Life becomes a nightmare for hunderds of Welsh holiday let owners snared by hidden legal trap

North Wales Live

2 days ago

Thousands of holiday let owners in Wales have been left bewildered after being hit with massive council tax bills out of the blue. It comes as an industry survey suggests nearly half of the country's self-catering businesses are now losing money, or barely breaking even, after failing achieve new letting targets set by the government.
A little-known change in the law has seen many owners receiving council tax demands that often run into tens of thousands. Payments are often expected within seven days with the prospect of legal proceedings if they fail to settle.
The huge bills stem from a legal technicality over the number of nights a property has been let. Although many owners believed they have met new letting thresholds set by the Welsh Government, and so thought they would not be liable for council tax, they've been caught out by a legislative pitfall.
According to critics, it's left the holiday let sector in Wales on a 'cliff-edge'. The Professional Association of Self-Caterers (PASC) said it is currently dealing with hundreds of cases with more inquiries coming in every day from disbelieving owners bereft at the iniquity of the situation.
A Welsh-speaking family letting out the family home in Abersoch, Gwynedd, is facing a three-year bill for £21,000 despite meeting all of what they thought to be their targets. They say Cyngor Gwynedd is understanding but the situation is placing intolerable demands on the property's 85-year-old owner.
Meanwhile, a couple in Flintshire have received a demand for nearly £10,000. Colin and Rebecca Jones, from Afonwen, were left shocked to get a 'ridiculous' bill for a small two-person cottage just 8ft-9ft from the family home, a former mill with its old water wheel still in the garden.
'You can imagine the stress,' said Rebecca, an NHS personal assistant. 'It's horrendous. It's having a terrible impact on our lives and we're now having to look at all options, including annexing the properties and stripping out the cottage's kitchen.' Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now
Since launching their business in February 2022, Colin and Rebecca have met what they thought were their required targets. In the first year, they hit 164 nights – way over the 70-night threshold that apparently existed at the time.
When the bar was raised in April 2023, requiring owners to let their properties for at least 182 nights, they redoubled their efforts and, with price-cutting, they managed to meet the 182-night target in the subsequent two years. In the current financial year, they've so far let the cottage for 101 nights and are confident of reaching the target again.
Hitting the lettings threshold is important as it qualifies owners for cheaper business rates rather than more expensive second home council tax, which often come with an added 'second home' premium. As this premium is as high as 200% in some counties - effectively trebling council tax bills – it can make the difference between a business succeeding or failing
Colin and Rebecca were shocked to discover that, when assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), they were deemed to have failed to have met their letting targets. Like many owners, they believed that as the law only changed from April 2023, they only needed to reach the new letting thresholds from then on.
They hadn't realised the 182-night rule applies retrospectively - meaning they missed the threshold in the first year. This made them liable for council tax for each of the past three years.
Nicky Williamson, Wales policy lead at PASC Cymru, said she was not surprised so many people can't understand what's going on. 'We're getting lots of exasperated calls every day,' she said.
'It's very confusing and it's difficult for people to get their heads around what's happening. Assessments must be made on a daily basis, so we have situations where owners are getting notices on March 31 saying they met the 70-day target, followed by notices on April 1 saying they hadn't as the rules had changed.
'It's awful, a total minefield. But whether we like it or not, unfortunately it's the law. We're working with the VOA on this issue and, to be fair, they're doing their best within the legal limitations. But they're in a pretty impossible situation, now facing extra demands at a time when they're already dealing with huge backlogs.'
The upshot is that the 70-night target was an illusion for most holiday lets in Wales in 2022-23. The situation has been compared to a football match where, late in the second half, players are told the rules have changed and the goalposts have been shifted. Local authorities are not at fault – they can only act on VOA assessments of a property's status based on the law at the time.
The fall-out is sending shockwaves through a sector that's already struggling to meet the higher 182-night threshold. Of the estimated 22,000 short-term lets in Wales, feedback suggests around half are failing to hit the target.
For owners, the ramifications are disastrous. In a recent PASC Cymru survey, 47% of owners now paying premium council taxes said they are now losing money. In North Wales, only Wrexham Council doesn't charge a second home premium. Elsewhere, it ranges from 100% (double) to 200% (treble).
Councils justify the policy as a necessary measure to manage the proliferation of holiday and second homes, aiming to alleviate the housing crisis. But with tourism a major contributor to the Welsh economy, critics claim the approach risks hobbling the industry.
Nicky noted the typical holiday let in Wales is a two-bedroom cottage. 'The average turnover for these businesses is £20,000 which, after costs, returns an average profit of £3,000,' she said.
'So it's easy to see why nearly half of all lets are now losing money when faced with large council tax demands, some of them unexpected. Being moved to council tax from business rates is associated with around half of Welsh self-catering businesses becoming non-viable.'
Amongst the worst cases known to PASC involves a three-generation, Welsh-speaking family forced to give up their home of 50 years.
After buying a derelict farm, they developed it into a five-star holiday let complex with four cottages, focusing on family holidays for more than 20 years. When they received a back-dated council tax demand for £37,000, they had no option but to sell up.
Feeling misled
When recovering council taxes, local authorities have some discretion. However, Freedom of Information requests by PASC Cymru indicate few are applying it.
An exception appears to be Cyngor Gwynedd. According to the Abersoch owners facing a £21,000 bill, they're now stuck in an endless cycle of demands, followed by pleas for delays and clemency. Invariably these are agreed, only for renewed demands to arrive in the post a few weeks later.
They too met all their official letting targets – or so they thought. 'We are a Welsh family from the area who have owned this house since the 1930s,' said the owner's daughter, who asked not to be named.
'We are not someone who has bought into the area. This is a family home handed down the generations that we still use as well as letting it out.
'The council must have hundreds of owners in a similar position. They tell us they are waiting for the government to sort it out. In the meantime we're facing large and unfair bills.'
Many in the industry consider the rule changes amounted to retrospective legislation. Although VOA letters were sent to holiday let owners in October 2022, alerting them to the upcoming changes, awareness remains low.
Even had the sector realised the implications at the time, few businesses would have been able to shift gears and increase lettings to make up the difference, having missed the busy summer season. Many in the sector feel misled.
PASC Cymru said there's little holiday let owners can do. 'It's difficult to challenge the legislation,' said Nicky Williamson. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
Feeling trapped
The VOA is encouraging all holiday let owners to continue paying their council taxes or business rates whilst any cases are reviewed.
A spokesperson said: 'Following Welsh Government's announcement of the new business rates criteria for self-catering properties, we wrote to all self-catering property owners in October 2022 to let them know about upcoming changes and how this would be assessed.
'If businesses feel they have been incorrectly assessed they can provide evidence for our teams to review. If a customer informs us that they are experiencing financial hardship we will prioritise their case.'
In Afonwen, Colin and Rebecca now feel trapped. As things stand, making a profit is difficult enough without large and unexpected bills. Mothballing their holiday let would not only depreciate the property, it would attract an empty home premium.
Like the second home equivalent in Flintshire, this currently amounts to 100% on top of standard council tax bills. From next year, Flintshire's empty home premium will be levied on a sliding scale ranging from 150%-300%.
In an attempt to stop the two properties being considered separate homes, one option being explored is to link them together via an extension, and stripping out the cottage kitchen. It's an approach that's been tried elsewhere in Wales but PASC Cymru said a legal precedent has yet to be set.
Colin, a quantity survey, is determined to fight for justice and has raised a formal complaint with the VOA. He said: 'This is not a second home, it is literally less than 10 steps from our back door. We do not go there for weekends or on holiday!'