Initial figures from Wednesday’s quarterly payment date reveal commercial landlords were paid just 18.2% of what they were owed, compared with 24.3% on the March payment day. According to Re-Leased, 22.8% of rent owed for office space was paid; 16.2% for industrial space; and 13.8% for retail space. Melanie Leech, chief executive of the British Property Federation, said: “Early indications are that our warnings to Government about the impact of their moratorium on evictions leading to businesses refusing to pay their rent have proved justified. There is no excuse for office occupiers not to meet their legal obligations, and even in the retail and hospitality sectors at the sharp end of this pandemic, we know that there are well-financed tenants who can pay their rent but are choosing not to do so.”
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