Premises values updated in 2015

03 January, 2015
 

The Scottish Government has decided to combine the Practice Premises Revaluation Exercises for 2012 and 2015, the first time the evaluation will have been carried out since 2009.

The exercise to update valuations of general dental practitioners’ practice premises is for the purposes of reimbursement of practice rental costs under Determination XV of the Statement of Dental Remuneration (SDR), and is supposed to take place every three years.

In a letter to all dentists, Chief Dental Officer Margie Taylor says the costs to be reimbursed are either:

  • the current market rent or actual lease rent for the premises in the case of contractors who are leaseholders, whichever is the lower; or
  • the notional rent, which is the current market rental value, in the case of contractors who are owner occupiers; less any abatement.

The lengthy period between valuations means figures are out of date and could throw up some surprising results, warns Pat Kilpatrick, national director of BDA Scotland.

“We’re a bit behind the eight ball with it, because no one can be entirely sure how the updated valuations are going to come out,” she said.

“A lot has changed in the property market in the past four years, and the outcomes could be variable, depending on various factors such as where your practice is, what is round about it and whether you spent money upgrading it. We just don’t know.”

A professional valuer, the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), has been appointed to undertake the valuation of dental premises which are either NHS committed or partially committed, irrespective of whether the practice currently receives rent reimbursement.

The valuation exercise is due to be completed by 28 February and valuations will be determined as at 1 April in both 2012 and 2015.

A memorandum to the CDO’s letter advises dentists that the VOA will contact practices to arrange convenient times for premise visits and to ask that contractors complete a questionnaire prior to the visit.

 

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