According to the study, by 2021 41 per cent of UK consumers are expected to be influenced by, or to be using, social media to make a purchase. This figure is much higher for consumers under 34 years of age, as this group is already engaging in social commerce. 

The biggest beneficiaries of social commerce sales are currently retailers in the fashion, footwear, music, film and grocery sectors, but the whole retail sector can potentially benefit by becoming more ‘social’. It’s not difficult to see the attraction of introducing the social element of online shopping: if a consumer finds out that a friend or relative has recommended a product, they are likely to be influenced by it.

And Tesco hasn’t wasted any time to embrace the idea.

Tesco is currently trialling an app on Facebook that enables its customers to earn double Clubcard points by using the social network to like, share and buy products via its website. As the company has over 800,000 followers on Facebook, the potential is massive.

With the financial gains so high, many more retailers will undoubtedly follow Tesco’s lead and look at ways of making online shopping a more personal experience.

Although the working party that set up the consultation concluded that, on the basis of the responses received, there was insufficient consensus on how to address CRC issues in leases, it did say that it would produce a revised version of the Carbon Reduction Commitment: A Guide for Landlords and Tenants, which it originally published in June 2009.

On 3 September 2010, the updated version of the Guide was published by the British Property Federation. It discusses the following:

1. How the costs of the CRC can be apportioned between landlords and tenants. This is because the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme Order 2010, which came into force in April 2010, does not oblige landlords to pass CRC costs on to their tenants, or to share with their tenants the benefit of any Revenue Recycling Payments that they receive;

2. Issues that are likely to arise when the ownership of a building changes; and

3. The advantages and disadvantages of four possible methods for incorporating CRC provisions into leases. These include adding the cost of a CRC to the normal service charge; running a separate CRC service charge; charging a levy on energy costs; and leaving the lease silent on the CRC (or specifically providing that the landlord will not require a contribution to its CRC costs from tenants.)

If you have any queries about this, or anything else CRC-related, please contact me at joe.kwok@mablaw.com.

The consultation asked for feedback on a number of issues, including:

• Whether tenants should contribute towards CRC costs incurred by landlords in relation to the energy used within the tenant’s premises, or in the common parts;
• How CRC costs should be apportioned between different tenants;
• If CRC costs are not passed on to tenants, how landlords and tenants could be encouraged to work together to reduce carbon emissions;
• Whether tenants should provide landlords with the money to buy allowances in respect of carbon emissions, or whether landlords should buy the allowances and charge tenants retrospectively; and
• What should happen if either the landlord or the tenant changes.

If the consultation showed that a consensus could be found, the Working Party intended to create standard clauses for use in commercial leases, which would help reduce the time it takes to grant or review leases, or to agree documentation for the sale and purchase of properties that are subject to occupation leases.

A summary of the responses received during the consultation was published on 7 July 2010. However, after evaluating the responses, the Working Party concluded that there was insufficient consensus on how to address CRC issues in leases, meaning there was little point in creating standard clauses.

However, due to a number of the responses calling for additional guidance on the options open to landlords and tenants, the Working Party has decided to publish a new version of The Carbon Reduction Commitment: A Guide for Landlords and Tenants (originally published in June 2009) in the next few weeks. This updated guidance will outline the CRC issues that need to be considered when drafting leases; set out the different methods by which landlords and tenants could share the costs and rewards of the CRC; and summarise the advantages and disadvantages of each method.