Town commences refunds for overcharged rates
Published on 11 September 2025
The Town of Cambridge has applied credit amounts to all properties affected by the rates calculation error identified in the Endowment Lands Area. These credits were immediately applied to rate accounts on Thursday 4 September, following the 3 September Special Council Meeting.
Interim rate notices and letters detailing the refund and credit process have been issued to show the adjustments made. Impacted property owners can expect to receive their interim rates notice and letter within the next week. Letters and notices were posted by the Town from 8 September 2025.
Ratepayers who have paid their rates in full are entitled to a refund of the overcharged amount. Details on how refunds will be processed are included in the letter sent with interim rate notices.
Those who have opted to pay their rates in instalments will see the credit applied to their next instalment.
If ratepayers prefer not to receive a refund, the credit amount will be applied to their 2026/2027 rate notice. No further action is required for ratepayers on instalment plans or those choosing to retain the credit.
The error, which resulted in an overcharge of approximately $999,739 across 4,633 properties, was formally corrected at a Special Council Meeting on 3 September after the State Administrative Tribunal approved the Town’s application to quash the previously imposed rates.
Town of Cambridge CEO Lisa Clack said:
“We take all ratepayer enquiries seriously. I am satisfied that when a ratepayer queried how their rates had been calculated, our team's response went beyond simply answering the query and led them to conduct a full internal review of the process, which ultimately uncovered the error.
“This proactive approach reflects our commitment to transparency and accountability. I hope the swiftness of our response goes some small way to showing our community how seriously we have taken the issue of overcharging ratepayers.
“Our immediate focus remains on processing refunds quickly and efficiently, and next steps will then turn to engaging an independent, external consultant to conduct the review.”