High street estate agents are expected to spend significantly more money next year in business rates, as they are due to rise in line with inflation, which hit 10.1% in September.

High street companies across England, including estate agents, are facing a £2.7bn tax increase next year after inflation rose further this week.

Business rates are due to increase in April based on inflation recorded last month.

The hike is likely to be the largest annual jump since 1991 following the announcement earlier today that inflation hit 10.1% in September.

Earlier this week, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation returned to an equal 40-year-high of 10.1% in September.

Peter Fullam, head of rating UK regions at JLL, said: “The confirmation of CPI at 10.1% will no doubt be a concern to ratepayers across the region who are already braced for significant changes to their liabilities as a result of the upcoming 2023 Revaluation. JLL analysis into the 2023 rating revaluation has identified it as one of the most redistributive of the modern era. JLL predict that we will see a substantial shift in value for the retail and logistics sectors. We expect to see the share of tax paid by retailers to fall significantly, while industrial property – which in value terms is mostly logistics – will pay more.

“Combined with today’s inflation figures, the government has a tough call to make. It can opt to adopt the full 10.1% inflationary figure in the multiplier, or in the context of an already challenging period it could choose to intervene and fund a cap, or freeze it altogether. They will undoubtedly be aware that an inflation uptick will hit businesses of all shapes and sizes and, with the next revaluation due in less than six months. Without clarity on the mechanics of a transitional relief scheme, businesses currently have no real visibility on where their liability will be in order to budget correctly.”

The high inflation rate signals that the overall business rates bill for firms across England will no doubt lead to greater calls for government intervention.

Fullam added: “These are turbulent times for the region, the country and our new chancellor, who now has incredibly tough decisions to make. Yet we would urge him to intervene on rates in a meaningful way, as these have been continually frozen for the last couple of years.”

A Treasury spokesman said: “Our business rates review led to almost £7bn of support to reduce the burden of rates over the next five years and brought about reforms which will make the system fairer, including further business rates relief and freezing the multiplier in 2022-23 to put the brakes on bill increases.”