The honest answer, and how to protect yourself · England & Wales · 2026
Short answer: it can, but it's uncommon — and it's almost always avoidable. When the VOA
reviews a band, it looks at the evidence both ways. If your home turns out to be under-banded, the band can
go up instead of down. The way to stay safe is simple: check the evidence before you submit.
When a band can actually rise
Your home is under-banded. If comparable homes and the 1991 value show your band is too low,
a review can correct it upward.
Something changed the property. An extension or improvement can support a higher band once the home is
next sold — separate from a challenge, but worth knowing.
The evidence is thin or points the wrong way. Challenging "on a hunch", with no like-for-like
comparables, is where people get an unwelcome surprise.
The trap: submitting a challenge without checking first. If you don't know which way
the evidence points, you're gambling. The fix isn't to avoid challenging — it's to look before you leap.
How to make sure the evidence points down
Before you send anything, confirm two things point to a lower band:
Like-for-like comparables. Several homes of your type and similar size, near you, sitting a band
below yours.
The 1991 value. A real sale price brought back to 1 April 1991 values that lands your home below
its current band.
If both point down, a challenge is well-founded. If they suggest your band is already right — or too low — the
honest move is to not challenge. There's no shame in that; it's the check working.
How we handle this: before we ever recommend a challenge, we cross-check your home's
value against the 1991 band and flag if the evidence points the wrong way — so you're never sent into a challenge
that could backfire.
Challenge Your Band reads your street's bands from the official VOA list, matches floor areas and sale prices,
and gives you a straight verdict — including a safety check that warns you if a challenge looks risky. You decide
with the numbers in front of you.