Former directors of Sarumdale, the pub company placed in administration last summer, have been told they won’t be allegeable for redress under the Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) scheme for the interest rate swaps they blame for the firm’s demise.
Meanwhile, company directors Rodney Hall and Mike Lloyd are in discussion with pub companies about taking new sites after failing on three occasions to buy back the former Sarumdale pubs, M&C Report has learnt.
Hall and Lloyd blamed the interest payment obligations on their hedged loans with Barclays, which totalled £350,000 a year for three years, for the firm’s demise.
Lloyd told M&C Report that the pair had a meeting with the FSA last month and were told they weren’t allegeable for redress under its scheme because Sarumdale employed more than 50 people, which is one cut-off point for eligible firms.
Lloyd said he and Hall made an offer to administrator Begbies Traynor to buy back the pubs in September but this was rejected. A further offer in December, submitted after three of the 13 pubs had been sold, was also rejected, as was a third in January.
Lloyd said he’s begun discussions with some national leased pub operators about taking new pubs. “We are talking to various companies at the moment. If we can try to make a fresh start, that’s what we are intending to do. But raising money is not easy at the moment.”
In a statement regarding the fall of Sarumdale last June, Barclays said: “We are sorry to hear that Sarumdale Limited is dissatisfied with the products they purchased from Barclays. Sarumdale entered into these products six years ago and first raised a formal complaint to us last week.
“Our Business Support specialists have worked closely with this client. Barclays is satisfied that it provides sufficient information to enable a client to make an informed, commercial decision about the products it offers. We encourage any clients who have concerns about any of the services we provide to contact us directly.”
The FSA decliend to issue a statement but said the reasons for the allegeability criteria are stated on its website, www.fsa.gov.uk.
