Ei pub group withdraws High Court bid over market rent only agreement

Pub business Ei Group (formerly Enterprise Inns) has withdrawn a High Court appeal against a decision made by the Pubs Code Adjudicator.

The dispute related to the implementation of a market rent only (MRO) agreement, which allows tenants to cut beer-ties with landlords.

MRO agreements were introduced in the 2016 Pubs Code and allow tenants to purchase beer from any supplier, in exchange for paying market rent on a site.

The new agreement breaks the centuries old beer-ties, in which tenants paid reduced rents but were forced to purchase their beer through the landlord.

The dispute with the regulator is said to have centred around whether a new contract had to be drawn up by the pub owner, something tenants argued would be unnecessarily costly and act as a deterrent to pursuing an MRO agreement, according to The Telegraph.

A spokesperson for Ei Group said: "Whilst we received permission to appeal an award from the PCA relating to the form and method of delivery of an MRO-compliant agreement, we believe that subsequent awards from the PCA's office have provided further helpful clarity in this matter. We have therefore discontinued our appeal."

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