The cut off line for grants has to be somewhere
It’s funny how sometimes the smallest margin can make the biggest difference.
A ball drops one inch behind the goal line and the referee awards a goal, a cup final is won and the scorer makes history.
A ball lands on either side of a divider in a roulette wheel – a fortune is won or lost.
A weapon enters a body an inch away from a vital organ and the victim lives to tell the tale, an inch the other way and they don’t.
Somebody dials an 8 instead of a 9 and gets a stranger instead of their friend – they get chatting and arrange a date. They meet and it’s love at first sight. All because of the little difference between two numbers in a dialing code.
We don’t think of the small differences in life until we have to and for over 3,600 small businesses, the difference of £1 in rateable value has cost them more than £15,000.
As part of the Coronavirus pandemic response, a series of cash grants was announced to businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure industries.
If a business in those sectors had a rateable value of up to £15,000 then they would automatically be eligible for a £10,000 grant as part of the Small Business Grants Fund (SBGF).
If the business has a rateable value of over £15,001 and up to £51,000 then they’d qualify for the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund (RHLGF) instead which is worth £25,000.
The problem for the businesses with a rateable value below £15,000 is that they would previously have been eligible for small business rates relief.
What’s bad about that? It saves them money, right?
Yes and no. This relief was tapered between £12,001 and £15,000 so those at the lowest end of the scale would receive a 100% rate reduction while those at the other end would receive nothing.
This means that for the 3,657 UK companies with a rating value of exactly £15,000 – it’s a double blow.
Not only did they miss out on the business rate reduction but now they’ve also missed out on the additional £15,000 available in the RHLGF grant.
The silver lining, apart from being eligible for a £10,000 SBGF grant is that they’ll get the 12-month business rates holiday for all hospitality, leisure and nursery businesses announced in the March budget.
You can get help no matter how much your turnover
While taking the decisions to give your business the best chance of success, sometimes things happen that will affect them that are totally outside of your control.
A bit like the coronavirus pandemic.
Never confuse an unfavourable outcome with a bad decision and seeking professional advice and support during a testing time for your company is never a bad decision.
Get in touch with us today and one of our expert team of advisors will contact you to arrange a convenient, free virtual initial consultation where we can get a better understanding of the unique circumstances and factors affecting your business.
We can help you draw up a plan to minimise the risks facing it today and maximise its opportunities for tomorrow, whenever that day comes.