Some Tipperary firms paying too much in commercial rates due to delays in processing revaluations

Some Tipperary businesses are paying too much in commercial rates because of delays of up to four years in the processing of rate valuations at the Valuation Office in Dublin, Tipperary County Council’s March meeting was told.

The problem was highlighted by Cloneen Cllr Mark Fitzgerald, who through a motion he tabled, secured the unanimous agreement of the elected members to direct the Council to write to the Valuation Office seeking an explanation for the delay in processing rates valuations.

He pointed in particular to delays in appeals submitted since the 2019 rates revaluation carried out in eight local authorities area, including Tipperary.

In tabling the motion, the Fine Gael councillor highlighted the case of Butler’s Pub in Fethard that went through a rates revaluation in 2019. The owners still haven’t received the new valuation and are paying huge commerical rates as a result.

He said Butler’s owners are currently only using a part of their premises to run an off-licence as they closed the pub section of their business in January last year. This means they have to get a new valuation of their business premises.

He pointed out that when his mother’s business was revalued for commercial rates purposes, the rates bill was revised downwards.

Cllr Fitzgerald said these valuation delays were putting a lot of burden on businesses and, in turn, on the council which had to go after these rates bills even though it knew people can’t pay them.