Coffee drive-thru closes due to business rate rise

The owner of a coffee shop has said he is closing his business after litle more than a year because of a "monumental" increase in business rates.

Frazer Habershon opened Frazer's Proper Coffee Drive Thru in an old bank in Ecclesfield, near Sheffield, in January 2025.

He said after querying the rateable value of the property following the change of use, in the hope it may drop, he was told it was increasing from £15,000 to £32,000, and would increase again in April.

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) said it updates the rateable values of all commercial properties in England and Wales every three years to reflect changes in the property market.

Habershon, who also runs Frazer's Coffee Roasters, said the change meant his business rates would rise as a result from £7,350 to nearly £32,000 per year.

"That's monumental," he said.

"We were doing well, we were holding our own in a tough economy for the hospitality sector, and we were really supported by the whole community.

"But the rates are changing, and that huge increase was going to cripple us. So we had to close".

Business rates are calculated on the basis of the rateable value of a property, which is an estimate of what it would cost to rent a property for a year,

Habershon said he had lodged an appeal against the increase but due to a current backlog was told it would take up to 18 months to review the case.

He said he thought there should be checks in place whereby if the value is set to rise by a certain threshold the VOA should speak to the owner about the change, but he said: "They've just gone 'that's a new bill, there you go, we'll inform the council next week and they'll start collecting straight away'."

A spokesperson for the VOA said: "If a rate-payer believes their valuation is incorrect, they can tell us through their online service and we will progress their case as quickly as possible.

"We're meeting all of our statutory deadlines for both check and challenge and prioritise customers who tell us they are facing hardship."

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