Taking your pubco to the Pubs Code Adjudicator: the £200 referral, the 21-day wait, and what it can cost you

If your pubco hasn't followed the Pubs Code, you can make it answer to an independent arbitrator through the Pubs Code Adjudicator for a £200 fee. For anything other than Market Rent Only, you write to the pubco saying it hasn't complied, wait 21 days, then refer within four months. The pubco pays the arbitrator, and if you lose, the most you can usually be ordered to pay towards its legal costs is £2,000. There's no cap the other way. And almost nobody does it: 10 referrals in the whole of 2024/25.

Every tied tenant I know has a grievance with their pubco. Hardly any of them know what it costs to take it further, so they assume it's thousands and drop it. It isn't thousands to start. Here's the whole process in one place, from the PCA's own guidance.

Who this applies to

The Pubs Code covers tied tenants of the six pub companies it regulates in England and Wales: Admiral, Greene King, Marston's, Punch Pubs, Star Pubs and Stonegate. If you're tied to one of them, you have Code rights and you can enforce them through arbitration. Scotland has its own separate Scottish Pubs Code and its own process. Tenants of smaller pubcos sit outside this altogether.

What you can refer, and who can refer it

Type of dispute	Who can refer it	Examples
Market Rent Only (MRO)	You or the pubco	Whether you're entitled to ask for MRO, an incomplete full response, unreasonable MRO tenancy terms, the independent assessor's rent
Rent	Only you	The rent assessment process, a rent assessment proposal, the duty to give you a rent proposal
New agreements and renewals	Only you	What the pubco has to give you before you sign or renew
Running the tie	Only you	Insurance transparency, a blank profit and loss template, some duties around your Business Development Manager
Flow monitors	Only you	Being penalised solely on a flow monitor reading
Detriment	Only you	Being treated worse because you tried to use your Code rights

If it isn't a Code right, the PCA can't arbitrate it. A row about a broken boiler is your lease and your pubco's complaints procedure, or a solicitor.

Try these first

The PCA expects the pubco to try to sort things out before anyone arbitrates, and it's worth using the people the Code puts in your way.

• Your BDM. The first conversation. The Code says your Business Development Manager has to deal with you fairly and lawfully and keep accurate notes of what's discussed. If you're not getting notes, that's a Code issue in itself, and the BDM visit notes guide covers what you're owed.
• The Code Compliance Officer. Every regulated pubco has to appoint one. They're an employee of the pubco, but their job is to check the company complies with the Code, and they're meant to be reasonably available to you. The PCA publishes their contact details.
• The pubco's complaints procedure. You should have been given it with your new tenant information.

The PCA can't take up your case for you. It can tell you about your rights and the process, and it welcomes information about how the pubcos behave. It's also the regulator, with powers to investigate a pubco, which is what's happening with Stonegate now. I've written up what that means in the Stonegate investigation explained.

The clock, with real dates

This is where tenants lose cases before they've started. For any dispute that isn't part of MRO, the steps are fixed:

1. Tell the pubco in writing what the issue is and that you think it hasn't complied with the Code.
2. Wait 21 days, counting from the day you told them as day one.
3. Refer to the PCA after those 21 days, and within four months of the first day you could have referred.

Worked through: you send your letter on Monday 2 November 2026. The 21 days run from 2 November to 22 November, so the earliest you can refer is Monday 23 November. Your four months start that day, so your last chance is Monday 22 March 2027. Miss it and the referral isn't accepted, however good your case.

MRO has its own deadlines at each stage of the procedure, and they're tighter, so read the MRO step by step guide before you go near that process. And if your pubco starts arbitration under your lease about something to do with MRO, you can insist the PCA arbitrates instead, but you have to give written notice to both the pubco and the PCA within 21 days.

What it costs, line by line

Cost	Who pays	How much
Referral fee	Whoever refers, so you	£200, by bank transfer only, paid when you refer
The arbitrator's fees and expenses	The pubco	Reasonable fees, including any experts the arbitrator appoints. You only pay these if the arbitrator decides your referral was vexatious
Your own adviser, if you use one	You, unless the arbitrator awards them against the pubco	Whatever you agree with them
The pubco's legal costs, if you lose	Possibly you	Usually capped at £2,000. More only if your referral was vexatious or your conduct pushed the costs up unreasonably
Your costs, if you win	Possibly the pubco	No cap. The arbitrator can order the pubco to pay all of them

Two things in that table surprise people. The usual rule is that the loser pays the winner's costs, but the Code caps the tenant's exposure and leaves the pubco's open. And if you represent yourself, you can still claim for the time you reasonably spent on the case, as long as you set out what you did and how long it took. So the realistic downside of losing a fair, properly made case is £200 plus up to £2,000, not a five-figure legal bill.

Before you pay anyone to help, check your insurance. The PCA itself suggests looking at your policies, household ones included, for legal expenses cover.

What the arbitration is actually like

The PCA appoints an independent arbitrator, usually a lawyer or a surveyor, who has been trained on the Code. Most cases are decided on the documents without a hearing. The decision is called an award, and it's legally binding on both sides: if the arbitrator orders the pubco to do something, it has to. You and the pubco can keep negotiating while it runs, and if you settle, the arbitrator can issue an agreed award.

It's confidential, but the PCA publishes most awards in full or in summary when the parties consent, so you can read how earlier cases on your issue went before you start. You can appeal an award to the High Court, but only on narrow grounds such as jurisdiction, a point of law in limited cases, or a serious irregularity.

Why so few tenants use it

The PCA's own figures: fewer than 20 arbitration cases a year since March 2023, most of them about MRO, and 10 referrals in the year to March 2025. The Adjudicator at the time, Fiona Dickie, said the low numbers might reflect good compliance, but she also recognised "that the complexity of the arbitration process may deter tied tenants from exercising their rights", and the PCA consulted in 2025 on simpler arbitration rules for unrepresented tenants.

My take is that the complexity is real but it isn't the main thing stopping people. Evidence is. A tenant who says "the BDM promised me" with nothing written down is starting from nothing. A tenant with dated notes and their own figures on what the tie costs them is in a different position entirely. If your dispute is about money, your stock and price records are part of your evidence, which is one more reason to keep them properly. Tied price rises and what you can do and tied versus free-trade beer prices show the kind of numbers that make a case concrete.

And don't underestimate the 21-day letter. Plenty of disputes end there, because a pubco that gets a clear written notice citing the Code knows exactly where it goes next.

Where to get help

The PCA can explain your rights and the process but can't advise on your case. Every tied tenant of a regulated pubco is a member of the BII, which supports panels of accredited independent advisers. If you pay for help, the PCA suggests asking up front whether it's a fixed fee or hourly, what you'll be charged for emails and calls, and whether the adviser is regulated and insured. Some people offering Pubs Code help aren't regulated at all, and the PCA says so plainly.

I'm not a lawyer, and this is a guide to the process, not advice on your dispute. If the money at stake is serious, get advice before you send the first letter, because that letter starts the clock.

Common questions

How much does it cost to refer a dispute to the Pubs Code Adjudicator?

£200, paid by bank transfer when you make the referral. The pubco pays the arbitrator's reasonable fees. If you lose, the arbitrator can usually order you to pay no more than £2,000 towards the pubco's costs, unless your referral was vexatious or your conduct unreasonably increased the costs.

How long do I have to refer a Pubs Code dispute?

For disputes outside MRO, you notify the pubco in writing, wait 21 days counting the day you notified as day one, then refer within four months beginning with the first day you could have referred. MRO disputes have their own deadlines at each stage.

Can my pubco make me pay its legal costs?

Usually only up to £2,000, and only if you lose and the arbitrator decides you should pay. The cap goes only if your referral was vexatious or your conduct pushed the costs up unreasonably. There's no cap on what the pubco can be ordered to pay you.

Is a Pubs Code arbitration award binding?

Yes. Both the tenant and the pubco must comply with it. It can be appealed to the High Court only on limited grounds, such as the arbitrator's jurisdiction, certain points of law or a serious irregularity.