How often can Belocal adjust flat fees to account for inflation?

• (7) We may adjust the amount of any flat fee (meaning a fee that is a flat dollar amount) to account for inflation. Up to one time per calendar year, we will have the right to increase each flat fee by an amount up to the yearly cost-of-living adjustment ("COLA") percentage identified by the United States Social Security Administration or similar metric of inflation we deem reliable (such as the Consumer Price Index (U.S. Average, all items) maintained by the United States Department of Labor). By way of example only, if the COLA adjustment for 2027 were 3%, then on a single occasion in 2027 we could raise each flat fee by up to 3%.

Additionally, the amounts of the inflation adjustments are cumulative and, if not applied in one year, may be applied in future years. For example, if the COLA adjustment for 2027 were 3%, then in 2027 we could raise each flat fee by up to 3%. However, if we elected to raise a particular flat fee by 1% in 2027, we would have the right to carry forward the additional 2% increase to be applied in a future year. If the COLA adjustment for 2028 were 2%, then, because of the inflation adjustment we did not apply in 2027, we would have the right to increase such flat fee in 2028 by up to 4% (2% for 2028 and 2% for the unapplied adjustment in 2027). If we were to increase such flat fee in 2028 by only 2%, then the remaining 2% adjustment would continue to be available to be applied to increases in such flat fee in future years, and so on.

(8) Each of these fees can be increased upon notice to you; however, the total increase of each fee during the term of the Franchise Agreement will not be more than 25% of the fee currently identified in this Item 6.

Source: Item 6 — OTHER FEES (FDD pages 14–31)