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If a property is only partly occupied, the billing authority has discretion to request that the valuation officer apportions the property's rateable value between its occupied and unoccupied parts.
At present, broadly speaking the empty property rate applies to the empty part of an apportioned building and the occupied business rate applies to the occupied part. From 1st April 2008, as a consequence of the reforms to empty property relief, the empty part will receive a complete exemption from rates for the first 3 months it is empty, or if it is an industrial property for the first 6 months. After this initial rate free period expires, in most cases the apportionment will cease to have effect and the occupied business rate will apply to the whole property.
If it appears to the billing authority (i.e. Warwick District Council) that the part of the property is empty then the authority may request a certificate under Section 44A of the Local Government Finance Act 1988. This is completely at the authority's discretion.
Section 44A application form (30kb, PDF).
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