Upon termination or expiration of the Belocal Franchise Agreement, what rights does the franchisor have regarding the Listings?
Belocal Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
. Upon termination or expiration of the Franchise Agreement, Franchisor will have the right and is hereby empowered to effectuate the assignment of the Listings to itself or to any third party it designates. In the event Franchisor exercises its assignment rights, Franchisee will have no further right, title, or interest in or to the Listings; provided, however, Franchisee shall be obligated to pay all amounts owed in connection with the Listings, including all sums owed to Franchisor, Franchisor's affiliates, or Franchisor's approved suppliers under existing contracts for the Listings, and Franchisee shall immediately, at the Franchisor's request, (i) take any other action as may be necessary to transfer the Listings to the Franchisor or Franchisor's designated agent; (ii) install and maintain on any or all of the Listings, at Franchisee's sole expense, an intercept message, in a form and manner acceptable to Franchisor; (iii) disconnect, cancel, delete, remove, or discontinue the Listings; (iv) relist any Listing in a different location or with a new provider, whether published or online; (v) modify any Listing and any content in such Listing; (vi) provide all login or other access credentials to the Listings; and/or (vii) cooperate with Franchisor or its designated agent in undertaking any or all of the foregoing.
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- Franchisee appoints Franchisor as Franchisee's attorney-in-fact, to act in Franchisee's place, for the purpose of assigning any Listings covered by the Assignment to Franchisor or Franchisor's designated agent or taking any other actions required of Franchisee under this Agreement.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 71)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Belocal's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, upon termination or expiration of the Franchise Agreement, Belocal has the right to take control of the business listings. Specifically, Belocal is empowered to effectuate the assignment of the Listings to itself or to any third party it designates.
The franchisee will relinquish all rights to the Listings if Belocal exercises its assignment rights. The franchisee is obligated to pay all amounts owed in connection with the Listings, including sums owed to Belocal, its affiliates, or approved suppliers under existing contracts for the Listings. The franchisee must also take actions necessary to transfer the Listings to Belocal or its agent, such as installing an intercept message, disconnecting or canceling the Listings, relisting, modifying content, providing access credentials, and cooperating with Belocal in these actions.
Furthermore, the document states that the franchisee appoints Belocal as their attorney-in-fact for the purpose of assigning any Listings to Belocal or its designated agent and taking any other required actions. This grants Belocal full authority to act in any manner necessary to exercise these powers. This includes rights to Online Presences (including social media accounts and webpages) and telephone numbers (including personal cellphone numbers).
In essence, Belocal retains significant control over the business's online presence and contact information upon termination or expiration of the franchise agreement, ensuring a smooth transition and preventing potential misuse of the brand's identity by the former franchisee. This is a fairly standard practice in franchising, as it protects the brand's reputation and customer relationships.