Response 4068830

Response to request for information

Reference

4068830

Response date

21 July 2026

Request

I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 concerning credit balances held on non-domestic rating accounts. Please provide your most recent available report of business-rates accounts that currently have a credit balance.

For each account, please provide the following information where held:

• Billing Authority property reference number;
• VOA assessment reference number;
• Property address;
• Property postcode;
• Ratepayer name, limited to incorporated companies, limited liability partnerships, public authorities, registered charities and other legal persons;
• The amount of the credit balance;
• The financial year or years to which the credit relates;
• The date the credit first arose;
• The reason for the credit, using any category or description already held within your system;
• Whether the account remains active or has been closed;
• Whether a refund has been requested;
• Whether a refund has been authorised;
• Whether the authority has attempted to contact the ratepayer;
• Whether the balance has been written on, written off, transferred or otherwise adjusted;
• The date of the most recent refund or credit-balance review.

I do not request:

• • bank account details;
  • payment-card details;
  • authentication information;
  • security questions or answers;
  • personal telephone numbers;
  • personal email addresses;
  • copies of refund forms;
  • signatures; or
  • any other information that could be used to impersonate a ratepayer.

Where you consider disclosure of the exact credit amount to engage section 31, please provide the remaining fields and replace the exact amount with one of the following bands:

• • £0.01 to £99.99;
  • £100 to £499.99;
  • £500 to £999.99;
  • £1,000 to £4,999.99;
  • £5,000 to £9,999.99;
  • £10,000 to £49,999.99;
  • £50,000 and above.

If you consider that property level disclosure would still engage section 31, please provide aggregated information showing:

1. the total number of accounts in credit;
2. the total value of all credits;
3. the number and value within each of the above bands;
4. the number and value relating to active accounts;
5. the number and value relating to closed accounts;
6. the number and value outstanding for:
   • less than three months;
   • three to twelve months;
   • one to three years;
   • three to six years;
   • more than six years;
7. the number and value of credits refunded during each of the previous three financial years;
8. the number and value of credits written on, written off or transferred during each of the previous three financial years.

Response

The Council does not release information about Business Rates accounts that currently have credit balances (including those written on) in response to Freedom of Information requests.

Information in respect of credit balances is considered exempt under section 31(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (prevention or detection of crime). The Council holds this information but believes that its disclosure could result in fraudulent refund claims being made to the Council for these credit balances.

This follows decisions by the Information Commission in respect of requests made to Wandsworth Council (reference FS50619844) and the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (reference FS50643256) in respect of requests for NNDR credit balances.