'Pest infestation' forces Wetherspoon's to shut

Wetherspoon's Eddie Gershon confirmed the Warwickshire pub was shut and said: “The manager of the pub was made aware that there was a situation and the pub was closed of our own accord.

“There has been an infestation at the pub and the manager decided to close it yesterday (20 July).

“At the moment, pest controllers are trying to relieve the situation but we don’t know when it will reopen.”

Gershon added that he was unsure exactly what the “pests” were at this stage.

Apology notices

The Coventry Telegraph​ has reported that notices have been placed on the windows of the pub apologising for the closure.

Previously, at another site in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, Wetherspoon's apologised to a customer​ who claimed "a rat ran up my trouser leg and stole a chip" – although the pubco could not confirm that one ran up a customer’s trouser leg, despite admitting the presence of rat's at that venue.

Pubs fined

Hygiene at pubs across the country has been a long-running issue.

Last June, a Surrey pub was fined £13,916.66​ after pleading guilty to food hygiene offences, following evidence of a mouse infestation, poor structure and cleaning, and a failure to implement a suitable food safety management system.

A pub in Cheshire appeared in court and was given a £6,000 fine​ after its kitchen was deemed to be in a “general unhygienic state”.

JD Wetherspoon has recently been in the good books with environmental health – having scored one of the highest proportions of five-star ratings by the Food Standards Agency and, in 2014, 91% of the pub giant's sites scored the maximum five-star rating.