Stonegate files £845m covid lawsuit against insurers: The UK’s largest pub group Stonegate is suing a trio of insurers for losses it suffered during the pandemic, one of the highest-profile cases yet in a bitter dispute between the hospitality and insurance industries, the Financial Times has reported. The company, which is backed by private equity group TDR Capital, is seeking £845m in a claim filed at London’s High Court against MS Amlin, Liberty Mutual Insurance Europe and Zurich. An insurance policy covering business interruption and related losses has been triggered multiple times during the coronavirus crisis, Stonegate argues in court documents. The FT stated: “According to the documents, Stonegate says that the insurers do not dispute that the policies should have paid out, but contend their liability is limited to £17.5m, of which £14.5m has already been paid. Stonegate declined to comment on the suit. As repeated lockdowns from March 2020 forced pubs and restaurants to close, the question of whether so-called business interruption policies should pay out has been at the heart of a stand-off with insurers. Various Eateries, which owns the Strada restaurant chain and the Coppa Club, has also filed a £16.3m lawsuit against its insurer Allianz in a dispute over its business interruption policy. According to the claim, Allianz contends its liability is limited to £2.5m. “I think that if [businesses] were genuinely paying an additional premium to protect them from epidemics and pandemics then the default response should be that insurers pay out,” said Hugh Osmond, the founder of Various Eateries. Corbin & King, the owner of upmarket London restaurants including The Wolseley and The Delaunay, and a group of hoteliers led by Black & White Hospitality, which operates the Marco Pierre White restaurants, are also pursuing claims against their insurers tied to the pandemic. The string of cases follow a landmark ruling by the UK’s Supreme Court in January which found that many business-interruption policies should have provided cover against the financial losses inflicted by the crisis. The test case was brought by the Financial Conduct Authority on behalf of 370,000 affected policyholders. It had a bearing on up to 700 types of policies issued by as many as 60 insurers. But as the ruling only covered certain policy wordings, hospitality groups have since brought cases in an effort to prove that their insurance should also have paid out – and in some cases arguing that each premises represents a separate insured loss. In the court documents, Stonegate estimates its total business interruption and related losses between February 2020 and April 11 2021 reached £481m. It projects further losses from April 2021 to 2023 – the indemnity period under the policy – could reach £365m. It claims that it is entitled to make business interruption claims under policy clauses covering the presence of a notifiable disease in the vicinity of its outlets, as well as claiming for denial of access to its premises and enforced closure. Zurich said it was not the lead insurer on the Stonegate policy, but it did provide some cover and had already made an interim settlement. MS Amlin and Liberty Mutual declined to comment. In its lawsuit, Various Eateries claims that each business interruption at its ten premises “gave rise to multiple triggers of the disease clause (and therefore multiple covered events).” Allianz and Various Eateries said in a joint statement that they were ‘collaborating’ to seek a judicial determination on matters relating to the insurance policy that were not resolved by the Supreme Court case.”

Hawksmoor explores IPO: Hawksmoor, the upmarket steakhouse chain, could join the queue of companies that are planning to float on the London Stock Exchange, The Times has reported. The newspaper stated: “The business is working with Berenberg, the stockbroker, to gauge potential demand among City fund managers for its shares, The Times has learned. While Hawksmoor’s plans are at an early stage and a flotation is among a number of avenues under consideration, the move underscores the booming popularity of stock market listings.” Co-founder Will Beckett told The Times: “We’ve been exploring a variety of options, including an IPO. We want to be in the best possible shape for the numerous opportunities that are already coming our way post-covid.” The Propel Blue Book of Turnover and Profit shows the company turned over £45,515,000 in the year ended 31 December 2019, with pre-tax profit of £4,408,000. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £895 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The regular single subscription rate of £395 plus VAT for operators and £495 plus VAT for suppliers remains the same. Premium subscribers also receive access to a second exclusive monthly database, the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book. The Blue Book database provides an insight into UK operator turnover and profitability over five years, profit conversion and directors’ earnings. The latest version, which was released on Friday, 9 July, added another 62 companies, which means the database features a total of 280 companies. They are ranked by turnover and profit conversion. It also shows directors’ earnings over five years and the top-earning director. Total turnover for the 280 companies is £25.8bn. The minimum company turnover to be included will be £4m. Premium subscribers also receive access to Propel’s library of lockdown videos and Friday Wrap interviews and now also have access to a curated video library of the sector’s finest leaders and entrepreneurs, offering their insights on running outstanding businesses in the sector. Premium subscribers also receive their morning newsletter 11 hours early, at 7pm the evening before our 6am send-out; regular video content and regular exclusive columns from Propel insights editor Mark Wingett. Email jo.charity@propelinfo.com to sign up.

Customers queue to enter nightclubs at midnight: Excited customer took the opportunity to visit nightclubs last night. Some described the midnight reopening of nightclubs as “like New Year” as they queued up for their first night out dancing since the start of the pandemic. It comes as the remaining coronavirus restrictions were lifted in England on Monday, allowing venues such as nightclubs to finally welcome back patrons. Outside Egg nightclub in north London clubbers queued for more than an hour and cheered as the clock struck midnight, following a countdown from ten. Fundraiser Chloe Waite, who was first in the queue, said the occasion was “something we’re going to remember for a long time”. “It’s going to be a special night,” she told the PA news agency. “For me this is a New Year’s-type event and something we’re going to remember for a long, long time and we might not get the opportunity for a while.” Owner of Bar Fibre in Leeds, Terry George said: “It feels so special. People are treating it like a very special occasion, like a New Year’s Eve type affair. Freedom Eve is what we’re calling it.”

Most people will still avoid parties, clubs and theatres despite end of covid restrictions: Fewer than a third of adults would be comfortable going to a party with a lot of people, despite the lifting of most covid lockdown restrictions today. Polling for The Times by YouGov suggests that 31% of people would be happy going to a party in the next few weeks, compared with 53% who said they would not be. Just over a third (34%) said they would be happy going to the theatre, but 48% would not and only 20% of people aged between 18 and 24 said that they would be happy to go to a nightclub, but 53% would not. Only 31% thought that lifting restrictions was the “right thing to do”, and 55% said it was wrong. Voters are equally split on self-isolation rules. Until mid-August anyone who is “pinged” after coming into contact with someone with covid is expected to isolate for ten days. Asked if this should apply to double-vaccinated people 40% believe it should, and 43% believe it should not. The public also supports the use of covid certification tests to prove vaccination – or a negative test result. Over half think this should be a condition of entry into somewhere like a nightclub, while 20% think it should be encouraged which is government policy.

Consumer confidence ‘rebounds to pre-pandemic levels’, increase in leisure spend: UK consumer confidence returned to pre-pandemic levels in the past three months as government support helped bolster personal finances, according to new figures. The latest quarterly consumer tracker by Deloitte improved to a reading of -9% in the three-month period to the end of June, its highest reading since the final quarter of 2019. Deloitte’s analysis is based on responses from more than 3,000 UK consumers between 18 and 21 June 2021, as the UK’s final lockdown phase was postponed. For consumers, confidence in job security has risen by four percentage points compared to the previous quarter, the report said. Debapratim De, senior economist at Deloitte, said: “The furlough scheme has been very effective in cushioning the economic blow to many individuals from the pandemic. With an overwhelming majority of respondents reporting increased savings, the stage is set for a consumer-driven rebound in activity. We expect the six months between April and September to deliver greater growth than seen over the four years before the pandemic.” The report also highlighted an increase in leisure spending during the period, as pubs and restaurants were able to serve people inside. Simon Oaten, partner for hospitality and leisure at Deloitte, said: “The leisure and hospitality industry has had a torrid time, but there are encouraging signs that the stronger level of optimism amongst consumers could translate into increased leisure spending activity in the UK. The lifting of restrictions, improving weather and the continuation of the summer of sport, could see an acceleration of leisure sector spending during the next few months. The challenge for business leaders, however, will be how to juggle scarce staffing resources in order to meet this increased demand. Beyond this, the question remains as to whether the boost in confidence and spending will be enough to sustain the leisure sector when government support is removed later in the year.”

Eagle Eye reports revenue growth: Eagle Eye has reported new business, including the launch of the pioneering Pret a Manger coffee subscription service, meant it delivered revenue growth of 12% to £22.8m (FY 2020: £20.4m) in the year ended 30 June 2021. The company stated: “Careful management of the cost base, in line with our revenue profile, alongside continued investment in the product and sales and marketing, resulted in an increase in adjusted Ebitda for the year of 28% to £4.2m (FY 2020: £3.3m), and grew the adjusted Ebitda margin to 17% margin (FY2020: 16%), ahead of market expectations. The group delivered an improved underlying cash performance in the year, which saw a cash inflow, excluding covid-19 related cash management measures, of £0.91m (FY 2020: like-for-like inflow of £0.78m). The group closed the year with a net cash position of £0.8m, (FY 2020: £1.5m) being ahead of market expectations, driven by the increase in adjusted Ebitda and management of working capital, including covid-19 VAT deferrals of £0.4m which is expected to be paid in the current financial year ending 30 June 2022 (being the only outstanding government covid-19 support received and not yet returned). The group continues to have access to its £5m banking facility which, combined with the group’s net cash, is sufficient to support its existing growth plans.” Tim Mason, chief executive of Eagle Eye said: “I am proud of the performance of our team this year; securing fantastic new retailers around the world and delivering innovative solutions that add value for our customers, while dealing with the challenges of the pandemic. This has driven a good financial performance, and importantly, we have exited the year with strong momentum. With the AIR platform sitting at the heart of the digital marketing programmes at a growing number of the world’s largest retailers, we have demonstrated our credentials in an accelerating market, providing us with confidence in our ability to continue to deliver future growth.”