The UK government has announced that it is extending measures to prevent companies from facing eviction from their landlords due to non-payment of rent because of the Covid-19 pandemic until the end of September 2020.
The government confirmed changes to its existing package of measures for the commercial property sector:
- It is to amend the Coronavirus Act to extend the time period for suspension of the forfeiture of evictions from June 30 to September 30, meaning no business will be forced out of their premises if they a miss a payment in the three-month period
- Secondary legislation will be put in place to prevent landlords using Commercial Rent Arrears Recovery unless they are owed 189 days of unpaid rent. The time period for which this measure is in force will be extended from June 30 to September 30
- There will also be an amendment to the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill which will extend the temporary ban on the use of statutory demands and winding-up petitions where a company cannot pay its bills due to coronavirus until 30 September
The announcement coincided with the publication of "Code of Practice for commercial property relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic" which looks to help rebuild relationships between landlords and tenants that may have deteriorated during the pandemic.
Business Secretary Alok Sharma MP said: "From clothes stores to our local book shop, we want as many high street businesses as possible to emerge from the pandemic, in the best position to bounce back.
"During this particularly challenging time for businesses, our retail stores are safely welcoming shoppers back and taking the necessary steps to drive economic recovery.
"By putting a stop to unreasonable evictions, these measures will protect jobs and provide further flexibility to our high street businesses that were trading successfully before the COVID-19 emergency, so they can focus on continuing to deliver for their customers and communities."