A tax consultancy claims landlords and property investors could be owed Stamp Duty refunds.
Following a review of over 7,000 transactions, SCA alleges that 11% of buyers had overpaid Stamp Duty, missing out on reliefs worth an average of £12,909 — with some clients reclaiming tens of thousands.
“These aren’t obscure loopholes — they’re legitimate, government-recognised reliefs,” says a company spokesperson.
“But because the rules are complex, and most advisors don’t specialise in SDLT, far too many transactions are taxed incorrectly — and it’s business owners, landlords, and smaller developers who are footing the bill.”
While mixed-use properties remain a common issue — particularly where retail units, offices, or workshops are involved — SCA claims that a much broader group of transactions are being mishandled.
It says buyers may be entitled to significant reliefs in cases where:
- A property contains multiple self-contained units (qualifying for Multiple Dwellings Relief);
- The purchase is made from a probate or deceased estate;
- A developer or business steps in to rescue a broken chain, or to facilitate a new-build sale;
- An employer acquires a property to relocate staff, often triggering overlooked concessions;
- The structure involves deferred completions or rights to purchase, affecting the tax due.
SCA says part of the problem is that buyers are often too focused on their own circumstances — and overlook the fact that many reliefs depend on the seller’s position, or the structure of the transaction itself.
The company says some 70% of overpayments relate to probate purchases while 20% involve mixed-use properties and 6% stem from misapplied second home surcharges.
The spokesperson continues: “We regularly see properties with commercial elements, multiple dwellings or unusual sale conditions taxed as if they were standard homes.
“That might be understandable from a layperson using HMRC’s calculator — but it’s not acceptable when businesses are losing thousands due to simple oversights.
“In an ideal world, HMRC urgently updates its SDLT calculator to reflect the real-world complexity of property purchases [and] the government simplifies the rules around reliefs and builds in a safety net to protect business and residential buyers alike.”
