Enterprise couple face eviction

http://www.thepublican.com/story.asp?storycode=64260

Aside from the detail of Anne Marie, Wayne and David's case illustrated here, how many other tied pubco lessees are in front of County Courts across the UK this month with similar difficulties?

This surely is not an isolated case. Combining rent arrears with buying out fines and lumping them into one debt seeking forfeiture is hardly new. When pubcos smell blood of another wounded tenant their kill instincts take over and all manner of extra debts are heaped onto their account. Each 'compensation' invoice, which invariably have a chancer's £300+vat 'admin' fee on top, are added to rent arrears, stacking up what looks like more month's non payment of rent. Amassing huge questionable sums which make lessees' arrears appear more extreme to a magistrate than they really are. It is entirely possible that an attempted dialogue by the tenant to discuss rent conditions that has been wilfully ignored by the freeholder is hidden behind aggressive litigious action on the pubco's part.

Lesson to be learnt is try NOT to get in to rent arrears under any circumstances even when it means robbing Peter to pay Paul. Make sure that the Peter you're robbing is your pubco supply account and not your utilities, vat or paye. IF you CANNOT avoid going into arrears on rent make sure you tell your freeholder (as far in advance as you possibly can) what you are doing and explain why in writing... Ask for rescue measures to be placed on your account. Tell them your trading situation is not viable and point out the basic sums why.

Sign up to Fair Pint www.fairpint.org.uk and join GMB NOW: http://www.gmb.org.uk/

AND VERY IMPORTANT email your MP and ask them to tell Peter Mandelson to refer the pubcos to the Competition Commission.

DO these three things NOW or tomorrow at the latest!