Class A1

mindyourlanguage · 5 February 2019 at 1:49PM

Afternoon all

I have a Convenience shop that sells most items except alcohol.

I've been trying to get hold of my landlord to ask for permission to sell alcohol in my shop. It's now been nearly a year and still no reply.

Whilst reading through the lease it says I can use the shop for anything in class A1. I've searched through the internet and can't see anywhere what class selling alcohol would be.

Thanks

Savvy_Sue · 5 February 2019 at 2:32PM

Your local authority would be able to advise, and would also be able to give you a clue as to whether they'd be happy with a licensed store in your location.

molerat · 5 February 2019 at 4:19PM

Class A1 covers retail shops of pretty much any description. If your premises is already A1 and your lease does not prohibit you from selling alcohol then I doubt it is of any interest to the landlord. The biggest obstacle is going to be the licencing laws https://www.gov.uk/guidance/alcohol-licensing and, unless you are the only one working in the shop, staff training to meet those requirements.

mindyourlanguage · 5 February 2019 at 4:22PM

Thanks for the reply, so basically I don't need to inform my landlord just the local authority?

I know to sell alcohol I need a personal license which is booked for this Friday, once I receive that I can then apply for the premises license.

molerat · 5 February 2019 at 4:29PM

Have you looked at your council table of licence charges :eek:

pooch · 5 February 2019 at 4:36PM

mindyourlanguage wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, so basically I don't need to inform my landlord just the local authority?
..

mindyourlanguage wrote: »

...
Whilst reading through the lease it says I can use the shop for anything in class A1....

Correct (assuming the sale is for consumption off the premisis)
- there are others to notify, such as the police, but the local authority will guide you about these.

Class A1 covers:
Shops, retail warehouses, hairdressers, undertakers, travel and ticket agencies, post offices, pet shops, sandwich bars, showrooms, domestic hire shops, dry cleaners, funeral directors and internet cafes.

https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200130/common_projects/9/change_of_use

pooch · 5 February 2019 at 5:15PM

molerat wrote: »

Have you looked at your council table of licence charges :eek:

You’ll be charged a fee that’s based on the rateable value of the property.
Application fees range from £100 to £1,905, depending on the fee band of your venue.
If your premises doesn’t have a rateable value it will fall into the lowest fee band.

https://www.gov.uk/premises-licence

The OP will also need a personal licence (for whoever is going to be the "designated premises supervisor (DPS)". That seems to vary by authority, but our local authority charges less than £40 for that.

mindyourlanguage · 18 February 2019 at 2:35PM

Thanks for your input.

I have finished the course and sat the exam. I should get the results his week and will start the process for a personal license.

The agent for my landlord is still not getting a reply for the renewal of my lease. I'm still paying rent, not sure how I legally stand and the business will not be worth anything without a lease.

lincroft1710 · 18 February 2019 at 4:07PM

You hadn't previously mentioned that your lease had expired, just that your landlord hadn't replied to your request for permission to sell alcohol from the premises.

Commercial leases can be very complex, but generally if a lease has expired a landlord should offer to renew. However there are circumstances when a landlord can choose not to renew but must give the tenant plenty of notice.

Do be aware that if your landlord is of a religious belief that forbids alcohol, they may decide not to allow you to sell alcohol. However that condition should be stated in the lease.

mindyourlanguage · 18 February 2019 at 4:26PM

It's a renewable lease so I would of thought it would automatically renew after the end date.
As I mentioned I have been asking for a while now for a new lease and all I get is the agent saying there waiting for a response. The lease expired nearly a year ago, in that time I've sent six emails to them.

lincroft1710 · 18 February 2019 at 5:10PM

I think you should obtain the advice of a solicitor specialising in commercial leases as your landlord's continued silence is strange and you really ought to know where you stand with all this.

Class A1

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