It had already been discussed at the beginning of the month, when a ruling by the Court of Cassation had given the green light for the renegotiation of contracts, on the principle of mutual good faith, following the Covid emergency and the measures introduced in recent months. Now we go much further, with the sentence of a court that recognizes a right to almost halving the rent. Stores and businesses can get a rent discount if their takings have collapsed due to Covid.
The sentence
The principle, with a sentence that risks being an important precedent and that will cause debate, is at the center of an order of the Court of Rome with which on August 27 a restaurateur is proved right. Who, with an urgent appeal, had asked both to reduce the rent for the months of the lockdown and, above all, that his owner did not trigger the surety paid just as a form of guarantee in case of arrears.
The venue has obtained a 40 percent reduction for the months of April and May 2020 and 20 percent for the months from last June to March next year. An important figure, considering that the restaurateur was required to pay 96 thousand euros in rent per year (8 thousand euros per month).
The motivations
The Roman restaurateur had tried to find an agreement with the company that owns the walls of his restaurant, but failing to do so, he turned to the judges. And the VI civil section of Viale Giulio Cesare has established, precisely by virtue of the current economic upheaval caused by the coronavirus, a temporary decrease in the rent.
In the order of the Court, signed by the judge Maria Pasqualina Grauso, in addition to the temporary discount on the rent, “the suspension of the surety guarantee up to a debt exposure of 30 thousand euros” is also ordered. The motivation is linked to the fact that “the appeal seems to be founded in terms of” periculum in mora “(danger in delay, ed), given that the losses deriving from the enforcement of the surety and the payment of the full installments are suitable to considerably worsen the financial crisis situation of the respondent, leading to its termination “.
In spite of other rulings to the contrary, Judge Grauso considers the government measures, such as the 30 percent rent discount, “not sufficient” to reimburse operators for damages from Covid. Explain Luciano Sbraga, director of Fipe Confcommercio, al Messenger: “The turnover of companies has been zeroed by the lockdown, today they are below 40%. The sentence of the Court of Rome, in the context of a precautionary measure, established that the request of a Roman restaurateur to have the rent for his premises lowered is legitimate, precisely by virtue of the evident distortion of the economic context “.
Consequences
As mentioned, it could be a important legal precedent. but the order, although executive, is a precautionary measure, which does not resolve the question, which is likely to be the subject of further debate. Judge Grauso has been careful not to rule that a rent discount is automatic after the outbreak of Covid. Instead it can be obtained when the operator – precisely because of the consumption crisis generated by the pandemic – cannot fully exploit the rented premises precisely to offer services to customers. Simply put, when there are external conditions that prevent you from doing your job.
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