East of England · 2025-26
Business Rates in Hertsmere
Businesses in Hertsmere paid £85.8m in net business rates during 2025-26, below the average English council's £93.2m.
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Relief granted in Hertsmere
Share of £21.2m total relief, 2025-26.
Hertsmere at a glance
Hertsmere granted £21.2m in relief overall, lower than the national council average of £26.3m. This included £3.0m in Small Business Rate Relief and £3.4m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief.
A further £4.9m went to charity relief and £2.5m to empty property relief, reflecting the mix of ratepayers across the local authority.
Hertsmere has an estimated 7,800 active businesses, according to the latest ONS Business Counts (2025).
Hertsmere ranks 214 out of 296 local authorities in England on the 2025 Index of Multiple Deprivation, where 1 is most deprived and 296 is least deprived.
Following the 2026 revaluation, the total rateable value of industrial property in Hertsmere rose by 23.5% — if this pushed your assessment too high, an appeal may be worth considering.
Frequently asked questions
How much are business rates in Hertsmere?
Hertsmere's local authority collected £85.8m in net business rates income during 2025-26, based on the national multiplier applied to each property's rateable value, less any relief granted.
What reliefs are available in Hertsmere?
Hertsmere granted £21.2m in business rates relief in 2025-26, including £3.0m in Small Business Rate Relief, £3.4m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief, £4.9m in charity relief, and £2.5m in empty property relief.
How do I know if I'm overpaying?
If your rateable value looks high compared to similar properties nearby, or you're not currently receiving relief you may be entitled to, it's worth checking your assessment. Use our free checker to compare your rateable value and see if you may be eligible for a reduction or backdated refund.
Hertsmere compared with the East of England and England
- Average rateable value
- £54,139£22,004 above the East of England average (£32,135)£20,149 above the England average (£33,990)
- Largest sector by value
- Other commercial property, 43.1%10.2 percentage points above its 32.9% share in the East of England
- Total rateable value, 2023 to 2026 list
- +12.1%East of England: +18.3%England: +19.6%
Counts and rateable values are from the stock of properties at March 2026, on the 2023 rating list. Changes are from the 2026 revaluation, comparing the 2023 rating list with the 2026 rating list.
Property mix
With an average rateable value of £54,139, Hertsmere has the 26th highest figure of England's 296 councils and 6th of 45 in the East of England. Office property makes up the largest share of Hertsmere's rateable properties (30.0%), but other commercial property carries the most rateable value (43.1%).
In Hertsmere, retail is 21.7% of rateable properties and 13.0% of rateable value; across the East of England the figures are 20.6% and 18.7%. High-value property is limited in Hertsmere: around 40 properties were rated at £500,000 or more at March 2026, rising to around 60 on the 2026 list.
Change at the 2026 revaluation
Only 1 of the 44 other councils in the East of England saw a weaker change in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation than Hertsmere's +12.1%. Industrial property saw the biggest rise in Hertsmere: total rateable value up 23.5% between the 2023 and 2026 lists, against +20.2% for industrial property across the East of England. Even the weakest sector in Hertsmere, office property, rose 6.2% in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation, against +13.2% for office property across the East of England.
Reliefs
Total relief granted in Hertsmere equalled 22.4% of gross rates payable in 2025-26, above the 21.2% across English councils taken together. Of the four main reliefs, charity relief accounted for the most in Hertsmere: 23.3% of the total, below the England figure of 29.7%.
Source: HM Revenue & Customs, using Valuation Office Agency data, and MHCLG relief returns. Open Government Licence v3.0. Method and rounding: /methodology.
See how Hertsmere compares with the rest of the region: Business rates in East of England, State of Business Rates in England 2026 →
Nearby areas
Compare with other councils in the East of England
Other East of England councils with their average rateable value, listed from the closest to Hertsmere's £54,139.
- Business rates in Stevenage£54,699 average rateable value, £560 higher than Hertsmere
- Business rates in Watford£53,441 average rateable value, £698 lower than Hertsmere
- Business rates in Three Rivers£56,444 average rateable value, £2,305 higher than Hertsmere
- Business rates in South Cambridgeshire£50,659 average rateable value, £3,480 lower than Hertsmere
- Business rates in Welwyn Hatfield£61,945 average rateable value, £7,806 higher than Hertsmere
- Business rates in Thurrock UA£76,302 average rateable value, £22,163 higher than Hertsmere
Figures from MHCLG National Non-Domestic Rates statistics (2025-26), ONS UK Business Counts (2025), and English Indices of Deprivation (2025).
Updates for Hertsmere
By email.