Businesses in Farnham have spoken of their frustration after vacant units at Brightwells have yet to contribute to the town's Business Improvement District (BID) levy nearly three years after the scheme was launched.

Vacant commercial units at Farnham's Brightwells development have not been charged BID levies because they have yet to be assigned a rateable value, leaving traders concerned the town has missed out on expected funding.

The Farnham BID, which collects levies from businesses within its designated area to fund town centre improvements, says several unlet units within the development have yet to be assigned a rateable value by the Valuation Office Agency, meaning no levy has been raised on them.

Where a property has no tenant, liability for the BID levy falls on the landlord. In the case of the vacant Brightwells units, that is Surrey County Council (SCC).

One of the BID's directors and owner of New Dawn Pubs, Mark Robson, said the organisation had repeatedly asked Waverley Borough Council, which invoices and collects levies on the BID's behalf, for an update on when the properties would be assigned a rateable value.

In a response dated May 20, a business rates officer at Waverley told the BID that the position remained unchanged and warned that repeated requests for updates were "increasing the amount of time spent restating the same position".

Mr Robson said he was "quite stunned" that properties at the completed development remained without a valuation.

"Providing a rateable value for any open and trading business is very swift, yet those unlet and owned by SCC are still without a valuation many months after practical completion on the site," he said.

Businesses that are open and trading at Brightwells, including Reel Cinema and Charters estate agents, have been paying the levy since opening.

Steve Hamilton, owner of Hamiltons Tea House, said the issue struck at the heart of the original BID vote, which took place almost three years ago.

"A big part of that vote was that the units and empty units in Brightwells would be paying into the BID so as a town we would have a bigger pot," he said.

"Either way, as a town, not only are we being affected because that's money we could be spending to promote the town, but more so part of the yes or no vote was on the back of Brightwells paying into it.

"If people aren't being forced to pay, then why should anyone pay?"

He added that while he had been told any levy payments would be backdated once rateable values were assigned, he was "not entirely sure that will happen".

Sally Wright, of Wright's Lion Brewery, said: "Any business owner in the area of the levy should pay, regardless of who they are.

"We are all having to pay it. They need to pay it too."

Cllr Natalie Bramhall, SCC’s cabinet member for property, infrastructure and waste, said: "Surrey County Council confirms that all Business Improvement District levies issued by Farnham BID have been paid where received.

"BID levies are calculated based on the rateable value of business premises. A few units at Brightwells have not yet been assigned rateable values."