A DROITWICH pub landlady is one of the first in the country to use new pub laws to force the corporation she rents from to offer her a fairer deal when buying products and charging her rent in order to keep her business afloat.
Trudy Thomas is the tenant at the Rifleman’s Arms which is one of four bars in the town owned by Marston’s, which has failed to carry out a review in the last five years.
Having been tied into buying products from the company, she claims Marston’s has undermined and undercut her pub by allowing competitors to better her beer prices and pull in the punters.
Judy is now going for a Market Rent Only option under the new legal guidelines after she met chair of the British Pub Confederation and Parliamentary Save the Pub Group, Greg Mulholland MP.
This means Trudy will be able to buy products from other sellers or renegotiate a fairer price for beer from Marston’s. It will also give her an independent rent assessment to ensure she is only charged what the property is worth rather than what Mr Mulholand calls ‘extortionate rates’.
She said: “I am happy I will finally get a fair deal for my pub through the Market Rent Only option.
“It was good to meet with Greg, and I am glad I have had support from members of pub campaigners from the British Pub Confederation and Pubs Advisory Service such as Dave Mountford.”
Mr Mulholland said: “I was pleased to meet with Trudy, one of the first tenants to choose the Market Rent Only option, and talk to her about how Marston’s, her supposed business partner, undercut her pub, compromising her business, through giving the pubs on retail agreements around her better beer prices.
“Choosing the Market Rent Only option will allow Trudy to run an successful pub where she can buy beer at reasonable prices, and not be forced to pay exploitative costs forced on her by pubcos like Marston’s, or it will force Marston’s to offer more reasonable tied prices.”
Dave Mountford of the Pubs Advisory Service had tried to write to the chief executive of Marston’s on Judy’s behalf to explain her business was being destroyed by their actions but he said his efforts were ignored.
“Every effort has been made to resolve this issue over the last six months including writing to Ralph Findley, the Chief Executive of Marston’s informing him of the fact that one of his ‘business partners’ is having her business destroyed by the actions of Marston’s itself.
“I have demonstrated on many occasions the fact that Marston’s are taking at least three times the profit from the pub that Trudy is taking and all the response I get is to blame Trudy for not developing the pub as they feel she should.”
The Standard contacted Marston’s but they declined to comment.
