HMRC has ramped up its scrutiny of property valuations amid an inheritance tax crackdown, data show.
The taxman challenged 23.5pc more property valuations for inheritance tax purposes last year as it sought to boost receipts.
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) – the quango in charge of property valuations – received 14,631 cases from HMRC in the year to September 2025, up from 11,845 in the same period the previous year, according to official data revealed through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request.
Inheritance tax is charged at 40pc on qualifying assets above £325,000, known as the “nil-rate band”. If the main family home is left to children or grandchildren, the threshold rises to £500,000.
Years of rising house prices and frozen nil-rate thresholds mean more households have been dragged into paying the levy. Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, confirmed at the last Budget that inheritance tax allowances would remain frozen until 2031.
From April 6 2027, private pensions will become subject to death duties of up to 40pc, dragging thousands more estates into the tax net.
Mike Warburton, The Telegraph’s tax expert, said the change would result in more valuation problems.
He added: “The Government is short of money and has decided that a closer scrutiny of property values offers a fruitful use of resources to increase revenues.
“Executors will be under increasing pressure to work out inheritance tax liabilities once pensions are included and the last thing they need is the additional cost and delays of disputed property valuations.”
Laura Walkley, of TWM Solicitors, which submitted the FOI, said: “There has been a noticeable shift towards questioning figures submitted in inheritance tax returns, rather than accepting them at face value.
“Aside from increased requests for help from the VOA, HMRC’s use of AI, data matching and other advanced big data tools is also increasing its ability to identify inconsistencies and errors in inheritance tax returns, leading to more frequent queries.”