This related to complaints lodged by Kevin Banks the tenant of the Sweet Green Tavern, Bolton.
The Respondents were Punch Taverns.
Judge Trevor Barber, a lay person, chaired the Hearing. The PICA-Service panel was made up of a barrister with operating experience of the licensed trade, two tenants of tied licensed premises, a former Brewery Estates Director and a managing Director of a bar and restaurant operating company.
The complaints briefly concerned alleged rental issues allied to alleged poor communication and delays on the part of the Pub Co.
The PICA-Service panel found, from the evidence presented by the parties, that the Respondents did commit breaches of its Code of Practice in its dealings with the Complainant concerning rental issues in terms of delays and poor communication.
The Complainant was awarded an undisclosed level of damages. Costs were awarded against the Respondents and the Complainant was invited to present a claim for his own costs in pursuing the complaint.
More information about PICA-Service PICA-Service comes within the auspices of the Pub Governing Body having been formed by six of the industry’s leading associations (the ALMR, the BBPA, the BII, the FLVA, the Brighton and Hove licensee Association and the GMV) in order to deliver self regulation to the tied tenanted pub industry. Its mandate is to deal with technical breaches or breaches of the spirit of the industry framework code of practice, or breaches of individual pub company (and pub-owning brewery) codes of practice, occurring after 30th June 2010 – the date the framework code came into effect.
The PICA-Service panel comprises independent experts made up of a diverse group of individuals including a circuit judge, a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, accountants, solicitors, a barrister, a magistrate, chartered surveyors, licensed trainers, pub tenants and retired pub tenants, plus brewery/pub Co and retired brewery/pub Co executives.
More details are available on the PICA-Service website including how complaints should be lodged.
The PICA-Service website address is: www.picaservice.com