TFA Plus

TFA Plus has been designed to provide a solution to a raft of self-contained, non-complex situations that can be resolved largely remotely.  It is ideal when you feel you need someone to act on your behalf and where you need the work to be done efficiently and cost effectively. This does not replace the services of our Recommended Professionals, who are still available for complex cases that need intimate knowledge of the holding and may require many physical meetings.

The following situations will fall under TFA Plus and will be charged as an extra cost on top of your standard TFA membership. These areas will not form part of the free advice provided as part of your membership of the TFA:

• Where you instruct a TFA Adviser to act on your behalf in negotiations, drafting documents or making bespoke representations on your behalf.
• Reviewing, checking and reporting back on farm tenancy agreements, whether they be new agreements or comparing replacement agreements with old agreements.
• Reviewing, checking and reporting back on other types of agreement, related to the occupation of the land you farm, including surrenders, re-grants, memorandums of agreement and licence agreements.
• Drafting or writing directly in respect of planning matters – for example, in support of a planning application submitted by you, or objecting to a planning application submitted by your landlord where you might lose land from your farm.
• Drafting or preparing clauses for insertion within tenancy or other agreements.
• Drafting letters, witness statements, notices, or other representations for your use in matters relating to your occupation of the land you farm.
• Preparing or critiquing livelihood assessments for statutory tenancy succession.

As examples, TFA members have used TFA Plus for issues such as finalising the terms of a consent for non-agricultural use, negotiating a simple rent review, dealing with end of tenancy matters, responding to notices to remedy and negotiating terms for a new letting.

However, TFA Plus will not be appropriate for all circumstances. For example, on complex cases, which involve many site visits or meetings in areas remote from our Advisers, it may not be possible to act on your behalf. In addition, whilst TFA Plus cannot be used where matters proceed to formal dispute resolution facilities such as full Arbitrations, Tribunal or Court, TFA Advisers can work alongside other appointed professionals who take the lead in such situations if necessary or required. However, TFA Plus may be available for Arbitrations conducted under the RICS Simplified Arbitration Service on a case-by-case basis.

TFA Recommended Professionals

For those more complex cases, including where matters proceed to Arbitration, Tribunal or Court, the TFA continues to offer the opportunity of using one of our hand-picked Recommended Professionals, such as a chartered surveyor, accountant or solicitor to help you.  Contact details for all TFA Recommended Professionals are listed within a directory at the back of the TFA Members’ Benefits Handbook or they are available on request from TFA Head Office.

For Further Information

TFA Advisers will be able to guide you on whether using TFA Plus would be the right course to take for your individual circumstances, or if, in fact, it would be better for you to use a TFA Recommended Professional.

Our aim is to help you to resolve matters swiftly, efficiently and as cost effectively as possible. Under TFA Plus, you will be charged an hourly “not-for-profit” rate. Ask for more details about how TFA Plus could work for you, by simply emailing tfa@tfa.org.uk or call 0118 930 6130. Full terms and conditions apply and are available on request.