News

In the context of a business lease renewal there are quite a number of new factors which both landlords and tenants of commercial property need to consider in the immediate aftermath of the COVID-19 lockdown. That is particularly so in circumstances where the tenant’s business is in leisure, hospitality, retail, or some other business which hasn’t been able to carry on in lockdown and no benefit whatsoever has been derived by the tenant from its leased premises. Rent during this period may well not have been paid and cash strapped tenants may have negotiated for rent suspension, or waiver. Fortunate indeed is the tenant which finds it has a business interruption insurance policy, such as that apparently issued by Hiscox, which seems to cover the risk which has “come home to roost” here.

The landlord of a popular Norwich city centre pub is suing the Government’s Ministry of Justice for loss of income and damage to his reputation for mistakenly reporting he owed a £1/4 million in debt following a County Court judgment, which saw people take their business away from the venue as they thought it would soon close. Instead, landlord Simon Carpenter says the Pig and Whistle on All Saints Green continues to thrive and that the actual sum should have been reported as just over £2,300, which he owed to a property consultancy.