After the Brightstar Care franchise agreement ends, is a franchisee prohibited from soliciting customers within their former territory who were serviced by the agency during the agreement's term, including National Accounts customers or referral sources?
Brightstar_Care Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
[Item 17: RENEWAL, TERMINATION, TRANSFER AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION]
- (a) solicit any customers within the territory covered by this Agreement that were serviced by the Agency during this Agreement's term, including, without limitation, any customers defined as National Accounts customers or referral sources; or
- (b) provide services to any customers within the territory covered by this Agreement that were serviced by the Agency during this Agreement's term, including, without limitation, any customers defined as National Accounts customers or referral sources.
For purposes of this Section 14.3, "Similar Business" means any business that provides: (1) supplemental healthcare staff to institutional clients, such as hospitals, Medicare agencies, hospice agencies, assistedliving centers, nursing homes and clinics; (2) homecare services—whether comprehensive care services (including medical and non-medical care services), solely non-medical care services, or solely medical care services—to private-duty clients within their home or residence (the reference to "private-duty clients" means clients who receive care in their homes or other places of residence regardless of the nature of the payor for such care (e.g., a private individual, long-term care, commercial insurance, National Accounts payor, Medicaid, etc.)); (c) case management and care management services; and/or (d) any other services, technology or devices, or products we may now or in the future authorize you to offer or sell in connection with the Agency's operation. The obligations described above are in addition to your other post-term obligations in this Agreement described in Sections 14.1 and 14.2. The nonsolicitation restrictions above are in lieu of your post-term non-competition obligations under Sections 11.4.3 and 11.4.4 of this Agreement.
Source: Item 17 — RENEWAL, TERMINATION, TRANSFER AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION (FDD pages 81–92)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Brightstar Care's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, after the franchise agreement ends, a franchisee is prohibited from soliciting or providing services to customers within their former territory who were serviced by the agency during the agreement's term. This includes National Accounts customers or referral sources.
This restriction means that upon termination of the Brightstar Care franchise agreement, the franchisee cannot actively seek out or engage with any customers or referral sources that were previously served by the agency during the term of the agreement. This non-solicitation clause is designed to protect Brightstar Care's established customer base and referral networks.
The FDD specifies that these non-solicitation restrictions take precedence over any post-term non-competition obligations outlined in Sections 11.4.3 and 11.4.4 of the agreement. This indicates that Brightstar Care prioritizes preventing former franchisees from poaching existing clients over broader competitive restrictions.
The term "Similar Business" is defined in the FDD as any business that provides supplemental healthcare staff, homecare services, case management, care management services, technology, devices, or products that Brightstar Care authorizes the franchisee to offer or sell. This definition is important because it clarifies the scope of activities that the franchisee is restricted from engaging in after the termination of the agreement.