Will next week's Budget mark the end of the cold snap for pub landlords?
With the cold weather lingering a little longer than any of us would have hoped, for many, a warming coffee from a high-street barista currently appeals more than a refreshing pint at the local.
If freezes tend to represent bad news for pub owners though, there’s one that would put a smile on any publicans face.
Yes, the Chancellor will announce his budget next week, with pub and bar landlords all over the country hoping for a freeze on beer duty.
The beer tax escalator, introduced in 2008, increases the cost of a pint every year by 2% more than the rate of inflation. It means that a THIRD of the price you pay for your pint now goes directly to the taxman.
Since the beer tax was brought in, nearly 6,000 pubs have closed – with national newspapers estimating some 29,000 young people have been forced out of work. At a time when pubs and bars are already under pressure from the coffee shop revolution on Britain’s High Streets, publicans are understandably keen to put an early end to the tax, currently set to run until 2015.
Tight margins down at your local pub
With around £1 per pint heading straight to HMRC, it’s not hard to see the tight margins most pubs are working against in the buying and selling of stock. All the more reason then, to get better value for money when it comes to other areas – one being your pub insurance.
A specialist pub or bar insurance policy takes the uniqueness of your pub into account, providing all the cover you need and none of the cover you don’t. A bespoke policy means you can be more effective with your premiums – staving off some of the effects of that aggressive beer tax.
Get a pub insurance quote through QuoteRack.co.uk today– before the sun comes out for 15 minutes and that's our Summer over.