What you need to know about Pubs Code arbitration 

You can find information on our website about resolving problems in your pub company relationship. However, if you have a dispute with your pub company about your Pubs Code rights, that dispute can be referred to the PCA to be decided by an arbitrator. 

An arbitrator is an independent and impartial decision maker appointed to resolve disputes between parties outside of court. The PCA has the power to appoint an independent arbitrator (usually a lawyer or a surveyor) in Pubs Code disputes referred for arbitration. These arbitrators must have undertaken special training on the Pubs Code, and must commit to the Pubs Code arbitration standards. That arbitrator will review evidence, listen to arguments from both sides and make a final decision regarding the dispute. This decision is called an "award". Usually, arbitrators decide a case on the documents, without a hearing.

The arbitrator's award is legally binding, meaning that if an arbitrator orders a pub-owning business to take action, it must do it. Tied pub tenants must also comply with an arbitration award.

There are strict time limits to make an arbitration referral to the PCA. Before you make a formal referral you should read the Pubs Code Arbitration Disputes factsheet which explains what arbitration is and what disputes may be referred. It also describes the rules relating to time limits, the costs of arbitration and who pays them. 

Please note, the PCA can only help to settle disputes which are in scope of the Pubs Code. You can only make an arbitration referral if you are a tied tenant (or a pub-owning business in relation to market rent only disputes), or authorised to act on their behalf. For other matters, a tenant should refer to their pub company's complaints procedure or take independent legal advice.  

Arbitrations are confidential and awards are only binding between the parties to the Pubs Code arbitration. The PCA has legal powers to request information or documents from an arbitration for regulatory purposes which it will treat confidentially.  

However, some awards can include findings on the interpretation of the law or principles to be followed which may be of wider application. The PCA therefore expects the regulated pub-owning business to consider its understanding of the law, and whether it should adjust its behaviour to tenants more widely, in light of each arbitration award. This is particularly true where common issues are addressed in successive awards that relate to fundamental principles of the Code, and where no binding decisions from the courts exist on relevant points of law. The PCA has taken regulatory steps where pub companies have not met this expectation, for example by repeatedly arguing the same point unsuccessfully in arbitrations when it had chosen not to appeal and had not reconsidered its view on the law on receipt of an award, for example, in the statutory investigation of Star Pubs and in this Pubs Code Action story

The PCA encourages greater openness and transparency in Pubs Code arbitrations, and it publishes most arbitration awards in full or in summary (ensuring necessary confidentiality where this has not been expressly waived by the parties). 

Publication enables the industry to understand decisions made by arbitrators and gives tied tenants and pub companies an equal level of understanding as to how the Code is being applied in individual arbitrations. Arbitration awards and decisions of the High Court where awards have been appealed can be read here.

Publication of Arbitration Awards and Summaries

The PCA seeks to increase industry understanding about how the Pubs Code has been applied in individual cases. In order to create greater transparency in the arbitration process, the PCA routinely publishes awards made in Pubs Code arbitration cases or, where appropriate, summaries of the findings made in awards (anonymised by redacting names and identifying details to ensure necessary confidentiality where this has not been expressly waived by the parties). The publishing pubs code arbitration awards  section provides information about how the PCA approaches publication and considerations for tenants in providing their consent. 

Publication of arbitration awards gives tied tenants and pub companies an equal level of understanding as to how the Code is being applied in individual arbitrations. This encourages greater negotiation between tenants and pub companies which in turn helps to settle disputes more quickly and reduces the need for arbitration.

Pubs Code arbitrations are managed by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) on behalf of the PCA. 

Full details, including how to pay the referral fee, can be found on their website. 

The Pubs Code has very strict deadlines connected with rights under the Code and for making formal referrals to the PCA. It is the tied-tenants’ and the pub-owning business’ responsibility to ensure they are able to meet the strict deadlines set out in the Code. 

If you are considering referring a Pubs Code dispute to arbitration, you may wish to consult our factsheet on Getting Help and Support with the Pubs Code and Arbitration.

The PCA has produced an arbitration standards document which sets out what the PCA expects from a Pubs Code arbitrator and in turn, make this clearer for the parties. 

The standards, amongst other things, include expectations for how the arbitrator will communicate with the parties, case progression and timescales and the use of the PCA’s powers as regulator to require information about the arbitration. 

Arbitrator standards promote timeliness, quality, and consistency. Arbitrators will need to agree to adhere to these standards when taking on any new appointment. Read more here.

1. Why is the PCA publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards?

The Pubs Code Adjudicator (PCA) encourages greater openness and transparency in Pubs Code (the Code) arbitrations. An important step in achieving this is the publication of arbitration awards.

Publication enables the industry to understand decisions made by arbitrators, including where the PCA has appointed an alternative arbitrator. It gives tied tenants and pub companies an equal level of understanding as to how the Code is being applied in individual arbitrations. This encourages greater negotiation between tenants and pub companies which in turn helps to settle disputes more quickly and reduces the need for arbitration.

Awards will be considered as appropriate for publication where the award contains an arbitrator’s decision on the issues in dispute.

2. Why does the PCA ask the tenant and pub company for consent to publish the award?

The procedural rules which generally apply to arbitrations acknowledge the confidentiality of an award. The PCA asks the tenant and pub company to agree to waive this confidentiality. In line with data protection responsibilities, the PCA also requires an individual’s consent to publish their personal data in the award.

3. Have regulated pub companies agreed to the PCA publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards?

Yes. Pub companies regulated by the Code have all made clear their general support the PCA’s approach to publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards. The pub company is asked to give its specific consent before publication of each award.

4. Will a tenant be asked to consent to the PCA publishing the arbitration award?

Yes. Where publication is being considered, the tenant will be asked if they agree to waive confidentiality in respect of the award.

The tenant will also be asked if they consent to the PCA publishing their personal data. This is any information that could identify the tenant and could include the name of the pub if the context means the tenant could be identified from this.

A tenant is not obliged to give consent and their decision will have no impact on the arbitration case or any future interaction with the PCA. Any individual who consents to the publication of their personal information may withdraw this consent at any time by contacting the PCA.

5. Will consent be requested from anyone else?

If the award includes an individual’s personal information, the PCA will not publish this information without their consent. Where the award includes personal information relating to a third party individual, such as an employee or advisor, they may be invited to consent to the PCA publishing their personal information within the award.

6. How will the PCA make sure specific information in the award is not published?

Where information is not to be published, it will be redacted from the award. Redaction is the process by which information is obscured or removed from a document. This is usually done by blacking out parts of a document so that it cannot be read.

7. Will the PCA publish the award in full?

Where an individual has not given consent to the PCA to publish their personal information, or where consent has not been requested, this personal information will not appear in any published award.

The tenant and pub company giving consent to publication of an award will be asked to identify any information within it that they do not want to be published.

The PCA wants to publish awards in the most helpful form to the industry. Often, the facts of a dispute may be necessary for the reader to fully understand the arbitrator’s decision and how the principles have been applied. Pub companies should only redact personal and/or any commercially sensitive information which would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person or entity. Tenants are encouraged to consider the same. The PCA recognises that the tenant and pub company may have a legitimate interest in keeping such information confidential and out of the public domain.

Where an individual consents to publication of their personal information, they may still identify sensitive information for redaction, such as that which relates to their private affairs where revealing this might significantly harm the individual’s interests.

8. Will the PCA publish information about an award in other formats?

Publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards ensures the industry – particularly tied pub tenants – have the greatest understanding possible of how the Code is being applied. Where the PCA does not have consent to publish the award, the PCA may publish an anonymised version or summary.

The PCA may also publish an anonymised version or summary of the award instead of seeking consent from the tenant and pub company where that is considered to be appropriate and helpful to the industry.

9. Where will the PCA publish the arbitration award?

The award will be published here on the PCA website, where all other published awards and summaries can be found.