The British Property Federation (BPF) has called on the government to extend the period of business rates relief for empty properties from three months to 12 months and reintroduce a 50% rate cut for long-term empty stores.
The BPF issued the call following new research undertaken with the Local Data Company (LDC), which found that more time is needed to find a new tenant and re-let empty shops.
LDC analysed 1,035 retail locations, including high streets, shopping centres and retail parks comprising more than 124,000 individual shops, and found that over the last two years only 9% of empty units are re-let within six months and 31% of empty shops took more than two years to re-let.
The BPF is including the data as part of its response to an HM Treasury consultation on empty rates avoidance and evasion, which closes today (28 September).
Melanie Leech, chief executive of the BPF, said: “Government should be doing everything it can to support the property owners whose investment will be critical to revitalising our high streets and town centres. Our analysis shows that less than one in 10 empty shops is re-occupied within six months and almost a third lie empty for more than two years, making the current three month empty rates relief completely out of step with today’s market conditions.
“We recognise that business rates generate vital income for local authorities, but it is simply not sustainable for property owners to shoulder this tax burden when there is no tenant or income on a unit. This is effectively kicking someone while they are down, and only adds to the challenge of upgrading and repurposing older stores and attracting new businesses.
“If the government is serious about supporting high streets and town centres it must extend the period of business rates relief for empty shops and other commercial units in line with the evidence, and reintroduce a 50% reduction thereafter.”
