A FED-UP landlord has said he has lost in excess of £5,000 since waterworks closed off the road to his pub six weeks ago.

The Royal Oak at Whitecroft is usually packed out this time of year in the run-up to Christmas but landlord Chas Phipps has said business has been "disastrous".

He said: "The one night we had just three people in the bar – it's awful. Since the start of the waterworks my customers have had to follow a three mile diversion, I can't blame them for not coming out to us as the diverted road is not the best to drive on this time of year."

For the last six weeks, Severn Trent has been carrying out work on the Pillowell road to install a £200,000 water pipe and a three mile diversion has been implemented around the area. Workmen left the site last Friday (December 13) to allow residents "breathing space" over the festive season but will be returning to finish the last stages of the project on January 2.

"The water board (Severn Trent) has offered to compensate us for the loss of custom but it's hard to put a figure on it without producing our accounts detailing our takings this time last year," Chas added.

"I have had to cancel events because I simply don't have the money to pay for it. I've noticed that other businesses have signs up saying that their business is open as usual but people can't get to us. I had a lady call me the other day saying that she wanted to bring a party of people to us for a meal but couldn't find us which meant we lost business...

"It will be a while before we start to recover from our loss as far as we are concerned the damage has already been done."

A spokesman for Severn Trent said: "We appreciate that it can be frustrating when work is carried out – help is always available for businesses in areas which may be affected by our work.

"We've offered to help the Royal Oak and will continue to speak to the manager to address his concerns. We are working to make sure that our customers' water supply isn't interrupted and aim to complete our £200,000 investment to replace a large water pipe in the Whitecroft area, by the end of February 2014.

"We're incredibly grateful for the cooperation of the local community and all parties involved in the improvements."