Freedom of information (FOI) disclosure log
Date Sent: July 23, 2026
Conclusion: Full Exemption
Description: Dear Freedom of Information Officer, 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: 1. Billing Authority property reference number; 2. VOA assessment reference number; 3. Property address; 4. Property postcode; 5. Ratepayer name, limited to incorporated companies, limited liability partnerships, public authorities, registered charities and other legal persons; 6. The amount of the credit balance; 7. The financial year or years to which the credit relates; 8. The date the credit first arose; 9. The reason for the credit, using any category or description already held within your system; 10. Whether the account remains active or has been closed; 11. Whether a refund has been requested; 12. Whether a refund has been authorised; 13. Whether the authority has attempted to contact the ratepayer; 14. Whether the balance has been written on, written off, transferred or otherwise adjusted; 15. 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.
Attachments: FOI_771_Response.docx