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What is programming?
Starting from 1 April 2000, Valuation Officers will produce
a rolling programme showing when we expect to deal with appeals
against rating assessments (proposals to alter the rating list).
The first programme covers the period from November 2000 to March
2003, but we will be reviewing it every year.
Why bother to make
changes to the system?
Appeals against rating assessments
can often take years to resolve because of the sheer numbers we
receive. We want to make the system more efficient and user friendly.
The new approach means that we will tell you;
(a) when your appeal will be considered and discussed with you or
your agent;
(b) when we expect the discussions to be concluded;
(c) an indication of when your appeal might be heard by the Valuation
Tribunal (VT) if it cannot be settled by discussion (although the
precise timing will be a matter for the VT).
How have you arrived
at the programme?
Over the past couple of months
we have been producing programmes based on an estimate of the number
of appeals that will be received. We have put these details into
a timetable which gives an indication of when your appeal will be
dealt with. Each programme identifies properties by type or location
or both so that you can have a look for yourself and see when you
will be dealt with.
When can I see my place
in the programme?
We will be writing to you to
tell you when we plan to deal with your appeal if you have already
submitted one. Appeals made from October 2000 onwards will be slotted
into the programme when they are received and so we will advise
you of their allotted place when we acknowledge receipt of the appeal.
Can I see the programme online?
Yes, go to the Programming
of Appeals pages.
I have had a look at
the programme. Why am I having to wait so long for my appeal to
be dealt with?
In view of the number of appeals received it will take some time
to resolve them all. Valuation Officers have taken into account
a variety of factors including the change in ratable value from
1995 to 2000 and produced programmes which provide a structured
approach to dealing with appeals, which should help everyone.
Your delay in dealing
with my proposal will possibly put me out of business - can I be
moved up the programme?
If you are suffering genuine hardship we will look at your case
to see whether we can make arrangements to deal with it early. However
it may not be in your interest to do this. We have programmed appeals
similar to yours to be dealt at roughly the same time. By doing
this we are likely to have a larger body of evidence on which to
make a decision.
If we discuss the appeal with you and it still cannot be settled
it will have to be considered by the Valuation Tribunal and you
will have to put your case for early listing to the clerk of the
tribunal for consideration.
What happens when it
gets to my turn?
Just before the proposed start
date we will remind you that discussions can begin and the assumption
will be that your case will proceed to the Valuation Tribunal if
matters are not resolved by the target date. We will only continue
discussions past this date if there is a very good reason to do
so. At that point it will be for the Tribunal to decide any remaining
disputes.
I am financially unable
to meet the new demand, what do you suggest?
If you have a problem paying
your bill you must contact your local authority - the Valuation
Officer works out rateable values but we do not issue rates bills
or collect rates payable.
Why are you not dealing
with appeals on a first come first served basis.
It is necessary to look at
all appeals against valuations of the same type of property or in
the same area together so that all the evidence about value for
those sorts of property can be considered together. This makes the
process far more efficient - and therefore faster overall.
Why does the process
take so long. The grounds for my proposal are simple enough?
It is simply a question of
numbers. In 1998/99 we settled over 270 000 appeals. We have to
give each one our full consideration and this can sometimes be a
lengthy process.
What is the point of
producing a programme if it does not speed up the time it takes
to deal with appeals?
There is a lot of evidence
and argument to go through and this takes time; because of this
it is important for everyone involved to understand when their part
in the process will take place. In longer term reviewing evidence
in this systematic way should help appeals to be dealt with more
quickly overall.
Surely if you get so many appeals there must have been
something wrong with your valuation in the first place
Not at all. There are 1.7 million Non domestic properties
in England and Wales. Valuing them is a huge task involving the
collation of a lot of evidence. Often ratepayers have further evidence
they want us to consider. To make the process fair we have to use
the same date for all valuations (1 April 1998) Inevitably there
will be some changes between that date and the date the values come
into force (1 April 2000).
All ratepayers have the right to appeal - although many are subsequently
withdrawn we must treat all ratepayers fairly and give all appeals
full consideration.
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