// British Land says only 46% of rent from its retail space was paid in December
// The bills covered three months to end of December, a period impacted by lockdowns and tiered restrictions
// British Land reported “resilient” trading in the four weeks to Christmas
British Land has managed to collect less than half of the rent it is due from retail tenants, as two-thirds of them were forced to close in January.
The property giant said it had collected 46 per cent of retail space rents by Thursday last week, seven days after they were due at the end of December.
The bills cover the last three months of the year, which were hit by both lockdown and the tier system that were implemented to slow the spread of Covid-19.
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By Christmas Eve, restrictions were not as tight as they had been during November’s lockdown, and 73 per cent of British Land’s shops were operational at that point, it said.
Less than two weeks later, on January 7, only 620 stores, or 32 per cent, were able to trade in some way.
British Land reported “resilient” trading in the four weeks to Christmas.
Between November 30 and December 26, footfall was 76 per cent of last year’s level.
The firm also said it had noticed very little difference between sales in areas that were under Tiers 1 to 3 restrictions.
However, stores in Tier 4 had been hit, and were five percentage points lower.
In shops that remained open, sales were 81 per cent of last year’s levels.
In contrast, British Land said it collected 95 per cent of December rent from its office space portfolio, and expects to receive more in time.
It also previously collected 98 per cent of the March rent it was due, 99 per cent of June rent, and 99 per cent of September rent.
British Land’s notable retail assets includes Broadgate, Meadowhall and Ealing Broadway.
with PA Wires
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