Consultation and engagement

Results of the Accommodation BID alteration ballot on the introduction of a visitor charge in Liverpool

This ballot ran from 27th March 2025 to 5pm on 24th April 2025 - the day of the ballot.

We asked

At the request of the Liverpool Business Improvement District Company, Liverpool City Council held a ballot of hotel and serviced accommodation operators who currently pay a BID levy to the company as part of the Accommodation Business Improvement District seeking their approval for a change in how the levy is calculated.

The balloted proposal was for the levy to change from a fixed percentage of the hotel or serviced accommodation’s rateable value to an occupation-based levy such that a £2 per night levy would be payable per occupied room, based upon estimated average occupation figures for the sector in Liverpool published by Smith Travel Research (STR) each month.

The levy would continue to only be payable in respect of hotel or serviced accommodation with a rateable value of £45,000 or more.

The ballot was carried out on the council’s behalf by Civica Electoral Services and is binding on the council. For the proposal to be approved, it had to be supported by a majority of the returned ballots, and also for the total rateable value of the supporting hereditaments to outweigh the total value of those dissenting.

You said

The result of the ballot was as follows.

  • Votes in favour: 26
  • Votes against: 18
  • Invalid votes: 1
  • Total rateable value of hereditaments in favour: £7,141,250
  • Total rateable value of hereditaments against: £4,768,300

We did

As the proposed alteration was approved in the ballot, the revised BID levy will now take effect from 1st June 2025. Affected ratepayers will be billed in the usual way from that date.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote.