corporation Tax
Acts.
"County court" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, a court held for a district under
the County C0urts Act 1959; [1846]
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, a court held for a division under
the County Courts Act (Northern Ireland) 1959. [1889]
"Court of Appeal" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, Her Majesty's Court of
Appeal in England;
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, Her Majesty's Court of Appeal
in Northern Ireland.
"Court of summary jurisdiction", --summary conviction" and "Sum-
mary jurisdiction Acts", in relation to Northern Ireland, have the same
meanings as in Measures of the Northern Ireland Assembly and Acts of
the Parliament of Northern Ireland.
"Crown Court" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, the Crown Court constituted
by section 4 of the Courts Act 1971;
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, the Crown Court constituted by
section 4 of the Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978.
"Crown Estate Commissioners" means the Commissioners referred to
in section 1 of the Crown Estate Act 1961.
"England" means, subject to any alteration of boundaries under Part
IV of the Local Government Act 1972, the area consisting of the counties
established by section 1 of that Act, Greater London and the Isles of
Scilly. [1st April, 1974].
"Financial year" means, in relation to matters relating to the Consoli-
dated Fund, the National Loans fund, or moneys provided by Parlia-
ment, or to the Exchequer or to central taxes or finance, the twelve
months ending with 31st March. [1889]
"Governor-General" includes any person who for the time being has
the powers of the Governor-General, and "Governor", in relation to any
British possession, includes the officer for the time being administering
the government of that possession. [1889]
"High Court" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, Her Majesty's High Court of
Justice in England;
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, Her Majesty's High Court of
Justice in Northern Ireland.
"The Income Tax Acts" means all enactments relating to income tax,
including any provisions of the Corporation Tax Acts which relate to
income tax.
B220
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
"Land" includes buildings and other structures, land covered with
water, and any estate, interest, easement, servitude or right in or over
land. [1st January, 1979]
"Lands Clauses Acts" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, the Lands Clauses Consolida-
tion Act 1845 and the Lands Clauses Consolidation Acts Amend-
ment Act 1860, and any Acts for the time being in force
amending those Acts; [1889]
(b) in relation to Scotland, the Lands Clauses Consolidation (Scot-
land) Act 1845 and the Lands Clauses Consolidation Acts
Amendment Act 1860, and any Acts for the time being in force
amending those Acts; [1889]
(c) in relation to Northern Ireland, the enactments defined as such
by section 46(1) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland)
1954. [1889]
"Local land charges register", in relation to England and Wales, means
a register kept pursuant to section 3 of the Local Land Charges Act 1975,
and "the appropriate local land charges register" has the meaning
assigned by section 4 of that Act.
"London borough" means a borough described in Schedule 1 to the
London Government Act 1963, "inner London borough" means one of
the boroughs so described and numbered from 1 to 12 and "outer London
borough" means one of the boroughs so described and numbered from 13
to 32, subject (in each case) to any alterations made under Part IV of the
Local Government Act 1972.
"Lord Chancellor" means the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain.
"Magistrates' court" has the meaning assigned to it--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, by section 124 of the Magis-
trates' Courts Act 1952;
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, by section 1 of the Magistrates'
Courts Act (Northern Ireland) 1964.
"Month" means calendar month. [1850]
"National Debt Commissioners" means the Commissioners for the
Reduction of the National Debt.
"Northern Ireland legislation" has the meaning assigned by section
24(5) of this Act. [1st January, 1979]
"Oath" and "affidavit" include affirmation and declaration, and
"swear" includes affirm and declare.
"Ordnance Map" means a map made under powers conferred by the
Ordnance Survey Act 1841 or the Boundary Survey (Ireland) Act 1854.
"Parliamentary Election" means the election of a Member to serve in
Parliament for a constituency. [1889]
"Person" includes a body of persons corporate or unincorp0rate. [1889]
"Police area", "police authority" and other expressions relating to the
police have the meaning or effect described--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, by section 62 of the Police Act
1964;
(b) in relation to Scotland, by sections 50 and 51(4) of the Police
(Scotland) Act 1967.
B221
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
"The Privy Council" means the Lords and others of Her Majesty's Most
Honourable Privy Council.
"Registered medical practitioner" means a fully registered person
within the meaning of the Medical Act 1956. [1st January, 1979]
"Rules of Court" in relation to any court means rules made by the
authority having power to make rules or orders regulating the practice and
procedure of that court, and in Scotland includes Acts of Adjournal and
Acts of Sederunt; and the power of the authority to make rules of court
(as above defined) includes power to make such rules for the purpose of
any Act which directs or authorises anything to be done by rules of court.
[1889]
"Secretary of State" means one of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries
of State.
"Sheri", in relation to Scotland, includes sheriff principal. [1889]
"Statutory declaration" means a declaration made by virtue of the
Statutory Declarations Act 1835.
"Supreme Court" means--
(a) in relation to England and Wales, the Court of Appeal and the
High Court together with the Crown Court;
(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, the Supreme Court of Judicature
of Northern Ireland.
"The Tax Acts" means the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1970
and all other provisions of the Income Tax Acts and the Corporation Tax
Acts. [12th March, 1970]
"The Treasury" means the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury.
"United Kingdom" means Great Britain and Northern Ireland. [12th
April, 1927]
"Wales" means, subject to any alteration of boundaries made under
Part IV of the Local Government Act 1972, the area consisting of the
counties established by section 20 of that Act. [1st April, 1974]
"Water authority", in relation to England and Wales, means an
authority established in accordance with section 2 of the Water Act 1973;
and "water authority area", in relation to any functions of such an
authority, means the area in respect of which the water authority are for
the time being to exercise those functions.
"Writing" includes typing, printing, lithography, photography and
other modes of representing or reproducing words in a visible form, and
expressions referring to writing are construed accordingly.
<1Construction of certain expressions relating to children>1
In relation to England and Wales the following expressions and
references, namely--
(a) the expression "the parental rights and duties";
(b) the expression "legal custody" in relation to a child (as defined in
the Children Act 1975); and
(c) any reference to the person with whom a child (as so defined) has
his home,
are to be construed in accordance with Part IV of that Act. [12th
November, 1975]
B222
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
<1Construction of certain expressions relating to offences>1
In relation to England and Wales--
(a) "indictable offence" means an offence which, if committed by an
adult, is triable on indictment, whether it is exclusively so triable
or triable either way;
(b) "summary offence" means an offence which, if committed by an
adult, is triable only summarily;
(c) "offence triable either way" means an offence which, if commit-
ted by an adult, is triable either on indictment or summarily;
and the terms "indictable", "summary" and "triable either way", in their
application to offences, are to be construed accordingly.
In the above definitions references to the way or ways in which an
offence is triable are to be construed without regard to the effect, if any,
of section 23 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 on the mode of trial in a
particular case.
SCHEDULE 2
APPLICATION OF ACT TO EXISTING ENACTMENTS
PART I
ACTS
<21.>2 The following provisions of this Act apply to Acts whenever
passed:--
Section 6(a) and (c) so far as applicable to enactments relating to
offences punishable on indictment or on summary convicti0n
Section 9
Section 10
Section 11 so far as it relates to subordinate legislation made after the
year 1889
Section 18
Section 19(2).
<22>2. The following apply to Acts passed after the year 1850:--
Section 1
Section 2
Section 3
Section 6(a) and (c) so far as not applicable to such Acts by virtue of
paragraph 1
Section 15
Section 17(1).
<23.>2 The following apply to Acts passed after the year 1889:--
Section 4
Section 7
Section 8
Section 12
B223
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
Section 13
Section 14 so far as it relates to rules, regulations or byelaws
Section 16(1)
Section 17(2)(a)
Section 19(1)
Section 20(1).
<24>2.--(1) Subject to the following provisions of this paragraph--
(a) paragraphs of Schedule 1 at the end of which a year or date
earlier than the commencement of this Act is specified apply, so
far as applicable, to Acts passed on or after the date, or after the
year, so specified; and
(b) paragraphs of that Schedule at the end of which no year or date is
specified apply, so far as applicable, to Acts passed at any time.
(2) The definition of "British Islands", in its application to Acts passed
after the establishment of the Irish Free State but before the commence-
ment of this Act, includes the Republic of Ireland.
(3) The definition of "colony", in its application to an Act passed at
any time before the commencement of this Act, includes--
(a) any colony within the meaning of section 18(3) of the Interpreta-
tion Act 1889 which was excluded, but in relation only to Acts
passed at a later time, by any enactment repealed by this Act;
(b) any country or territory which ceased after that time to be part of
Her Majesty's dominions but subject to a provision for the
continuation of existing law as if it had not so ceased;
and paragraph (b) of the definition does not apply.
(4) The definition of "Lord Chancellor" does not apply to Acts passed
before 1st October, 1921 in which that expression was used in relation to
Ireland only.
(5) The definition of "person", so far as it includes bodies corporate,
applies to any provision of an Act whenever passed relating to an offence
punishable on indictment or on summary conviction.
(6) This paragraph applies to the National Health Service Reorganis-
ation Act 1973 and the Water Act 1973 as if they were passed after 1st
April, 1974.
<25>2. The following definitions shall be treated as included in Schedule 1
for the purposes specified in this paragraph--
(a) in any Act passed before 1st April, 1974, a reference to England
includes Berwick upon Tweed and Monmouthshire and, in the
case of an Act passed before the Welsh Language Act 1967,
Wales;
(b) in any Act passed before the commencement of this Act and
after he year 1850, "land" includes messuages, tenements and
hereditaments, houses and buildings of any tenure;
(c) in any Act passed before the commencement of the Criminal
Procedure (Scotland) Act 1975, "the Summary Jurisdiction
(Scotland) Acts" means Part II of that Act.
B224
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
PART II
SUBORDINATE LEGISLATION
<26.>2 Sections 4(a), 9 and 19(1), and so much of Schedule 1 as defines the
following expressions, namely--
British subject and Commonwealth citizen;
England;
Local land charges register and appropriate local and charges
register;
Police area (and related expressions) in relation to Scotland;
United Kingdom;
Wales,
apply to subordinate legislation made at any time before the commence-
ment of this Act as they apply to Acts passed at that time.
<27.>2 The definition in Schedule 1 of "county court", in relation to
England and Wales, applies to Orders in Council made after the year
1846.
SCHEDULE 3
ENACTMENTS REPEALED
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
or Number
33Geo.3. c.13. The Acts of Parliament The words from "and to be
(Commencement) the date" to the end.
Act 1793.
43 & 44 Vict. The Statutes (Definition The whole Act.
c. 9. of Time) Act 1880.
47 & 48 Vict. c. The Revenue Act 1884. In section 14, the second pa-
62. ragraph, that is the words
from "Any reference" to
"Exchequer and Audit
Departments Act 1866" in
the second place where
that Act is referred to in
the section.
52 g 53 Vict. c. The Interpretation Act The whole Act except para-
63. 1889. graphs (4), (5) and (14) of
section 13 in their applica-
tion to Northern Ireland.
53 & 54 Vict. c. The Inland Revenue In section 38(1), the words
21. Regulation Act 1890. from "and" to "of this
Act".
59 & 60 Vict. c. The Short Titles Act Section 3.
14. 1896.
B225
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeat
15 & 16 Geo. 5 The Interpretation Mea- Section 1.
No. 1. sure 1925.
17 & 18 Geo. 5 The Royal and Par- In section 2(2) the words
c. 4. liamentary Title Act "Act passed and"
1927.
22 & 23 Geo. 5. The Statute of West- Section 11.
c. 4. minster 1931.
...............................................................
11 & 12 Geo. The British Nationality In section 1(2) the words
6. c. 56 Act 1948. "other enactment or" and
the words "passed or".
15 & 16 Geo. 6 The Magistrates' Courts In Schedule 5, the amend-
& 1 Eliz. 2. c. Act 195 ment of the Interpretation
55. Act 1889.
4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. The Medical Act 1956. Section 52(3).
76.
10 g 1I Eliz. 2. The Northern Ireland Section 27.
c. 30. Act 1962.
1963 c. 33. The London Govern- In section 1, in subsection (1)
ment Act 1963. the words "and any other"
and in subsection (6) the
words from "and section
15" to "that is to say".
1964 c. 48. The Police Act 1964. In section 62 the words from
"and in any other enact-
ment" to "this Act)".
1967 c. 66. The Welsh Language Section 4.
Act 1967.
1968 c. 13. The National Loans Act Section 1(6).
1968.
1970 c. 10. The Income and Cor- In section 526 in subsection
poration Taxes Act (1) the words --and in any
1970. other Act"; and in subsec-
tion (2) the words "and in
any Act passed after this
Act."
B226
<1Interpretation Act 1978>1
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
or Number
1972 c. 68. The European Com- In section 1(2) the words
munities Act 1972. from "and except" to
"Northern Ireland)".
1972 c. 70. The Local Government In section 269 the words
Act 1972. from "in every Act" to
"that date)" in the second
place where those words
occur.
1973 c. 14. The Costs in Criminal In section 13(1) the words
Cases Act 1973. "and in any other enact-
ment providing for the
payment of costs out of
central funds".
..........................................................................
1973 c. 32. The National Health In section 55(2), the words
Reorganisation Act from the beginning t0
1973. "that date; and".
1973 c. 37. The Water Act 1973. In section 2(3) the words
"and any other enact-
ment".
Section 38(2).
1975 c. 72. The Children Act 1975. Section 89.
1975 c. 76. The Local Land Charges In section 4 the words "and
Act 1975. any other statutory provi-
sion".
1976 c. 63. The Bail Act 1976. In Schedule 2, the amend-
ment of the Interpretation
Act 1889.
1977 c. 45. The Criminal Law Act In section 64(1) the words
1977. from "and, unless" to
"this Act)".
1978 c. 12. The Medical Act 1978. In Schedule 5, in paragraph
48 paragraph (b) and the
word "and" immediately
preceding that paragraph.
..........................................................................
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
B227
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
<2Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>2
<1Arrangement of Sections>1
<1Provisions for England and Wales>1
<1Section>1
1. Rebates for hereditaments with special facilities for disabled per-
sons.
2. Rebates for institutions for the disabled.
3. Administration and appeals.
<1Provisions for Scotland>1
4. Rebates for lands and heritages with special facilities for disabled
persons.
5. Rebates for institutions in Scotland for the disabled.
6. Administration and appeals in Scotland.
7. Alteration of the valuation roll in Scotland.
<1General>1
8. Interpratation.
9. Citation, repeals, commencement and extent.
SCHEDULES:
Schedule 1--Amount of rebate under section 1.
Schedule 2--Repeals.
An Act to amend the law relating to relief from rates in respect of
premises used by disabled persons and invalids; and for purposes
connected therewith. [20th July, 1978]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the
advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons,
in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as
follows:--
<1Provisions for England and Wales>1
<2Rebates for hereditaments with special facilities for disabled persons>2
<21.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the rating authority for
any area in England and Wales shall grant a rebate in respect of the rates
chargeable on any hereditament which is situated in the area and to which
this section applies.
(2) This section applies to--
<1(a)>1 a hereditament in which a room other than a bathroom or
lavatory is predominantly used (whether for providing therapy or
for other purposes) by and is required for meeting the needs of a
disabled person who resides in the hereditament;
<1(b)>1 a hereditament in which there is an additional bathroom or
lavatory which is required for meeting the needs of a disabled
person who resides in the hereditament;
B228
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
(c) a hereditament which is equipped with a heating installation for
providing heating in two or more rooms, being heating required
for meeting the needs of a disabled person who resides in the
hereditament;
<1(d)>1 a hereditament in which there is any other facility which is
required for meeting the needs of a disabled person who resides
1n the hereditament;
<1(e)>1 a hereditament in which there is sufficient floor space to permit
the use of a wheelchair used by and required for meeting the
needs of a disabled person who resides in the hereditament;
<1(f)>1 a hereditament which includes or consists of a garage, carport or
land used otherwise than temporarily for accommodating a
vehicle used by and required for meeting the needs of a disabled
person.
(3) In subsection (2) above--
<1(a)>1 references to anything being required for meeting the needs of a
disabled person are references to its being essential or of major
importance to his well-being by reason of the nature and extent
of his disability; and
<1(b)>1 references to a disabled person who resides in a hereditament
include references to a disabled person who is usually resident
there.
(4) The person entitled to a rebate under this section is--
<1(a)>1 the disab1ed person if he is the occupier of the hereditament or
makes payments by way of rent in respect of all or any of it; or
<1(b)>1 any person who is a member of the same household as the
disabled person and either is the occupier of the hereditament or
makes such payments as aforesaid.
(5) The rebate in respect of any hereditament shall be of an amount
determined in accordance with Schedule 1 to this Act.
(6) Where the person entitled to a rebate under this section is also
entitled to a rebate under a scheme made under section 11 or 12 of the
Local Government Act 1974 in respect of the same hereditament and
Period, that scheme shall have effect as if the rates chargeable on the
hereditament for that period were reduced by the amount of the rebate
under this section.
<2Rebates for institutions for the disabled>2
<12.>1--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the rating authority for
any area in England and Wales shall grant a rebate in respect of the rates
chargeable on any hereditament situated in the area which is occupied by
a local authority or other body and is used--
<1(a)>1 wholly for one or more of the purposes specified in subsection (2)
below; or
<1(b)>1 partly for one or more of those purposes and partly for purposes
ancillary thereto.
(2) The said purposes are--
<1(a)>1 the provision of residential accommodation for the care of
persons suffering from illness or the after-care of persons who
have been suffering from illness;
B229
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
<1(b)>1 the provision of facilities for training or keeping suitably occu-
pied persons suffering from illness or persons who have been
suffering from illness;
<1(c)>1 the provision of such accommodation or facilities as are men-
tioned in paragraph <1(a)>1 or <1(b)>1 above for disabled persons not
falling within that paragraph;
<1(d)>1 the provision of welfare services for disabled persons;
<1(e)>1 the provision of facilities under section 15 of the Disabled
Persons (Employment) Act 1944;
<1(f)>1 the provision of a workshop or of other facilities under section
3(1) of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1958.
(3) In subsection (2) above--
"care" does not include the provision of medical, surgical or dental
treatment, but without prejudice to subsection (1)(b) above;
"illness" has the meaning given by section 128(1) of the National
Health Service Act 1977;
"welfare services for disabled persons" means services or facilities
(by whomsoever provided) of a kind which a local authority have
power to provide under section 29 of the National Assistance Act
1948.
(4) The person entitled to a rebate under this section is the occupier of
the hereditament.
(5) The rebate in respect of any hereditament shall be equal to the rates
chargeable on the hereditament for the rebate period but where the
hereditament qualifies for rebate for part only of a rebate period the
rebate shall be proportionately reduced.
(6) Where the person entitled to a rebate under this section is also
entitled to relief under section 40 of the General Rate Act 1967 (relief for
charitable and other organisations) in respect of the same hereditament
and period, that section shall have effect as if the rates chargeable on the
hereditament for that period were reduced by the amount of the rebate.
<2Admistration and appeals>2
<23.>2--(1) No rebate shall be granted except on an application made to
the rating authority by the person entitled to the rebate; and any such
application shall contain such information as the authority may reasonably
require.
(2) A rebate shall be granted for such period, being a rate period or
part of a rate period, as the rating authority may determine (in this Act
referred to as a "rebate period").
(3) No rebate shall be granted--
<1(a)>1 for any period before the coming into force of this Act; or
<1(b)>1 except in such circumstances and to such extent as the rating
authority may determine, for any period before the beginning of
the rate period in which the application is made.
(4) A rebate may be granted either by making a payment of the amount
of the rebate or, where the person entitled is the occupier of the
hereditament, by reducing the rates payable by him.
(5) An applicant for a rebate whose application is refused by the rating
B230
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
authority may appeal to the county court; and if that court allows the
appeal it may direct that the rebate shall be granted.
(6) In this section --rebate" means a rebate under section 1 or section 2
of this Act.
<1Provisions for Scotland>1
<24-7.>2 ...............................................................
<1Relates to rating in Scotland.>1
<1General>1
<2Interpretation>2
<28.>2--(1) In this Act--
"disabled person" means any person who is blind, deaf or dumb or
who suffers from mental disorder of any description or who is
substantially and permanently handicapped by illness, injury or
congenital deformity or any other disability for the time being
prescribed for the purposes of section 29(1) of the National
Assistance Act 1948 or, in relation to Scotland, by regulations
made by the Secretary of State;
"the previous Valuation Acts" means, in relation to Scotland, the
Lands Valuation (Scotland) Act 1854, the Acts amending that Act
and any other Act relating to valuation including the Local
Government (Scotland) Act 1975;
"rates" includes, in relation to Scotland, domestic water rates;
"rebate period" has the meaning given by section 3(2) or, in relation
to Scotland, section 6(2) of this Act.
(2) Any regulations under subsection (1) above shall be made by
statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of
either House of Parliament.
(3) Any expression which is used in this Act in its application to
England and Wales and is also used in the General Rate Act 1967 has the
same meaning as in that Act.
(4) Any expression which is used in this Act in its application to
Scotland and is also used in the previous Valuation Acts has the same
meaning as in those Acts.
(5) Except where the context otherwise requires, any reference in this
Act to any enactment is a reference to that enactment as amended by or
under any other enactment.
<2Citation, repeals, commencement and extent>2
<29.>2--(I) This Act may be cited as the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act
1978.
(2) This Act in its application to Scotland and the previous Valuation
Acts may be cited together as the Valuation Acts.
(3) The enactments mentioned in Schedule 2 to this Act are hereby
repealed to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.
(4) This Act shall come into force on 1st April, 1979.
(5) This Act does not extend to Northern Ireland.
B231
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
SCHEDULES
SCHEDULE 1
AMOUNT OF REBATE UNDER SECTION 1
<1Preliminary>1
<21.>2 Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the amount of any rebate
under section 1 of this Act shall be determined in accordance with
whichever is applicable of paragraphs 2 to 7 below.
<1Use of room>1
<22.>2 Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)(a) the rebate shall be
equal to the rates that would be chargeable on the hereditament for the
rebate period if its rateable value were #30.
<1Additional bathroom or lavatory>1
<23.>2 Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)<1(b)>1 the rebate shall be
equal to the rates that would be chargeable on the hereditament for the
rebate period if its rateable value were--
(a) #20 in the case of an application made by reference to a
bathroom;
(b) #10 in the case of an application made by reference to a lavatory.
<1Heating installation>1
<24.>2 Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)(c) the rebate shall be
equal to the rates that would be chargeable on the hereditament for the
rebate period if its rateable value were so much only of its rateable value
as is attributable to the heating installation.
<1Other facility>1
<25.>2 Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)(d) the rebate shall be
equal to the rates that would be chargeable on the hereditament for the
rebate period if its rateable value were so much only of its rateable value
as is attributable to the facility.
<1Sufficient Poor space for use of wheelchair>1
<26.>2 Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)<1(e)>1 the rebate shall be
equal to the rates that would be chargeable on the hereditament for the
rebate period if its rateable value were #30.
B232
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
<1Garage, carport or land used for accommodating vehicle>1
<27.>2--(1) Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)(f) the rebate
shall, subject to sub-paragraph (2) below, be equal to the rates that would
be chargeable on the hereditament for the rebate period if its rateable
value were--
(a) #25 in the case of an application made by reference to a garage;
(b) #15 in the case of an application made by reference to a carport;
(c) #5 in the case of an application made by reference to land.
(2) The applicant may, in making the application, elect that the rebate
shall, subject to sub-paragraph (3) below, be equal to--
<1(a)>1 in the case of a hereditament which includes the garage, carport
or land, the rates that would be chargeable on the hereditament
for the rebate period if its rateable value were so much only of its
rateable value as is attributable to the garage, carport or land;
<1(b)>1 in the case of a hereditament which consists of the garage,
carport or land, the rates chargeable on the hereditament for the
rebate period.
(3) Where the application is made by reference to a garage, carport or
land which is also used for other purposes, the rating authority may, if
they think fit, reduce any rebate under paragraph <1(a)>1 or <1(b)>1 of sub-
paragraph (2) above by the proportionate amount or any lesser amount.
<1Increase of rebate>1
<28.>2 Where the amount of any rebate is determined in accordance with
paragraph 2, 3, 6 or 7(1) above, the rating authority may, if they think fit,
increase the rebate by an additional amount equal to one-fifth of the
amount so determined.
<1Reduction of rebate>1
<29.>2 Where the hereditament is within section 1(2)<1(a)>1, <1(b)>1 or <1(f)>1 and the
valuation officer certifies that no part of its rateable value is attributable
to the room which is predominantly used by the disabled person, the
additional bathroom or lavatory or, as the case may be, the garage,
carport or land used for accommodating the vehicle, the rebate shall be
reduced to nil.
<210.>2 Where the hereditament qualifies for rebate for part only of a
rebate period the rating authority may, if they think fit, reduce the rebate
by the proportionate amount or any lesser amount.
<1Certificates of attributable value>1
<211.>2--(1) The valuation officer shall certify what amount of rateable
value is in any case to be attributed as mentioned in paragraph 4, 5 or 7(2)
above and, subject to sub-paragraph (2) below, his certificate shall be
conclusive.
B233
<1Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978>1
(2) Any applicant for rebate who is dissatisfied with a certificate under
sub-paragraph (1) above may appeal to the local valuation court by
sending a notice in writing to the clerk of the local valuation panel
constituted under section 88 of the General Rate Act 1967; and the court
may, if they allow the appeal, alter the certificate as they may determine.
(3) Sections 76(2) and (4) and 77 of the said Act of 1967 (procedure of
local valuation court and right of appeal to Lands Tribunal) shall, with the
necessary modifications, apply to the proceedings of a local valuation
court under this paragraph.
<1Power to vary specified amounts>1
<212.>2--(1) The Secretary of State may by order vary any of the amounts
specified in paragraph 2, 3(a) or <1(b)>1, 6 or 7(1)<1(a)>1, <1(b)>1 or <1(c)>1 above.
(2) The power to make an order under this paragraph shall be
exercisable by statutory instrument and includes power to vary or revoke
a previous order.
(3) Any statutory instrument containing an order made under this
paragraph shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of
either House of Parliament.
SCHEDULE 2
REPEALS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. The Valuation and Section 8(1).
60. Rating (Scotland) Act
1956
1967 c. 9. The General Rate Act Section 45.
1967.
1968 c. 49. The Social Work (Scot- In Schedule 8 paragraph 36.
land) Act 1968.
1973 c. 32. The National Health In Schedule 4 paragraph 108.
Service Reorganisation
Act 1973.
1974 c. 7. The Local Government Section 20.
Act 1974.
1976 c. 15. The Rating (Caravan Section 3(5)<1(b).>1
Sites) Act 1976.
1977 c. 49. The National Health In Schedule 15 paragraph 39.
Service Act 1977.
B234
<1Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
<2Local Government, Planning and Land Act>2
<21980>2
<2Arrangement of Sections<s1>s>2
PART V
RATES
<1Valuation>1
28. New valuation lists.
29. Ascertainment of rateable value of non-industrial buildings.
30. Valuation and adjusted valuation.
<1Fish Farms>1
31. Rating exemption for fish farms in England and Wales.
32. Rating exemption for fish farms in Scotland.
<1Reliefs>1
33. Domestic rate relief.
34. Payment by instalments.
<1Recovery of rates>1
35. Recovery of rates pending settlement.
36. Rating of owners and occupiers.
37. Recovery of rates from owners.
38. Charges in respect of distress.
39. Postponement of warrant of commitment.
40. Security for unpaid rates.
<1Unused and unoccupied property>1
41. Suspension of provision for liability to progressive surcharge in
respect of unused office etc. property.
42. Rating of unoccupied property.
<1Miscellaneous>1
43. Clerks of local valuation panels.
44. Notice of rate.
45. Rate rebates.
46. Amendment of industrial etc. de-rating provisions: Scotland.
47. Commencement and extent of Part V.
<1Schedules>1<s1>s
Schedule 9. Domestic rate relief grant.
Schedule 32. Enterprise zones.
Part IV Rates - England and Wales.
1. Reproduced in part only.
PART V
<228.>2 <1Amends other legislation which is reproduced, as amended, else->1
<1where in this appendix.>1
<229.>2--<1(1) to (3) Amends other legislation which is reproduced, as>1
<1amended, elsewhere in this appendix.>1
(4) The Secretary of State may by regulations make a scheme for the
B235
<1Local Government, planning and Land Act 1980>1
purpose of giving transitional relief, in such manner, in such cases and
subject to such conditions as may be prescribed by the regulations, t0
persons liable to rates in respect of hereditaments of which the net annual
values are, in consequence of this section, ascertained in accordance with
section 19(3) of the 1967 Act instead of in accordance with section 19(2);
and a scheme may make different provision for different cases and for
different rate periods.
(5) The power to make regulations under subsection (4) above shall be
exercisable by statutory instrument, which shall be subject t0 annulment
in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
<230.>2 to 31. <1Amends other legislation which is reproduced, as amended,>1
<1elsewhere in this appendix.>1
<232.>2 <1Affects Scotland only.>1
<233. to 40.>2 <1Amends other legislation which is reproduced, as amended,>1
<1elsewhere in this appendix.>1
<1Unused and unoccupied property>1
<1Suspension of provision for liability to progressive surcharge in respect of>1
<1unused office etc. property.>1
<241.>2--(1) The Secretary of State may by order direct that sections 17A
(surcharge in respect of unused property) and 17B of the 1967 Act
(supplemental provisions as to section 17A) shall cease to have effect.<s1>s
(2) If an order is made under subsection (1) above, the Secretary of
State may by order again bring sections 17A and 17B of the 1967 Act into
force.
(3) An order under this section may make such incidental, sup-
plemental and consequential provision as appears to the Secretary of State
to be expedient for the purposes of the order.
(4) The power to make such an order shall be exercisable by statutory
instrument.
(5) A statutory instrument containing such an order shall be subject to
annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
1. These sections have been suspended by the Rating Surcharge (Suspension) order 1980 No.
2015 with effect from 1 April 1981
<242. to 44.>2 <1Amends other legislation which is reproduced, as amended,>1
<1elsewhere in this appendix.>1
<245.>2--<1(1) to (4) Amends other legislation which is reproduced, as>1
<1amended, elsewhere in this appendix.>1
(5) The preceding provisions of this section shall have effect f0r rebate
periods, within the meaning of Part II of that Act, beginning on or after
such day as the Secretary of State may by order made by statutory
instrument appoint.<s1>s
(6) There shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament any
increase attributable to this section in the sums payable out of money so
provided under the Local Government Act 1974.
1. Effective from 1 April 1981 (SI 1980 No. 2014).
<246.>2 <1Affects Scotland only.>1
B236
<1Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
<1Commencement and extent of Part V.>1
<247>2---(1) The following provisions of this Act, namely--
<1(a)>1 sections 33, 34, 37 and 44, and
<1(b)>1 the repeals contained in Part IX of Schedule 34 to this Act--
(i) of provisions of the General Rate Act 1967, other than the
repeals in sections 19, 20 and 30 and Schedules 1 and 2;
(ii) of paragraph 28(3) of Schedule 2 to the Decimal Currency
Act 1969;
(iii) of section 26 of the Greater London Council (General
Powers) Act 1973; and
(iv) of paragraph 4 of Schedule 7 to the Local Government Act
1974.
shall have effect for any rate period, within the meaning of the 1967 Act,
beginning on or after such day as the Secretary of State may by order
made by statutory instrument appoint, and different days may be
appointed for different provisions.
(2) Section 31 above shall have effect for any rate period, within the
meaning of the 1967 Act, beginning on or after 1st April 1981.
(3) Sections 38, 39, and 40 above shall come into operation at the
expiration of the period of one month beginning with the day on which
this Act is passed.
(4) The following provisions of this Act, namely--
<1(a)>1 section 29(1) to (3) above;
<1(b)>1 paragraphs 6(2) and (3) and 10 of Schedule 33 to this Act;
<1 (c)>1 in paragraph 8 of that Schedule--
(i) sub-paragraph (2); and
(ii) sub-paragraph (3), in so far as it inserts sub-sections (5A) to
(5C) in section 78 of the Housing Act 1964; and
<1(d)>1 the repeals contained in Part IX of Schedule 34 to this Act of
words in sections 19 and 30 of the 1967 Act,
shall not have effect for any rate period, within the meaning of the 1967
Act, beginning before the first date after the passing of this Act on which
new valuation lists come into force under section 68(1) of that Act.
(5) The provisions of Schedule 33 to this Act which give the Secretary
of State power by order to prescribe multipliers and which are specified in
subsection (6)(a), (b) and (c) below shall not have effect until he exercises
the power conferred by them.
(6) The provisions of Schedule 33 mentioned in subsection (5) above
are--
<1(a)>1 paragraph 4; and
<1(b)>1 in paragraph 8
(i) sub-paragraph (1);
(ii) sub-paragraph (3), in so far as it inserts subsections (5D)
and (5E) in section 78 of the Housing Act 1964; and
(c) paragraph 14.
(7) Subject to the foregoing provisions of this section, this Part of this
Act and the repeals contained in Part IX of Schedule 34 to this Act shall
come into force on the day on which this Act is passed.
(8) Sections 32 and 46 above extend to Scotland only but, subject to
B237
<1Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
that, this Part of this Act extends to England and Wales only.
Note: The following statutory Instruments bring into effect, in part, the legislation contained
in the Local Government, Hanning and Land Act 1980:-- S.I. 1980 No. 2011: 5.1. 1980
No. 2012: 8.1. 1980 No. 2014: 5.1. 1980 No. 2015.
SCHEDULE 9
DOMESTIC RATE RELIEF GRANT
<1Reduction of rates by reference to domestic rate relief grant>1
<21.>2--(1) In each year an amount in the pound shall be specified in the
Rate Support Grant Report for the purposes of section 48 of the General
Rate Act 1967 (reduction of rates on dwellings).
(2) Different amounts in the pound may be specified under sub-
paragraph (1) above for different rating areas.
(3) In specifying any amount or amounts in the pound under this
paragraph for any year the Secretary of State shall seek to secure that the
total amount of the reduction under section 48 of the General Rate Act
1967 for all rating areas will correspond to the aggregate amount of the
domestic rate relief grant.
(4) In this paragraph --rating area" has the same meaning as in the
General Rate Act 1967.
<22. and 3.>2 <1Not reproduced.>1
SCHEDULE 32
PART IV
RATES--ENGLAND AND WALES
<1No rates on certain hereditaments>1
<227.>2--(1) No person shall be liable to pay rates in respect of an exempt
hereditament as regards any period during which the area in which the
hereditament is situated is designated as an enterprise zone.
(2) Sub-paragraph (1) above does not affect any duty arising under the
1967 Act to insert particulars in a valuation list with respect to the
hereditament and its value.
(3) A hereditament is an exempt hereditament for the purposes of this
paragraph unless--
<1(a)>1 it is a dwelling-house, a private garage or private storage
premises, or
<1(b)>1 it is specified in Schedule 3 to the 1974 Act (hereditaments of
certain public utilities etc), or
<1(c)>1 it is a hereditament which is occupied by a public utility
undertaking and of which the value falls to be ascertained on the
profits basis.
(4) For the purposes of this paragraph a hereditament that is not in use
shall nevertheless be treated as a dwelling-house, a private garage or
private storage premises if it appears that, when next in use, it will be a
hereditament of that description.
B238
<1Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
<1Mixed hereditaments>1
<228.>2--(1) As regards any period during which the area in which a mixed
hereditament is situated is designated as an enterprise zone, the valuation
officer shall determine the portion of the rateable value of the heredita-
ment attributable to the part of the hereditament used for the purposes of
a private dwelling or private dwellings.
(2) Where a determination in respect of a hereditament has been made
under sub-paragraph (1) above, the amount of any rates payable in
respect of the hereditament shall be the amount which would be payable
in respect of it if it were a dwelling of a rateable value equal to the portion
of the rateable value which was determined under that sub-paragraph.
(3) Subsection (6) of section 48 of the 1967 Act (which confers power to
make regulations about the determination of questions relating to domes-
tic rate relief and which is amended by section 33(7) above) shall have
effect as if--
<1(a)>1 the reference to the proportion mentioned in subsection (5) of
that section included a reference to the portion mentioned in
sub-paragraph (1) above; and
<1(b)>1 the reference to the view taken by the rating authority included a
reference to the view taken by the Valuation Officer; and
<1(c)>1 the reference to a previous determination made by virtue of that
subsection included a reference to a previous determination
made by virtue of this paragraph,
and the references to determinations in paragraphs <1(a)>1 and <1(b)>1 of that
subsection shall accordingly include references to determinations made by
virtue of this paragraph.
<1Grants>1
<229. to 31.>2 <1Not reproduced.>1
<1Supplementary>1
<232.>2--(1) In this Part of this Schedule --dwelling-house", --profit basis"
and "valuation officer" have the meanings assigned to them by section 115
of the 1967 Act and--
"private garage" means a building having a floor area not exceeding
25 square metres which is used wholly or mainly for the accom-
modation of a motor vehicle (and for this purpose --building"
includes part of a building);
"private storage premises" means a hereditament which is used
wholly in connection with a dwelling-house or dwelling-houses and
wholly or mainly for the storage of articles of domestic use
(including bicycles and similar vehicles) belonging to persons
residing there;
"the 1967 Act" means the General Rate Act 1967; and
"the 1974 Act" means the Local Government Act 1974.
(2) This Part of this Schedule applies to England and Wales only.
B239
<2Appendix C - Statutory Instruments>2
<2Contents>2
Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts) Regulations 1956 No. 632. C5
Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960 No. 122. C8
Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order 1962 No. 940. C16
Local Valuation Panels (Jurisdiction) Regulations 1967 No. 636. C17
Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967 No. 637. C19
Rating (Exemption of Unoccupied Property) Regulations 1967
No. 954. C24
Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order 1971 No. 560. C25
Valuation Lists Rules 1972 No. 1612. C29
Mines and Quarries (Valuation) (Amendment) Order 1972
No. 1910. C36
Rating of Owners Order 1972 No. 1983. C36
Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order 1973 No. 2139. C36
Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amendment) Order 1974 No. 413. C36
Rating of Minor Structural Alterations to Dwellings (Specified
Amount) Order 1974 No. 629. C36
Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations 1974 No. 1563. C37
Valuation Lists (Proposals for Alteration) Regulations 1974
No.2213. C38
Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations 1975 No. 226. C41
Lands Tribunal Rules 1975 No. 299. C42
LocaI Valuation Panels Regulations 1975 No. 905. C65
Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings)
Regulations 1975 No. 1022. C66
Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values) Order 1976 No. 535. C67
Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations 1976 No. 982. C71
Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings)
Regulations 1977 No. 1515. C72
Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977 No. 1820. C74
Rating Enactments (Agricultural Land and Agricultural Buildings)
(Amendment) Regulations 1978 No. 318. C75
Payment of Rates by Instalments (Prescribed Sums) Order
1980 No. 2011. C76
Unoccupied Property Rate (Variation of Current Ceiling)
Order 1980 No. 2012. C77
Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 (Commencement
No. 3) Order 1980 No. 2014. C78
Rating Surcharge (Suspension) Order 1980 No. 2015. C79
Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105. C80
Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations
1981 No. 326. C81
Rate-demands Rules 1981 No. 328. C82
Lands Tribunal (Amendment No. 2) Rules 1981 No. 600. C84
C3
<1The Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts) Regulations 1956>1
<2The Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts)>2
<2Regulations 1956>2
<2S.1. 1956 No. 632>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations, but is intended to indicate their>1
<1general purport)>1
These Regulations prescribe the general procedure to be followed by
local valuation courts in hearing rating appeals. They also provide a
method for determining which court is to hear appeals relating to certain
undertakings occupying properties in different areas. The Regulations
also revoke and supersede the Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts)
Regulations, 1949.
<1Made>1 - - - - - <124th April,>1 1956
<1Laid before Parliament>1 <130th April,>1 1956
<1Coming into Operation 1st May,>1 1956
The Minister of Housing and Local Government, in exercise 0f his powers
under sections 44 and 48 of the Local Government Act 1948, and of all
other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following
regulations:--
<1Title, commencement and application>1
<21.>2--(1) These regulations may be cited as the Rating Appeals (Local
Valuation Courts) Regulations 1956, and shall come into operation on the
first day of May, 1956.
(2) Regulations 2 to 11 of these regulations shall apply to appeals
arising out of proposals for the alteration of valuation lists made under
Part III of the Act of 1948, and regulation 12 to applications made in
connection with such appeals.
<1Interpretation>1
<22.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889, applies to the interpretation of
these regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parlia-
ment.
(2) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, the
following expressions have the respective meanings hereby assigned to
them:--
"the Act of 1948" means the Local Government Act 1948, as
amended by any subsequent enactment;
"court" means a local valuation court convened under subsection (1)
of section 48 of the Act of 1948 for the hearing of an appeal;
"chairman" means the person acting as chairman at a meeting of the
court;
"the clerk" means the clerk to the local valuation panel from the
members of which the court is constituted or other person for the time
being authorised by the panel to act as clerk or on his behalf; and
C5
<1Jurisdiction as respect extensive undertakings>1
<23.>2 The court to hear and determine any appeal relating to any
hereditament or hereditaments the value of which is ascertained by
reference to the accounts, receipts or profits of an undertaking carried on
thereon, or to hear and determine any appeal in which it is claimed that
the value of any hereditament or hereditaments should be so ascertained,
shall consist of members of that local valuation panel within whose area
are situated hereditaments occupied for the purpose of that undertaking
having in the aggregate, and according to the valuation lists for the time
being in force, a greater rateable value than have any hereditaments so
occupied within the area of any other local valuation panel. In the event of
an equality of aggregate rateable values or of none of the hereditaments
so occupied being included in any valuation list, the appeal shall be
heard and determined by a c0urt consisting of members of such one of the
panels within whose area hereditaments so occupied are situated as the
Minister of Housing and Local Government may determine.
<1Date and place of hearing>1
<24.>2--(1) The clerk shall give not less than 14 days notice of the date,
time and place fixed for the hearing of an appeal to the appellant and to
every person who has served, and has not unconditionally withdrawn, a
notice of objection to the proposal.
(2) The clerk shall advertise the date, time and place at which a court
will sit to hear any appeals by causing a notice of the same to be affixed to
the offices of the local valuation panel, and also to be affixed to the offices
of the rating authority or posted in some conspicuous place or places
within the rating area, and such notice shall name a place where a list of
the appeals to be heard may be inspected.
(3) Where, in the scheme for the constitutution of the local valuation
panel from the members of which the court falls to be constituted,
provision is made for the division of the panel area into divisions, every
appeal shall, so far as is practicable, be heard within the division of the
area of the panel within which the hereditament, or where more than one
hereditament is concerned any of those hereditaments, is situated.
<1Representation>1
5. On the hearing of an appeal the rating authority may appear by their
clerk or other officer duly appointed for the purpose or by counsel or
solicitor and any other person entitled to appear may appear in person or
by counsel or solicitor or by any other representative:
Provided that no member of the local valuation panel from the
members of which the court is constituted shall be entitled to act in
relation to the appeal as representative for any person entitled to appear.
<1Hearing>1
<26.>2 On the hearing of an appeal the appellant shall begin unless the
court, having regard to the particular circumstances of the case and with
C6
<1The Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts) Regulations 1956>1
the consent of the appellant, otherwise determine. Subject as aforesaid
the parties to the appeal shall be heard in such order as the court may
determine.
<1Non-appearance>1
<27.>2 If any person entitled to appear does not appear at the hearing of an
appeal, the court may, upon being satisfied that the requirements of
paragraphs (1) and (2) of regulation 4 of these regulations have been duly
complied with, proceed with the hearing on the assumption that he does
not desire to be heard.
<1Adjournment and separate hearings>1
<28.>2 The court may postpone or adjourn the hearing of any appeal for
such time and to such place and upon such terms, if any, as it thinks fit, or
may order that different questions arising in the appeal be heard at such
different times or in such order or at such different places as to the court
may seem expedient.
<1Withdrawal of parties, etc.>1
<29.>2 No person, being a party to an appeal or an employee or member of
a body which is such a party or a person acting for such a party or a person
called as a witness during the hearing, shall be present while the court is
considering its decision on the appeal.
<1Decision>1
10.--(1) Except in a case to which the proviso to subsection (3) of
section 44 of the Act of 1948 applies, the decision of the majority of the
court shall be the decision of the court.
(2) The decision of the court, embodying any directions given under
subsection (4) of section 48 of the Act of 1948, shall be in writing and
signed by the chairman.
(3) A copy of the decision certified by the clerk shall be sent by him to
every party to the appeal and he shall also inform every such party of the
right to appeal against the decision of the court. A copy of the decision
shall also be sent to the valuation officer where he is not a party to the
appeal.
<1Non-compliance with regulations>1
<211.>2 Non-compliance with any of these regulations other than regulation
3 thereof shall not render any proceeding in the appeal void unless the
court shall so direct, but such proceeding may be set aside either wholly or
in part as irregular, or amended, or otherwise dealt with in such manner
and upon such terms as the court shall think fit.
<1Applications in respect of returns>1
<212.>2--(1) An application to the court under subsection (6) of section 3
of the Rating and Valuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1955, shall be
made in writing and sent to the clerk and a copy of the application shall
forthwith be served by the applicant on the valuation officer.
(2) The clerk shall give not less than 7 days notice of the date, time and
place fixed for the hearing of the application to the applicant and to the
valuation officer.
C7
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
(3) On the hearing of the application the applicant shall be entitled to
begin and the valuation officer shall be entitled to appear and be heard.
(4) If any person entitled to appear does not appear at the hearing of
the application, the court may, upon being satisfied that the requirements
of paragraphs (1) and (2) of this regulation have been duly complied with,
proceed with the hearing on the assumption that he does not desire to be
heard.
(5) A decision of the court not to make an order shall be in writing and
signed by the chairman.
(6) The clerk shall send a copy of the order, or the decision of the court
not to make an order, to the applicant and the valuation officer and, if the
applicant appeared at the hearing of the application, shall also inform him
of the right to appeal against the decision of the court.
(7) Regulation 5 of these regulations shall apply to the applicant and
the valuation officer, and regulations 8 and 9, paragraph (1) of regulation
10 and regulation 11 shall apply on the hearing of an application as on the
hearing of an appeal.
<1Revocation of existing regulations>1
<213.>2 The Rating Appeals (Local Valuation Courts) Regulations 1949,
are hereby revoked, except in their application to appeals arising out of
proposals for the alteration of the valuation lists in force immediately
before the first day of April, 1956, and in such application shall be
amended by the substitution for the definition of "chairman" contained
therein of the definition contained in regulation 2 of these regulations.
Given under the official seal of the Minister of Housing and Local
Government this twenty-fourth day of April, nineteen hundred
and fifty-six.
(L.S.) <1Duncan Sandys,>1
Minister of Housing and Local Government.
<2The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>2
<2S.1. 1960 No. 122>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Order but is intended to indicate its general>1
<1purport.)>1
Under section 24 of the Rating and Valuation Act 1925 (which extends
to the whole of England and Wales), plant and machinery in or on any
hereditament (not assessed by reference to the accounts, receipts or
profits of the undertaking carried on therein) belonging to any of the
classes specified in the Third Schedule to the Act is to be deemed to be
part of the hereditament. Otherwise, no account is to be taken of the
value of any plant in or on the hereditament. Provision is made for the
C8
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
preparation, from time to time, of detailed statements of the machinery
<2and>2 plant falling within the Third Schedule. This order makes provision
for a new detailed statement.
<1Made>1 - - - - - <127th January,>1 1960
<1Laid before Parliament 3rd February,>1 1960
<1Coming into Operation 8th February,>1 1960
The Minister of Housing and Local Government, in exercise of his powers
under subsection (5) of section 24 of the Rating and Valuation Act 1925
(the said section having been applied to London by section 1 of the Rating
and Valuation Act 1928), and of all other powers enabling him in that
behalf, hereby makes the following order:--
<21.>2 This order may be cited as the Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order
1960, and shall come into operation on the 8th day of February, 1960.
<22.>2 The Interpretation Act, 1889, applies to the interpretation of this
order as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
<23.>2 The Statement prepared in accordance with the provisions of
subsection (6) of section 24 of the Rating and Valuation Act 1925, by the
committee appointed by the Minister of Housing and Local Government
on the 26th day of November, 1957, and transmitted to the Minister on
the 13th day of January, 1959, is hereby confirmed as modified and set out
in the Schedule hereto and shall (subject to the provisions contained in
subsection (5) of the said section 24 with respect to the presentation of an
Address to Her Majesty) come into operation on the 1st day of April,
1960.
<24.>2 The Plant and Machinery (Valuation for Rating) Order 1927 is
hereby revoked as from the 1st day of April 1960.
SCHEDULE
CLASSES OF MACHINERY AND PLANT TO BE DEEMED TO BE PART OF THE
HEREDITAMENT
CLASS 1A
Machinery and plant specified in Table 1A (together with the appliances
and structures accessory thereto specified in the List of Accessories)
which is used or intended to be used mainly or exclusively in connection
with the generation, storage, primary transformation or main transmis-
sion of power in or on the hereditament.
"Transformer" means any plant which changes the pressure or
frequency or form of current of electrical power to another pressure or
frequency or form of current, except any such plant which forms an
integral part of an item of plant or machinery in or on the hereditament
for manufacturing operations or trade processes.
"Primary transformation of power" means any transformation of
electrical power by means of a transformer at any point in the main
transmission of power.
"Main transmission of power" means all transmission of power from
the generating plant or point of supply in or on the hereditament up to
and including:--
C9
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
(i) in the case of electrical power, the first transformer in any
circuit, or where the first transformer precedes any distribution
board or there is no transformer the first distribution board;
(ii) in the case of transmission by shafting or wheels, any shaft or
wheel driven directly from the prime mover;
(iii) in the case of hydraulic or pneumatic power, the point where the
main supply ceases, excluding any branch service piping con-
nected with such main supply;
(iv) in a case where, without otherwise passing beyond the limits of
the main transmission of power, power is transmitted to another
hereditament, the point at which the power passes from the
hereditament.
TABLE 1A
<1(a)>1 Steam boilers, including their settings, and chimneys, flues and dust or grit
catchem used in connection therewith: furnaces; mechanical stokers; injectors, jets,
burners and nozzles; superheaters; feed water pumps and heaters; economisers;
accumulators; deaerators; blow-off tanks; gas retorts and charging apparatus,
producers and generators.
<1(b)>1 Steam engines; steam turbines; gas turbines; internal combustion engines;
hot-air engines; barring engines.
<1(c)>1 Continuous and alternating current dynamos; couplings to engines and
turbines; field exciter gear; three-wire or phase balancers.
<1(d)>1 Storage batteries, with stands and insulators, regulating switches, boosters
and connections forming part thereof.
<1(e)>1 Static transformers; auto transformers; motor generators; motor converters;
rotary converters; transverters; rectifiers; phase converters; frequency changers.
<1(f)>1 Cables and conductors: switchboards, distribution boards, control panels
and all switchgear and other apparatus thereon.
<1(g)>1 Water wheels; water turbines; rams; governor engines; penstocks; spillways;
surge tanks; conducts; flumes; sluice gates.
(h) Pumping engines for hydraulic power; hydraulic engines; hydraulic
intensifiers; hydraulic accumulators.
<1(i)>1 Air compressors; compressed air engines.
<1(j)>1 Windmills.
<1(k)>1 Shafting, couplings, clutches, worm-gear, pulleys and wheels.
<1(l)>1 Steam or other motors which are used or intended to be used mainly or
exclusively for driving any of the machinery and plant falling within this Class.
CLASS 1B
Machinery and plant specified in Table 1B (together with the appliances
and structures accessory thereto specified in paragraph (2) of the List of
Accessories) which is used or intended to be used mainly or exclusively in
connection with the heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting, draining or
supplying of water to the land or buildings of which the heredttaments
consists, or the protecting of the hereditament from fire:
Provided that, in the case of machinery or plant which is in or on the
hereditament for the purpose of manufacturing operations or trade
processes, the fact that it is used in connection with those operations or
processes for the purposes of heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting,
[draining]<sa>s supplying water or protecting from fire shall not cause it to be
C10
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
treated as falling within the classes of machinery and plant specified in this
Schedule.
TABLE 1B
(a) GENERAL
Any of the machinery and plant specified in Table 1A and any steam or other
motors which are used or intended to be used mainly or exclusively for driving any
of the machinery and plant falling with paragraphs <1(b)>1 to <1(h)>1 of this Table.
(b) HEATING
(i) Water heaters.
(ii) Headers and manifolds; steam pressure reducing valves; calorifiers;
radiators, heating panels; hot-air furnaces with distributing ducts and
gratings.
(iii) Gas pressure regulators; gas burners; gas heaters and radiators and the
flues and chimneys used in connection therewith.
(iv) Plug-sockets and other outlets; electric heaters.
(c) COOLING
(i) Refrigerating machines.
(ii) Water screens; water jets.
(iii) Fans and blowers.
(d) VENTILATING
Air intakes, channels, ducts, gratings, louvres and outlets; plant for filtering,
washing, drying, warming, cooling, humidifying, deodorising and perfuming, and
for the chemical and bacteriological treatment of air; fans; blowers; gas burners,
electric heaters, pipes and coils when used for causing or assisting air movement.
(e) LIGHTING
(i) Gas pressure regulators; gas burners.
(ii) Plug-sockets and other outlets; electric lamps.
(f) DRAINING
Pumps and other lifting apparatus; tanks; screens; sewage treatment machinery
and plant.
(g) SUPPLYING WATER
Pumps and other water-lifting apparatus; sluice-gates; tanks, filters and other
machinery and plant for the storage and treatment of water.
(h) PROTECTION FROM FIRE
Tanks; pumps; hydrants; sprinkler systems; fire alarm systems; lightning conduc-
tors.
LIST OF ACCESSORIES
(1) Any of the following machinery and plant which is used or intended
to be used mainly or exclusively in connection with the handling,
preparing or storing of fuel required for the generation or storage of
power in or on the hereditament:--
Cranes with their grabs or buckets; truck or wagon tipplers; elevating and
conveying systems, including power winches, drags, elevators, hoists, conveyors,
C11
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
transporters, travellers, cranes, buckets forming a connected part of any such
system, and any weighing machines used in connection therewith; magnetic
separators; driers; breakers; pulverisers; bunkers; gasholders; tanks.
(2) Any of the following machinery and plant which is used or intended
to be used mainly or exclusively as part of or in connection with or as an
accessory to any of the machinery and plant falling within Class 1A or
Class 1B:--
(i) Foundations, settings, gantries, supports, platforms and stagings for
machinery and plant;
(ii) Steam-condensing plant, compressors, exhausters, storage cylinders and
vessels, fans, pumps and ejectors; ash-handling apparatus;
(iii) Travellers and cranes;
(iv) Oiling systems; earthing systems; cooling systems;
(v) Pipes, ducts, valves, traps, separators, filters, coolers, screens, purifying
and other treatment apparatus, evaporators, tanks, exhaust boxes and
silencers, washers, scrubbers, condensers, air healers and air saturators.
(vi) Shafting supports, belts, ropes and chains;
(vii) Cables, conductors, wires, pipes, tubes, conduits, casings, poles, sup-
ports, insulators, joint boxes and end boxes;
(viii) Instruments and apparatus attached to the machinery and plant, includ-
ing meters, gauges, measuring and recording instruments, automatic
controls, temperature indicators and alarms and relays.
<sa>s Added by the Rating & Valuation Act 1961 s.5(4), which was in turn repealed by the General
Rate Act 1967 s.117(1) and sch. 14 Pt. 1.
CLASS 2
Lifts and elevators mainly or usually used for passengers.
CLASS 3
Railway and tramway lines and tracks.
CLASS 4<sb>s
[The following items, except
(a) any such item which is not, and is not in the nature of, a building
or structure;
<1(b)>1 any part of any such item which does not form an integral part of
such item as a building or structure or as being in the nature of a
building or structure;
<1(c)>1 any such item or part of such item which is moved or rotated by
motive power as part of the process of manufacture;
<1(d)>1 so much of any refractory or other lining forming part of any
plant 0r machinery as is customarily renewed by reason of
normal use at intervals of less than fifty weeks;
<1(e)>1 any item in Table B the total cubic capacity of which (measured
externally and excluding foundations, settings, supports and
anything which is not an integral part of the item) does not
exceed two hundred cubic metres, and which is readily capable of
being moved from one site and re-erected in its original state on
another without the substantial demolition of the item or of any
surrounding structure.
C12
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
TABLE A
Aerial ropeways, supports for;
Blast furnaces;
Bridges;
Chimneys;
Coking Ovens;
Cooling ponds;
Elevators and Hoists;
fan Drifts;
Floating docks and pontoons, with any bridges or gangways not of a
temporary nature used in connection therewith;
Flues;
Flumes and conduits;
foundations, settings, fixed gantries, supports, platforms and stagings for
plant and machinery;
Headgear:--
Mine, quarry and pit;
Well.
Masts (including guy ropes) and towers for:--
Radar;
Television;
Wireless.
Pits, beds and bays:--
Acid neutralising;
Casting;
Cooling;
Drop;
Inspection or testing;
Liming, soaking, tanning or other treatment;
Settling.
Racks;
Slipways, uprights, cradles and grids for ship construction and repair;
Stages, staithes and platforms for loading, unloading and handling
material;
Telescopes, including radio telescopes;
Tipplers;
Transversers and Turntables;
Walkways, stairways, handrails and catwalks;
Weighbridges;
Well casings and liners;
Windmills.
TABLE B
Accelerators;
Acid concentrators;
Bins, Hoppers and funnels;
Boilers;
Bunkers;
Burners, Bessemer converters, forges, furnaces, kilns, ovens and stoves;
Chambers, vessels and containers for;
Absorption of gases or fumes;
C13
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
Aerographing and spraying;
Bleaching;
Chemical reaction;
Conditioning or treatment;
Cooling;
Diffusion of gases;
Drying;
Dust or fume collecting;
Fibre Separation (wool carbonising);
Fuming;
Impregnating;
Mixing;
Refrigerating;
Regenerating;
Sandblasting;
Shotblasting;
Sterilising;
Sulphuric Acid;
Testing;
Condensers and scrubbers:--
Acid;
Alkali;
Gas;
Oil;
Tar.
Coolers, chillers and quenchers;
Cupolas;
Economisers, heat exchangers, recuperators, regenerators and
superheaters;
Evaporators;
Filters and separators;
Hydraulic accumulators;
Precipitators;
Producers, generators, purifiers, cleansers and holders of gas;
Reactors;
Refuse destructors and incinerators;
Retorts;
Silos;
Stills;
Tanks;
Towers and columns for:--
Absorption of gases or fumes;
Chemical reaction;
Cooling;
Oil refining and condensing;
Treatment;
Water.
Vats;
Washeries and dry cleaners for coal;
Wind Tunnels.]b
<sb>s Substituted by the Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amendment) order 1974 S.1. 1974 No.
413.
C14
<1The Plant and Machinery (Rating) Order 1960>1
[CLASS 5c
A pipe-line, that is to say, a pipe or system of pipes for the conveyance
of any thing, not being:--
(a) a drain or sewer;
(b) a pipe or system of pipes vested in an area board established by
the Gas Act 1948, or in a board established by the Electricity Act
1947, or in the Central Electricity Generating Board;
(c) a pipe or system of pipes forming part of the equipment of, ana
wholly situate within, a factory or petroleum storage depot or
premises comprised in a mine, quarry or mineral field;
and exclusive of so much of a pipe or system of pipes forming part
of the equipment of, and situate partly within and partly outside, a
factory or petroleum storage depot or premises comprised in a mine,
quarry or mineral field as is situate within, as the case may be, the factory
or petroleum storage depot or those premises.
In this paragraph--
(i) 'factory' has the same meaning as in the Factories Act 1961;
(ii) 'mine' and 'quarry' have the same meanings as in the Mines and
Quarries Act 1954;
(iii) 'mineral field' means an area comprising an excavation being a
well or bore-hole or a well and bore-hole combined, or a system
of such excavations, used for the purpose of pumping or raising
brine or oil, and so much of the surface (including buildings,
structures and works thereon) surrounding or adjacent to the
excavation or system as is occupied, together with the excava-
tion or system, for the purpose of the working of the excavation
or system;
(iv) 'petroleum storage depot' means premises used primarily for the
storage of petroleum or petroleum products (including chemi-
cals derived from petroleum) or of materials used in the
manufacture of petroleum products (including chemicals de-
rived from petroleum)c]
<sc>s Inserted by the Pipe-lines Act 1962 s.41 which was repealed by the General Rate Act 1967
s.117(1) and sch. l4 Pt. I but S.I 1960 No. 122 as amended, remains in force by reason ol
s.117(11).
Given under the official seal of the Minister of Housing and Local
Government this twenty-seventh day of January, nineteen hundred and
sixty.
<1Henry Brooke,>1
Minister of Housing and Local Government.
C15
<1The Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order 1962>1
<2The Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order>2
<21962>2
<2S.1. 1962 No. 940>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Order, but is intended to indicate its general>1
<1purport.)>1
Section 22 of the Rating and Valuation Act 1925, prescribes the
methods of the determination of the net annual value of hereditaments for
rating purposes. In one method, a gross value is first determined, and
from this a prescribed deduction is made. This order prescribes new rates
of deductions.
<1Laid before Parliament in draft 22nd March,>1 1962
<1Made>1 - - - - - - <14th May,>1 1962
<1Coming into Operation>1 <118th May,>1 1962
The Minister of Housing and Local Government, in exercise of his powers
under section 5(5) of the Rating and Valuation (Miscellaneous Provisions)
Act 1955, and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby
makes the following order in the terms of a draft approved by resolution
of each House of Parliament:--
<21.>2 This order may be cited as the Valuation (Statutory Deductions)
Order 1962 and shall come into operation on the fourteenth day after the
day on which it is made.
<22.>2 The Interpretation Act 1889 applies to the interpretation of this
order as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
<23.>2 Article 4 shall apply for the purposes of every valuation list made
under Part III of the Local Government Act 1948 coming into force after
the coming into operation hereof.
<24.>2 In the ascertainment of the rateable value of hereditaments the net
annual value of which falls to be ascertained under section 22(1)(a) of the
Rating and Valuation Act 1925, for the deductions specified in the table
contained in Part I of Schedule 2 to the said Act (such table being
substituted therein by section 5(4) of the Rating and Valuation (Miscel-
laneous Provisions) Act 1955) there shall be substituted, in the adminis-
trative county of London as well as elsewhere in England and Wales, the
deductions specified in the following table:--
[TABLE<sb>s
DEDUCTIONS FROM GROSS VALUE
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) (2)
Gross Value Deduction from gross value
Not exceeding #65 45% of the gross value.
Exceeding #65 but not #29 plus 30% of the amount by which
exceeding #128 the gross value exceeds #65.
C16
<1The Local Valuation Panels (Jurisdiction) Regulations 1967>1
Exceeding #128 but not #48 plus 162/3% of the amount by which
exceeding #330 the gross value exceeds #128 subject
to a maximum of #80.
Exceeding #330 but not #80 plus 20% of the amount by which
exceeding #430 the gross value exceeds #330.
Exceeding #430 #100 plus 162/3% of the amount by which
the gross value exceeds #430].
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
<sb>sTable substituted by the Valuation (Statutory Deductions) order 1973 5.1. 1973 No. 2139.
Given under the official seal of the Minister of Housing and Local
Government on 4th May, 1962.
<1Charles Hill,>1
Minister of Housing and Local Government.
<2The Local Valuation Panels (jurisdiction)>2
<2Regulations 1967>2
<2S.I. 1967 No. 636>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
These regulations provide for the manner in which certain heredita-
ments which are within the same curtilage, or are contiguous and in the
same occupation, but (in either case) are not within the area of a single
local valuation panel, are to be treated for the purposes of appeals to local
valuation courts. The Regulations also revoke so much of any local
valuation panel scheme as makes similar provision.
<1Made>1 - - - - - <119th April,>1 1967
<1Laid before Parliament>1 <126th April,>1 1967
<1Coming into Operation>1 <110th May,>1 1967
In relation to hereditaments wholly in England, the Minister of Housing
and Local Government (hereinafter referred to as "the Minister"), in
relation to hereditaments wholly in Wales the Secretary of State, and in
relation to hereditaments partly but not wholly in Wales, the Minister and
the Secretary of State acting jointly, in exercise of their powers under
section 88(4) of the General Rate Act 1967, and of all other powers
enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following regulations:
<21.>2 These regulations may be cited as the Local Valuation Panels
(Jurisdiction) Regulations 1967 and shall come into operation on 10th
May, 1967.
<22.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 applies for the interpretation of
these regulations as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of
Parliament.
C17
<1The Local Valuation Panels (Jurisdiction) Regulations 1967>1
(2) In these regulations "ales" includes Monmouthshire and "Eng-
land" shall be construed accordingly.
(3) These regulations shall not apply to hereditaments the value of
which is or might be ascertained by reference to the accounts, receipts or
profits of an undertaking carried on thereon.
<23.>2 Where, in any particular case, hereditaments are within the same
curtilage, or are contiguous and in the same occupation, but (in either
case) not within the area of a single local valuation panel--
(i) if the hereditaments are in not more than two panel areas the
court to hear and determine any appeal relating to those
hereditaments shall consist of members of the panel within
whose area are situated the hereditaments having in the aggre-
gate, and according to the valuation list for the time being in
force or, if there are no relevant entries in the valuation lists for
the time being in force, according to entries included on pro-
posals made by the valuation officer, a greater rateable value
than the hereditaments situated within the area of the other
panel;
(ii) in the event of an equality of aggregate rateable values or, where
there is no entry in the list, an equality of the aggregate rateable
values of the entries included on proposals made by the valuation
officer or where the said hereditaments are in the area of more
than two panels, any appeal relating to those hereditaments shall
be heard and determined by a court consisting of members of
such panel as the Minister or the Secretary of State, or, where
the hereditaments are partly but not wholly in Wales, as the
Minister and the Secretary of State acting jointly, may determine
following an application in writing by any of the persons making
the proposals or objections thereto.
4. So much of any scheme for the purposes of section 88 of the General
Rate Act 1967 as makes provision for treating as in the same area
hereditaments which are within the the same curtilage, or are contiguous
and in the same occupation, is hereby revoked:
Provided that nothing in these regulations shall affect the validy or
jurisdiction of any local valuation court convened to hear and deter-
mine an appeal before the coming into operation of these regulations.
Given under the official seal of the Minister of Housing and Local
Government on 19th April, 1967.
(L.S.)
<1Anthony Greenwood,>1
Minister of Housing and Local Government.
<1Cledwyn Hughes,>1
One of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State.
Welsh Office.
19th April, 1967.
C18
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967>1
<2The Mixed Hereditaments (Certiflcate)>2
<2Regulations 1967>2
<2S.1. 1967 No. 637>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
[These regulations amend the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regula-
tions 1967. They reflect amendments made to section 48 of the General
-Rate Act 1967 by section 33 of the Local Government, Planning and Land
Act 1980. Section 48 provides for the reduction of rate poundage on
domestic and mixed hereditaments by reference to domestic rate relief
grant. The regulations come into effect on 1st April, 1981.] <sa>s
<sa>s This is the explanatory note to the Amendment Regulations 1981 No. 326.
<1Made>1 - - - - - 21<1st April,>1 1967
<1Laid before Parliament>1 27<1th April,>1 1967
<1Coming into Operation 3rd May,>1 1967
The Minister of Housing and Local Government, in exercise of his powers
under section 48(6) of the General Rate Act 1967 and of all other powers
enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following regulations:--
<1Citation and commencement>1
<21.>2 These regulations may be cited as the Mixed Hereditaments (Certifi-
cate) Regulations 1967 and shall come into operation on 3rd May, 1967.
<1Interpretation>1
<22.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 applies to the interpretation of
these regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parlia-
ment.
(2) Any reference in these regulations to a numbered section shall,
unless the reference is to a section of a specified Act, be construed as a
reference to the section bearing that number in the General Rate Act
1967.
(3) In these regulations--
["certificate" means a certificate given under these regulations that as
at the date thereof the relevant proportion is or, as the case may be, is not,
greater than one half, greater than one quarter but not greater than one
half or greater than one eighth (any part of the hereditament used for the
letting of rooms singly for residential purposes, whether by way of tenancy
or licence and either with or without board or other services or facilities,
or used as sites for movable dwellings within the meaning of section 269 of
the Public Health Act 1936 being treated as used for purposes other than
those of a private dwelling or dwellings);]<sa>s
--mixed hereditament" has the meaning assigned to it by section 48(5);
--occupier" includes an owner who is rated under section 55 (Rating of
owners instead of occupiers) or who has entered into an agreement with
the rating authority under section 56 (Payment or collection of rates by
owners by agreement);
C19
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967>1
"rating authority", in relation to a certificate or an appeal against a
certificate, means the rating authority for the area in which the heredita-
ment specified in the certificate is situated.
<sa>s Words substituted by the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations 1981
No. 326.
<1Application for and giving of a certificate>1
[3.--(1) The occupier of a hereditament who is dissatisfied by the view
taken by the rating authority for the purposes of section 48 (reduction of
rates on dwellings by reference to domestic rate relief grants) may apply in
writing to the valuation officer for a certiftcate.
(2) For the purposes of the foregoing paragraph of this regulation, a
rating authority shall be deemed to have taken the view that the relevant
proportion is not greater than one-eighth if, within 28 days of the written
application by the occupier they fail to notify him in writing of their view
for the purposes of the said section 48 or to issue in respect of the
hereditament an amended demand note reducing in accordance with
section 48(1)(b) the amount of the rate levied on the hereditament.]a
<sa>s Substituted by Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations <s1>s951 No. <s326>s.
<24>2.--(1) Subject to the next following paragraph of this regulation, the
valuation officer, if he is satisfied that the hereditament is used partly for
the purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings and partly for other
purposes, shall, as soon as practicable after receiving an application under
paragraph (1) of the last foregoing regulation, give a certificate to the
applicant.
(2) If, when the valuation officer receives an application for a certifi-
cate, there is an outstanding proposal for the alteration of the valuation
list so far as it relates to the hereditament which is the subject matter of
the application, he may, if he thinks fit, deter the giving of a certificate
until the proposal has been settled.
(3) The valuation officer shall, within 7 days after the date of giving a
certificate to the applicant, send a copy thereof to the rating authority.
(4) When giving a certificate to the applicant or sending a copy thereof
to the rating authority in accordance with the foregoing paragraphs of this
regulation, the valuation officer shall send with the certificate or copy
thereof, as the case may be, a statement in writing of the right of objection
conferred by these regulations.
<1Appeal against a certificate>1
<25>2. The applicant or the rating authority, may, within 28 days from
the date on which the valuation officer has given the certificate to the
applicant or, in the case of the rating authority, has sent a copy of
the certificate to the authority, notify the valuation officer in writing of
objection to the certificate.
<26>2.--(1) Where an objection is notified to the valuation officer under
the last preceding reguIation and has not been withdrawn and the
certificate is not withdrawn, the valuation officer shall, within four months
of the date on which he gave the certificate to the applicant, send a copy of
the certificate and of the objection thereto to the clerk to the local
valuation panel constituted under section 88 from the members of which a
local valuation court would fall to be constituted for the purposes of an
C20
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967>1
appeal against an objection to a proposal for the alteration of the
valuation list in respect of the hereditament specified in the certificate.
(2) Where, under the foregoing paragraph of this regulation, the
valuation officer sends a copy of a certificate to the clerk to the local
valuation panel, the valuation officer shall forthwith notify the applicant
and the rating authority in writing that he has done so.
(3) The sending by the valuation officer of a copy of a certificate to the
clerk to a local valuation panel under paragraph (1) of this regulation shall
have effect as an appeal to the local valuation court by the valuation
officer against the objection a copy of which is sent with the copy of the
certificate.
(4) Where the date referred to in paragraph (1) of this regulation falls
before the first anniversary of the coming into force of the valuation list
current at that date, that paragraph shall have effect as if for the words
"four months" there were substituted the words --six months".
<27.>2--(1) Subsections (1) and (2) of section 76 (which relate to convening
and procedure of local valuation courts for appeals against objections to
proposals) shall apply in respect of an appeal under these regulations as if
the appeal were an appeal against an objection to a proposal to alter the
valuation list in respect of the hereditament specified in the certificate.
(2) On the hearing of an appeal to a local valuation court under these
regulations--
<1(a)>1 the applicant; and
<1(b)>1 the rating authority; and
<1(c)>1 the valuation officer
shall be entitled to appear and be heard as parties to the appeal and
examine any witness before the court and to call witnesses.
(3) After hearing the persons mentioned in the last foregoing para-
graph of this regulation, or such of them as desire to be heard, the local
valuation court may confirm the certificate or cancel the certificate given
by the valuation officer and give the applicant a certificate to [different]<sa>s
effect and copies thereof to the rating authority and the valuation officer.
<sa>s Substituted by the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations 1981 No.
326.
<28.>2--(1) Any person who, in pursuance of the last foregoing regulation,
appears before a local valuation court on the hearing of an appeal and is
aggrieved by the decision of the court thereon may appeal to the Lands
Tribunal and section 77 shall (subject to the provisions of this regulation)
apply in respect of such an appeal.
(2) The Lands Tribunal, on hearing an appeal under section 77 as
applied by the foregoing paragraph of this regulation, may confirm the
certificate given by the valuation officer or the local valuation court, as the
case may be, or cancel that certificate and give the applicant a certificate
to [different]<sa>s effect and copies thereof to the rating authority and the
valuation officer.
<sa>s Substituted by the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations 1981 No.
326.
<1Withdrawal of a certificate>1
<29.>2--(1) The valuation officer may, at any time before a certificate given
C21
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967>1
by him under regulation 4(1) of these regulations has come into force,
withdraw the certificate by giving notice in writing to the applicant and
give a fresh certificate (hereinafter in this regulation called --the revised
certificate").
(2) The valuation officer shall send with the notice of withdrawal the
revised certificate and within 7 days after so doing shall send a copy of the
notice of withdrawal and of the revised certificate to the rating authority.
(3) Regulation 4(4) and regulations 5 to 8 of these regulations shall
apply to the revised certificate as they apply to a certificate given under
regulation 4(1).
<1Operation and effect of a certificate>1
<210>2.--(1) If no objection is notified to the valuation officer within the
period specified in regulation 5 of these regulations or if any objection so
notified is subsequently withdrawn, a certificate shall thereupon come
into force.
(2) If the foregoing paragraph of this regulation does not apply, a
certificate shall come into force on the date on which the appeal is finally
determined.
(3) for the purposes of the last foregoing paragraph of this regulation
the withdrawal of an appeal shall be deemed to be the final determination
thereof.
<211>2.--(1) Subject to the following paragraph of this regulation, a
certificate, while it is in force, shall be conclusive according to its tenor for
the purposes of section 48 as from the date on which the application which
has resulted in the giving of the certificate was made to the valuation
officer.
(2) On the coming into force of a certificate applied for under
regulation 13(1) of these regulations which is to [different]<sa>s effect to the
certificate in force immediately before that date, the further certificate
and not the certificate which it replaces shall be conclusive according to its
tenor for the purposes of section 48 for the period from the date of the
making of the application for the further certificate to the date on which
that certificate comes into force.
<sa>s Substituted by the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations 1981 No.
326.
<212>2.--(1) A certificate shall cease to be in force when any of the
following occurs--
(<1a>1) another certificate comes into force in relation to the
hereditament; or
(<1b>1) the person who was the occupier of the hereditament when the
certificate came into force (other than an owner rated under
section 55 or who has entered into an agreement with the rating
authority under section 56) ceases to occupy the hereditament;
or
(<1c>1) the hereditament becomes a [domestic hereditament]<sa>s; or
(<1d>1) the use of the hereditament changes so that no part thereof is
used as a private dwelling or private dwellings; or
(<1e>1) the valuation officer causes the valuation list to be altered in
respect of the hereditament specified in the certif1cate; or
(<1f>1) the valuation list ceases to be in force.
C22
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1967>1
(2) Without prejudice to the operation of the foregoing paragraph of
this regulation, where a certificate is in force in relation to a hereditament
and there is a change in the circumstances relating to the use of the
hereditament which is relevant to the tenor of the certificate, the rating
authority and the occupier may agree in writing that as from a date
specified in the agreement the certificate shall cease or shall have ceased
to be in force.
<sa>s Substituted by the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)(Amendment) Regulations 1981 No.
326.
<1Application for further certificate>1
<213.>2--(1) At any time while a certificate is in force, the occupier of the
hereditament specified therein or the rating authority may apply in writing
to the valuation officer for a further certificate, stating the circumstances
by reason of which it is considered that the existing certificate should
cease to have effect.
(2) The valuation officer, within 28 days of receiving an application
under the foregoing paragraph of this regulation, shall give notice thereof
to the rating authority (if the applicant is the occupier) or to the occupier
(if the applicant is the rating authority).
(3) As soon as practicable after giving notice to the rating authority or
the occupier, as the case may be, under the last foregoing paragraph, the
valuation officer, if he is satisfied that the hereditament is used partly for
the purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings and partly for other
purposes, shall give a certificate to the applicant and within 7 days after
the date of so doing shall send a copy of the certificate to the rating
authority (if the occupier is the applicant) or to the occupier (if the rating
authority is the applicant).
(4) Regulations 4(4) and 5 to 8 of these regulations shall apply to a
certificate given under the last foregoing paragraph as they apply to a
certificate given under regulation 4(1) subject, in a case where the
application under paragraph (1) of this regulation is made by the rating
authority, to the substitution for references to the rating authority of
references to the occupier.
<1Supplementary>1
<214.>2 Any officer of a rating authority, acting under any special or
general resolution of the authority, may authorise the institution or
carrying on of any proceedings or the taking of any step in relation to a
certificate which the authority are authorised to institute, carry on or take.
<215.>2 Subsections (2) to (6) of section 82 (Power for valuation officer to
call for returns) shall apply for the purposes of these regulations as if the
references in the said subsection (2) to a proposal for the alteration of the
valuation list for the time being in force for a rating area were references
to the giving or withdrawal of a certificate and as if the reference to the
purpose of enabling a valuation officer to decide whether or not to make,
or, as the case may be, to object to, the proposal were a reference to the
purposes of enabling the valuation officer to decide whether or not to give
or, as the case may be, to withdraw, a certificate or of enabling him to
decide in what terms to give a certificate.
<216.>2 Section 86 (Powers of entry of valuation officer) shall apply for the
C23
<1The Rating (Exemption of Unoccupied Property) Regulations 1967>1
purposes of these regulations as if, for the reference to entering on,
surveying and valuing any hereditament, there were substituted a refer-
ence to entering on and surveying any hereditament and valuing any part
or parts of that hereditament.
Given under the official seal of the Minister of Housing and Local
Government on 21st April, 1967.
<1Anthony Greenwood,>1
Minister of Housing and Local Government.
<1Note:>1
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) (Amendement) Regulations 1981.>1
<1No. 326, have given the following meanings to the following expressions:-->1
<2"the relevant proportion">2 means the proportion of the rateable value of
the hereditament attributable to the part of the hereditament used for the
purposes of a private dwelling or private dwellings;
<2"domestic hereditament">2 has the same meaning as in section 48 of the
General Rate Act 1967.
<2The Rating (Exemption of Unoccupied>2
<2Property) Regulations 1967>2
<2S.1. 1967 No.>2 954
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
Section 17 of and Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 (which apply
only in those areas where the rating authority has resolved to adopt them)
provide for the rating of certain unoccupied property. These regulations
prescribe circumstances (in addition to those set out in the Act itself) in
which unoccupied property shall not be liable to be rated under these
provisions.
The circumstances are mainly those where the owner has died or is
bankrupt or is a company which is being wound up and the control of the
property has passed for the time being into the hands of a personal
representative or a trustee or a liquidator.
When the circumstances in question come to an end the normal period
of three months' freedom from liability will apply.
<1Made>1 - - - 26<1th June,>1 1967
<1Laid before Parliament>1 30<1th June,>1 1967
<1Coming into Operation 1st July,>1 1967
The Minister of Housing and Local Government, in exercise of his powers
under paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 and of all
other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following
regulations:--
C24
<1The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order>1
<1Citation, commencement and interpretation>1
<21>2.--(1) These regulations may be cited as the Rating (Exemption of
Unoccupied Property) Regulat1ons 1967 and shall come into operat1on
on 1st July, 1967.
(2) The Interpretation Act 1889 applies to the interpretation of these
regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
<1Exemption in certain circumstances of unoccupied property from rates>1
<22>2. No rates shall be payable under paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the
General Rate Act 1967 in respect of a hereditament for, or for any part of
the three months beginning with the day following the end of, any period
during which--
(<1a>1) the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament only in his
capacity as the personal representative of a deceased person;
(<1b>1) there subsists in respect of the owner's estate a receiving order
made under the Bankruptcy Act 1914;
(<1c>1) the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament in his
capacity as trustee under a deed of arrangement to which the
Deeds of Arrangement Act 1914 applies;
(<1d>1) the owner is a company which is subject to a winding-up order
made under the Companies Act 1948;
(<1e>1) the owner is a company which is being wound up voluntarily
under the Companies Act 1948; or
(<1f>1) the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament in his
capacity as liquidator by virtue of an order made under section
244 or 307 of the Companies Act 1948.
Given under the official seal of the Minister of Housing and Local
Government on 26th June, 1967.
(L.s.) <1Anthony Greenwood,>1
Minister of Housing and Local Government.
<2The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order 1971>2
<2S.1. 1971 No. 560>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Order.)>1
Section 35 of the General Rate Act 1967 empowers the Secretary of
State for the Environment to make provision for determining the rateable
values of hereditaments which consist of or include mines or quarries or
which are occupied with mines or quarries for certain purposes.
This Order makes provision, operative from 1st April, 1971, in respect
of all mines and quarries and certain associated hereditaments. The
C25
<1The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order>1
general purpose of the Order is to reduce the assessments of these
properties, in so far as they are based on royalties, in accordance with the
decision to treat mineral royalties as half rent and half as capital payment
for the mineral, instead of wholly as a rent, as hitherto. For the generality
of cases the Order provides for the rateable value to be the net annual
value reduced by one-half (one-quarter for the year 1971-72) of that part
of the net annual value which is attributable to the occupation of land for
the winning and working, grading, washing, grinding and crushing of
minerals. In the case of mine properties and opencast land of the National
Coal Board, which are valued by formula under an order of 1963, the
Order provides for the values to be reduced in the same proportions as the
values of the generality of mineral extractive hereditaments are reduced
by virtue of the Order. In the case of tin, lead and copper mines the Order
preserves the special basis of assessment now in section 36 of the General
Rate Act 1967, modified so as to reduce the assessments of land occupied
for the specified purposes by one-half (one-quarter for the year 1971-72).
The smaller reductions for 1971-72 are to ease the transition to the new
arrangements for the local authorities.
In accordance with section 35(7) of the General Rate Act 1967, this
Order was approved by a resolution of the House of Lords on 22nd
March, 1971 and a resolution of the House of Commons on 29th March,
1971.
<1Made>1 - - - 4<1th March,>1 1971
<1Laid before Parliament>1 4<1th March,>1 1971
<1Coming into Operation>1 30<1th March,>1 1971
The secretary of State for the Environment, after consultation with the
associations of local authorities and of persons carrying on undertakings
appearing to him to be concerned and the local authorities and persons
carrying on undertakings with whom consultation appeared to him to be
desirable, in exercise of his powcrs under section 35 of the General Rate
Act 1967 and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby
makes the following order:--
<1Title and commencement>1
<21.>2 This 0rder may be cited as the Mines and Quarries (Valuation)
Order 1971 and shall come into operation on the day following the day on
which it has been approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.
<1Application>1
<22>2. This order shall apply, in respect of the rate periods beginning on 1st
April, 1971 and subsequent rate periods, to--
(<1a>1) <sa>s ...........................................................
(<1b>1) any tin, lead or copper mine; and
(<1c>1) any other hereditament which consists of or includes a mine or
quarry or the whole or part of which is occupied together with a
mine or quarry in connection with the storage or removal of its
minerals or the removal of its refuse.
<sa>s Revoked by the National Coal Board (Rateable Values) order 1977 art. 18 and sch. 5.
C26
<1The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order>1
<1Interpretation>1
<23.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretat1on
of this order as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
(2) In this order--
"the Commissioners" means the Commissioners of Inland Revenue;
a
"land", in the expression --the occupation of land", does not include
buildings, structures, roads, shafts, adits or other works;
"the order of 1963" means the National Coal Board (Valuation)
Order 1963; and
"specified operations" means the winning and working, grading,
washing, grinding and crushing of minerals.
(3) In this order, unless the context otherwise requires, references to
any enactment shall be construed as references to that enactment as
amended, extended or applied by or under any other enactment or by this
order.
(4) Any reference in this order to a numbered article shalI, unless the
reference is to an article of a specified order, be construed as a reference
to the article bearing that number in this order.
(5) Any reference in any article of this order to a numbered paragraph
shall, unless the reference is to a paragraph of a specified article, be
construed as a reference to the paragraph bearing that number in the
first-mentioned article.
<sa>s Revoked by the National Coal Board (Rateable Values) order 1977 art. 18 and sch. 5.
<1Rateable value of hereditaments within article 2>1(c)
<24.>2 The rateable value of any hereditaments within article 2(c) shall be
the net annual value thereof as ascertained under subsection (3) of section
19 of the General Rate Act 1967 reduced--
<1(a)>1 for the year beginning on 1st April, 1971, by one-quarter;
<1(b)>1 otherwise, by one-half,
of the part of the rent estimated under the said subsection which is
attributable to the occupation of land for the purpose of the specified
operations.
<25,6,6A>2<sa>s .........................................................
<sa>s Revoked by the National Coal Hoard (Rateable Values) order 1977 art. 18 and sch. 5.
<1Rateable value of tin, lead or copper mines>1
<27.>2--(1) This article applies to tin, lead or copper mines.
(2) In this article--
"dues" means dues, royalty or toll, either in money or partly in
money and partly in kind; and the amount of dues which are reserved in
kind means the value of those dues;
"fine" means fine, premium or foregift, or other payment or
consideration in the nature thereof;
"lease" means lease or sett, or licence to work, or agreement for a
lease or sett or licence to work; and
"mine", in the case of a mine occupied under a lease, includes the
underground workings, and the engines, machinery, workshop, tram-
C27
<1The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) Order>1
ways, and other plant, buildings (other than dwellings), and works and
surface of land occupied in connection with and for the purposes of
the mine, and situate within the boundaries of the land comprised in the
lease or leases under which the dues or dues and rent are payable or
reserved.
(3) Where the mine is occupied under a lease or leases granted without
fine on a reservation wholly or partly of dues or rent, the rateable value of
the mine for the purposes of any rate period shall, subject to paragraph
(4), be taken to be the aggregate of--
(<1a>1) the annual amount of the whole of the dues payable in respect of
the mine during the year ending on 31st December falling
between 3 and 15 months before the beginning of that rate
period; and
(<1b>1) the annual amount of any fixed rent reserved for the mine which
may not be paid or satisfied by such dues,
reduced--
(i) for any rate period in the year beginning on 1st April, 1971, by
one-quarter;
(ii) otherwise, by one-half,
of the part of such dues or rent which is attributable to the occupation of
land for the purpose of the specified operations.
(4) Where, in the case of a mine falling within paragraph (3), the
person receiving the dues or rent is liable for repairs, insurance or other
expenses necessary to maintain the mine in a state to command the annual
amount of dues or rent, the rateable value of the mine shall be the
aggregate referred to in paragraph (3) reduced as therein provided less the
average annual cost of the repairs, insurance and other expenses for which
that person is so liable.
(5) In the case of--
(<1a>1) a mine occupied under a lease granted wholly or partly on a fine;
or
(<1b>1) a mine occupied and worked by the owner; or
(<1c>1) a mine which does not fall within paragraph (3) or within item (<1a>1)
or (<1b>1) of this paragraph but which, by virtue of section 16(d) of
the General Rate Act 1967, is rateable,
the rateable value of the mine shall be taken to be the annual amount of
the dues or dues and rent at which the mine might be reasonably expected
to let without fine on a lease of the ordinary duration, according to the
usage of the country, if the tenant undertook to pay all tenant's rates and
taxes and also the repairs, insurance and other expenses necessary to
maintain the mine in a state to command that annual amount of dues or
dues and rent, reduced--
(i) for the year beginning on 1st April, 1971, by one-quarter;
(ii) otherwise, by one-half,
of the part of such dues or dues and rent which is attributable to the
occupation of land for the purpose of the specified operations.
<1Peter Walker,>1
4th March, 1971 Secretary of State for the Environment.
C28
<1The Valuation Lists Rules 1972>1
<2The Valuation Lists Rules 1972>2
<2S.1. 1972 No. 1612>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Rules.)>1
These Rules prescribe the form of the valuation lists required by the
General Rate Act 1967. They also prescribe requirements to be complied
with in any alteration of the lists, as to entries made in the lists, as to the
recording of totals of values, etc.
<1Made>1 - - - 18<1th October,>1 1972
<1Laid before Parliament>1 31<1st October,>1 1972
<1Coming into Operation>1 21<1st November,>1 1972
The Secretary of State for the Environment, after consultation with the
local authority and the associations of local authorities with whom
consultation appeared to him to be desirable, in exercise of his powers
under sections 67(2) and 113 of the General Rate Act 1967 and of all other
powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following rules:--
<1Citation, commencement and application>1
<21.>2 These rules may be cited as the Valuation Lists Rules 1972 and shall
come into operation on 21st November, 1972.
<22.>2 Rules 3 to 25 shall apply to every valuation list made under Part V of
the Act of 1967 coming into force after the coming into operation hereof.
<1Interpretation>1
<23.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretation
of these rules as it applies for the interpretati0n of an Act of Parliament.
(2) In these rules unless the context otherwise requires--
"the Act of 1967" means the General Rate Act 1967;
"alteration" in relation to a valuation list includes the insertion in the
list, or the deletion from the list, of a hereditament;
"black" includes blue-black;
"electricity hereditament" means a hereditament which an Electric-
ity Board is, under section 34 of the Act 1967, to be treated as
occupying in the rating area;
"gas hereditament" means a hereditament which a Gas Board is,
under section 33 of the Act of 1967, to be treated as occupying in the
rat1ng area.
<1Form of valuation lists>1
<24.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of rules 5, 16 and 17, every valuation
list shall be in the form set out in the schedule hereto or a form
substantially to the like effect;
Provided that--
<1(a)>1 where a rating area comprises only one rating district and there
are no parts of the area which are liable to be charged separately
in respect of any expenses the Statement of Totals of Values in
C29
<1The Valuation Lists Rules 1972>1
Section I, and Section III, shall, subject to the provisions of (<1b>1)
of this proviso, contain only the total of rateable values for the
rating area;
(<1b>1) totals of rateable values may also be entered in Section III in
respect of any areas other than rating districts, or any heredita-
ments, within the rating area in relation to which the rating
authority, after consultation with the valuation officer, consider
it desirable to maintain a record of such totals.
(2) Where a rating area comprises more than one rating district, the
entries relating to the hereditaments in the several rating districts shall be
made in separate divisions of Section I and Section II.
<1Net annual values>1
<25>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of this rule and of
rule 20 no entry other than the gross values of hereditaments shall be
made in column 5 of Section I and Section II.
(2) In any case where--
(<1a>1) the rateable value of the hereditament is, under the law for the
time being in force, not the same as the net annual value; or
(<1b>1) the entry in the valuation list of the net annual value is expressly
required by any enactment,
the net annual value of the hereditaments shall be entered in column 5 of
Section I and Section II in addition to the entry of the gross value and the
entry of any net annual value shall be distinguished either by a prefix
consisting of the letters "NAV" or by reference in the form of an asterisk
to a footnote, which shall appear on every page of a valuation list on
which entry of a net annual value is made and shall indicate that the
footnoted entry is the net annual value of the hereditament. The heading
of column 5 of Section I and Section II on any page of a valuation list on
which the entry of a net annual value is made shall be "Gross Value/Net
Annual Value".
(3) No entries shall be made as totals for column 5 or in the columns in
the Statement of Totals of Values in Section I, or in Section III, in respect
of net annual values.
<1Formula-assessed hereditaments>1
<26.>2 Water hereditaments of statutory water undertakings within the
meaning of section 31 of the Act of 1967 and any hereditaments the
rateable values of which are determined under an order made under
section 35 of that Act shall be entered as a separate group in Section I, or
Section II, or where the rating area comprises more than one rating
district as separate groups in the appropriate divisions of Section I, or
Section II.
<1Preparation of list>1
<27.>2 In the preparation of the list--
(<1a>1) subject to the provisions of any enactment and of rules 5, 19, 20
and 21, entries shall be made in columns 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of
Section I, in accordance with the headings to the columns
thereof, in respect of every hereditament in the rating area;
C30
<1The Valuation Lists Rules 1972>1
<1(b)>1 there shall be entered in the Statement of Totals of Values in
Section I the total of rateable values for the rating area and
where the rating area comprises more than 0ne rating district or
part of the area, other than a rating district, which is liable to be
charged separately in respect of any expenses such totals for the
several rating districts and, except in Greater London, any part
of the area, other than a rating district, which is so liable and the
gas and electricity hereditaments.
<28.>2 Subject to the provisions of rules 4(2), 6 and 10, hereditaments shall
be entered in Section I in such order as the valuation officer, after
consultation with the rating authority, may think to be the most con-
venient.
<29.>2 Without prejudice to the generality of rule 8, the following heredita-
ments, namely--
<1(a)>1 hereditaments in respect of which contributions in aid of rates
are made; and
<1(b)>1 hereditaments in respect of which the promoters of an undertak-
ing are required by section 133 of the Lands Clauses Consolida-
tion Act 1845 or section 27 of the Compulsory Purchase Act 1965
to make good any deficiency of the general rate,
may, if the valuation officer thinks fit, be entered under the heading
"Exemptions (Contribution Cases)" as a separate group in Section I, or
where the rating area comprises more than one rating district as separate
groups in the appropriate divisions thereof (following, in either case, the
group or groups under rule 6), and if they are so entered entries in
columns 3 and 4 and the entry --See Exemptions (Contribution Cases)"
may be made elsewhere in the said Section in respect of any such
hereditaments.
<210.>2 Gas and electricity hereditaments which are to be included in the
list in pursuance of the proviso to paragraph 10 of Schedule 6 and
paragraph 14 of Schedule 7 to the Act of 1967 shall be entered at the end
of Section I and where the rating area comprises more than one rating
district shall not be included in any division of that Section.
<1Alterations of the list>1
<211.>2 In alterations of the list existing entries may be struck out as
provided in rules 12 and 13, but shall not be dealt with in any other
manner.
<212.>2 In any alteration of the list made under the provisions of any
enactment which provides for the alteration of a list before the date on
which it is to come into force existing entries falling to be struck out shall
be struck out in black ink and entries falling to be inserted shall be
inserted in new pages in Section I or the appropriate divisions thereof.
Where existing entries are so struck out and new entries are inserted a
reference to the new page containing such entries and to their number
therein shall be inserted in black ink.
<213.>2 In any alteration of the list made otherwise than as described in rule
12 existing entries falling to be struck out shall be struck out in red ink and
entries falling to be inserted shall be inserted in Section II, being--
C31
<1The Valuation Lists Rules 1972>1
<1(a)>1 in the case of entries falling to be inserted in relation to gas and
electricity hereditaments in pursuance of sub-paragah <1(b)>1 of
paragraph 10 of Schedule 6 and sub-paragraph <1(b)>1 of paragraph
14 of Schedule 7 to the Act of 1967, inserted at the end of the said
Section and where the rating area comprises more than one
rating district not included in any division of that Section; and
<1(b)>1 in the case of any other entries, inserted in the said Section or the
appropriate divisions thereof.
Where existing entries are so struck out and new entries are inserted a
reference to the sheet in Section II containing such entries and to their line
number therein shall be inserted in red ink.
<214.>2 On the striking out of the entries for the time being existing in
relation to any hereditament and the insertion of new entries in which the
description of the hereditament is the same, there may be inserted,
adjoining the gross and rateable values in the first entries in the list
relating to the hereditament--
<1(a)>1 on the first such striking out and insertion, in the colour required
by rule 12 or 13 for the action described therein, the gross and
rateable values in the new entries, and
<1(b)>1 on the second or any subsequent such striking out and insertion,
tn vi1olet ink, the gross and rateable values in the new entries and
a reference to the new page or the sheet in Section II containing
the new entries and their line number therein.
<215.>2 Where any entries have been made under rule 14 but on any
subsequent alteration of the list the description of the hereditament is
altered, the entries made under rule 14 shall be struck out in violet ink.
<216.>2 The new pages referred to in rule 12 shall include in addition to the
columns set out for Section I in the Schedule hereto an additional column
with the heading "Alter. No.", and the entries contained in any new page
shall be numbered.
<217.>2 Nothing in these rules shall prevent the inclusion, in any sheet
designed for insertion as a new page in Section I or for insertion in Section
II, of directions for such insertion, for the striking out of any existing
entries in the list or for the alteration 0f any total of rateable values in
Section III.
<1Entries>1
<218.>2 In the case of any hereditament such as is described in section 26(2)
of the Act of 1967 (which provides as to agricultural dwelling houses) the
description of the hereditament shall include the item --(AG)".
<219.>2 In the case of any hereditament in relation to which section 45 of
the Act of 1967 (which provides for relief in respect of facilities for
disabled persons) applies in ascertaining the gross value the description of
the hereditament shall include the item --(PR)".
<220.>2 In the case of any hereditament to which rule 9 applies the entries
required by any enactment shall be made in column 5 or 6 of Section I or
of Section II, but no entry shall otherwise be made in any such column.
<221.>2 In the case of any hereditament which is not liable to be rated and
to which rule 20 does not apply, no entry shall be made other than the
entries in columns 3 and 4 of Section I or of Section II, the entry
C32
<1The Valuation Lists Rules 1972>1
"Exempt" and, where an entry is made in Section II in respect of a
hereditament for which values were previously entered the direction and
assessment numbers and such values.
<1Totals of values>1
<222>2. Where any entries in a page in Section I are struck out as provided
in rule 12 the rating authority shall cause any necessary alterations to be
made in the total of rateable values for the page.
<223.>2 The rating authority shall, as soon as may be after the list comes
into force, enter in Section III in black ink the total of rateable values at
such coming into force for the rating area and where the rating area
comprises more than one rating district or part of the area, other than a
rating district, which is liable to be charged separately in respect of any
expenses such totals for the several rating districts and, except in Greater
London, any part of the area, other than a rating district, which is so liable
and the gas and electricity hereditaments.
<224>2. Where any alteration is made in the list otherwise than as described
in rule 12 the rating authority shall cause any alteration in a total of
rateable values to be recorded in Section III. In such action any amount to
be added to such total shall be entered in green ink, any amount to be
subtracted therefrom in red ink and the total as altered in black ink.
<225>2. As soon as may be after each 1st October or 1st April on which the
list remains in force the rating authority shall cause the date to be
recorded in black ink in Section III.
<1Revocation of existing instrument>1
<226.>2 The Valuation Lists Rules 1962 are hereby revoked except in their
application to the valuation lists in force at the coming into operation of
these rules.
18th October 1972. <1[See Schedule sections I and II overleaf]>1
<1Peter Walker,>1
Secretary of State for the Environment.
C33
<1S.I. 1972 Nos. 1910 & 1983; 1973 No. 2139, 1974 No. 413 & No. 629>1
<2The Mines and Quarries (Valuation) (Amend->2
<2ment) Order 1972>2
<2S.I. 1972 No. 1910>2
<1Was revoked by the National Coal Board (Rateable Values) Order 1977.>1
<2Rating of Owners Order 1972>2
<2S.I. 1972 No. 1983>2
<1Amends the General Rate Act 1967 s.55(1) which is printed in the appendix in>1
<1its amended form.>1
<2The Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order>2
<21973>2
<2S.1. 1973 No. 2139>2
<1This statutory instrument amends the Valuation (Statutory Deductions) Order>1
<11963 No. 940 which is printed as amended in this appendix.>1
<2The Plant and Machinery (Rating) (Amend->2
<2ment) Order 1974>2
<2S.1. 1974 No. 413>2
<1This order substitutes a new class 4 in the Plant and Machinery (Rating)>1
<1Order 1960 No. 122 which is printed as amended in this appendix.>1
<2The Rating of Minor Structural Alterations to>2
<2Dwellings (Specified Amount) Order 1974>2
<2S.1. 1974 No. 629>2
<1The sole purpose of the order is to specify the amount of #30 as the sum>1
<1referred to in the Local Government Act 1974 s.21(1)(b).>1
C36
<1The Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations 1974>1
<2The Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations>2
<21974>2
<2S.I. 1974 No. 1563>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
Section 17 of and Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 make
unoccupied property liable to be rated; but regulations under paragraph 3
of that Schedule can exempt prescribed hereditaments from this liability.
Sections 17A and 17B of this Act (as added by the Local Government
Act 1974) make unused commercial buildings liable additionally to a
surcharge and extend the power to exempt accordingly.
These Regulations exempt from liability to the surcharge industrial
buildings which have ceased to be used wholly or mainly for industrial
purposes, in consequence of which they may be regarded as a commercial
building within the meaning of section 17B (2) of the Act of 1967,
providing they remain constructed or adapted as industrial buildings.
They also exempt Post Office hereditaments constructed or adapted for
certain specified Post Office purposes.
<1Made>1 - - - 18<1th September,>1 1974
<1Laid before Parliament>1 19<1th September,>1 1974
<1Coming into Operation>1 10<1th October,>1 1974
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 as
extended by section 17B (6) of the General Rate Act 1967 (the second
mentioned of those provisions having been inserted by section 16 of the
Local Government Act 1974) and now vested in him and of all other
powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following regula-
tions:--
<21.>2 These regulations may be cited as the Rating Surcharge (Exemption)
Regulations 1974 and shall come into operation on 10th October, 1974.
<22>2. The Interpretati0n Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretation of
these regulations as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of
Parliament.
<23.>2 No surcharge shall be payable under section 17A of the General
Rate Act 1967 in respect of--
(<1a>1) hereditaments which have been and remain constructed or
adapted as factories, mills or other premises of a similar charac-
ter for use wholly or mainly for industrial purposes, or
(<1b>1) any hereditament of the Post Office which was constructed or has
been adapted for one or more of the following purposes--
(i) a post office;
(ii) a postal sorting office;
(iii) a postmen's delivery office;
(iv) the housing or supporting of apparatus which may be used
for the operation of the Post Office telecommunication
services excluding therefrom the storage of such appar-
atus where such storage is the only purpose;
C37
<1The Valuation Lists (Proposals for Alteration) Regulations 1974>1
(v) a telecommunication service or engineering centre;
(vi) a telecommunications research centre.
<1Anthony Crosland,>1
18th September, 1974. Secretary of State for the Environment.
<2The Valuation Lists (Proposals for Alteration)>2
<2Regulations 1974>2
<2S.1. 1974 No. 2213>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
These Regulations prescribe the form in which proposals (other than by
the valuation officer) for the alteration of valuation lists under the
General Rate Act 1967 are to be made. The form in Schedule 1 has some
minor changes only to the form set out in the Valuation Lists (Proposals
for Alteration) Regulations 1963 (revoked by these Regulations). The
form in Schedule 2 is a bi-lingual version which may be used in Wales.
<1Made>1 - - - 23<1rd December,>1 1974
<1Laid before Parliament>1 15<1th January,>1 1975
<1Coming into Operation 5th February,>1 1975
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by sections 69(5)(c) and 114 of the General Rate Act 1967 and
now vested in him and by section 2(2) of the Welsh Language Act 1967
and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the
following regulations:--
<21.>2 These regulations may be cited as the Valuation Lists (Proposals for
Alteration) Regulations 1974 and shall come into operation on 5th
february, 1975.
<22.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretation
of these regulations as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of
Parliament.
(2) In these regulations "proposal" means a proposal or a further
proposal for the alteration of a valuation list made under section 69(1) or
(3) of the General Rate Act 1967 as enacted or as extended by section
69(4) of that Act.
<23.>2 Subject to regulation 4 below every proposal shall be in the form set
out in Schedule 1 to these regulations or in a form substantially to the like
effect.
4. The form set out in Schedule 2 to these regulations is hereby
prescribed as a version of the form of proposal partly in Welsh and partly
in English and that form, or a form substantially to the like effect, may be
used in place of the form set out in Schedule 1 to these regulations where
the proposal is in respect of a hereditament situated in Wales.
<25.>2 The Valuation Lists (Proposals for Alteration) Regulations 1963 are
hereby revoked.
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<1The Valuation Lists (Proposals for Alteration) Regulations 1974>1
SCHEDULE 1
GENERAL RATE ACT 1967
<2Proposal for alteration of valuation list>2
ADDRESS of PROPERTY to which this proposal relates
(including postcode if known):
..........................................................................
..........................................................................
..........................................................................
RATING AREA RATING DISTRICT
Name of the person or body by whom or on whose behalf the proposal is made:
...........................................................................
Alteration which that person or body proposes should be made in the valuation list:
...........................................................................
...........................................................................
Grounds on which that alteration is proposed:
...........................................................................
...........................................................................
...........................................................................
...........................................................................
Name of occupier:
Name of owner:
Dated ........................... Signed ................................
Capacity in which signed:
........................................... Telephone No.: ...............
(e.g. as occupier, owner, agent for occupier, agent for owner, etc.)
Name and address of person to whom communications are to be sent if address
differs from the address of the property:
...........................................................................
...........................................................................
...........................................................................
C39
<1The Valuation Lists (Proposals for Alteration) Regulations 1974>1
SCHEDULE 2
GENERAL RATE ACT 1967
<2Proposal for aiteration of valuation list>2
<2Cynigiad i newid y rhestr brisiau>2
ADDRESS of PROPERTY to which this proposal relates (including
postcode if known):
CYFEIRIAD YR EIDDO y mae'r cynigiad yn cyfeirio ato (yn cynnwys y
cod post os yw'n wybyddus):
.......................................................................
.......................................................................
RATING AREA: RATING DISTRICT:
RHANBARTH TRETHU: DOSBARTH TRETHU:
........................................................................
Name of the person or body by whom or on whose behalf the proposal is made:
Enw'r person neu'r gorffolaeth a wna'r cynigiad neu y gwneir y cynigiad ar ei ran:
.........................................................................
Alteration which that person or body proposes should be made in the valuation list:
Y newid y mae'r person neu'r gorffolaeth yn cynnig y dylid ei wneud i'r rhestr
brisiau:
.......................................................................
.......................................................................
Grounds on which that alteration is proposed:
Y seiliau ar ba rai y cynigir y newid hwnnw:
.......................................................................
.......................................................................
.......................................................................
.......................................................................
.......................................................................
Name of occupier: Name of owner:
Enw'r deiliad: Enw'r perchennog:
.......................................................................
Dated: Signed:
Dyddiedig: Llofnodwyd:
Capacity in which signed: Telephone no.:
Swyddogaeth y Ilofnodwr: Rhif Teleffon:
........................................................................
C40
<1The Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations 1975>1
(e.g. as occupier, owner, agent for occupier, agent for owner, etc.)
(ee. fel deiliad, perchennog, cynrychiolydd y deiliad, cynrychiolydd y perchennog,
etc.)
Name and address of person to whom communications are to be sent if address
differs from the address of the property:
Enw a cyfeiriad y person i'h hwn y dylid anfon gohebiaeth os yw'n wahanol i
gyfeiriad yr eiddo:
........................................................................
........................................................................
<1Anthony Crosland,>1
23rd December, 1974 Secretary of State for the Environment.
<2The Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations>2
<21975>2
<2S.I. 1975 No. 226>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
Section 17 of and Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 make
unoccupied property liable to be rated; but regulations under paragraph 3
of that Schedule can prescribe hereditaments for exemption form this
liability.
Sections 17A and 17B of this Act (as added by section 16 of the Local
Government Act 1974) make unused commercial buildings liable addi-
tionally to a surcharge and extend the power to prescribe hereditaments
for exemption accordingly.
These regulations exempt from liability to the surcharge premises which
are constructed or adapted for use for the storage of articles of domestic
use and light vehicles belonging to persons living at the dwelling-house
with which those premises are used. They also exempt hereditaments 240
square feet or less in area constructed or adapted for use with a
dwelling-house for the parking of motor vehicles.
<1Made>1 - - - 25<1th February,>1 1975
<1Laid before Parliament>1 5<1th March,>1 1975
<1Coming into Operation>1 26<1th March,>1 1975
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by paragraphs 3 of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 as
extended by section 17B(6) of the General Rate Act 1967 (the second
mentioned of those provisions having been inserted by section 16 of the
Local Government Act 1974) and now vested in him and of all other
C41
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following regula-
tions:--
<21.>2 These regulations may be cited as the Rating Surcharge (Exemption)
Regulations 1975 and shall come into operation on 26th March, 1975.
<22.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretation
of these regulations as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of
Parliament.
(2) In these regulations, except where the context otherwise requires--
"dwelling-house" has the same meaning as in section 115 of the
General Rate Act 1967;
"hereditament" has the same meaning as in section 115 of the
General Rate Act 1967;
"private car parking space" means a hereditament having a floor
space not exceeding 240 square feet and c0nstructed or adapted for
use wholly in connection with a dwelling-house for the parking of
motor vehicles;
"private storage premises" means a hereditament constructed or
adapted for use wholly in connection with a dwelling-house for the
storage or accommodation of any of the following articles belonging
to persons residing in that dwelling-house, namely, household stores
and other articles of domestic use and light vehicles (that is to say,
bicycles, tricycles, perambulators and other similar vehicles) whether
mechanically propelled or not;
<23.>2 No surcharge shall be payable under section 17A of the General
Rate Act 1967 in respect of--
<1(a)>1 any private storage premises, or
<1(b)>1 any private car parking space.
<1Anthony Crosland,>1
25th february, 1975. Secretary of State for the Environment.
<2The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>2
<2S.1. 1975>2 No. 299
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Rules.)>1
These Rules consolidate and amend the Lands Tribunal Rules 1963 and
Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1968, 1970 and (No. 2) 1970.
<1Made>1 - - - - 28<1th February,>1 1975
<1Coming into Operation 1st April,>1 1975
C42
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
ARRANGEMENT OF RULES
PRELIMINARY
Rule
1. Citation and commencement.
2. Interpretation.
PART I. APPEALS AGAINST DETERMINATIONS
3. Notice of appeal.
4. Time for giving notice.
5. Entry of appeal.
6. Appearance by persons other than appellants.
7. <1Deleted.>1
8. Power to require particulars of determination.
PART II. APPEALS FROM LOCAL VALUATION COURTS
9. Notice of appeal.
10. Notice of intention to appear.
11. Statement of case and exchange of valuations.
PART III. OTHER APPEALS
12. Notice of appeal.
13. Notice of intention to appear.
14. Statement of case.
15. Application of Part IV.
16. Notice of reference.
17. Entry of reference.
PART V. APPLICATIONS UNDER SECTION 84 OF THE LAW OF PROPERTY ACT
1925
(RELIEF FROM RESTICTIVE CONVENANTS AFFECTING LAND)
18. Interpretation.
19. Method of making application.
20. Publication of notices.
21. Notice of objection.
22. Suspension of proceedings.
23. Order without hearing, etc.
24. Power t0 direct additional notices.
25. Enquiries of local authorities.
26. Provisions as to orders.
PART VI. APPLICATIONS UNDER SECTION 2 OF THE RIGHTS OF LIGHT ACT 1959
27. form of application.
28. Publicity.
29. Issue of temporary certificates.
30. Issue of definitive certificates.
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
PART VII. GENERAL PROCEDURE
31. Selection of members of Tribunal.
32. Sittings of Tribunal.
33. Tribunal to sit in public.
34. View of land.
35. Assessors.
36. Proceedings to be consolidated 0r heard together.
37. Power to select test case in appeals from local valuation courts.
38. Application of Arbitration Act 1950.
39. Evidence.
40. Power to order discovery, etc.
41. failure to supply documents.
42. Expert witnesses.
43. Appellant limited to grounds of appeal.
44. Right of audience.
45. Interlocutory applications.
45A. Pre-trial review.
46. Certificates of value.
47. Administration of oaths.
48. Extension of time.
49. Preliminary point of law.
50. Sealed offers.
51. Withdrawal of appeal, dismissal of appeal etc., before hearing.
52. Procedure at hearing.
53. Default of appearance at hearing.
54. Decision of Tribunal.
55. Consent orders.
56. Costs.
57. Service of notices.
58. Change of address.
59. Substituted service.
60. Failure t0 comply with Rules.
61. fees.
62. Transitional provisions, repeals, etc.
Schedule 1--Forms
Schedule 2--fees
The Lord Chancellor, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by
section 3 of the Lands Tribunal Act 1949 and section 28(6) of the Law of
Property Act 1969, after consultation with the Council on Tribunals in
accordance with section 10 of the Tribunals and Inquiries Act 1971, and
with the approval of the Treasury in regard to fees, hereby makes the
following Rules:--
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
PRELIMINARY
<1Citation and commencement>1
<21.>2 These Rules may be cited as the Lands Tribunal Rules 1975 and shall
come into operation on 1st April, 1975.
<1Interpretation>1
<22>2.--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply to the interpretation of
these Rules as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
(2) In these Rules, unless the context otherwise requires--
"the Act" means the Lands Tribunal Act 1949;
"the Act of 1961" means the Land Compensation Act 1961;
"appeal against a determination" means an appeal against a deter-
mination of any question by any government department, authority or
person from whom an appeal to which the determining authority is the
respondent lies to the Lands Tribunal;
["date of decision" means the date endorsed on the document issued
by the court, tribunal, authority or person which records the decision
against which the appeal is lodged;]<sa>s
"drainage rates appeal" means an appeal from the decision of a local
valuation court in relation to the value of land for the purpose of
drainage rates;
"hereditament" includes a hereditament for the purposes of drainage
rates;
"net annual value" means the net annual value of the hereditament
to which an appeal relates as shown in the valuation list, or, if that value
is not shown in the valuation list, the rateable value so shown;
"the office" means the office for the time being of the Lands
Tribunal;
"the President" means the President of the Lands Tribunal, or the
member appointed under section 2(3) of the Act to act for the time
being as deputy for the President;
"proceedings" means proceedings before the Lands Tribunal;
"rating appeal" means an appeal from the decision of a local
valuation court in relation to the general rate;
"reference" has the meaning assigned to it by rule 15;
"the registrar" means the registrar of the Lands Tribunal or, as
respects any powers or functions of the registrar, any officer of the
Lands Tribunal authorised by the Lord Chancellor to exercise those
powers or functions;
"the Tribunal" means the member or members of the Lands Tribunal
selected under section 3(2) of the Act to deal with a case;
"valuation officer" has the meaning assigned to it by section 115(1) of
the General Rate Act 1967;
"valuation proceedings" means proceedings before a local valuation
court.
[2A In these Rules any reference to the hearing of any proceedings
includes, unless the context otherwise requires, the determination of
proceedings without an oral hearing.]<s1>s
(3) Unless the context otherwise requires, a rule, Part or Schedule
referred to by number means the rule, Part or Schedule so numbered in
these Rules.
C45
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
(4) A form referred to by number or by number and letter means the
form so identified in Schedule 1 or a form substantially to the same effect.
(5) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in these Rules
to any enactment shall be construed as a reference to that enactment as
amended, extended or applied by any other enactment.
<sa>s Added by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment No. 2) Rules 1981 No. 600.
<s1>s Inserted by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rule, 1977 art. 3 S.1. 1977 No. 1820.
PART I
APPEALS AGAINST DETERMINATION
<23-8.>2 <1Not reproduced here.<sa>s>1
<sa>s Rule 7 deleted by Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
PART II
APPEALS FROM LOCAL VALUATION COURTS
<1Notice of appeal>1
<29.>2--(1) An appeal against the decision of a local valuation court may be
instituted within 28 days from the date of the decision by sending to the
registrar a notice of appeal, that is to say, a written notice (which may be
in Form 2) indicating an intention to appeal.
(2) Where the notice is in Form 2 the appellant shall, unless the
registrar otherwise directs, send with the notice the following docu-
ments--
(i) sufficient copies of the notice for service of one copy upon the
valuation officer (unless the appeal is a drainage rates appeal)
and one copy upon every person who appeared as a party to the
valuation proceedings;
(ii) a list of the names and addresses of every person who appeared
as a party to the valuation proceedings;
(iii) a copy of the decision appealed against;
(iv) a copy of the proposal or determination which was the subject of
the valuation proceedings.
(3) Where the notice is not in Form 2--
(i) the appellant may, and if the registrar so requires shall, send to
the registrar the documents specified in paragraph (2) above;
(ii) if the registrar so requires, the appellant shall, within such times
as the registrar may direct (not being less than 14 days from the
date of the requirement) send to the registrar a notice in Form 2,
which shall thereafter constitute the notice of appeal.
(4) Upon receiving a notice of appeal and any other documents
required in accordance with this rule, the registar shall--
(i) enter particulars of the appeal in the Register of Rating
Appeals;
C46
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
(ii) serve a copy of the notice upon the valuation officer (unless the
appeal is a drainage rates appeal) and upon every person (other
than the appellant) who appeared as a party to the valuation
proceedings;
(iii) inform the appellant and every person upon whom a copy of the
notice has been served of the number of the appeal entered in
the Register, which shall thereafter constitute the title of the
appeal;
(iv) inform the appellant 0f the date on which copies of the notice
were served.
<1Notice of intention to appear>1
<210>2.--(1) Every person upon whom a copy of the notice of appeal is
served shall, if he intends to appear on the hearing of the appeal, give
written notice of his intention, stating--
(i) whether he intends to appear separately or jointly with some
other person;
(ii) the grounds on which he intends to rely;
(iii) whether he does or does not propose to call an expert witness to
give evidence;
(iv) an address for service of notices and other documents upon him.
(2) The notice of intention to appear shall be given to the registrar and
to the appellant within 21 days from the date of service of the copy of the
notice of appeal, and the registrar shall serve a copy of the notice of
intention on every other party to the appeal.
(3) Nothing in this rule shall entitle the valuation officer to appear on
the hearing of an appeal if he was not a party to the valuation proceedings.
<1Slatement of case and exchange of valuations>1
<211>2.--(1) Where notice of intention to appear has been given and the
appeal is on a point of law or the net annual value of the hereditament to
which the appeal relates excedes #1,250-
(i) within 28 days after the time limited by rule 10 for giving the
notice, the appellant shall send to the registrar and to each party
by whom notice has been given a statement of his case, including
the facts to be proved and any points of law on which he intends
to rely at the hearing;
(ii) within 28 days after receiving the appellant's statement, every
party who intends to appear in opposition to the appeal shall
send to the registrar, the appellant and every other party to the
appeal a reply stating his case, including the facts to be proved
and any points of law upon which he intends to rely at the
hearing:
Provided that nothing in this paragraph shall preclude any party from
sending a statement of his case to the registrar.
(2) Every statement or reply sent to the registrar in accordance with
paragraph (1) above shall be accompanied by
(i) every valuation of the hereditament which it is proposed to put in
evidence (including particulars and computations in support of
C47
<1The Land Tribunal Rules 1975>1
the valuation), or a statement of the value or values which the
parties have agreed to attribute to the hereditament in the event
of the Tribunal allowing or dismissing the appeal, as the case may
be, and
(ii) a description of any comparable hereditaments to which the
party intends to refer at the hearing in support of his case.
together with sufficient copies of the documents for service upon every
other party to the appeal; and the registrar shall, within 7 days after
receiving all the documents required to be supplied under this paragraph,
send to each party a copy of the documents supplied by the other parties.
(3) If at the hearing of the appeal any party seeks to rely upon any
valuation or other document which appears to the Tribunal not to have
been sent to the registrar in accordance with this rule [the Tribunal may]<sa>s
adjorn the hearing on such terms as to costs or otherwise as it thinks fit.
<sa>s Words substituted by para. 6, Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
PART III
OTHER APPEALS
<212-14>2.--<1Not reproduced here.>1
PART IV
REFERENCES
<1Application of Part IV>1
<215.>2 This part applies to any reference, that is to say, any question,
dispute or case determinable by the Lands Tribunal other than one to
which Part I, 1I, III, V or VI applies.
<1Notice of reference>1
<216>2.--(1) Proceedings for the determination of a reference may be
instituted by a person entitled under any enactment to do so, or (if there is
no such person) by any person who wishes the reference to be deter-
mined, sending to the registrar a notice of reference in Form 4, [or 4A]a as
may be appropriate, together with sufficient copies for service upon every
other party to the proceedings.
(2) The notice of reference sent to the registrar shall be accompanied--
(i) where the question is one of compensation payable on the
compulsory acquisition of land, by a copy of the notice to treat (if
such notice has been served) and of any notice of claim and any
amendment thereof delivered to the acquiring authority in
pursuance of section 4 of the Act of 1961;
(ii) in any other case, by a copy of the order, direction, notice,
decision, authorisation or other document in consequence of
which proceedings for the determination of the reference are
instituted.
(3) A notice of reference relating to the assessment of compensation on
the compulsory acquisition of land shall not be given before the expiration
of 28 days from the date of service or constructive service of the notice to
C48
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
treat or (where no notice to treat is served or is deemed to be served) of
the notice of claim.
<sa>s Substituted by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment No. 2) Rules 1981 No. 60.
<1Entry of reference>1
<217.>2 Upon receiving a notice of reference the registrar shall enter
particulars of the reference in the Register of References and shall send a
copy of the notice to every party to the proceedings (other than the party
instituting those proceedings) and shall inform the parties of the number
of the reference, which shall thereafter constitute the title of the proceed-
ings.
PART V AND VI
<1Concerns applications under the Law of Property Act 1925 s.84 and the>1
<1Rights of Light Act 1959 s.2 respectively.>1
<1Not reproduced here.>1
PART VII
GENERAL PROCEDURE
<1Selection of members of Tribunal>1
<231.>2--(1) The President may at any time substitute another member of
the Lands Tribunal for a member previously selected by him as the
Tribunal, or as a member of the Tribunal, to hear a case, and where
members of the Lands Tribunal have been selected for a class or group of
cases under the provisions of section 3(2) of the Act, the President may
from time to time vary the members so selected.
(2) Where the President has appointed any member of the Lands
Tribunal to be the chairman of any members selected as aforesaid, the
chairman may exercise the like power of substituting one member for
another previously selected as the Tribunal, or as a member of the
Tribunal, to hear a case in that class or group of cases.
<1Sittings of Tribunal>1
<232.>2--(1) The Tribunal shall sit at such places in England and Wales as
the President may from time to time determine.
(2) The registrar shall send to each party to proceedings before the
Tribunal a notice informing him of the place and date of the hearing
which, unless the parties otherwise agree, shall not be earlier than 14 days
after the date on which the notice is sent.
(3) Upon receiving notice of intention to appear from a person who is
not already a party to the proceedings, the registrar shall send to that
person a notice informing him of the place and date of the hearing.
(4) Any person to whom notice has been sent under paragraph (2) or
(3) above may apply to the registrar in accordance with the provisions of
rule 45 for an alteration of the place or date of the hearing.
<1Sittings of Tribunal>1
<233.>2 [The Tribunal shall sit in public unless it is determining an appeal,
reference or application without a hearing in accordance with the
C49
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
provisions of Rule 33A or it is acting as an arbitrator under a reference by
consent.]<s2>s
2. Substituted by The Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977 S.1. 1977 No. 182<s0>s art. <s8>s.
<1[Contested proceedings without hearing>1
<233A>2.--(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of rule 39 as to oral evidence
and of rule 44, but subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) below, the
Tribunal shall have power to determine any appeal, reference or applica-
tion without an oral hearing and any party to any proceedings instituted
under these Rules may apply to the registrar in accordance with the
provisions of rule 45 for a direction that the Tribunal shall exercise this
power.
(2) An order shall not be made on an application under this rule in
respect of any proceedings relating to the amount of compensation--
(i) which is payable in respect of the compulsory acquisition of land;
or
(ii) which depends directly or indirectly on the value of any land
without the consent signed by or on behalf of the person who is
claiming such compensation.
(3) After an order has been made that the Tribunal will determine
certain proceedings without an oral hearing, the Tribunal may, of its own
motion or on the application of any party to those proceedings, require
any party to the proceedings to furnish to the Tribunal such statements of
case, or reply thereto, or further and better particulars thereof, as the
Tribunal may specify.
(4) After an order has been made that the Tribunal will determine
certain proceedings without an oral hearing, any party to those proceed-
ings may submit in writing to the Tribunal any representations which he
wishes the Tribunal to take into consideration.
(5) Any statements, replies or particulars required by virtue of para-
graph (3) above, and any representations made by any party, and any
document or other information required to be delivered by any party to
any proceedings to which this rule applies in accordance with the
provisions of rule 40, shall be sent to the registrar, together with sufficient
copies of the same for all the other parties to the proceedings, within 28
days of the order or requirement (as the case may be).
(6) The registrar shall, within 7 days of receiving by virtue of this rule
any statements, replies, particulars, representations, document or other
information, send to every other party to the proceedings a copy of the
same.
(7) If, after having received a copy of any statements, replies, particu-
lars, representations, document or information under paragraph (6)
above, any party to any proceedings wishes to make any representations
to the Tribunal he may submit the same in writing to the registrar within
28 days of the receipt by him of the said copy and the provisions of
paragraph (5) and (6) above shall apply to such representations; but no
party to any proceedings shall make any representations on more than one
occasion in those proceedings except by the leave of the Tribunal or the
registrar.
(8) If any party to any proceedings to which this rule applies intends to
rely upon the evidence of an expert witness, then the provisions of rule 42
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
shall apply as if references in that rule to the calling of witnesses and the
hearing of evidence were references to representations.
(9) The Tribunal may at any time and for any reason order that
proceedings which it was in the process of deciding without an oral
hearing shall be heard and may thereupon give directions for the disposal
of those proceedings in accordance with these rules.
(10)(a)(i) If an application under paragraph (1) above is made in any
proceedings before a notice of intention to appear has been given in
accordance with rule 6, 10 or 13 or, such notice having been given in
accordance with rule 10 before any statement of case or reply has been
sent to the registrar in accordance with rule 11, then the time limits
specified in rules 10 and 11 respectively shall run from the date upon
which an order is made in accordance with this rule that those proceedings
shall be heard.
(ii) Where notice of intention to appear is given in accordance with rule
6, 10 or 13 in any proceedings in respect of which an application is made
under paragraph (1) above, whether such notice is given before or after
such application is made, that notice shall be of no effect as regards
appearance unless an order is made in accordance with this rule that the
proceedings shall be heard, but the notice shall otherwise be effective
according to its tenor subject, however, to the provisions of this rule; and
save as aforesaid rule 10 shall not apply to any proceedings to which this
rules applies.
(iii) Where any of the provisions of rule 11 have been complied with in
proceedings in respect of which an order is made under this rule that those
proceedings will be determined without an oral hearing and before that
order is made, the statement of case or reply and accompanying docu-
ments shall be treated as representations made in accordance with the
provisions of this rule; and save as aforesaid rule 11 shall not apply to any
proceedings to which this rule applies.
(<1b>1) Rules 52 and 53 shall not apply to any proceedings to which this
rule applies.]<s3>s
3. Inscrted by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977 S.I. 1977 No. 1820 art. 8.
<1View of land>1
<2342.--(1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) below, the Tribunal>2
may inspect the land or hereditament which is the subject of the
proceedings and may, if it thinks fit, enter on the land or hereditament for
that purpose.
(2) When the Tribunal intends to enter on any premises in pursuance of
paragraph (1) above, it shall give notice to the parties of that intention and
the parties shall be entitled to attend the inspection.
(3) The provisions of this rule shall apply, so far as practicable, to any
comparable land or hereditament to which the attention of the Tribunal is
directed as they apply to the land or hereditament which is the subject of
the proceedings.
<1Assessors>1
<235>2.--(1) If it appears to the President that any case coming before the
Tribunal calls for special knowledge and that it would be desirable for the
Tribunal to [be assisted by]<s4>s assessors, he may direct that the Tribunal
C51
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
shall hear [or determine]<s5>s the case with the aid of an assessor or assessors
appointed by him after any consultations he may think fit.
(2) The remuneration to be paid to any assessor appointed under this
rule shall be such as the President may, with the approval of the Minister
for the Civil Service, determine.
4. Substituted by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977. s.1. 1977 No. 1820. art. 9.
5. Inserted by the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977. s.1. 1977 No. 1820. art. 9.
<1Proceedings to be consolidated or heard together>1
<236.>2--(1) Where more than one notice of appeal has been given in
respect of the same land or hereditament, an application to the registrar in
accordance with the provisions of rule 45 for an order that the appeals be
consolidated may be made by any party to the appeals.
(2) Where two or more notices of appeal have been given in respect of
different lands or hereditaments raising the same, issues or where two or
more notices of reference have been given in respect of several interests in
the same subject in dispute, an application may be made by any party to
the proceedings that the appeals, or as the case may be the references , be
heard together.
(3) Where any such notices of appeal or notices of reference as are
referred to in paragraph (1) or (2) above have been given, the President or
the Tribunal may, without any application in that behalf, order that the
appeals or references be consolidated or heard together.
(4) An order may be made with respect to some only of the matters to
which the notices of appeal or notices of reference relate.
<1Power to select test case in appeals from local valuation courts>1
<237.>2 Where two or more appeals against the decision of a local valuation
court appear to the President to involve the same issues, he may, with the
written consent of all parties to the appeals, direct that one appeal, to be
selected by him, shall be heard in the first instance as a test case and that
the parties to each appeal shall, without prejudice to their right to require
the Tribunal to state a case for the decision of the Court of Appeal, be
bound by the decision of the Tribunal on the appeal so selected.
<1Application of Arbitration Act>1 1950
38. Sections 12, 14, 17, 18(5), 20 (subject to any enactment which
prescribes a rate of interest) and 26 of the Arbitration Act 1950 shall apply
to all proceedings as they apply to an arbitration unless a contrary
intention is expressed in the arbitration agreement, and, where the
Tribunal is acting as arbitrator under a reference by consent, sections 1, 2,
3,4(1),5, 18(3) and (4), 24(2) and (3) and 27 of the Arbitration Act 1950
shall also apply.
<1Evidence>1
<239.>2--(1) Evidence before the Tribunal may be given orally or, if the
parties to the proceedings consent or the President of the Tribunal so
orders, by affidavit, but the Tribunal may at any stage of the proceedings
make an order requiring the personal attendance of any deponent for
examination and cross-examination.
(2) The provisions of paragraphs (2) to (6) of rule 45 shall apply to an
application to the President for leave to give evidence by affidavit, with
C52
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
the substitution of references to the President for references to the
registrar.
(3) Nothing in the Civil Evidence Act 1972, or in rules of court made
under it, shall prevent expert evidence from being adduced before the
Tribunal by any party notwithstanding that no application has been
made to the Tribunal for a direction as to the disclosure of that evidence
to any other party to the proceedings.
<sa>s<1[Power to order discovery, etc.>1
<240>2.--(1) The Tribunal or, subject to any direction given by the
Tribunal, the registrar may on the application of any party to the
proceedings or 0f its or his own motion order any party:--
(<1a>1) to deliver to the registrar any document or other information
which the Tribunal may require and which it is in the power of
the party to deliver;
(<1b>1) to afford to every other party to the proceedings an opportunity
to inspect those documents (or copies of them) and to take
coptes;
(<1c>1) to deliver to the registrar an affidavit or make a list stating
whether any document or class of document specified or de-
scribed in the order or application is, or has at any time been in
his possession, custody or power, and stating when he parted
with it;
(<1d>1) to deliver to the registrar a statement in the form of a pleading
setting out further and better particulars of the grounds on which
he intends to rely and any relevant facts or contentions;
(<1e>1) to answer interrogatories on affidavit relating to any matter at
issue between the applicant and the other party; or
(<1f>1) to deliver to the registrar a statement of agreed facts, facts in
dispute and the issue or issues to be tried by the Tribunal:
Provided that nothing in this rule shall be deemed to require any
information to be disclosed contrary to the public interest.
(2) Where an order is made under paragraph (1) above, in the case of
proceedings other than those to which rule 33A (5) applies, the Tribunal
or the registrar, as the case may be, may give directions as to the time
within which any document is to be sent to the registrar (being at least 14
days from the date of the direction) and the parties to whom copies of the
document are to be sent.
(3) The provisions of rule 45 shall apply to this rule as appropriate to
applications and in relation to cases where the registrar acts of his own
motion.]
Provided that nothing in this rule shall be deemed to require any
information to be disclosed contrary to the public interest.
<sa>s Substituted by para 3, Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1980 No. 105.
<1Failure to supply documents>1
<241>2. If it appears to the Tribunal that any party to proceedings has failed
to send a copy of any document required under these Rules to be sent to
any other party or to the registrar, the Tribunal may direct that a copy of
the document shall be sent as may be necessary and that the further
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
hearing of the proceedings be adjourned, and may in any such case
require the party at fault to pay any additional costs occasioned thereby.
<1Experi witnesses>1
<242>2.--(1) This rule applies to any proceedings except appeals from
decisions of local valuation courts under Part II and applications for
certificates under Part VI.
(2) Not more than one expert witness on either side shall be heard
unless otherwise ordered:
Provided that, where the proceedings include a claim for compensation
in respect of minerals or disturbance of business, as well as in respect of
land, one additi0nal expert witness on either side on the value of the
minerals or, as the case may be, on the damage suffered by reason of the
disturbance may be heard.
(3) An application for leave to call more than one, or more than one
additional, expert witness may be made to the registrar in accordance with
the provisions of rule 45 or to the Tribunal at the hearing.
(4) Where more than one party intends to call an expert witness, every
such party shall, within 28 days after being so requested by the registrar,
send to the registrar a copy of each of the following documents relating to
the evidence to be given by the expert witness, together with sufficient
copies for service upon the other parties--
(i) every plan and valuation of the land or hereditament which is the
subject of the proceedings (including particulars and computa-
tions in support of the valuation) which it is proposed to put in
evidence;
(ii) either a statement of any prices, costs or other particulars and
any plans relating to a property or properties other than that land
or hereditament which are proposed to be given in evidence in
support of the valuation, or a statement that no such prices,
costs, particulars or plans will be relied upon.
(5) The registrar shall, within 7 days after receiving all the documents
required to be supplied by the parties under paragraph (4) above, send to
each party copies of the documents supplied by the other party.
(6) If an application for leave to call more than one, or more than one
additional, expert witness is made at the hearing and is granted by the
Tribunal, or if at the hearing any party seeks to rely upon any plans,
valuations or particulars which appear to the Tribunal not to have been
sent to the registrar in accordance with this rule, [the Tribunal may]<sa>s,
adjourn the hearing on such terms as to costs or otherwise as it thinks fit.
<sa>s Words substituted by para. 6, Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
<1Appellant limited to grounds of appeal>1
<243.>2 On the hearing of an appeal under Part I, II or III or of an
application under Part V, the appellant or applicant shall not be entitled
to rely upon any grounds not stated in his notice of appeal, statement of
case or application unless the Tribunal thinks it just in all the circumst-
ances, and on such terms as to costs or adjournment or otherwise as it may
think fit, to allow such additional grounds to be put forward as may
appear to the Tribunal to be material.
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
<1Right of audience>1
<244.>2 In any proceedings, a party may appear and be heard in person, by
counsel or solicitor, or, on obtaining leave of the Tribunal (or of the
President or the registrar in the case of an interlocutory application), by
any other person.
<1Interlocutory applications>1
<245.>2--(1) Except where these Rules otherwise provide, an application
for directions of an interlocutory nature in connection with any proceed-
ings shall, unless otherwise ordered by the President, be made to the
registrar.
(2) The applications shall be made in writing and shall state the title of
the proceedings and the grounds upon which the application is made.
(3) If the application is made with the consent of all parties it shall be
accompanied by consents signed by or on behalf of the parties.
(4) If the application is not made with the consent of every party, then,
before it is made, a copy shall be served on every other party and the
application shall state that this has been done.
(5) A party who objects to the application may, within 7 days after
service of a copy on him, send written notice of objection to the registrar
and to the applicant, and before making an order on the application the
registrar shall consider all the objections which he has received and, if any
party wishes to appear before him, the registrar shall give him and every
other party an opportunity t0 do so.
(6) In dealing with an application under this rule, the registrar shall
have regard to the convenience of the parties and the desirability of
limiting so far as practicable the costs of the proceedings and shall
communicate his decision in writing to every party.
(7) The registrar may, and shall if so required by the applicant or by a
party objecting to an application under this rule, refer the application to
the President for decision.
(8) A party aggrieved by a decision of the registrar on an application
under this rule may appeal to the President by giving notice in writing to
the registrar and to every other party within 7 days after service on him of
notice of the decision or within such further time as may be allowed by the
registrar, but an appeal from a decision of the registrar shall not act as a
stay of proceedings unless so ordered by the President.
(9) Where an application under this rule is made--
(i) as respects a case which has been included by the President in a
class or group of cases under the provisions of section 3(2) of the
Act, or
(ii) as respects a case for which a member or members of the Lands
Tribunal has or have been selected,
the powers and duties of the Presdent under this rule may be exercised
and discharged in relation to the application by any member or members
of the Lands Tribunal authorised by the President in that behalf.
<sa>s <1[Pre-trial review>1
<245A.>2--(1) The Tribunal and, subject to any direction given by the
Tribunal, the registrar, may on the application of a party to the proceed-
ings or of its or his own motion order a pre-trial review to be held on a day
C55
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
being not less than 14 days after the making of the order unless the parties
to the proceedings agree otherwise and the registrar shall send to each
party to the proceedings a notice informing him of the place and date of
the pre-trial review.
(2) On the pre-trial review the Tribunal or the registrar shall give all
such directions as appear necessary or desirable for securing the just,
expeditious and economical disposal of the proceedings.
(3) The Tribunal or the registrar shall endeavour on the pre-trial
review to secure that the parties make all such admissions and agreements
as ought reasonably to be made by them in relation to the proceedings and
may record in the order made on the review any admission or agreement
so made or any refusal to make any admission or agreement.
(4) Where any party seeks a specific direction, he shall, so far as
practicable, apply for such direction on the pre-trial review and shall give
to the registrar and every other party notice of his intention to do so, and
if an application which might have been made on the review is made
subsequently the applicant shall pay the costs of and occasioned by the
application, unless the Tribunal is of the opinion that there was sufficient
reason for the application not having been made on the review.
(5) The provisions of rule 45 relating to interlocutory applications shall
have effect as if the pre-trial review were the hearing of an interlocutory
application and accordingly the Tribunal or the registrar may, on the
review, exerctse any of the powers exercisable on an interlocutory
application and may do so of its or his own motion.
(6) If any party does not appear on the pre-trial review the Tribunal or
the registrar, after giving the parties an opportunity to be heard, may
make such order as may be appropriate for the purpose of expediting or
disposing of the proceedings.]
<sa>s Added by paragraph 4, Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
<1Certificates of value>1
<246.>2 An application for a certificate of value under section 35 of the Act
of 1961 shall be made in writing to the registrar, and the party by whom
the application is made shall provide the registrar on his request with such
information as may be required to enable the certificate to be given.
<1Administration of oaths>1
<247.>2 The registrar shall have power to administer oaths and take
affirmations for the purpose of affidavits to be used in proceedings.
<1Extension of time>1
<248.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) below, the time
appointed by or under these Rules for doing any act or tak1ng any steps tn
connection with any proceedings [. . . . . . . . . .]<sa>s may be extended, on
an application to the registrar in accordance with the provisions of rule 45,
upon such terms (if any) as the justice of the case may require, and an
extension may be ordered although the application is not made until after
the expiration of the time appointed.
(2) The times appointed by rule 11(1) for sending a statement of case
and reply and time appointed by rule 42(4) for sending copies of
documents to the registrar may, by consent of the parties and on written
C56
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
notification sent to the registrar and received by him before the expiration
of the time appointed by these Rules or fixed by a previous extension by
consent, be extended for a period not exceeding 2 months on each
notification and 4 months in the aggregate.
<sa>s Words deleted by para. 5, Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
<1Preliminary point of law>1
<249.>2--(1) The President may, on the application of any party to
proceedings, order any point of law which appears to be in issue in the
proceedings to be disposed of at a preliminary hearing before a member
or members of the Lands Tribunal selected by the President for that
purpose and; if, in the opinion of the member or members, the decision
on the point of law substantially disposes of the proceedings, he or they
may order that the argument shall be treated as the hearing of the case or
may make such other order as may be just.
(2) The provisions of paragraphs (2) to (6) of rule 45 shall apply to an
application under this rule with the substitution of references to the
President for references to the registrar.
<1Sealed offers>1
<250.>2--(1) An unconditional offer of any sum, or of readiness to accept
any sum, as compensation shall not be disclosed to the Tribunal until it
has decided the amount of compensation to be awarded to the party to or
by whom the offer was made, but a copy of the offer enclosed in a sealed
cover may be sent to the registrar or delivered to the Tribunal at the
hearing by the party who made the offer and shall be opened by the
Tribunal after it has decided the amount of the compensation.
(2) Where the proceedings relate to the price payable on the acquisj-
tion of a freehold property or the rent to be paid under an extended lease
in accordance with the provisions of the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 and
that price or rent is or has become the only issue in the proceedings, the
provisions of paragraph (1) above shall apply to an unconditional offer of
readiness to agree to a specified price or rent.
<1Withdrawal of appeal, dismissal of appeal etc., before hearing>1
<251.>2--(1) An appeal, reference or application may be withdrawn by
sending to the registrar a written notice of withdrawal signed by all parties
to the proceedings or by their solicitors or agents.
(2) An appellant or applicant may, at any time before the hearing of
the proceedings, apply to the President for an order to dismiss the
proceedings, and the President may thereupon make such order as may be
just.
(3) The provisions of paragraphs (2), (4), (5) and (6) of rule 45 shall
apply to an application under paragraph (2) above with the substitution of
references to the President for references to the registrar.
(4) Where any party has failed to pursue any proceedings with due
diligence or has failed to comply with any of these Rules, the registrar
may, after giving the parties an opportunity to be heard, make an order
that the proceedings be heard by the Tribunal or make such other order as
may be appropriate for the purpose of expediting or disposing of the
proceedings.
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
(5) The provisions of rule 45(8) shall apply to any order made by the
registrar under paragraph (4) above.
<1Procedure at hearing>1
<252.>2--(1) Unless the Tribunal otherwise directs--
(i) on an appeal under Part I, II or III, the appellant shall begin;
(ii) on a reference under Part IV, a party claiming compensation or
a party to whom any rent or rentcharge requiring to be
apportioned is payable shall begin and, in any other case, the
party by whom the proceedings were instituted shall begin;
(iii) on an application under Part V or VI, the applicant shall begin.
(2) Subject to the provisions of these Rules and to any direction given
by the President, the procedure at the hearing of any proceedings shall be
such as the Tribunal may direct.
<1Default of appearance at hearing>1
<253.>2 If on an appeal under Part I, II or III or on an application under
Part V the appellant or applicant does not appear at the time and place
appointed for the hearing, the Tribunal may dismiss the appeal or
application and, if any other party to those proceedings or any party to a
reference under Part IV does not appear at the time and place appointed,
the Tribunal may hear and determine the appeal, application or reference
in his absence and may make such order as to costs as it thinks fit:
Provided that, where proceedings have been dismissed or determined
under this rule in the absence of a party, the Tribunal may, on an
application made by that party within 7 days of the dismissal or determina-
tion, if it is satisfied that he had sufficient reason for his absence, set aside
the dismissal or determination on such terms as to costs or otherwise as it
thinks fit.
<1Decision of Tribunal>1
<254.>2--(1) The decision of the Tribunal on an appeal, reference or
application shall be given in writing, together with a statement of the
Tribunal's reasons for its decision:
Provided that the Tribunal may give its decision and its reasons orally in
cases where it is satisfied that no injustice or inconvenience to the parties
would be occasioned by its doing so.
(2) On an appeal against the decision of a local valuation court, the
Tribunal shall--
(i) if the appeal is a rating appeal, give such directions with respect
to the manner in which the hereditament in question is to be
treated in the valuation list as appear to the Tribunal to be
necessary to give effect to the contention of the appellant, if and
so far as that contention appears to the Tribunal to be well
founded;
(ii) if the appeal is a drainage rates appeal, quash the determination
to which the appeal relates, alter the determination in such
manner as the Tribunal thinks just or dismiss the appeal.
C58
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
(3) Where an amount awarded or value determined by the Tribunal is
dependent upon the decision of the Tribunal on a question of law which is
in dispute in the proceedings, the Tribunal shall ascertain, and shall state
in its decision, the alternative amount or value (if any) which it would
have awarded or determined if it had decided otherwise on the question of
law.
(4) The registrar shall send a copy of the decision (or, where the
decision was given orally, a statement of its effect) to every party who has
appeared before the Tribunal, and--
(i) in the case of an appeal against the decision of a local valuation
court, to the clerk of the local valuation panel from which that
court was constituted and, if the appeal is a rating appeal, t0 the
valuation officer;
(ii) in the case of an appeal under Part III, to the court, authority or
person from whose decision the appeal was brought.
(5) If any directions are given by the Court of Appeal for the
amendment of any decision of the Tribunal on which a case has been
stated for the decision of the Court of Appeal, the amendments shall be
made by the Tribunal accordingly and the registrar shall send copies of the
amended decision to every person who was notified of the original
decision in accordance with paragraph (4) above.
<1Consent orders>1
<255.>2 Where the parties to any proceedings have agreed upon the terms
of any order to be made by the Tribunal, particulars of the terms, signed
by all the parties or by their solicitors or agents, shall be sent to the
registrar, and an order may be made by the Tribunal in accordance with
those terms in the absence of the parties.
<1Costs>1
<256.>2--(1) Except in cases to which the provisions of subsection (1), (2)
or (3) or section 4 of the Act of 1961 apply, the costs of an incidental to
any proceedings shall be in the discretion of the Tribunal.
<sa>s[(1A) Without prejudice to paragraph (1) above, the registrar may
make a recommendation to the Tribunal as to the award of costs in respect
of any application or proceedings heard by him.
(1B) Any party dissatisfied with a recommendation of the registrar
under paragraph (1A) above may, within 10 days of the recommendation,
appeal to the Tribunal or, where no member of the same has been
selected as respects the proceedings, to the President against the recom-
mendation and the Tribunal or, as the case may be, the President may
thereupon make such order as to the payment of costs as it or he thinks
just, including an order as to the payment of the costs of the appeal.]
(2) If the Tribunal directs that the costs of a party to the proceedings
shall be paid by any other party, the Tribunal may settle the amount of the
costs by fixing a lump sum, or it may direct that the costs shall be taxed by
the registrar on a scale specified by the Tribunal, being a scale of costs
prescribed by the Rules of the Supreme Court or by the County Court
Rules.
(3) Any party dissatisfied with a taxation of costs directed by the
Tribunal may, within 7 days of the taxation, serve on any other interested
C59
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
party and on the registrar objection in writing specifying the items
objected to and the grounds of objection and applying for the taxation to
be reviewed in respect of those items.
(4) Upon such application, the registrar shall review the taxation of the
items objected to and shall state in writing the reasons for his decision
thereon.
(5) Any party dissatisfied with a decision of the registrar under
paragraph (4) above may, within 10 days of the decision, apply to the
President to review the taxation, and the President may thereupon make
such order as he thinks just, including an order as to the payment of the
costs of the review, but otherwise the taxation shall be final in respect of
all matters to which objection has not been taken.
- Added by para. 7, Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981 No. 105.
<1Service of notices>1
<257.>2--(1) Any notice or other document required or authorised to be
served on any person for the purpose of these Rules shall be deemed to
have been duly served if sent by pre-paid post to that person at his
ordinary address or to his address for service specified in any notice given
under these Rules; and any notice or other document required or
authorised to be sent to the registrar shall be sent to him at the office.
(2) Any application or communication to be made to the President or
to any member of the Lands Tribunal in respect of any case shall be
addressed to the registrar at the office.
<1Change of address>1
<258.>2 A party to any proceedings may at any time by notice in writing to
the registrar and to every other party to those proceedings change his
address for service under these Rules.
<1Substituted service>1
<259.>2 If any person to whom any notice or other document is required to
be sent for the purpose of these Rules cannot be found, or has died and
has no personal representative, or is out of the United Kingdom, or if for
any other reason service upon him cannot be readily effected in accord-
ance with these Rules, the President or the Tribunal may dispense with
service upon that person or may make an order for substituted service
upon such other person or in such other form (whether by advertisement
in a newspaper or otherwise) as the President or the Tribunal may think
fit.
<1Failure to comply with Rules>1
60. Any failure on the part of any person to comply with the provisions
of these Rules shall not render the proceedings or anything done in
pursuance thereof invalid, unless the President or the Tribunal so directs.
<1Fees>1
<261.>2--(1) The fees to be taken in respect of proceedings shall be those
specified in Schedule 2.
(2) fees shall be paid by cheque or postal order, drawn in favour of
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
Her Majesty's Paymaster-General, or otherwise in cash, and in accord-
ance with the directions contained in Schedule 2.
(3) The hearing fee shall, unless the Tribunal otherwise directs, be
payable by the party by whom the proceedings were instituted (without
prejudice to his right to recover the amount of the fee from any other
party by virtue of any order as to costs) on receipt of notification from the
regtstrar.
<1Transitional provisions, repeals, etc.>1
<262.>2--(1) These Rules shall apply to proceedings commenced before the
date on which they come into operation as well as to proceedings
commenced on or after that date.
(<22>2) The Lands Tribunal Rules 1963, the Lands Tribunal (Amendment)
Rules 1968, the Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1970 and the Lands
Tribunal (Amendment No. 2) Rules 1970 are hereby revoked.
Dated 27th February, 1975. <1Elwyn-Jones, C.>1
We approve fees prescribed by these Rules in respect of proceedings
before the Lands Tribunal.
<1M. Cocks.>1
<1J. Dormand.>1
Dated 28th February, 1975. Two of the Lords Commissioners
of Her Majesty's Treasury.
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
SCHEDULE 1
FORM 2
Rule 9(1) <1Notice of Appeal against Decision of Local Valuation Court>1
To:--The Registrar,
Lands Tribunal.
To be copied
from de- Description of hereditament (for a rating appeal) [<1or>1 land (for a
cision of drainage rates appeal)] .....................................
local valua- ...........................................................
tion �court. �
Here state I/We.........................................................
usual
address. of...........................................................
hereby give notice of appeal against the decision of the local
Here insert
place and valuation court sitting at...................................
date of which was given on the............day of..............19
decision of
local valua- in respect of the hereditament <1[or>1 land] described above.
tion court.
Here state The grounds of appeal are that................................
briefly the
grounds of ..............................................................
the appeal.
Strike out I/We do/do not propose to call (an) expert witness(es) to give evi-
words not dence.
applicable. All communications regarding the appeal should be addressed to me/us at
the address shown above <1[or>1 to my/our solicitor/agent.......
of...............].
Dated.......... Signed.......................
<1Notes:>1
<1(1) Unless an informal notice has been accepted by the registrar, this notice of>1
<1appeal rnust be sent to him within 28 days from the date of the decision of the local>1
<1valuation court.>1
<1(2) The following docurnents should be sent with the notice:>1
<1(a) a copy of the decision of the local valuation court;>1
<1(b) a copy of the proposal or determination which was the subject of the>1
<1proceedings before the local valuation court;>1
<1(c) a list of the names and addresses of every person who appeared as a party to>1
<1the local valuation court proceedings; and>1
<1(d) sufficient copies of the notice for service by the registrar upon the valuation>1
<1officer of the appeal is a rating appeal) and every other person referred to in>1
<1paragraph (c) above.>1
<1Note: Other Lands Tribunal Forms not reproduced in this appendix.>1
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<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
SCHEDULE 1
FORM 2
Rule 9(1) <1Notice of Appeal against Decision of Local Valuation Court>1
To:--The Registrar,
<1The Rating Surcharge Regulations 1975>1
<2The Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused>2
<2Commercial Buildings) Regulations 1975>2
<2S.I. 1975 No. 1022>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
Section 17A of, and Schedule 1 to, the General Rate Act 1967 provide
for the levying of a surcharge additional to the rates (if any) payable in
respect of commercial buildings during certain periods of non-use.
These Regulations exempt commercial buildings from liability for the
surcharge during any period in which any person is trying his best to
procure the carrying out of works, or during which the works are being
carried out, being in either case works to adapt the building to the
reasonable requirements of an intending occupier, and the building
cannot be used by reason thereof.
<1Made>1 - - - 23<1rd June,>1 1975
<1Laid before Parliament>1 24<1th June,>1 1975
<1Coming into Operation>1 25<1th June,>1 1975
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 as
extended by section 17B(6) of the General Rate Act 1967 (the second
menttoned of those provisions having been inserted by section 16 of the
Local Government Act 1974) and now vested in him, and of all other
powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following regula-
tions:--
<21.>2--(1) These regulations may be cited as the Rating Surcharge
(Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings) Regulations 1975 and shall
come into operation on 25th June, 1975.
(2) The Interpretation Act 1889 applies to the interpretation of these
regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
<22.>2--(1) No surcharge shall be payable under section 17A of the
General Rate Act 1967 in respect of a commercial building for any period
of non-use during which--
(<1a>1) any person in good faith intends to carry out relevant works and
is trying his best to procure the carrying out of those works, or
(<1b>1) relevant works are being carried out with reasonable despatch,
and in consequence thereof the building or such part as is not used cannot
reasonably be used for the purpose for which it was constructed or has
been adapted.
(2) In this regulation "relevant works" means works to adapt the
building or part thereof to the reasonable requirements of a person who
intends to use the building, or that part, for the purpose for which it was
constructed or has been adapted.
<1John Silkin,>1
Signed by authority of Minister for Planning
the Secretary of State. and Local Government,
23rd June, 1975. <sDepartment of the Environment.>s
C66
<1The Lands Tribunal Rules 1975>1
SCHEDULE 2
Rule 61
Fees
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
<1Item>1 <1Fee>1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
#
<1Notices of appeal and reference, and applications>1 ... ...
<21.>2 On a notice of appeal under Part I or Part III of these
Rules (not being an appeal against a determination by the
Commissioners of Inland Revenue under the Finance (1909-
10) Act 1910 [or under the Finance Act 1975]<s6>s and on a
notice of reference under Part IV of these Rules (not being a
reference under section 47(1) [or section 47A]<s6>s of the
Taxes Management Act 1970) ... ... ... ... 6
<22.>2 On a notice of appeal under Part II of these Rules ... 2
<23.>2 Under Part V of these Rules--
(1) 0n an application ... ... ... ... ... 20
(2) on notification to the registrar in accordance
with rule 20(3) ... ... ... ... ... 10
<24.>2 On an application under Part VI of these Rules
(1) for a definitive certificate ... ... ... 20
(2) for a temporary and definite certificate ... 25
<25.>2 On an application to the President, Tribunal or
registrar--
(1) for a consent 0rder ... ... ... ... 3
(2) any other application ... ... ... ... 2
<1Hearing fees>1
<26.>2--(1) On an appeal against the decision of a local
valuation court and on an appeal by way of a reference by
consent--
(i) where net annual value does not exceed #250 ... 3
(ii) where net annual value exceeds #250 but does not
exceed #500 ... ... ... ... ... 5
(iii) where net annual value exceeds #500 but does not
exceed #1,000 ... ... ... ... ... 10
(iv) where net annual value exceeds #1,000 but does not
exceed #5,000 ... ... ... ... ... 20
(v) where net annual value exceeds #5,000-
(<1a>1) for the first #5,000 ... ... ... 25 ) subject to a
(<1b>1) for every #200 or fraction of #200 over ) maximum fee of
#5,000 ... ... ... ... ... 1 ) #500
(2) On an appeal against a determination under Part I (not
being a determination by the Commissioners of Inland Re-
venue under the Finance (1909-10) Act 1910 (or under the
finance Act 1975]<s6>s or on a reference under Part IV of these
Rules (not being a reference on a dispute as to water rates or
under section 47(1) [or section 47A]<s6>s of the Taxes Manage-
C63
<1Local Valuation Panels Regulations 1975>1
(2) over foolscap or I.S.O. A4 size--
(i) for each page of the first copy ... ... 0.20
(ii) for each additional page ... ... ... 0.10
<29.>2 On a case for the decision 0f the Court of Appeal--
(1) drawing case, if not drawn by the parties ... 3
(2) attending the President or the Tribunal settling case 5
<210.>2 On the taxation of a bill of costs--
(1) where the amount allowed does not exceed #5 ... 0.25
(2) where the amount allowed exceeds #5 but does not
exceed #100, for every #1 or fraction of #1 ... 0.05
(3) where the amount allowed exceeds #100--
(i) for the first #100 ... ... ... ... 5
(ii) for every #2 or fraction of #2 over #100 ... 0.05
On withdrawal of a bill of costs which has been lodged for
taxation, such fee (not exceeding the amount which would
have been payable as above if the bill had been allowed in
full) as may be reasonable having regard to the amount of
work done in the office.
<1Directions for payment>1
<211.>2 A notice, application or other document in respect of
which a fee is payable shall, if sent by post, be accompanied
by a cheque or postal order drawn in favour of Her Majesty's
Paymaster-General for the amount of the fee.
<2Local Valuation Panels Regulations 1975>2
<2S.1. 1975 No.>2 ~5
<1These regulations prescribe dates relating to the constitution of local>1
<1valuation panels as provided for in paragraph 29 of schedule 13 of the Local>1
<1Government Act 1972.>1
C65
<1The Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values) Order 1976>1
<2The Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values)>2
<2Order 1976>2
<2S.1. 1976 No. 535>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Order.)>1
Section 19 of and Schedule 3 to the Local Government Act 1974
empower the Secretary of State to make provision for determining the
rateable values of any hereditament occupied by the persons carrying on,
under authority conferred by or under any enactment, a dock or harbour
undertaking, or any class of such hereditaments.
This Order makes such provision for the years 1976-77 and subsequent
years in respect of undertakings other than those set out in article 3(2).
The rateable value is to be 4 1/4 per cent of the relevant receipts, as defined,
adjusted for years subsequent to 1976-77 in accordance with the rela-
tionship which the figure for the index of Retail Prices for All Items in
September 1975 bears to the figure for the month of September in the year
to which the relevant receipts relate. Articles 5 to 8 contain provisions for
the calculation of and notification of rateable value by the Commissioners
of Inland Revenue and supplemental and transitional provisions.
<1Made>1 - - - 16<1th March,>1 1976
<1Laid before Parliament>1 16<1th March,>1 1976
<1Coming into Operation>1 1<1st April,>1 1976
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of his powers
under section 19 of the Local Government Act 1974 and section 114 of the
General Rate Act 1967, as applied by section 22(3) of the Local
Government Act 1974, and of all other powers enabling him in that
behalf, after consultation with the associations of local authorities and of
persons carrying on undertakings appearing to him to be concerned and
the local authorities and persons carrying on undertakings with whom
consultation appeared to him to be desirable, hereby makes the following
order:--
<1Title and commencement>1
<21.>2 This order may be cited as the Docks and Harbours (Rateable
Values) Order 1976 and shall come into operation on the day following
the day on which it has been approved by a resolution of each House of
Parliament.
<1Interpretation>1
<22.>2--(1) The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretation
of this order as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
(2) In this order--
"the Commissioners" means the Commissioners of Inland Revenue;
"the Index" means the figure for the index 0f Retail Prices for All
Items published by the Secretary of State;
C67
<1The Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values) Order 1976>1
"relevant receipts" in relation to any dock or harbour undertaking,
means all receipts by way of revenue included or to be included in the
accounts of the undertaking, whether derived from the operations
carried on under the authority referred to in article 3(1) or otherwise,
and includes such receipts from all ancillary land and buildings occupied
by the person carrying 0n the undertaking in connection with the dock
or harbour, but shall exclude--
<1(a)>1 receipts in respect of cargo handling;
<1(b)>1 receipts in respect of pilotage;
<1(c)>1 investment income from--
<1(i)>1 investments required to be shown in the accounts of the
undertaking (other than investments in subsidiary
companies);
(ii) loans or deposits made for a period of 60 calendar months
or less;
(iii) investments in companies engaged wholly or mainly in
cargo handling and not falling within either of the two
preceding items;
<1(d)>1 the rents of parts of the dock or harbour undertaking let,
notwithstanding that such parts as let are separately rated, except in so far
as those rents exceed 10 per cent of the sum arrived at after deducting the
excluded items <1(a)>1, <1(b)>1 and <1(c)>1 above from all receipts of the undertaking;
"subsidiary" means a subsidiary as defined by section 154 of the
Companies Act 1948;
"year" means a period of twelve months beginning with 1st April.
In the application of the definition of "relevant receipts", receipts in
respect of cargo handling shall be taken to be--
<1(a)>1 in the case of an undertaking to which the Statutory Harbour
Undertakings (forms of Accounts etc.) (Local Authorities)
Regulations 1969, as amended, apply, the revenue from cargo
handling indicated separately in the revenue account under
paragraph 13(1)<1(a)>1 of Schedule 2 to the said Regulations;
<1(b)>1 in the case of an undertaking to which the Statutory Harbour
Undertakings (form of Accounts etc.) (Companies) Regulations
1969 apply, the revenue from cargo handling indicated separately
in the profit and loss account under paragraph 2<1(a)>1 of Schedule 2
to the said Regulations; and
<1(c)>1 in any other case, the revenue from cargo handling indicated
separately in the revenue account under paragraph 15(1)(a) of
Schedule 2 to the Statutory Harbour Undertakings (Form of
Accounts etc.) (General) Regulations 1969 or which would have
been so indicated if those Regulations had applied to the
undertaking.
<1(3)>1 In this order, unless the context otherwise requires references to
any enactment shall be construed as references to that enactment as
amended, extended or applied by or under any other enactment or by this
order.
(4) Any reference in this order to a numbered article shall, unless the
reference is to an article of a specified order, be construed as a reference
to the article bearing that number in this order.
C68
<1The Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values) Order 1976>1
(5) Any reference is any article of this order to a numbered paragraph
shall, unless the reference is to a paragraph of a specified article, be
construed as a reference to the paragraph bearing that number in the
first-mentioned article.
<1Application>1
<23.>2--(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), this order shall apply, in
respect of the year beginning on 1st April, 1976 and subsequent years to
any hereditament which comprises (wholly or partly) a dock or harbour
undertaking and is occupied by the persons carrying on such undertaking
under authority conferred by or under any enactment.
(2) This order shall not apply--
(<1a>1) where the relevant receipts of the dock or harbour undertaking
in the year preceding the year in respect of which the rateable
value is to be determined are not more than #2,500;
(<1b>1) where the persons carrying on the dock or harbour undertaking
use the dock or harbour exclusively or mainly for ships resorting
thereto solely or mainly for the purpose of bringing or receiving
goods of any one or more of the following descriptions, that is to
say--
(i) goods which have been manufactured or produced by the
persons carrying on the dock or harbour undertaking;
(ii) goods which are to be used by those persons for the
manufacture or production of goods or electricity;
(iii) goods which are to be sold by such persons, but for this
purpose there shall be treated as carried on by the persons
carrying on the dock or harbour undertaking the activities
of manufacture, production or sale carried on by those
persons' associated bodies corporate.
For the purposes of sub-paragraph (<1b>1) a body corporate shall be treated
as the associated body corporate of any persons who directly or indirectly
own or control not less than 51 per cent of its issued share capital, and of
any body corporate of which it or its associated body corporate directly or
indirectly own or control not less than 51 per cent of the issued share
capital.
(3) Except is so far as resulting from the definition of --relevant
receipts", this order shall not apply to premises occupied by the persons
carrying on a dock or harbour undertaking which are not on operational
land of such persons.
In this paragraph, "operational land", in relation to any persons
carrying on a dock or harbour undertaking, means land which is used for
the purpose of the carrying on of the undertaking, not being land which,
in respect of its nature and situation, is comparable rather with land in
general than with land which is used for the purpose of the carrying on of
statutory undertakings within the meaning of the Town and Country
Planning Act 1971. Any question as to whether, for the purposes of this
definition, any premises are situated on operational land of the persons
carrying on the dock or harbour undertaking shall be determined by the
Secretary of State.
C69
<1The Docks and Harbours (Rateable Values) Order 1976>1
<1Rateable value>1
<24.>2--(1) for any year the rateable value of any hereditament to which
this order applies shall be--
(<1a>1) where the dock or harbour undertaking is wholly comprised in
one hereditament the appropriate percentage of the relevant
receipts of the dock or harbour undertaking in the preceding
year,
(<1b>1) where the dock or harbour undertaking extends to two or more
hereditaments the proportion of the appropriate percentage of
the relevant receipts of the dock or harbour undertaking in the
preceding year allocated to the hereditament under Article 5.
(2) For the purposes of this article and of Article 5(3) the appropriate
percentage of the relevant receipts shall be--
(<1a>1) for the year beginning on 1st April, 1976, 4 1/4 per cent of the
relevant receipts in the year ending 31st March, 1976;
(<1b>1) for any subsequent year, 4 1/4 per cent of the relevant receipts
multiplied by 140.5 where y is the Index for September of the year
y
to which the relevant receipts relate.
<25.>2--(1) In respect of any hereditament or hereditaments to which this
order applies, it shall be the duty of the persons carrying on the dock or
harbour undertaking in any year, within six months from the beginning of
the year, to furnish to the Commissioners and to the rating authority or
authorities concerned a certified statement of the relevant receipts in the
preceding year, taking, where necessary, proportionate fractions of such
receipts included or to be included in the accounts for periods ending in
that year and estimates of such receipts for portions of that year not
covered by such accounts.
(2) The persons on whom a duty is placed by the preceding paragraph
may elect that instead of furnishing a certified statement of relevant
receipts in the year ending on the 31st March they shall furnish a certified
statement of relevant receipts in the period of 12 months ending on the
preceding 31st December; and where such an election has been made--
(<1a>1) it shall apply to that year and to all subsequent years, and
(<1b>1) any references in this article and in articles 4 and 8 t0 relevant
receipts in a year which is covered by an election shall be
construed as reference to relevant receipts in the period of 12
months ending on the preceding 31st December.
(3) Within two months of the receipt by them of the certificate
furnished to the Commissioners under paragraph (1) or (2) the Commis-
sioners shall calculate the rateable value of the hereditament or heredita-
ments. Where the dock or harbour undertaking extends into two or more
hereditaments the appropriate percentage of the relevant receipts shall be
apportioned among the hereditaments in such manner as may be agreed
by the Commissioners with the persons carrying on the undertaking and
the rating authorities concerned, or in default of agreement determined
by the Secretary of State.
(4) On the calculation of the rateable value of any hereditament for any
year the Commissioners shall notify the amount of that rateable value to
the persons carrying on the dock or harbour undertaking and to the rating
C70
<1The Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations <s1976>s>1
authority and the valuation officer shall cause such alterations (if any) to
be made in the valuation list as may be requisite for showing such rateable
value; and such alterations shall be treated as having been made at the
beginning of that year.
<26.>2 The duty imposed on the persons carrying on any undertaking by
article 5(1) shall be enforceable by mandamus at the instance of any rat1ng
authority concerned or of the Commissioners; and the duties imposed on
the Commissioners and the valuation officer by article 5(3) and (4) shall
be enforceable by mandamus at the instance of any such rating authority
or of the persons aforesaid.
<27.>2 No proposals shall be made for the alteration of the rateable value of
a hereditament to which this order applies.
<1Transitional provision>1
<28.>2 An election made under article 5(1A) of the Docks and Harbours
(Valuation) Order 1971, as amended, shall have effect as if made under
article 5(2).
<1Anthony Crosland,>1
16th March, 1976. Secretary of State for the Environment.
<2The Rating Surcharge (Exemption) Regulations>2
<21976>2
<2S.1. 1976 No. 982>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
Section 17 of and Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967, make
unoccupied property liable to be rated but regulations under paragraph 3
of that Schedule can prescribe hereditaments for exemptions from this
liability.
Sections 17A and 17B of this Act (as added by section 16 of the Local
Government Act 1974) make unused commercial buildings liable addi-
tionally to a surcharge and extend the power to prescribe hereditaments
for exemption accordingly.
These regulations exempt from liability to the surcharge premises
where the owner has died or is bankrupt or is a company which is being
wound up and the control of the premises has passed for the time being
into the hands of a personal representative or a trustee or liquidator.
<1Made>1 - - - 17<1th June,>1 1976
<1Laid before Parliament>1 30<1th June,>1 1976
<1Coming into Operation>1 21<1st July,>1 1976
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967, as
extended by section 17B(6) of the General Rate Act 1967 (the second
C71
<1The Rating Surcharge Regulations 1977>1
mentioned of those provisions having been inserted by section 16 of the
Local Government Act 1974) and now vested in him and of all other
powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following regula-
tions:--
<21.>2 These regulations may be cited as the Rating Surcharge (Exemption)
Regulations I976 and shall come into operation on 21st July, 1976.
<12.>1 The Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the interpretation of
these regulations as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of
Parliament.
<23.>2 No surcharge shall be payable under section 17A of the General
Rate Act 1967 in respect of a hereditament for any period of non-use
during which--
<1(a)>1 the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament only in his
capacity as the personal representative of a deceased person;
<1(b)>1 there subsists in respect of the owner's estate a receiving order
made under the Bankruptcy Act 1914;
<1(c)>1 the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament in his
capacity as trustee under a deed of arrangement to which the
Deeds 0f Arrangement Act 1914 applies;
<1(d)>1 the owner is a company which is subject to a winding-up order
made under the Companies Act 1948;
<1(e)>1 the owner is a company which is being wound-up voluntarily
under the Companies Act 1948; or
<1(f)>1 the owner is entitled to possession of the hereditament in his
capacity as liquidator by virtue of an order made under section
244 or 307 of the Companies Act 1948.
Signed by authority of <1John Silkin,>1
the Secretary of State Minister for Planning and Local Government,
17th June, 1976. Department of the Environment.
<2The Rating Surcharge (Exemption of Unused>2
<2Commercial Buildings) Regulations 1977>2
<2S.1. 1977 No. 1515>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Regulations.)>1
Section 17A of, and Schedule 1 to, the General Rate Act 1967 provide
for the levying of a surcharge additional to the rates (if any) payable in
respect of commercial buildings during certain periods of non-use.
These Regulations exempt commercial buildings from liability for the
surcharge during any period in which the owner has tried his best to sell
his interest in the building or the rateable value of the building does not
exceed #2,000 or any person is trying his best to procure the carrying out
of works, or during which works are being carried out, being in either case
C72
<1The Rating Surcharge Regulations 1977>1
works to adapt the building for use for a purpose other than that for which
it was constructed or has been adapted.
<1Made>1 - - - 8<1th September,>1 1977
<1Laid before parliament>1 12<1th September,>1 1977
<1Coming into Operation 1st October,>1 1977
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967 as
extended by section 17B(6) of the General Rate Act 1967 (the second
mentioned of those provisions having been inserted by section 16 of the
Local Government Act 1974) and now vested in him, and of all other
powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following regula-
tions:
<21.>2--(1) These regulations may be cited as the Rating Surcharge
(Exemption of Unused Commercial Buildings) Regulations 1977 and shall
come into operation on 1st October, 1977.
(2) The Interpretation Act 1889 applies to the interpretation of these
regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
<22.>2--(1) No surcharge shall be payable under section 17A of the
General Rate Act 1967 in respect of a commercial building for any period
of non-use after 30th September, 1977 during which--
(<1a>1) the owner has tried his best to sell his interest in the building, or
(<1b>1) the rateable value of the building does not exceed #2,000, or
(<1c>1) any person in good faith intends to carry out relevant works and
is trying his best to procure the carrying out of those works, or
(<1d>1) relevant works are being carried out with reasonable despatch,
and, in the case of paragraph (<1c>1) or (<1d>1) above, in consequence thereof the
building or such part as is not used cannot reasonably be used for the
purpose for which it was constructed or has been adapted.
(2) In this regulation "relevant works" means works to adapt the
building or part thereof for use for some purpose other than that for which
it was constructed or has been adapted.
<23.>2 In determining whether an owner has tried his best to sell his interest
in the building, regard shall be had to all the relevant circumstances
including, but without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing--
(<1a>1) the price at which the interest has been offered for sale compared
with the value of a comparable interest in similar properties in
the area,
(<1b>1) the covenants and conditions subject to which the interest has
been offered for sale,
(<1c>1) the number and resources of the firms of estate agents retained
for the purpose of selling the interest, and
(<1d>1) the nature and extent of advertising of the interest by the owner
or those agents.
<24.>2 The rateable value of a building for the purpose of these regulations
shall be ascertained as follows:--
(<1a>1) if the building is a hereditament for which a rateable value is
shown in the valuation list, it shall be that rateable value;
C73
<1Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1977>1
(<1b>1) if the building forms part only of such a hereditament or consists
of or forms part of more than one such hereditament, its rateable
value shall be taken to be such value as is found by a proper
apportionment or aggregation of the rateable value or values so
shown;
(<1c>1) the rateable value shown in the valuation list shall be taken to be
the value so shown at the time by reference to which the value
falls to be ascertained.
Signed by authority of <1kenneth Marks,>1
the Secretary of State Parliamentary Under Secretary of State
8th September, 1977. Department of the Environment.
<2Lands Tribunal (Amendement) Rules 1977>2
<2S.1. 1977 No. 1820>2
<1This statutory instrument amends the Lands Tribunal Rules 1975 No. 299>1
<1which are reproduced in this appendix as amended.>1
C74
<1Rating Enactments (Amendment) Regulations 1978>1
<2Rating Enactments (Agricultural Land and>2
<2Agricultural Buildings) (Amendement) Regula->2
<2tions 1978>2
<2S.I. 1978 No. 318>2
<1Amends the General Rate Act 1967 s.26(3) and the Rating Act 1971 s.2(4) by>1
<1substituting metric measurements for imperial measurements. The Acts are>1
<1reproduced in the appendix as amended.>1
<1The payment of Rates by Instalments Order 1980>1
<2The Payment of Rates by Instalments (Pre->2
<2scribed Sums) Order 1980>2
S.I. <21980 No. 2011>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Order.)>1
This order prescribes maximum and minimum sums as rateable values
of hereditaments, other than domestic hereditaments. Hereditaments
having a rateable value above or below the prescribed sums are not within
section 50 of the General Rate Act 1967, which enables the occupiers of
certain hereditaments to pay rates by instalments.
<1Made>1 - - - 19<1th December,>1 1980
<1Coming into Operation>1 12<1th January,>1 1981
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of the powers
conferred by subsections (5) (6) and (7) of section 50 of the General Rate
Act 1967, and all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes
the following order:--
<21.>2 This order may be cited as the Payment of Rates by Instalments
(Prescribed Sums) Order 1980 and shall come into operation on 12th
January, 1981.
<22.>2 This order shall have effect for rate periods beginning on or after 1st
April, 1981.
<23.>2 The first-mentioned sum to be prescribed for the purposes of section
50(5) of the General Rate Act 1967 is #100 and the second-mentioned sum
to be so prescribed is, in relation t0 hereditaments in Greater London,
#5,000 and, in relation to hereditaments elsewhere, #2,000.
<1Michael R. D. Heseltine,>1
19th December, 1980. Secretary of State for the Environment.
C76
<1The Unoccupied Property Rate Order 1980>1
<2The Unoccupied Property Rate>2
<2(Variation of Current Ceiling) Order 1980>2
<2S.1. 1980 No. 2012>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Order.)>1
This order varies, with effect from 1st April, 1981, the current ceiling
for unoccupied property rate from the whole of the amount of rates
ordinarily payable to one half of that amount. The current ceiling is varied
only in respect of hereditaments other than houses.
<1Made>1 - - - 19<1th December,>1 1980
<1Laid before Parliament>1 12<1th January,>1 1981
<1Coming into Operation 1st April,>1 1981
The Secretary of State for the Environment, in exercise of his powers
under paragraph 1(2E) of Schedule 1 to the General Rate Act 1967, and
all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby orders as follows:--
<21.>2 This order may be cited as the Unoccupied Property Rate (Variation
of Current Ceiling) Order 1980 and shall come into operation on 1st
April, 1981.
<22.>2 In this order "the Act" means the General Rate Act 1967.
<23.>2--(1) The proportion of the amount of rates mentioned in paragraph
1(2D) of Schedule 1 to the Act which is the current ceiling for the
purposes of the said paragraph 1, (namely, the whole of the rates which
disregarding section 48 of the Act would be payable by the owner if he
were in occupation of the hereditament), shall in respect of any heredita-
ment (not being a house) be varied to one half of the said rates so payable.
(2) In paragraph (1) above "house" includes part of a house and any
garden, yard, court or other land ordinarily used or intended for use for
the purposes of the house or part.
<1Michael R. D. Heseltine,>1
19th December, 1980. Secretary of State for the Environment.
C77
<1The Local Government, planning and Land Act 1980 Order 1980>1
<2The Local Government, Planning and Land Act>2
<21980 (Commencement Noa 3) Order 1980>2
<2S.I. 1980 No.>2 2014
<1Brings into force from the 1 April 1981 the following provisions of the Local Government,>1.
<1Planning and Land Act 1980.>1
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Provisions of the Act Subject matter of provisions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Section 33 Domestic rate relief
Section 34 Payment by instalments
Section 37 Recovery of rates from owners
Section 44 Notice of rate
Section 45(1)-(4) Rate rebates
Part IX of Schedule 34, so far as it relates Enactments repealed
to the repeals set out in the Appendix to
this Schedule
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Short Title Extent of Repeal
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1967 c. <19.>1 General Rate Act 1967 In section 4(2) the words "of
seven days".
Section 5(1)(<1g>1).
Section 48(4).
Section 50(2).
. In Schedule 10, paragraph 2, in
paragraph <15(c)>1 the words from
"apart" to "this Act" and in
paragraph 6 the words "in
accordance with paragraph 1(a)
of this Schedule".
1969 c. 19. Decimal Currency Act 1969 In Schedule 2, paragraph 28(3).
1973 c. xxx. Greater London Council Section 26.
(General Powers) Act 1973
1974 c. 7. Local Government Act 1974 In Schedule 7, paragraph 4.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
C78
<1The Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981>1
<2The Lands Tribunal (Amendment) Rules 1981>2
<2S.1. 1981 No. 105>2
<1This statutory instrument amends the Lands Tribunal Rules 1975 No. 299>1
<1which are reproduced in this appendix as amended.>1
<1The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate) Regulations 1981>1
<2The Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)>2
<2(Amendment) Regulations 1981>2
<2S.I. 1981 No. 326>2
<1This statutory instrument amends the Mixed Hereditaments (Certificate)>1
<1Regulations 1967 No. 637 which is printed as amended in this appendix.>1
<1The Rate-demands Rules 1981>1
<2The Rate-demands Rules 1981>2
<2S.I. 1981 No. 328>2
EXPLANATORY NOTE
<1(This Note is not part of the Rules.)>1
These rules, which supersede the Rate-demands Rules 1974 prescribe
matters to be contained in rate demand notes apart from those required to
be shown by any statutory provisions. They apply to rate demand notes
made in respect of any rate period beginning on or after 1st April, 1981.
They do not prescribe the form of the rate demand note which is left to the
discretion of rating authorities. Among the matters to be shown are an
explanation as to how the amount of rates is calculated and information as
to the availability of various rate rebates and allowances.
<1Made>1 - - - 4<1th March,>1 1981
<1Laid before Parliament>1 11<1th March,>1 1981
<1Coming into Operation>1 1<1st April,>1 1981
The Secretary of State for the Environment, after consultation with the
associations of local authorities with whom c0nsultation appeared to him
to be desirable, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 113 of the
General Rate Act 1967, and now vested in him, and of all other powers
enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following rules:--
<21.>2 These rules may be cited as the Rate-demands Rules 1981 and shall
come into operation on 1st April, 1981.
<22.>2--(1) Any reference in these rules to a numbered section shall, unless
the reference is to a section of a specified Act, be construed as a reference
to the section bearing that number in the General Rate Act 1967.
(2) In these rules "residential occupier" has the same meaning as in
section 13 of the Local Government Act 1974.
<23.>2 These rules shall apply in relation to rates made by the councils of
districts and London boroughs in respect of any rate period beginning on
or after 1st April, 1981 save that nothing in these rules shall be taken as
rendering invalid, for any rate penod in the year beginning 1st April,
1981, any demand note prepared in accordance with the Rate-demands
Rules 1974.
<24.>2 Subject to the provisions of any enactment every demand note on
which a rate is levied shall show the particulars and information required
by these rules.
<25.>2 There shall be included in the demand note a statement as to
whether any rate has been previously made by the rating authority in that
year.
<26.>2 The demand note shall show the amount of rates due in relation to
the hereditament in respect of which the demand note is issued and an
explanation as to the method by which that amount was calculated.
<27.>2 There shall be included in the demand note informati0n showing the
amounts in the pound of the rate reductions made for domestic or mixed
hereditaments respectively in pursuance of section 48(1) or, in any case
where the period is less than a year, the equivalent reductions made in
pursuance of section 48(2).
C82
<1The Rate-demands Rules 1981>1
<28.>2 There shall be included in the demand note information showing--
(<1a>1) that a person who is a residential occupier may, according to his
personal circumstances, be entitled to a rate rebate and that the
rating authority will provide 0n request further information on
the subject;
(<1b>1) that a person who is the occupier of a hereditament may, in
certain circumstances, be entitled to pay rates by instalments
under section 50;
(<1c>1) that a disabled person who is the occupier of a hereditament
which has special facilities for him or makes payment by way of
rent in respect of all or any part of such a hereditament, or a
person who is a member of the same household as a disabled
person who is the occupier of such a hereditament or makes such
payments may, in certain circumstances, be entitled to a rebate
under section 1 of the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act 1978;
(<1d>1) that a body which occupies a hereditament which is an institution
for the disabled may, in certain circumstances, be entitled to a
rate rebate under section 2 of the Rating (Disabled Persons) Act
1978.
<29.>2 As regards hereditaments in respect of which an allowance may be
claimed under section 55(2) or 56(1) the rating authority shall include in
the demand note information with respect to the allowance which may be
claimed.
<210.>2 Where information is included in the demand note in pursuance of
rule 8 or 9 above, there shall also be included in that demand note the
name and address of the person to whom any application for such
entitlement or allowance should be made.
<211.>2 There shall be included in the demand note information as to the
methods by which payment may be made, and the address of a place at
which and the hours during which payment may be made in person.
<212.>2 The demand note shall show the address of the valuation officer for
the rating area and shall state his functions in relation to the maintenance,
preparation and alteration of valuation lists.
<213.>2 The demand note shall show the name of any authority from whom
a precept has been received by the rating authority which is relevant to the
part of the area of the authority within which the hereditament is situated.
<214.>2--(1) A demand note may include a demand for any other rate, rent
or charge.
(2) Where any charge is to be collected by a rating authority the
demand note shall show, distinct from the general rate, the amount in the
pound being levied for that charge or, where the charge is a fixed charge,
the actual amount of that charge.
<215.>2 The rating authority may, if it thinks fit, show the particulars and
information required by these rules in a single demand note in cases where
a person is rated in respect of two or more hereditaments.
<216.>2 The Rate-demands Rules 1974 are hereby revoked.
<1Michael R. D. Heseltine,>1
4th March, 1981. Secretary of State for the Environment.
C83
<1The Lands Tribunal (Amendment No. 2) Rules 1981>1
<2The Lands Tribunal (Amendment No. 2) Rules>2
<21981>2
<2S.I. 1981 No. 600>2
<1This Statutory Instrument amends the Lands Tribunal Rules 1975, which>1
<1are printed in this appendix us amended.>1
C84
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
to be settled when an alteration is made in the list so as to give effect to the
proposal, or to an agreement made in consequence of the proposal, or
when proceedings on an appeal against, or a reference to arbitration
relating to, and objection to the proposal (including any proceedings
consequent on such an appeal or reference to arbitration) are finally
determined, or when the proposal is withdrawn, whichever first occurs.
(5) Any reference in this Act to the alteration of a valuation list includes
a reference to the insertion in the list, or the deletion from the list, of a
hereditament.
(6) Except in so far as the context otherwise requires, a reference in this
Act to an enactment or instrument shall be construed as a reference to
that enactment or instrument as amended or extended by or under any
other enactment or instrument, including any enactment contained in this
Act.
<1Section 115(2) arnended by S.I. 1970/1681>1
<1function of Minister of Housing and Local Government now exercisable by>1
<1Secretary of State: S. 1. 1970/1681>1
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.37, (for commencement see
s.47).
<sa>s Repealed by Local Government Act 1974, sch. 8.
31. Words added by Rating Act 1971 (c.39), s.1(4).
32. Definition substituted by Local Govemment Act 1972 (c.70), s.172, sch. 13 para. 28(6).
33. Definitions of "rubate application" and "rebate period" repealed by Local Government
Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 8.
34. Words substituted by Local Govemment Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 7 para. 9.
35. S. 115(3)(c) substituted by Local Govemment Act 1974 (c.7), sch. 7 para. 9.
<2Construction of references etc.>2
<2116.>2--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, all enactments relating
to the poor rate which were in force immediately before the commence-
ment of this Act, including enactments relating to appeals against a poor
rate, shall, so far as not repealed by this Act or by the Local Government
Act 1966, apply in relation to the general rate.
(2) References in any Act or other document to any rate which is a rate
in lieu of which a general rate under this Act is levied or in lieu of which an
amount is leviable together with, and as an additional item of, the general
rate shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be construed as refer-
ences respectively to the general rate and the additional item thereof.
(3) References in any Act or other document to gross value or gross
estimated rental or to net annual value or rateable value as determined by
valuation lists made under the Union Assessment Acts 1862 to 1880 or as
shown in, or ascertained in accordance with, the Acts relating to the basis
or standard of county rates shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be
construed as references to gross value or net annual value, as the case may
be, as ascertained under section 19 of this Act.
(4) References in any Act or other document to assessable value shall,
except where the term is used in relation to income tax, be construed as
references t0 rateable value as ascertained under this Act.
(5) References in any Act or other document to the valuation list or
supplemental list under the said Acts of 1862 to 1880 shall, unless the
context otherwise requires, be construed as references to the valuation list
under this Act.
B128
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(6) So much of any Act or other document as refers, or as immediately
before the commencement of this Act fell to be construed as referring,
expressly or by implication--
(a) to, or to the Act containing, any enactment repealed and
re-enacted by this Act; or
(b) to, or to the instrument containing, any instrument or provision
of an instrument specified in Part II of Schedule 14 to this Act,
shall, if and so far as the context permits, be construed as referring to, or
as the case may require to the corresponding provision of, this Act.
(7) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (6) of this
section--
(a) any enactment which refers to the procedure for enforcing
payment of poor rate, or to any part of that procedure, shall be
construed as referring to the procedure prescribed by Part VI of
this Act, or to the corresponding part of that procedure; and
(b) the reference in rule 45 of the Magistrates' Courts Rules 1952 to
section 67(2) of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1952 shall include a
reference to section 102(5) of this Act.
(8)...................................................................
<1Repealed by Local Government Act 1972, sch. 30.>1
(9)<sa>s ...........................................................
(10) In Schedule 1 to the Local Government Act 1966--
(a) in paragraph 6 of Part II, for the reference to rules under section
25 of that Act there shall be substituted a reference to rules made
by virtue of section 113(1)(c) of this Act;
(b) in paragraph 1 of Part III, for the reference to section 6 of that
Act there shall be substituted a reference to section 48 of this
Act.
<1Section 116(1) amended by Courts Act 1971 (c.23), s.56(2), sch. 9 Pt. 1.>1
<sa>s <1Texturally amends Rating and Valuation Act 1925 (c.90), s.2(7) and Licening Act 1964>1
<1(c. 26), sch. 2 para. S(a).>1
<2Repeals and savings>2
<2117.>2--(1) The enactments specified in Part I of Schedule 14 to this Act
are hereby repealed to the extent respectively specified in the third
column of that Schedule; and the instruments or parts of instruments
specified in Part II of that Schedule are hereby revoked.
(2) The following enactments, namely, the Rating (Interim Relief) Act
1964 and section 47 of this Act, are hereby repealed as from 1st April
1968 except as respects any period before that date; but nothing in this
Act shall affect the operation of the said Act of 1964 as respects any such
period.
(3) Any instrument in force at the commencement of this Act and
made or having effect as if made under any enactment repealed by and
re-enacted in this Act, and anything whatsoever done under or by virtue
of any such enactment, shall be deemed to have been made or done under
or by virtue of the corresponding provision of this Act; and anything
begun under any such enactment may be continued under this Act as if
begun under this Act.
B129
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(4) Any question with respect to the matters dealt with by this Act
arising in respect of, or of a liability incurred during, any period before the
commencement of this Act shall be determined as if this Act had not been
passed.
(5) Subject as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, nothing therein
contained shall affect--
(a) the principles on which hereditaments are to be valued or any
privilege or any provision for the making of a valuation on any
exceptional principle; or
(b) any exemption from or privilege in respect of rating conferred by
any local Act or order; or
(c) any provision in any local Act under which the owner of a
hereditament is liable to pay or bear a portion of any rate in relief
of the occupier without being entitled to any commission,
reduction, or allowance in respect of that liability; or
(d) any statutory provision authorising appointment of a person to
raise a rate on default being made by a local authority in
performing any duty or making any payment.
(6) Subsection (5) of this section shall not apply to any exemption or
privilege conferred by a local Act or order passed or made before 22nd
December 1925 unless that exemption or privilege either--
(a) is continued in operation by a scheme such as is mentioned in
subsection (7) of this section which is for the time being in force;
or
(b) was enjoyed in practice immediately before the commencement
of this Act;
and, without prejudice to subsection (12) of this section, paragraphs (b) to
(d) of the said subsection (5) shall not apply to the inner London
boroughs, the City of London or the Temples.
(7) Notwithstanding anything in this Act or in the provisions with
respect to county roads of the Highways Act 1959, but subject to
subsections (8) and (9) of this section, any scheme such as is mentioned in
section 64(2) of the Rating and Valuation Act 1925 or section 301 of the
said Act of 1959 for the purpose of securing the continued operation of
any exemption from or privilege in respect of rating, being a scheme in
force immediately before the commencement of this Act, shall continue in
force and have effect as if included in this Act.
(8) In the case of any hereditament the rating authority (or, where the
exemption continued is an exemption from a highways rate, the council of
the county in which the hereditament is situated) and all persons
interested in the hereditament may agree that any privilege or exemption
in respect of that hereditament continued by any such scheme as is
mentioned in subsection (7) of this section shall be surrendered and
extinguished in consideration of such payments as may be agreed between
them.
(9) The Minister may, on an application in that behalf made by any
person affected by a scheme such as is mentioned in subsection (7) of this
section and after publishing notice of the proposed order in such manner
as he thinks proper, by order vary or amend the scheme as he thinks
proper; but if any person, being a person who will in the opinion of the
B130
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
Minister be affected by the proposed order, gives notice in writing to the
Minister that he objects to the proposed order--
(a) the Minister shall, before making the order, direct a local inquiry
to be held for the purpose of determining whether the order
ought or ought not to be made; and
(b) if the Minister after receiving the report of the inquiry is of
opinion that the order ought to be made either as originally
proposed by him or with any variations or modifications, he may
make the order accordingly, but, unless the objection is with-
drawn, the order shall be a provisional order only and shall not
be of any validity unless and until it has been confirmed by Act of
Parliament.
(10) Any of the following instruments in force immediately before the
commencement of this Act, that is to say--
(a) any order made under section 66 of the Rating and Valuation
Act 1925 adapting the provisions of any local Act;
(b) any order made under section 70(3) of the Local Government
Act 1948 for the continuance in force of any provision of any
local Act;
(c) any regulations made under section 71 (a) to (c) of the said Act
of 1948,
shall continue in force in the like manner, subject to the like power of
revocation or variation, as if the said section 66, 70(3) or 71(a) to (c), as
the case may be, had been re-enacted in this Act.
(11) Notwithstanding the repeal by this Act of section 5(4) of the
Rating and Valuation Act 1961, section 41(2) of the Pipe-lines Act 1962
and section 3(7) of the Gas Act 1965, the Schedule to the Plant and
Machinery (Rating) Order 1960 shall continue to have effect as amended
by virtue of the said sections 5(4), 41(2) and 3(7).
(12) Nothing in this Act shall affect the operation of any provision of a
local Act or order so far as that provision was in force immediately before
the commencement of this Act.
(13) The provisions of this section and of sections 107 and 116 of this
Act shall be without prejudice to the general application to this Act of
section 38 of the Interpretation Act 1889 (which relates to the effect of
repeals).
<1Section 117(7) extended by Transport Act 1968 (c.73), s.162 (4) (a).>1
<2Application to Isles of Scilly>2
<2118.>2--(1) Subject to any order under subsection (2) of this section,
references in this Act to a rating area or rating authority shall, in relation
to the Isles of Scilly, be construed as references respectively to those Isles
and to the Council of those Isles.
(2) The Minister may by order direct that the provisions of this Act
shall apply to the Isles of Scilly subject to such exceptions, adaptations
and modifications, if any, as may be specified in the order.
<1Section 118 extended by Local Government Act 1974 (c. 7), s.22(3).>1
B131
<2Short title, extent and commencement>2
<2119.>2--(1) This Act may be cited as the General Rate Act 1967.
(2) This Act except section 104(2) and the repeal of section 9(2) of the
Distress for Rates Act 1960 shall not extend to Northern Ireland.
(3) This Act, except as aforesaid and except for paragraph 6 of
Schedule 5, shall not extend to Scotland.
(4) This Act shall come into force on such day as the Minister of
Housing and Local Government may by order appoint, not being earlier
than whichever of the following dates is the latest, that is to say--
(a) 1st April 1967;
(b) the day appointed under section 38(1) of the Local Government
Act 1966;
(c) the date of commencement of the first order to be made under
section 118(2) of this Act.
<1Section 119(4) excluded by General Rate Act 1970 (c.19), s.2(4).>1
<2SCHEDULES>2
SCHEDULE 1
RATING OF UNOCCUPIED PROPERTY
<1Liability to be rated in respect of certain unoccupied property>1
<2 1>2.--(1) Where, in the case of any rating area in which, by virtue of a
resolution under section 17 of this Act, this Schedule is in operation, any
relevant hereditament in that area [<s1>sor, if only a class or classes of relevant
hereditament is or are for the time being specified by a resolution of the
rating authority for the purposes of this paragraph, any relevant heredita-
ment in that area which falls within that class or any of those classes] is
unoccupied for a continuous period exceeding [the standard period]<sa>s, the
owner shall, subject to the provisions of this Schedule, be rated in respect
of that hereditament for any relevant period of vacancy; and the
provisions of this Act shall apply accordingly as if the hereditament were
occupied during that relevant period of vacancy by the owner.
[(1A) In this Schedule -the standard period' means three months or
such other period as the Secretary of State may by order specify.
(1B) An order under sub-paragraph (1A) of this paragraph may specify
different periods in relation to different classes of hereditament].<sb>s
(2) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the amount of any rates
payable by an owner in respect of a hereditament by virtue of this
paragraph shall be [<s2>sthe specified proportion] of the amount which would
be payable if he were in occupation of the hereditament; [. ]<sc>s
B132
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
[(2A) The owner of a relevant hereditament shall not be exempt from
being rated under this Schedule in respect of that hereditament on the
ground that the provisions of section 32, 33 or 34 of this Act would exempt
the hereditament from being liable to be rated or to be included in any
valuation list or in any rate, unless it appears that the relevant provisions
will so exempt it when it is next occupied.
(2B) No reduction shall be made under section 48 of this Act in respect
of any rates payable by an owner by virtue of this paragraph.
(2C) In this paragraph 'the specified proportion', in relation to a
hereditament, means such proportion (not more than the current ceiling)
as may be specified for the purposes of this paragraph by a resolution of
the rating authority for the rating area in which the hereditament is
situated; and different proportions may be so specified in relation to
different classes of hereditament and in relation to hereditaments in
different parts of the rating area.
(2D) Subject to sub-paragraph (2E) of this paragraph, in sub-
paragraph (2C) of this paragraph 'the current ceiling' means the whole of
the amount of rates which, disregarding section 48 of this Act, would be
payable by the owner if he were in occupation of the hereditament<sd>s and,
in a case to which sub-paragraph (2A) or sub-paragraph (2B) of this
paragraph applies, if the hereditament were being used as mentioned in
that sub-paragraph.
(2E) Subject to sub-paragraph (2F) of this paragraph, the Secretary of
State may from time to time by order vary the proportion of the amount
mentioned in sub-paragraph (2D) of this paragraph which is to be the
current ceiling for the purposes of this paragraph.<sb1>s
(2F) No order under sub-paragraph (2E) of this paragraph may so vary
that proportion as to make the current ceiling exceed the whole of the
amount mentioned in sub-paragraph (2D) of this paragraph.
(2G) Different proportions may be specified under sub-paragraph (2E)
of this paragraph in relation to different classes of hereditament and in
relation to hereditaments in different rating areas.]<sa>s
(3) Where a relevant hereditament which is unoccupied becomes
occupied on any day and becomes unoccupied again on the expiration of a
period of less than six weeks beginning with that day, then, for the
purpose of ascertaining [whether the hereditament has been continuously
unoccupied for the standard period]<sa>s and any relevant period of vacancy
in respect of the hereditament, it shall be deemed to have remained
unoccupied on that day and during that period.
(4) In relation to a relevant hereditament which is a newly-erected
dwelling-house within the meaning of this Schedule, the foregoing
provisions of this paragraph and the definition of "relevant period of
vacancy" in paragraph 15 of this Schedule shall have effect as if for any
reference to [the standard period]<sa>s there were substituted a reference to
[the new house period].<sa>s
[(5) In sub-paragraph (4) of this paragraph "the new house period"
means six months or such other period as the Secretary of State may by
order specify.
(6) A statutory instrument containing an order under this paragraph
shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House
of Parliament. ]<sb>s
B133
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
1 Words inserted by Local Government Art 1974 (c.7). s.15(3).
2 Words substituted by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7). s.15(4)
3 Paragraph 1(2A) added by Local Government Art 1974 (c.7). s.15(4)
Does not apply to the rating surcharge, read section 17A General Rate Act 1967 in place of
paragraph 1.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.42.
<sb>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.42.
<sb1>s See the Unoccupied Property Rate (Variation of Current Ceiling) order 1980 No. 2012.
<sc>s Repealed by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, sch. 34 Pt. IX.
<sd>s This ceiling still applies in the case of a house. But for any other type of hereditament the
ceiling is (from 1st April 1981) one half of the rates which would be payable by the owner if he
was in occupation. Unoccupied Property Rate (Variation of Current Ceiling) order 1980 No.
2012.
2. No rates shall be payable under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in
respect of a hereditament for, or for any part of the [standard period]<sa>s
beginning with the day following the end of, any period during which--
(a) the owner is prohibited by law from occupying the hereditament
or allowing it to be occupied;
(b) the hereditament is kept vacant by reason of action taken by or
on behalf of the Crown or any local or public authority with a
view to prohibiting the occupation of the hereditament or to
acquiring it;
(c) the hereditament [<s1>sis the subject of [<s2>sa building preservation
notice as defined by section 58 of the Town and Country
Planning Act 1971 or is included in a list compiled or approved
under section 54 of that Act]] or is notified to the rating authority
by the Minister as a building of architectural or historic interest;
(d) the hereditament is the subject of a preservation order or an
interim preservation notice under the Ancient Monuments Acts
1913 to 1953, or is included in a list published by the Minister of
Public Building and Works under those Acts;<sb>s
(e) an agreement is in force with respect to the hereditament under
section 56(1)(a) of this Act; or
(f) the hereditament is held for the purpose of being available for
occupation by a minister of religion as a residence from which to
perform the duties of his office.
<1Functions of Minister of Public Building and Works now exercisable by Secretary>1
<1 of State: S.I. 1970/1681.>1
Does not apply to the rating surcharge.
1 Words substituted by Town and Country Planning Act 1968 (c.72), s.106. sch. 9 para. 68.
2 Words substituted by Town and Country Hanning Act 1971 (c 78). sch. 23 Pt.II.
<sa>s substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.42.
<sb>s See Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 sch. 4, para. 10(b) will amend
sub-para. (d), from a date to be ordered.
<23.>2 The Minister may by regulations provide that rates shall not be
payable under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in respect of hereditaments of
such descriptions as may be prescribed by the regulations or in such
circumstances as may be so prescribed and the regulations may make
different provision for hereditaments of different descriptions and for
different circumstances.
B134
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
[<233A.>2 without prejudice to section 53 of this Act, a rating authority
shall have power to reduce or remit the payment of any rates payable in
respect of a hereditament by virtue of paragraph 1 of this Schedule if they
consider that the payment would cause hardship to the person liable for
those rates.]
3 Paragraph 3A added by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s.15(5).
<24>2. Section 40 of this Act shall apply in relation to any relevant
hereditament to which that section applied when it was last occupied as if
it were used for the purpose for which it was then used.
[<24A>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, section 40 of this
Act shall also apply in relation to any relevant hereditament to which it
did not apply when it was last occupied if--
(a) it is owned by, or by trustees for, a charity; and
(b) such notice as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (2) below is given
by the charity or, as the case may be, the trustees.
(2) The notice is a notice in writing to the rating authority that it is
intended that the hereditament shall be wholly or mainly used for the
purposes of the charity or for the purposes of the charity and of other
charities.
(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (4) below, section 40 of this Act shall
cease to apply to a hereditament by virtue of this paragraph on the expiry
of a period of two years--
(a) from the date on which the hereditament was acquired by the
charity or by trustees for it; or
(b) from the passing of the Local Government, Planning and Land
Act 1980,
whichever is the later.
(4) Section 40 of this Act shall cease to apply to a hereditament by
virtue of this paragraph--
(a) if the hereditament ceases to be owned by the charity or by
trustees for it; or
(b) if it continues to be owned by the charity or by trustees for it, but
it ceases to be the intention of the charity or, as the case may be,
the trustees that it shall be used as mentioned in sub-paragraph
(2) above.]<sa>s
<sa>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, s.42.
<1Determination of rateable values>1
<25>2.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the rateable value of
a hereditament for the purposes of paragraph 1 thereof shall be the
rateable value ascribed to it in the valuation list in force for the area in
which the hereditament is situated or, if the hereditament is not included
in that list, the first rateable value subsequently ascribed to the heredita-
ment in a valuation list in force for that area.
(2) If the relevant period of vacancy in respect of a hereditament begins
before and ends at or after the time when a new valuation list comes into
force for the area of the rating authority and the hereditament is not
included in the previous valuation list, then--
B135
(a) the valuation officer shall, at the request of the rating authority
or the owner of the hereditament, certify to that authority the
rateable value which in his opinion would (in accordance with
section 20 of this Act) have been ascribed to the hereditament if
it had been included in the previous list by alteration of that list;
(b) the provisions of Part V of this Act shall apply in relation to any
such certificate as if it were a proposal by the valuation officer for
the alteration of a valuation list; and
(c) for the purposes of the liability of the owner to be rated in
respect of so much of the relevant period of vacancy as fell before
the coming into force of the new valuation list, the rateable value
of the hereditament shall be taken to be the value as settled in
pursuance of the certificate and any proceedings consequent
thereon.
(3) Where two or more persons are or have been severally entitled to
possession of different parts of any property which is included in a
valuation list as a hereditament or to which a certificate under sub-
paragraph (2) of this paragraph relates and any of those parts--
(a) consists of property suitable for inclusion in a valuation list as a
separate hereditament; and
(b) would be a relevant hereditament if it were included in a
valuation list as a separate hereditament,
the part may be treated as a relevant hereditament for the purposes of this
Schedule and the valuation officer may give such directions as he thinks fit
for apportioning between those parts the rateable value ascribed to the
property by the list or certificate aforesaid.
<26>2. (1) A rating authority may request the valuation officer to make a
proposal for including in the valuation list in force for their area any
unoccupied building in their area (together with any garden, yard, court or
other land intended for use for the purposes of the building) which in their
opinion is, or when completed will be, a newly erected dwelling-house;
and if the valuation officer thinks fit to comply with the request he may
make a proposal for including the building (together with any such
garden, yard, court or other land as aforesaid) as a dwelling-house in that
list and for ascribing to it in the list such values as he considers are
appropriate or will be appropriate when the building is completed.
(2) Where such a request is made by a rating authority and
the valuation officer serves notice in writing by post or otherwise
on the authority stating that he does not propose to comply with the
request, the rating authority may, if they think fit, within the period of
twenty-eight days beginning with the date of service of the notice, make
a proposal for including the the building and any other land to which the
request relates as a dwelling-house in the list aforesaid and for ascribing
to it in the list such values as the authority consider are appropriate or
will be appropriate when the building is completed.
(3) Where a new valuation list is prepared for any area, the valuation
officer shall include in the list as transmitted to the rating authority--
(a) any dwelling-house included in the current list for that area in
pursuance of a proposal under sub-paragraph (1) or (2) of this
paragraph; and
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) any building (with or without other land) in respect of which a
proposal for its inclusion in the current list as a dwelling-house
has been made by him under the said sub-paragraph (1) and has
not been settled,
and if any such proposal is made by him after the new list has been so
transmitted, shall cause that list to be altered so as to include the building
(with or without other land) as a dwelling-house in the new list.
(4) Mere a newly erected dwelling-house is first occupied after its
completion and a rateable value has, in pursuance of the foregoing
provisions of this paragraph, previously been ascribed to it in the
valuation list currently in force for the area in which it is situated, any
different rateable value subsequently ascribed to it in that list and which,
apart from this sub-paragraph, would have effect from the date when the
dwelling-house is first occupied as aforesaid shall be deemed to have
effect from the date on which the current list came into force or the date
from which the previous rateable value had effect, whichever is the later.
Does not apply to the rating surcharge.
<1Completion of newly erected or altered buildings>1
<27.>2 for the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Schedule, a newly erected
building which is not occupied on the date determined under the
subsequent provisions of this Schedule as the date on which the erection
of the building is completed shall be deemed to become unoccupied on
that date.
<28.>2--(1) Where a rating authority are of opinion--
(a) that the erection of a building within their area has been
completed; or
(b) that the work remaining to be done on a building within their
area is such that the erection of the building can reasonably be
expected to be completed within three months,
and that the building is, or when completed will be, comprised in a
relevant hereditament, the authority may serve on the owner of the
building a notice (hereafter in this paragraph referred to as "a
completion notice") stating that the erection of the building is to be
treated for the purposes of this Schedule as completed on the date of
service of the notice or on such later date as may be specified by the
notice.
(2) If a person on whom a completion notice is served agrees in writing
with the authority by whom the n0tice was served that the erection of the
building to which the notice relates shall be treated for the purposes of this
Schedule as completed on a day specified by the agreement, it shall be
treated for those purposes as completed on that day and the notice shall
be deemed to be withdrawn.
(3) Where a rating authority has served a completion notice on any
person, the authority may withdraw the notice by a subsequent notice
served on that person; and a notice under this sub-paragraph may be
served--
(a) at any time before an appeal in pursuance of sub-paragraph (4)
of this paragraph is brought against the completion notice; and
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) with the agreement of the person aforesaid, at any time there-
after and before the appeal is determined.
(4) A person on whom a completion notice is served may, during the
period of twenty-one days beginning with the date of service of the notice,
appeal to the county court against the notice on the ground that the
erection of the building to which the notice relates has not been or, as the
case may be, cannot reasonably be expected to be completed by the date
specified by the notice.
(5) If a completion notice served in respect of a building is not
withdrawn and no appeal in pursuance of sub-paragraph (4) of this
paragraph is brought against the notice or such an appeal is abandoned or
dismissed, the erection of the building shall be treated for the purposes of
this Schedule as completed on the date specified by the notice; and if the
notice is not withdrawn and such an appeal is brought and is not
abandoned or dismissed, the erection of the building shall be treated for
those purposes as completed on such date as the court shall determine.
(6) A notice under this paragraph may, without prejudice to any other
mode of service, be served on any person--
(a) by sending it in a prepaid registered letter, or by the recorded
delivery service, addressed to that person at his usual or last
known place of abode, or, in a case where an address for service
has been given by that person, at that address; or
(b) in the case of an incorporated company or body, by delivering it
to the secretary or clerk of the company or body at their
registered or principal office, or sending it in a prepaid registered
letter, or by the recorded delivery service, addressed to the
secretary or clerk of the company or body at that office; or
(c) where the name or address of that person cannnnot be ascer-
tained after reasonable inquiry, by addressing it to him by the
description of --owner" of the building (describing it) to which
the notice relates and by affixing it to some conspicuous part of
the building.
<29>2. In the case of a building to which work remains to be done of a kind
which is customarily done to a building of the type in question after the
erection of the building has been substantially completed, it shall be
assumed for the purposes of paragraph 8 of this Schedule that the erection
of the building has been or can reasonably be expected to be completed at
the expiration of such period beginning with the date of its completion
apart from the work as is reasonably required for carrying out the
work.
<210.>2 Where by reason of the structural alteration of any building a
relevant hereditament becomes or becomes part of a different heredita-
ment or different hereditaments, the relevant hereditament shall be
deemed for the purposes of this Schedule to have ceased to exist on the
date (as determined in pursuance of the foregoing provisions of this
Schedule) of the completion of the structural alteration and, in particular,
to have been omitted on that date from any valuation list in which it is
then included; but nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as
affecting any liability for rates under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in
respect of the hereditament for any period before that date.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Supplemental>1
<211.>2--(1) Where a person for the time being liable to be rated under
paragraph 1 of this Schedule--
(a) in respect of a relevant hereditament which is not included in a
valuation list; or
(b) in respect of a dwelling-house included in such a list in pursuance
of paragraph 6 of this Schedule but not occupied since it was so
included,
serves on the valuation officer a notice referring to the hereditament or
dwelling-house and stating his name and address and that he is so liable,
then, in relation to any proposal for including the hereditament in a
valuation list or, as the case may be, any proposal served in respect of the
dwelling-house before the end of the rate period during which it is first
occupied after it was so included in the list, the person aforesaid shall be
treated for the purposes of the provisions of Part V of this Act relating to
proposals, objections and appeals as standing in the same position as the
occupier of the hereditament or dwelling-house.
(2) A notice served under sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph in
respect of a hereditament such as is mentioned in paragraph (a) of that
sub-paragraph which subsequently becomes a dwelling-house such as is
mentioned in paragraph (b) thereof shall be treated as served in respect of
the dwelling-house as well as in respect of the hereditament.
(3) Where, in pursuance of such a proposal in respect of a dwelling-
house as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph, an
alteration is made in a valuation list which affects the amount of any rate
levied under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in respect of the dwelling-
house, the difference--
(a) if too much has been paid, shall be repaid or allowed; or
(b) if too little has been paid, shall be paid and may be recovered as
if it were arrears of the rate.
(4) References in sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph to a person liable
as there mentioned include references to a person who would be so liable
if a relevant period of vacancy had begun in relation to the hereditament
or dwelling-house in question.
<212.>2 No rate shall be payable under paragraph 1 of this Schedule in
respect of a hereditament for any period during which it is deemed by
virtue of sub-paragraph (3) of that paragraph to have been unoccupied;
and any rate paid under that paragraph in respect of such a period shall be
recoverable by the person by whom it was paid.
Does not apply to rating surcharge.
<213.>2 Any amount due in respect of rates payable by virtue of paragraph
1 of this Schedule shall, without prejudice to the operation of any other
enactment under which it is recoverable, be recoverable as a simple
contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.
<214.>2 In calculating any period for the purposes of this Schedule, any
pen-od when this Schedule is not in force in the rating area in question
shall be disregarded; but the fact that this Schedule has ceased to be in
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
force in any area shall not affect its operation as respects any period when
it was in force in the area.
1. Added by Local Government Act 1974 (c.1). s.15(6).
Does not apply to rating surcharge.
[<s1>s(2) In calculating any period for the purposes of this schedule in
relation to a hereditament which is of a class specified by the rating
authority for the purposes of paragraph 1 above, any eariier period during
which classes of relevant hereditament were, but no class comprising that
hereditament was, so specified shall be disregarded.]
Does not apply to the rating surcharge.
<215.>2 In this Schedule, the following expressions have the following
meanings respectively, that is to say--
"building" includes part of a building;
"local authority" means the council of a county, . . .<s2>s or county
district, the Greater London Council, the council of a London
borough, the Common Council of the City of London or the
Council of the Isles of Scilly;
"owner", in relation to a relevant hereditament or to a building,
Means the person entitled to possession of the hereditament or
building;
"relevant hereditament" means any hereditament consisting of, or of
part of, a house, shop, office, factory, mill or other building
whatsoever, together with any garden, yard, court or other land
ordinarily used orintended for use forthe purposes ofthe building
or part;
["relevant period of vacancy", in relation t0 a relevant here-
ditament, means any period during which the hereditament
has been continuously unoccupied, beginning with the unoccu-
pied rating day and ending with the day preceding that on
which the hereditament becomes or next becomes occupied or
ceases to exist; and]<sa>s
["Unoccupied rating day", in relation to a relative hereditament,
means--
(a) if the hereditament is a newly erected dwelling-house, the day
following the end of the new house period (as defined in
sub-paragraph (5) of paragraph 1 of this Schedule); and
(b) in any other case, the day following the end of the standard
period (as defined in sub-paragraph (1A) of that paragraph).]<sb>s
and references to a newly erected building or dwelling-house include
references to a building or dwelling-house produced by the structural
alteration of a building included in a relevant hereditament which by
virtue of paragraph 10 of this Schedule has ceased or will cease to exist on
the completion of the structural alteration and, in relation to a building or
dwelling-house so produced, references to erection of a building shall be
construed as references to the structural alterati0n producing it.
<sa>s Substituted by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.42.
<sb>s Added by Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 s.42.
2. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70). sch 30.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
SCHEDULE 2
<21>2.--<1Repealed by the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980>1
<1schedule 34 part IX.>1
SCHEDULE 3
CLASSES OF MACHINERY AND PLANT DEEMED TO BE PART OF HEREDITAMENT
CLASS 1
<21.>2 Machinery and plant (together with the shafting, pipes, cables, wires
and other appliances and structures accessory thereto) which is used or
intended to be used mainly or exclusively in connection with any of the
following purposes, that is to say--
(a) the generation, storage, primary transformation or main trans-
mission of power in or on the hereditament; or
(b) the heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting, draining, or supplying
of water to the land or buildings of which the hereditament
consists, or the protecting of the hereditament from fire:
Provided that, in the case of machinery or plant which is in or on the
hereditament for the purpose of manufacturing operations or trade
processes, the fact that it is used in connection with those operations or
processes for the purpose of heating, cooling, ventilating, lighting,
draining, supplying water, or protecting from fire shall not cause it to be
treated as falling within the classes of machinery or plant specified in this
Schedule.
CLASS 2
<22>2. Lifts and elevators mainly or usually used for passengers.
CLASS 3
<23>2. Railway and tramway lines and tracks.
CLASS 4
<24>2. Such part of any plant or any combination of plant and machinery,
including gas holders, blast furnaces, coke ovens, tar distilling plant,
cupolas, and water towers with tanks, as is, or is in the nature of, a
building or structure.
CLASS 5
<25>2.--(1) A pipe-line, that is to say, a pipe or system of pipes for the
conveyance of anything, not being--
(a) a drain or sewer;
(b) a pipe or system of pipes vested in [<s36>sthe British Gas Corpora-
tion], in a board established by the Electricity Act 1947, or in the
Central Electricity Generating Board;
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(c) a pipe or system of pipes forming part of the equipment of, and
wholly situate within, a factory or petroleum storage depot or
premises comprised in a mine, quarry or mineral field,
and exclusive of so much of a pipe or system of pipes forming part of
the equipment of, and situate partly within and partly outside, a factory
or petroleum storage depot or premises comprised in a mine, quarry or
mineral field as is situate within, as the case may be, the factory or
petroleum storage depot or those premises.
(2) In this paragraph--
(a) "factory" has the same meaning as in the Factories Act 1961;
(b) "mine" and "quarry" have the same meanings respectively as in
the Mines and Quarries Act 1954;
(c) "mineral field" means an area comprising an excavation being a
well or borehole or a well and borehole combined, or a system of
such excavations, used for the purposes of pumping or raising
brine or oil, and so much of the surface (including buildings,
structures and works thereon) surrounding or adjacent to the
excavation or system as is occupied, together with the excavation
or system, for the purpose of the working of the excavation or
system;
(d) "petroleum storage depot" means premises used primarily for
the storage of petroleum or petroleum products (including
chemicals derived from petroleum) or of materials used in the
manufacture of petroleum products (including chemicals derived
from petroleum).
36. Words substituted by Gas Act 1972 (c.60), sch. 6 para. 17.
SCHEDULE 4
VALUATION OF WATER HEREDITAMENTS OF STATUTORY WATER UNDERTAKING
<1Power to arnend sch. 4 given by Local Government Act 1974 (c.7), s. 19(4)>1
<1Ascertainment of cumulo-value for undertaking>1
<21>2.--(1) There shall be ascertained in accordance with the provisions of
this paragraph for the undertaking as a whole an amount hereafter in this
Schedule referred to as the "cumulo-value".
(2) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, the cumulo-value for the
purposes of valuation lists in force or to come into force at any time
(hereinafter in this Schedule referred to as the "relevant lists") shall be
determined in accordance with the following provisions of this paragraph
by reference to the amount (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as the
"previous cumulo-value") of the cumulo-value determined for the pur-
poses of the valuation lists (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as the
"previous lists") last coming into force before the relevant lists.
(3) If the yearly average supply of the undertakers in the basic period
for the relevant lists exceeds their yearly average supply in the basic
period for the previous lists, there shall be added to the amount of
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
the previous cumulo-value an amount which bears to the aggregate
of the previous cumulo-values for all undertakings in England and Wales
the proportion which the difference between the said yearly average
supplies bears to the yearly average supply of all undertakers in England
and Wales in the basic period for the previous lists.
(4) If the yearly average supply of the undertakers in the basic period
for the relevant lists fall short of their yearly average supply in the basic
period for the previous lists, the amount of the previous cumulo-value
shall be reduced in the proportion which the one bears to the other.
(5) The amount of the previous cumulo-value, after any adjustment in
accordance with sub-paragraph (3) or (4) of this paragraph, shall be
apportioned among rating areas in which water hereditaments of the
undertaking are situated.
(6) The amount apportioned under sub-paragraph (5) of this paragraph
in Greater London and to the Isles of Scilly, and
the aggregate of the amounts apportioned to the rating areas in each
county, shall be adjusted by multiplying it by the proportional change in
the level of net annual values appearing, on the average, from a
comparison of the values expected to be shown in the relevant lists for the
. . .<s37>s, rating area, Isles or county, as transmitted to rating authorities in
pursuance of section 68(2) of this Act, with those shown in the previous
lists for the . . .<s38>s, rating area, Isles or county at the beginning of April
last before the coming into force of the relevant lists.
(7) The sum of the amounts and the aggregates referred to in
sub-paragraph (6) of this paragraph, adjusted in accordance with that
paragraph, shall be the cumulo-value for the undertaking for the purposes
of the relevant lists.
(8) In relation to the valuation lists in force at the commencement of
this Act, the cumulo-value and the previous cumulo-value for any
undertaking shall be those determined for the purposes of those lists in
accordance with Part II of the Rating and Valuation Act 1961.
37. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
38. Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c.70), sch. 30.
<1Rateable value of water hereditaments>1
2. The amount of the cumulo-value as determined under paragraph
1(7) of this Schedule shall be apportioned among rating districts in which
water hereditaments of the undertaking are situated; and for the purposes
of the relevant lists the amount apportioned to any rating district shall be
the rateable value of such hereditaments in that district, and rateable
values (but no net annual values) shall be shown accordingly in lists
transmitted to rating authorities in pursuance of section 68(2) of this Act.
<1Adjustment of cumulo-value during currency of valuation lists>1
<23>2.--(1) If in any of the successive periods of five calendar years ending
respectively with the December last before the coming into force of the
relevant lists and the subsequent Decembers falling earlier than two years
before the date on which those lists cease to be in force--
(a) the yearly average supply of any statutory water undertakers
exceeds or falls short of their yearly average supply in the basic
pen-od for those lists; and
B143
<1General Rate Act 1967>1
(b) the excess or deficiency is greater than ten per cent. of the
last-mentioned average supply,
the cumulo-value for the undertaking as determined for the purposes of
those lists shall be adjusted in accordance with the following provisions of
this paragraph, and the rateable values of the water hereditaments of the
undertaking shall be varied in accordance with paragraph 4 of this
Schedule for any rate period beginning fifteen months or more after the
end of the said period of five years and ending not later than the date on
which the lists cease to be in force or on which a subsequent variation in
accordance with the said paragraph 4 takes effect (hereafter in this
paragraph and in the said paragraph 4 referred to as a "relevant rate
period").
(2) If there is such an excess as aforesaid, the said cumulo-value shall be
increased by an amount which bears to the aggregate of the cumulo-values
for all undertakings in England and Wales, as determined for the purposes
of the relevant lists, the proportion which the excess bears to the yearly
average supply of all undertakers therein in the basic period for those lists.
(3) If there is such a deficiency as aforesaid, the said cumulo-value shall
be reduced in the proportion wh1ch the one average supply mentioned in
sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph bears to the other.
(4) Where the cumulo-value f0r an undertaking is adjusted under this
paragraph, the Commissioners shall, [<s39>snot later than two months after
the beginning of the first relevant rate period], furnish to the undertakers
and to any rating authority concerned the particulars required for
determining the amount of the adjustment.
(5) Where the cumulo-value for any undertaking falls to be adjusted
under this paragraph as respects any of the successive periods mentioned
in sub-paragraph (1) thereof, then (whether or not the consequential
variation of the rateable values of the water hereditaments of the
undertaking has taken effect) in the application, in the case of that
undertaking, of the foregoing provisions of this paragraph to any subse-
quent such period--
(a) for the reference in paragraph (a) of the said sub-paragraph (1)
to the basic period for the relevant lists there shall be substituted
a reference to the preceding or last preceding period of five
calendar years as respects which the conditions specified in
paragraphs (a) and (b) of the said sub-paragraph (1), or those
conditions as modified by this sub-paragraph, are satisfied;
(b) for the references in the foregoing provisions of this paragraph to
the cumulo-value for the undertaking as determined for the
purposes of the relevant lists there shall be substituted references
to the cumulo-value for the undertaking as adjusted or last
adjusted under this paragraph.
(6) In the application of the foregoing provisions of this paragraph to
the valuation lists in force at the commencement of this Act, references to
a period of five calendar years do not include references to any period
beginning before the basic period for those lists, but do include references
to a period of three or four calendar years beginning with that basic
period.
39. Words substituted by 5.1. 1975/540.
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<1General Rate Act 1967>1
<1Alterations of valuation lists consequential on adjustment of cumulo-value>1
<24>2.--(1) Where the cumulo-value for an undertaking has been adjusted
under paragraph 3 of this Schedule, that cumulo-value as so adjusted shall
be apportioned among rating districts in which water hereditaments of the
undertaking are situated, and the valuation officer shall make proposals
for such alterations of valuation lists as are requisite for increasing or
decreasing, as the case may require, the rateable values of the water
hereditaments of the undertaking to accord with the apportionment.
(2) Any such proposals shall be made [<s39>sduring the first four months of
the first relevant rate period] . . .<s40>s.
(3) Where the valuation officer transmits copies of any proposals under
this paragraph, he shall transmit with them particulars of the manner in
which the adjusted cumulo-value has been apportioned among rating
districts so as to produce the alterations in valuation lists which are the
subject of the proposals; and effect shall not be given to objections to the
proposals on any grounds other than the grounds that the apportionment
was not properly made.
39. Words substituted by S.I. 1975/540.
40. Words repealed by S.I. 1975/540.
<1Other alterations of valuation lists with respect to water hereditaments>1
<2 5>2.--(1) Where, after the valuation officer has transmitted a valuation
list to the rating authority, but before the date on which the list is to come
into force, it appears to him that in the case of a statutory water
undertaking of which water hereditaments are included in the list the
cumulo-value for the undertaking ought to be redetermined to conform
with paragraph 1 of this Schedule and that on that account the list needs to
be altered in any respect, he shall cause the list to be altered accordingly
before that date.
(2) A proposal for the alteration of a valuation list so far as it relates to a
water hereditament of a statutory water undertaking may be made on the
grounds that the apportionment required by paragraph 2 or 4(1) of this
Schedule was not properly made, or that the cumulo-value for the
undertaking ought to be re-apportioned among rating districts in which
water hereditaments of the undertaking are situated.
(3) Where, in the case of any rating area, a proposal is made falling
within sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, or an objection is made falling
within paragraph 4(3) of this Schedule, the valuation officer shall cause
copies of the proposal or objection to be served on the rating authority for
every other rating area in which there are water hereditaments of the
undertaking in question which appear relevant to the proposal or objec-
tion.
(4) Where it appears to the valuation officer that the valuation list may
be affected by any such proposal or objection as aforesaid relating to
another valuation list, and he makes a proposal for any consequential
alteration of the first-mentioned list which appears to him to be required if
effect is given, in whole or in part, to the original proposal or objection,
then, if the valuation officer states in his proposal that it is one to which
this sub-paragraph applies, any alteration of the list which is made in
consequence of his proposal shall have effect as from such date as may be
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