January 13th, 2025 sees the launch of the Pubs Code Adjudicator's Annual Tied Tenant Survey and tied tenants are being encouraged to participate.
January 13th, 2025 sees the launch of the Pubs Code Adjudicator's Annual Tied Tenant Survey. 1,200 tied tenants will be contacted by independent research company Ipsos, representing 15% of all tied tenants from the six pub companies that operate within the Pubs Code; Admiral Taverns, Greene King, Marston's, Punch, Star and Stonegate.
The PCA's Annual Tied Tenant Survey aims to promote and incentivise fairness in the tied business relationship, by providing robust comparative data on tenant experiences of their key Code rights, the information and support tenants receive, and their satisfaction in their business relationship with their pub company. The survey will focus on areas such as tenant awareness and understanding of their statutory rights under the Pubs Code, their views about information received by new tenants, and their experience with rent negotiations, repairs and premises insurance.
This anonymised data is made available to the industry; it supports pub owning businesses to understand where they can improve, as well as supporting new and existing tenants to make informed choices and informing the PCA's regulatory priorities. Like the PCA, the six pub companies value the results of this survey. If you are a tied tenant of any of these companies, you may have already been notified that you could be contacted at any time from 13th January 2025.
A message from Fiona Dickie, Pubs Code Adjudicator
"Understanding tenant views is a crucial part of the PCA's role and the tied tenant survey is our way of ensuring tenants can have their say. I'm pleased that the 2025 survey is now live and will be open until mid-March.
"Out of the 1,203 tenants interviewed in 2024 , 63% were satisfied with their tenant relationship, whilst 21% were dissatisfied, and we want to track any change in those figures. The insight gained from the survey showed that tenant satisfaction related to good communication and the relationship with the Business Development Manager or area manager, listening and responding to issues quickly, providing fair and transparent information, giving freedom and being supportive during the cost-of-living crisis. However, some areas identified by tenants as a cause of dissatisfaction included: a lack of support or one-sided relationship, little to no contact with the Business Development Manager and slow repairs or disputes with repairs and dilapidations schedules. We will be looking for signs of improvement in this year's survey results and will be exploring in more detail tenant satisfaction with how pub companies handle repairs, as we know that this has been an area of concern for tied tenants in previous surveys. Having a greater understanding of tenants' views will help pub companies tackle these issues.
"The PCA aims to drive up standards, celebrating where pub companies are doing well, while highlighting areas for improvement. The data we gather is essential for pub companies to track changes, improve their practices and ensure healthier relationships with tenants. Your feedback will directly contribute to shaping a better experience for tied tenants across the industry".
Tenants who receive a call from Ipsos are encouraged to find time to participate, as their views will help to identify key issues and prioritise areas of work for the PCA. The interview will take around 20 minutes to complete. All survey responses will be strictly anonymous, and tenants will be called at random by Ipsos. Neither the PCA nor the pub company will know who has taken part.
The final results are expected to be published in early summer.
This is a chance for tied tenants to have a say on issues that matter to them, so if you are contacted, please consider being a part of this important survey.
Last year's survey results can be found on the PCA's website .
