New research has revealed The Beaten Docket in Cricklewood Broadway is facing the second worst bill rise in the capital, with rates set to increase by £138,000 – or 431 per cent.
There could be a stay of execution with the government expected to change how the rates are calculated following an outcry over the threat to the hospitality industry.
But to spotlight the bills being faced by landlords, new website Is My Pub F***ed ranks the most at risk pubs in England using official data from the Valuation Office Agency (VOA).
Businesses set to see the biggest increases of more than 200 per cent are categorised as “absolutely f***ed”.
The website was designed by pub fan Ben Guerin to show which locals needed most support with The Spread Eagle in Wandsworth named the “most f***ed pub” in the capital facing a £104,000 hike – equal to 622 per cent.
Posting on the website on January 8 he wrote: “Good news — the government’s signalled a potential u-turn on pub rates. But nothing’s confirmed yet, and pubs still face rising costs across the board. They need your support more than ever.”
The Beaten Docket in Cricklewood was converted from a former shop in the early 1990s.
It is named after a losing betting slip and references the Kingsbury Races that were held in the 19th century.
Five times a year, thousands of race-goers would descend on land leased by William Perkins Warner to watch the horses and perhaps have a flutter.
Old prints of jockeys, races and betting slips adorn the walls of the pub – alongside photographs of Cricklewood from the Victorian era.
The pub is split into three areas with one more food dominated and includes booths for intimate drinking and guest ales on draft alongside the likes of French lager 1664.
A spokesperson for Wetherspoons said: “Wetherspoon has always said that pubs should have tax equality with supermarkets and increasingly that position is being promoted by industry bodies.
“Pubs pay 20% VAT on food (versus zero for supermarkets) and pay far higher business rates per pint than supermarkets.
“The issue with the current valuation approach for business rates is that it appears to place all its weight on trade alone, without fully considering the wider anomalies within the complex licensed sector.”
The Beaten Docket is at 50-56 Cricklewood Broadway, NW2.
