13 Oct 2026
An error by the Government’s Valuation Office Agency was behind a business rates crisis which threatened the future of two of St Albans much-loved businesses.
In September, both Smallford Farm Shop and the HATCH restaurant which shares the site said they would have to cease trading next year after being landed with a huge backdated business rates bill.
When HATCH took over the café last March, they were told the premises needed to be split into two separate rateable properties, so they agreed to divide the £50,000 cost with the Farm Shop while waiting for new individual valuations.
But when they finally received their bill after more than 18 months, the combined rateable value of the exact same premises had more than doubled, and those valuations were backdated by 18 months.
This meant both HATCH and the Farm Shop faced backdated bills in the region of £50,000 each, leaving the two businesses potentially unable to continue operating.
Their case was taken up in the House of Commons by St Albans MP Daisy Cooper, who said fault lied entirely with the Valuation Office Agency, who oversaw a whopping 18 month delay to the valuation and then intended to backdate the bills – putting an immense and unforeseen burden on these small businesses.
Following her intervention, and publicity in the likes of the St Albans Times, a regional manager from the VOA contacted the businesses to say he was personally taking over the case and pausing the process while he investigated whether a mistake had been made.
During his visit, he quickly recognised that an error had occurred and reassured HATCH and the Farm Shop that it would be corrected. The newly proposed rateable values were then submitted and were exactly what the businesses had anticipated they should have been from the outset.
HATCH owner Chris Evans said: “After sharing our situation on social media and asking people to help spread the word, the response from our customers and the wider community was overwhelming. It was this support that brought the issue to the attention of the local press and ultimately Daisy Cooper and her team, who took up our case and raised it in Parliament.
“What has surprised me most is just how much of a difference the support of our customers and the local community has made. Without everyone sharing our original post and helping to bring attention to the situation, I genuinely don’t believe we would have reached this outcome.
“I’m incredibly grateful to everyone who took the time to support us, to the local press for highlighting our situation, and particularly to Daisy Cooper and her team for stepping in and speaking up on our behalf.
“It’s both surprising and humbling to see what can happen when a community comes together. What initially felt like an impossible situation, threatening the future of two local businesses, has now been resolved, and that’s entirely thanks to the people who helped make our voices heard.”
Emma Colletti from Smallford Farm Shop said: “If I am honest I am annoyed by the disruption caused to our business ahead of such a key trading time and excess stress caused.
“I am shocked at how the Valuation Office makes decisions. These civil servants have got no idea at all of the impact such decisions make to businesses and the system needs an overhaul for businesses to survive. So many local businesses reached out to us after our post and it is not just us who is struggling and not just us who have had frustrating dealings with the VOA.
“We were lucky Daisy Cooper raised this in theHouse of Commons and that we had a visit from the Valuation Office before the final decision was made. Our rates have still gone up, even though by a smaller amount we don’t know where we will find that extra amount and this will still be backdated, so for us it’s not over.”
MP Daisy Cooper added: “It’s a huge relief that the Valuation Office Agency has corrected this error, but it should never have happened in the first place. Businesses should not have to contact their local MP just to get mistakes in the business rates system put right.
“The fact that the organisation responsible for administering business rates could make such a significant error highlights just how broken, outdated and overly complicated the system has become. The consequences for these two businesses could have been devastating.
“I’m pleased that, after I raised this issue urgently and pressed it at the highest levels, the VOA acted quickly to correct the problem. That will come as a welcome relief to the two businesses involved.
“While I welcome the Government’s initial steps to review and reform business rates for small businesses, it must stop tinkering around the edges and honour its manifesto commitment to deliver a complete overhaul of the system.
“Until that happens, we will continue to see businesses hit with incorrect valuations, high streets placed under increasing pressure, and an unfair burden falling on local firms while large out-of-town warehouses and airports continue to avoid paying their fair share.”
